Neva Shillingford, 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
Ms. Shillingford is the Executive Vice President of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East. Ms. Shillingford serves on the boards of several key community-based organizations, including the Southeast Bronx Neighborhood Center, Lebanon Hospital (Ambulatory Care & Mental Health) Community Planning Board #8, New York Jobs with Justice (Steering Committee) and the Coalition of Labor Union Women. She is also Vice President of the Caribbean Relief & Scholarship Fund, President of the Jackson Democratic Club, Executive Member of the African American United for Political Power, Bronx Chapter and is active with AFRAM, a national caucus for members and staff of African descent of the Service Employees International Union.
Peggy Chan, MPH, New York State Department of Health
Ms. Chan is DSRIP Program Director for the NYS Department of Health. Her career has been devoted to developing programs for vulnerable populations across the healthcare continuum. Her particular interests are in community health and population health management. She has worked in municipal, voluntary and for-profit organizations in managed care and in the delivery of care. Her past affiliations include the Health and Hospitals Corporation, Chinatown Health Clinic (Charles B. Wang Health Center), Community Service Society, St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center, Aetna US Healthcare and VNS CHOICE MLTC.
Louise Cohen, MPH, Primary Care Development Corporation
Ms. Cohen became CEO of the Primary Care Development Corporation (PCDC) in August 2015. Prior to assuming leadership of PCDC, she was Vice President for Public Health Programs at Public Health Solutions in New York City (2011-2015), and oversaw a variety of programs to improve community health through food access and nutrition, women’s reproductive health, tobacco control and child development. Ms. Cohen held successive leadership positions at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) for 12 years, including as Deputy Commissioner of the Division of Health Care Access and Improvement. Among her accomplishments at DOHMH, Ms. Cohen led the development and execution of Take Care New York, New York City’s first comprehensive health policy agenda. She also oversaw the Primary Care Information Project, which brought a public health and prevention-oriented ambulatory care electronic health record system to more than 2,500 primary care providers. Before her tenure at DOHMH, Louise was Director of the Park Slope Family Health Center (now part of the NYU Lutheran Family Health Centers network). Louise served on PCDC’s Board of Directors from 2011 until she became CEO.
Louise Cohen, MPH, Primary Care Development Corporation
Ms. Cohen became CEO of the Primary Care Development Corporation (PCDC) in August 2015. Prior to assuming leadership of PCDC, she was Vice President for Public Health Programs at Public Health Solutions in New York City (2011-2015), and oversaw a variety of programs to improve community health through food access and nutrition, women’s reproductive health, tobacco control and child development. Ms. Cohen held successive leadership positions at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) for 12 years, including as Deputy Commissioner of the Division of Health Care Access and Improvement. Among her accomplishments at DOHMH, Ms. Cohen led the development and execution of Take Care New York, New York City’s first comprehensive health policy agenda. She also oversaw the Primary Care Information Project, which brought a public health and prevention-oriented ambulatory care electronic health record system to more than 2,500 primary care providers. Before her tenure at DOHMH, Louise was Director of the Park Slope Family Health Center (now part of the NYU Lutheran Family Health Centers network). Louise served on PCDC’s Board of Directors from 2011 until she became CEO.
Helen Schaub, 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
Ms. Schaub is the New York State Director of Policy and Legislation at 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East. In this position, she oversees all of the New York State policy and legislative work for the nation’s largest local union, representing 300,000 registered nurses, social workers, certified nursing assistants, home health aides and other health care workers in hospitals, nursing homes and home care agencies in New York State. Before her years at SEIU, she worked as a grassroots organizer in the Bronx and as an independent consultant for community organizations. Schaub also serves on the Board of Trustees for the 1199SEIU National Benefit and Pension Funds, the Advisory Board for the East Harlem Health Outreach Partnership, and the Board of Directors for Project Vote.
Karla Silverman, MS, RN, CNM,Primary Care Development Corporation
Ms. Silverman is the Director of Clinical and Training Initiatives at the Primary Care Development Corporation. She co-authored Who’s Going to Care? Analysis and Recommendations for Building New York’s Care Coordination and Care Management Workforce; led the development, writing and piloting of the Care Coordination Fundamentals course created in partnership with 1199SEIU; and created the Team-Based Care in the Patient-Centered Medical Home course. Karla received her bachelor’s degree from Brown University and her master’s degree from Columbia University.
