Team

Dr Mike Durkin, MBBS, FRCA, DSc (Hon) is the Chairman of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation’s Governance Board.

Previously, Dr. Durkin was the NHS National Director of Patient Safety from 2012-2017.

He holds Visiting Professor appointments in Patient Safety at Imperial College London and the University of the West of England and is currently the Senior Advisor on Patient Safety Policy and Leadership at the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College.

He is an Associate Non-Executive Director at NHS Resolution. He qualified in Medicine at The Middlesex Hospital Medical School and has held clinical, research and teaching appointments in cardiovascular anaesthesia and critical care in London, Bristol and Yale Universities.

He started his 25 year medical management and leadership career as Executive Medical Director at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital in 1993 and held successive Executive Medical Director positions for Strategic Authorities between 2002-2012 culminating as the Medical Director of the NHS across the South of England supporting a population of 16M. He has led performance and clinical governance reviews in the UK and overseas.  He was the UK Department of Health National Clinical Director for Venous Thrombo-Embolism, an appointed Expert by the International Society for Quality in Healthcare and on the core team for the Patient Safety Campaign for England.  He led the National Patient Safety Programme for England developing the 15 Patient Safety Collaboratives across England and the Q Fellowship to build a community of 5000 quality improvers in partnership with The Health Foundation. He continues to support international development of patient safety systems with the World Health Organisation.  He convened the Berwick Advisory Board in 2013 to advise on creating conditions to improve the safety of patients in England and in 2015 he was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Health to Chair the Expert Advisory Group to advise on the establishment of the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch.  He led the establishment of Ministerial Inter-Governmental Summits on Patient Safety which have now been held in the UK (2016) and Germany (2017), and to be held in Japan in 2018. He holds an Honorary Doctorate from the University of the West of England and in 2017 he was awarded the highest accolade of the Royal College of Physicians of London for services to Patient Safety, their Honorary Fellowship. He is Chair of the Management Board of NICE National Clinical Guideline Centre and sits on national and international research, policy and patient safety Advisory Boards.

Robin Betts is a leader in clinical innovation and the implementation of safety improvement initiatives and has dedicated her professional life to patient safety, quality, and high reliability systems to elevate safety and quality in health care. She has had a distinguished 38-year health care career as a pediatric and NICU nurse, nursing informaticist and executive leader of quality, risk management and patient safety.

As Vice President for Quality, Clinical Effectiveness & Regulatory Services for Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Robin helps further advance Kaiser Permanente’s nation-leading excellence in quality and patient safety, mental health services and oversees health plan and hospital regulatory functions, including compliance, licensing, and member grievances. She sets the vision for patient safety and quality in pursuit of clinical quality excellence.

Rachael graduated from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications in 1997 and California Western School of Law in 2002.  She worked as an associate attorney at a small law firm in San Diego, CA led by a board member of a local hospital; she then began to split her time between the firm and hospital, where her desire to use her skills for the benefit of the patient was strengthened.  After relocating to Burlington, VT, she was admitted to the Vermont Bar, and began working for the University of Vermont Medical Center (formerly Fletcher Allen Health Care) in the Supply Chain Services Department in January 2006.  Despite moving back to California in 2012 she has proudly served Burlington, VT and surrounding communities in this capacity ever since.

Rachael has been volunteering with the Patient Safety Movement since 2014, and is currently serving on the Board of Directors as Secretary.

Miceli has set the vision and mission for the University of Vermont Medical Center Supply Chain operation, ranked #1 and #2 by the University Health System Consortium/Vizient in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. The effectiveness of the supply chain has supported the clinical mission and operations of the University of Vermont Medical Center, OneCare Vermont, and the University of Vermont Health Network

Miceli has also served as the Vice President of Information Systems for the University of Vermont Medical Center as well as the CIO for the OneCare Vermont Accountable Care Organization

Key accomplishments include sponsoring the successful integration of biomedical devices with the EPIC EHR, as well as championing interoperability of key clinical applications with EPIC (McKesson PACS).

Prior to joining Fletcher Allen/University of Vermont Medical Center in 2008, Miceli held leadership positions in supply chain, biomedical engineering, and support services at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Loyola University Medical Center, The University of Chicago Hospital and Health Systems, and Partners Healthcare System in Boston. He has also served as an expert consultant in change management/turn around, cost management, and information systems.

An avid guitarist, Miceli and colleague McKenna Lee founded the musical group McKenna Lee and the Microfixers in 2010. Over the past 7 years the group has helped raise over $20k for charitable causes. He has two adult children with wife Mari, an RN and fellow patient safety advocate who designed and developed the PatientAider app that the Miceli’s donated to the Patient Safety Movement Foundation.

