About MDCEO
Primary care is the foundation of a high quality, functional health care system. We are committed to finding and supporting primary care leaders in their growth and development until we have the capacity and the system to provide Primary Care For Every American, no matter how poor or wealthy. This starts with leadership and the mindset that we will do what we must to create this possibility. The MDCEO program is one part of this effort – supporting creating the vision of Advanced Primary Care that reconnects clinicians with the reason they went into primary care, while concurrently providing them tools to develop their personal leadership skills. We believe that each clinician is a leader and that they will get the practice they are ready to lead, and we are committed to their success.
Scott Conard, MD, Course Leader
There is tremendous power in shifting mindsets from frustrated to empowered – improving and enhancing life at home and at work. It requires an individual to lean into what we know about leadership today. Letting go of old, less effective ways of framing the situation or relationship, and moving to a more dynamic and empowering frame creates new ways to relate and new actions to take. This can be challenging – we are taught to be confident in what we believe, and slow to change. But, in much the same way, we all know much of what we learned in medical school has been refined and changed, sometimes to the opposite of what we were initially taught – our understanding of leadership is no different.
The practice of medicine is changing around us. New challenges require new ways to think and solve problems. Business executives have access to this “technology” but those of us in primary care often lack exposure to this rapidly evolving field. My 30+ year career has evolved from a solo practice to co-leading a 510 provider group, and most recently working with corporations to identify and work with primary care providers. At each step on this journey I got exactly the company – and the reward in personal gratification and income – that I was capable of leading. Initially, it was a challenge for me to appreciate that the biggest thing holding me back was me; not my patients, staff, partners, or other key stakeholders, and as I grew in my leadership skills, so did my influence, income and possibilities.
Working with primary care providers is a privilege. My dad was a family doctor and my daughter is in her family medicine residency. It takes courage and commitment to go to work every day in primary care in America. I am committed to improving the health, well being and wealth of every primary care provider who will be open to growth and improving the value of their practice to themselves, their staff, their patients, and the companies funding their efforts. The MDCEO program was created to bring the best information and teachers available to make this possible for every primary care provider in America.
Michael Tuggy, MD
Michael Tuggy, MD is a Clinical Professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine, and a rural family physician in the mountain valley in Winthrop, Washington. He received his MD from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, then completed his Family Medicine residency at Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, WA. He served for 7 years on active duty in the US Army including service in Iraq and Kuwait during the first Gulf War. After leaving the military, he join Swedish Family Medicine in Seattle where he was a faculty member then director of the residency program and two clinics within the Swedish Health Services.
While the president of Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors, he joined other leaders in family medicine to develop the strategic plan for family medicine that is now being implemented by Family Medicine for America’s Health. As part of that strategic initiative, the Primary Care Innovators Network was formed to help transform payment and practice of primary care to achieve better health care at lower cost.
Michael Fine, MD
Michael Fine, MD is a writer, community organizer, and family physician. He is currently Chief Health Strategist to Mayor James Diossa of Central Falls, Rhode Island, and Senior Clinical and Population Health Services Officer of Blackstone Valley Community Health Care, Inc.
He was the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Health from February of 2011 until March of 2015; medical director of the Rhode Island of Corrections 2010 to 2011, and Physician Operating Officer of Hillside Avenue Family and Community Medicine, the largest family practice in Rhode Island, and the former Physician-in-Chief of the Rhode Island and Miriam Hospitals from 1992 to 2008.
Dr. Fine’s career has been devoted to healthcare reform and the care of underserved populations. He worked in the South Bronx as a VISTA community health organizer, and in the mountains of East Tennessee as a National Public Health Corps Scholar, at a hospital in rural Kenya and in Liberia as a consultant to Merlin and the Liberian Ministry of Health.
He was the founder and Managing Director of HealthAccessRI, the nation’s first statewide direct primary care organization, which made primary care available to people who are undocumented and those without employer-provided health insurance. Dr. Fine practiced for 16 years in urban Pawtucket, Rhode Island and rural Scituate, Rhode Island. Dr. Fine is a past President of the Rhode Island Academy of Family Physicians, was an Open Society Institute/George Soros Fellow in Medicine as a Profession from 2000 to 2002, was the 2017 recipient of the Barbara Starfield award and has been the recipient of many statewide and national honors and awards.
He is the author of four books, including The Nature of Health (2007) and Health Care Revolt (2018).
His novel Abundance, a novel about two young Americans caught up in the Liberian Civil War of 2003, a semi-finalist for a Faulkner-Wisdom prize, was released in April of 2019.
Laurence Bauer, MSW, MEd
Laurence C. Bauer, M.S.W., M.Ed. serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Family Medicine Education Consortium, Inc. from 1994 to the present. The FMEC is a not-for-profit corporation designed to promote collaboration among the academic Family Medicine and primary care communities in the northeast region of the US.