Katherine Brieger, MA, RD, CDE, HRHCare
Ms. Brieger has been associated with HRHCare for over 28 years. She is currently the Chief of Patient Experience and Staff Development, where she is responsible for all programming, training and evaluation of patient experience. Ms. Brieger leads all staff training and development in HRHCare under the Planetree Institute. As a Planetree Affiliate, HRHCare has been committed to patient centered care and designing programs which enhance the patient experience. During her employment, in HRHCare, she has served in a number of positions, including: Chief Operations Officers; VP of Community Initiatives; and Staff Training and Development. She is the Chair of the BOD of the Association of Clinicians for the Underserved; and on the National Advisory Council on Maternal, Infant and Fetal Nutrition, including one year as Chairperson; and as a as a faculty member of the National Health Disparities Collaboratives (HDC); and on the National Diabetes Education Program Advisory Panel. Ms. Brieger’s expertise in Quality Improvement, Care Coordination, Nutrition Services and Diabetes Management is nationally recognized and she has designed numerous successful programs that address diabetes and special populations, most specifically migrant and seasonal farmworkers.
Peter Campanelli, PsyD, NYU Silver School of Social Work
Dr. Campanelli is Senior Scholar, Organizational and Community Services for the McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research at New York University Silver School of Social Work. Among other initiatives, Dr. Campanelli co-developed and co-directs NYU Silver’s five-module Advanced Certificate in Integrated Primary and Behavioral Health. He is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of the Institute for Community Living, which he founded in 1986. Dr. Campanelli is a past recipient of the Peterson Prize for Community Service from Rutgers University, the Visionary Leadership Award from the National Council of Community Behavioral Health Agencies and the Congressional Community Corporate Partnership Award from the Honorable Edolphus Towns. His work has twice been recognized with the Gold Medal Award from the Hospital and Community Psychiatry Division of the American Psychiatric Association.
Peggy Chan, New York State Department of Health
Ms. Chan is DSRIP Program Director for the NYS Department of Health. Her career has been devoted to developing programs for vulnerable populations across the healthcare continuum. Her particular interests are in community health and population health management. She has worked in municipal, voluntary and for-profit organizations in managed care and in the delivery of care. Her past affiliations include the Health and Hospitals Corporation, Chinatown Health Clinic (Charles B. Wang Health Center), Community Service Society, St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center, Aetna US Healthcare and VNS CHOICE MLTC.
Patrick Coonan, Ed.D, RN, NEA-BC, FACHE, College of Nursing, Adelphi University
Dr. Coonan is Dean and Professor at the College of Nursing and Public Health at Adelphi University in Garden City, New York. He has been the Chief Nursing Officer of an academic medical center, a multi-facility health system and a teaching community hospital. His previous academic experience includes administrative and teaching positions at Columbia, Rutgers, Long Island and Pace Universities where he developed technology enhanced learning, community based clinics, as well as teaching informatics, critical care and emergency nursing. He received his EdD and MEd from Teachers College at Columbia University, a master’s in Health Administration from Long Island University and a BS from Adelphi University. He is credentialed as a Nurse Executive Advanced from the American Nurses Association and is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. He has written and presented extensively on management and leadership development, educational partnerships, program development, measurement and evaluation, and healthcare system operations.
Robert Feferman, LMSW, Housing Works
Mr. Feferman is Managing Director with Housing Works Access to Care program overseeing medical case management, mobile engagement team and the HIRE program for individuals recently released from prison. Between 2012 and 2015 Mr. Feferman was the Clinical Director for COBRA Case Management and initiated staff training and development programs and was lead person for the transition from COBRA case management to health homes for Housings Works. After completing his master’s degree in social work from Fordham University in 1998 Mr. Feferman was Program Director for numerous mental health treatment programs. Mr. Feferman is in private practice providing individual and group counseling.
Karlo D. Francis, LMSW, Community Healthcare Network
Mr. Francis is the Deputy Director of Care Coordination for Community Healthcare Network’s (CHN) Health Homes program. He has been instrumental in bringing a combination of clinical skills and over 10 years of international hospitality management experience to CHN’s Health Homes care coordination program. As Deputy Director of Care Coordination, Mr. Francis is responsible for overseeing the care coordination services in the Brooklyn region, which comprises four community-based health clinics and one administrative site. Karlo focuses on employee development, training and quality improvement. Additionally, Mr. Francis collaborates with interdisciplinary teams to help CHN develop processes to achieve the goal of providing integrated services.