- The FMEC (www.fmec.net) sponsors a number of medical meetings, collaborative projects and learning communities that strengthen Family Medicine/primary care in both academic and community based settings. Sponsored activities include:
- Since 1992, the FMEC offers an annual meeting with an average attendance of 280 medical students, 200 Family Medicine residents and 250 Family Medicine faculty members.
- The FMEC Health Care Innovators Network provides a forum for “primary care driven solutions” to showcase their innovations to interested audiences.
- The FMEC creates multi-institutional teams in a broad array of areas including: Maternal Child Health, Global Health, High Utilizing Patients, End of Life Care, etc.
Mr. Bauer also serves as Director of Network Development: Center for Innovation in Family and Community Health, Dayton, OH from January 2006 to the present. He is an Associate Clinical Professor in the Wright State University School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine in Dayton Ohio.
Previously he served The Ohio State University School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine for four years as Director of Organization and Faculty Development. He served as Director of Faculty Development and Behavioral Science in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the Pennsylvania State University School of Medicine in Hershey, PA for thirteen years.
Jed Constantz, Dr.B.A.
As a Healthcare Finance and Delivery Strategic Consultant, Dr. Constantz ensures existing and prospective clients receive maximum value from current and future strategies and initiatives. In previous roles, Jed advised employers on measures to develop regional and community-based physician accountability and commitment through means of enhanced benefits and reduced costs; with the significant benefit of creating sustained loyalty between providers, patients and payers. He has successfully offered strategies that built on four pillars: actionable data, physician alignment, high-risk member targeting and network re-engineering.
Having begun his career on the payor’s side of healthcare (Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Central New York), Dr. Constantz has served in several positions for hospitals, home health agencies, physician organizations and physician/hospital organizations. Over his 30 plus years in healthcare, Jed has developed tools and resources for primary care providers and employers seeking to reduce costs, drive greater efficiency and quality outcomes and thereby create a “featured-and-favored” network in their regions and community. This process includes a deep focus on the selection of the right community of primary care physicians and specialists, a thorough audit of existing patient and population data, commitment to accountable care standards and improved compensation for the physician.
The end-objective is a better healthcare delivery model with an alignment of “enlightened self-interests” and a balance between rewards and value for the employer, employee and provider. For the employer, the financial benefits are immediate with on-going healthcare savings, a healthy workforce, and improved physician relationships. The provider can see greater patient volumes, improved care standards and compensation tied to performance. The employee will feel an improvement in care and attention, benefit with reduced out-of-pocket expenses and sense a higher level of satisfaction.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jed-constantz/
Twitter: @Jed_Constantz
Patrick Dunn, PhD, MS, MBA
Patrick Dunn, PhD, MS, MBA is a Senior Program Manager for Connected Heart Health and the AHA Inside initiative for the American Heart Association’s new Center of Excellence for Health Technology and Innovation. His role includes the development of science based care plans for cardiovascular health, and a research agenda for health technology and innovation. He also is Contributing Faculty in the College of Health Sciences, School of Public Health at Walden University, where he teaches statistics and research courses and mentors doctoral students. Patrick has a unique blend of knowledge and experience in healthcare, business development, quality and research. He has direct experience in hospital, physician practices, and start-up companies in for profit, nonprofit settings. Dr. Dunn is a clinical exercise physiologist and health educator with 33 years of experience in cardiac rehabilitation, preventive cardiology and wellness. His research interests are in the development of health literacy and self-management skills for patients with cardiovascular disease and diabetes, and is the founder of Your Heart Score, LLC. As a Blackbelt in Lean Six Sigma, and a researcher with skills in both quantitative and qualitative methods, Pat has been involved in multiple and research projects that have led to improved clinical outcomes for patients, better outcome measures for healthcare providers and reduced costs to the healthcare system.
LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yourheartscore/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/yourheartscore
Rand Stagen
Rand Stagen is the Managing Director of the Stagen Leadership Academy. Established in 1999, the Academy trains leaders from across North America who are committed to long-term personal development and using their organizational platforms for positive impact. A passionate advocate for elevating humanity through business, he is also a founding board member and past-Chairman of Conscious Capitalism International. He lives in Dallas with his wife and two daughters.
Suzan Oran, Leadership Consultant
Suzan Oran is the owner of Suzan Oran and Associates, where she provides coaching, workshops, and programs to enhance leadership and effective communication, increase productivity, as well as overall business success.
Suzan began her consulting business in 1986 with a commitment to make a difference in the world through empowering people to fully contribute their passions, talents and skills.
Suzan has had the opportunity to work with thousands of people over the years and considers herself extremely fortunate that her business has expanded across the United States strictly by client referrals. She has worked with individuals, couples, startup companies and in several industries, with a primary focus in healthcare.
Whether her clients participate in a group workshop or have an in-depth personal coaching project with her; Suzan considers it a true privilege to be a part of their lives.
Suzan co-wrote the book The Art of Medical Leadership with Scott Conard, MD along with Nicole Oran. This is a collection of leadership distinctions and concepts for executive and operation team members, physicians, practice managers, nurses and medical staff. The book is now used as a workbook for The Art of Medical Leadership online program and video series.