Virna Little, PsyD, LCSW-R, SAP, Institute for Family Health
Dr. Little’s responsibilities encompass administration and delivery of social work, mental health and community-based services across 26 full-time and multiple part-time centers in New York City and into Dutchess and Ulster counties for the Institute for Family Health, the largest community health center network in New York. Dr. Little is a nationally-known speaker around integrating primary care and behavioral health services, collaborative care and the development of viable behavioral health services in community health settings. Dr. Little is an advocate for integrated delivery systems and behavioral health workforce and development. Ms. Little has a doctoral degree in psychology from California Coast University and a master’s in social work from Fordham University. She currently has a faculty appointment at Columbia University and Mt. Sinai, and formerly served as an adjunct professor at Westchester Community College and the College of New Rochelle.
Karen Nelson, MD, MPH, Maimonides Medical Center
Dr. Nelson is Senior Vice President for Integrated Delivery Systems for Maimonides Medical Center and Executive Director of the Southwest Brooklyn Health Home. She is currently the Chief Medical Officer of Community Care of Brooklyn, which is leading a performing provider systems project in Brooklyn. Dr. Nelson received her BA degree from Yale University and her MD from the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. She received her MPH from Boston University School of Public Health where she was a Robert Wood Johnson Scholar.
Karla Silverman, MS, RN, CNM,Primary Care Development Corporation
Ms. Silverman is the Director of Clinical and Training Initiatives at the Primary Care Development Corporation. She co-authored Who’s Going to Care? Analysis and Recommendations for Building New York’s Care Coordination and Care Management Workforce; led the development, writing and piloting of the Care Coordination Fundamentals course created in partnership with 1199SEIU; and created the Team-Based Care in the Patient-Centered Medical Home course. Karla received her bachelor’s degree from Brown University and her master’s degree from Columbia University.
Helen Schaub, 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
Ms. Schaub is the New York State Director of Policy and Legislation at 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East. In this position, she oversees all of the New York State policy and legislative work for the nation’s largest local union, representing 300,000 registered nurses, social workers, certified nursing assistants, home health aides and other health care workers in hospitals, nursing homes and home care agencies in New York State. Before her years at SEIU, she worked as a grassroots organizer in the Bronx and as an independent consultant for community organizations. Schaub also serves on the Board of Trustees for the 1199SEIU National Benefit and Pension Funds, the Advisory Board for the East Harlem Health Outreach Partnership, and the Board of Directors for Project Vote.
Shawna Trager, MPA, New York Alliance for Careers in Healthcare
Ms. Trager is the Executive Director of the New York Alliance for Careers in Healthcare (NYACH), an industry partnership with the mission to build an effective healthcare workforce development system in New York City by identifying healthcare employers’ needs; helping education and training organizations adapt their approach to better meet those needs; and ensuring low-income and unemployed New Yorkers have access to viable career opportunities in healthcare. Shawna works closely with NYACH’s industry, education, government and foundation partners to develop innovative training initiatives that are industry- and employer-driven. Before coming to NYACH, Shawna was the Director of Grants and Workforce Programs at the Greater New York Hospital Association. She has a bachelor of arts degree from Cornell University, and received her master of public administration degree from the NYU Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service with a focus on health policy.
Sandi Vito, 1199SEIU/League Training and Upgrading Fund Greater New York Education Fund
Ms. Vito is the Director of the 1199SEIU/League Training and Upgrading Fund, the Greater New York Education Fund and the Registered Nurse Training and Job Security Fund. The three organizations are jointly governed by labor and management, with more than 500 contributing hospitals, nursing homes and health centers and 150,000 eligible workers in the greater New York metropolitan region. The organizations provide frontline healthcare workers with an array of education and training benefits, including foundational skills, allied health certificates and degrees, and workplace skills. Prior to joining the Training Fund, Ms. Vito was the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, where she oversaw unemployment compensation, labor law, workers compensation and workforce development programs. From 2003 to 2008, Vito served as the department’s Deputy Secretary for Workforce Development and led the Governor’s Industry Partnership initiative to catalyze alignment of education and training to the needs of growing economic sectors. She also served on the 2008 Presidential Transition Team for the U.S. Department of Labor. Ms. Vito has a BA in economics from Richard Stockton College, and studied urban studies and community and regional planning at Temple University.
This Primary Care Innovation Circle was co-presented by the Primary Care Development Corporation and 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East