For more information about working with Suzan Oran, visit www.SuzanOranandAssociates.com.
Wayne B. Jonas, MD,
Executive Director, Samueli Integrative Health Programs, H&S Ventures
Wayne B. Jonas, M.D. is a practicing family physician, an expert in integrative health and health care delivery, and a widely published scientific investigator. Dr. Jonas is the Executive Director of Samueli Integrative Health Programs, an effort supported by Henry and Susan Samueli to increase awareness and access to integrative health. Additionally, Dr. Jonas is a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the Medical Corps of the United States Army. From 2001-2016, he was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Samueli Institute, a non-profit medical research organization supporting the scientific investigation of healing processes in the areas of stress, pain and resilience.
Dr. Jonas was the Director of the Office of Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from 1995-1999, and prior to that served as the Director of the Medical Research Fellowship at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians.
Dr. Jonas has led and participated in hundreds of research studies beginning with his time as Director of the National Institutes of Health Office of Alternative Medicine. While serving as CEO and President of the non-profit research organization Samueli Institute, his work set the bar for evidence-based research in the areas of pain, stress and human performance.
His research has appeared in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of the American Medical Association, Nature Medicine, the Journal of Family Practice, the Annals of Internal
Medicine, and The Lancet. Dr. Jonas received the 2015 Pioneer Award from the Integrative Healthcare Symposium, the 2007 America’s Top Family Doctors Award, the 2003 Pioneer Award from the American Holistic Medical Association, the 2002 Physician Recognition Award of the American Medical Association, and the 2002 Meritorious Activity Prize from the International Society of Life Information Science in Chiba, Japan.
David Emerald Womeldorff
David Emerald Womeldorff is the co-founder of the Bainbridge Leadership Center; Author and Creator in Chief of The Power of TED* (*The Empowerment Dynamic) and 3 Vital Questions: Transforming Workplace Drama and Co-Author (with Scott Conard, MD) of TED* for Diabetes: A Health Empowerment Story. David is the creator and architect of The Power of TED*® frameworks that are used widely in organizations around the world to facilitate teamwork and productivity. David works in close collaboration with his wife and business partner, Donna Zajonc, MCC and together they have developed the 3 Vital Questions® frameworks and E-Learning Course: 3 Vital Questions: Applying The Power of TED* to Life and Work. David also is a senior consultant for The Leadership Circle, consultant with the Full Circle Group, an Executive Coach and faculty member of the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business (Executive Education) flagship Executive Integral Leadership Program.
Christopher Crow, M.D.
Christopher Crow, M.D. CEO of StratiFi Health and President of Catalyst Health Network, is a nationally recognized healthcare thought leader. Dr. Crow created StratiFi Health and launched Catalyst Health Network after founding Village Health Partners and Legacy Medical Village in Plano, Texas in 2007. He is an award-winning primary care physician and has spent the past 20+ years focused on helping communities thrive through improving the delivery of healthcare.
As President of Catalyst Health Network, Dr. Crow has connected and aligned a network of more than 500 Primary Care Providers with nearly 1 million lives across North Texas, to build a better care model for patients that improves health and lowers cost. His work with Catalyst Health Network led them to be the first North Texas physician network to hold value-based contracts with the top four major carriers: Aetna, UnitedHealthcare, BCBSTX, and Cigna. In 2016, the first full year of operations, Catalyst Health Network performed with significant savings of approximately $20 million for the communities they serve. Additionally, Catalyst Health Network became the 5th URAC Clinically Integrated Network in the nation in December 2017.
As CEO of StratiFi Health, Dr. Crow has been instrumental in the company’s massive 5 year growth and success. StratiFi Health serves over 1100 providers between their population health and practice services offerings. These practices manage well over 1 million lives and over $5 billion in annual medical expenditures.
Dr. Crow received his B.A. at the University of Texas at Austin, his M.D. at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, and completed a family practice residency at Memorial-Hermann Hospital in Houston. He also holds an Executive M.B.A. from The University of Texas at Dallas.
Justin Horn
Justin Horn is a highly experienced sales, strategy, innovation, and leadership executive who has dedicated his entire career to fixing healthcare. He has demonstrated the ability to lead diverse teams of professionals and clients to new levels of success in the highly competitive healthcare and employee benefit industry, in cutting-edge markets, and in fast paced economic and political environments. Justin’s focus is on developing cutting edge strategies, platforms, and innovations for the healthcare industry with the goal being the integration and mutual aligned incentives of every stakeholder in the healthcare ecosystem.
He has strong technical and business qualifications with an impressive track record of more than 17 years of hands-on experience in strategic planning, business development, project and product management, and program innovation strategies. Justin believes that all the critical components needed to fix healthcare exist today but operate in disparate, unconnected, and siloed systems. Thought leaders must come together to align incentives, create unified vision and goals, and execute outside the confines a singular business model. His continuing mission is the ensure this happens.