Dr. Barker received his B.S. in Physics from Harvey Mudd College in 1967, his PhD in Aeronautical Engineering from the California Institute of Technology in 1972, and his MD from the University of Miami in 1981.  He has reached the rank of tenured professor in both engineering (UCLA) and anesthesiology (UC Irvine, University of Arizona).  He chaired the Department of Anesthesiology at UC Irvine from 1990 to 1995, and then at the University of Arizona from 1995 to 2013.  He has published over 200 scholarly works, including 15 textbook chapters.  Dr. Barker has served as president of the national organization of anesthesiology department chairs (AAPD) and of the Society for Technology in Anesthesia (STA), senior oral examiner for the American Board of Anesthesiology, and Section Editor for Technology for the journal Anesthesia and Analgesia.

During his 18-year tenure as anesthesiology chair at the University of Arizona, Dr. Barker was active in a number of governance roles outside of his department.  He served as the hospital Director of Perioperative Services from 1996 through 2000.  He was Chair of the Council of Clinical Department Heads from 2000 through 2003, and then chair of the clinical department heads working group.  He served seven years as the American Society of Anesthesiologists Director for Academic Anesthesiology, representing all university anesthesiology departments at the ASA.  Dr. Barker has been a productive academician, and has also participated actively in governance and administration at local, state, and national levels.  He is now Professor Emeritus of Anesthesiology at the University of Arizona, and Chief Science Officer for Masimo Corporation.

In November 2015, Dr. Barker received the Lifetime Achievement Award from IAMPOV (Innovations and Applications of Monitoring Perfusion, Oxygenation, and Ventilation), “for championing the development of vitally important monitoring technologies and associated testing.”   In January 2016, he received the J.S. Gravenstein Award from the Society for Technology in Anesthesia, “for his visionary understanding of the role of technology in anesthesia care and lifetime commitment to patient safety.”  In April 2016, he received the “Distinguished Alumni Award” from Harvey Mudd College.

Robin Betts is a leader in clinical innovation and the implementation of safety improvement initiatives and has dedicated her professional life to patient safety, quality, and high reliability systems to elevate safety and quality in health care. She has had a distinguished 38-year health care career as a pediatric and NICU nurse, nursing informaticist and executive leader of quality, risk management and patient safety.

As Vice President for Quality, Clinical Effectiveness & Regulatory Services for Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Robin helps further advance Kaiser Permanente’s nation-leading excellence in quality and patient safety, mental health services and oversees health plan and hospital regulatory functions, including compliance, licensing, and member grievances. She sets the vision for patient safety and quality in pursuit of clinical quality excellence.

Alicia Cole is an internationally recognized Speaker and Patient Safety Consultant. A two-time survivor of hospital-acquired MRSA, Sepsis, and Necrotizing Fasciitis, Alicia has endured nine surgeries, eleven blood transfusions, and nearly had her left leg amputated. She’s navigated her way through over a decade of weekly medical treatments and aftercare.  While still recovering, Alicia co-sponsored and successfully lobbied for passage of two California laws, one for Patient Safety education for healthcare workers, and the other, Public Reporting of hospital infection rates. (“Nile’s Law”) In between doctor appointments, Alicia earned a Post-Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Management and Leadership, from UCLA School of Public Health. Her passion is protecting patients by improving health literacy and self-efficacy, while promoting safer care as a Health Policy Change Agent. In 2015, Alicia was honored by President Barack Obama for her advocacy work and appointed to the Presidential Advisory Council for Combating Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria (PACCARB).  She continued in that position under the Trump administration until February of 2020. Alicia’s journey from survivor to champion has been featured on ABC’s 20/20, The Doctors, The Dr. Nandi Show, CBS and Fox News, she has also been profiled in USA Today, HEALTH Magazine, Consumer Reports, HealthLeaders Media and the LA Times.

Dr Davila became to be Regional Network Chair PSMF in Mexico since 2016. Promoting culture of safety and affiliation of many prestigious hospitals private and public, and establishing a close relationship with Institutions of Federal Government and Healthcare and Academic Organizations like Academy of Surgery, Mr. Carlos Slim Foundation, Faculty of Medicine of National University of Mexico etc.. In 2017 he asked with sponsors for financial support inviting Mexican Delegation coming to PSMF Summit with 20 colleagues, physicians and CEO´s of different Hospitals as well in London Summit with 14 colleagues and also in 2019 with 7 colleagues, one of them of the new Mexican Federal Government. He has visiting around the Mexican Republic Managers, CEO´s, Physicians, Nurses and multidisciplinary team in Healthcare Services, Secretaries of Health and also Governors of some States promoting PSMF and making Commitments and Affiliations. Also he has participations in different International Conferences like Chile, Colombia, Brasil, Dubai etc…promoting PSMF and joining efforts in Mexico with Federal Government Authorities including the current administration started last December.

Nomination as Member of the new Scientific and Diplomatic Council for Research, Innovation and Technology of Foreign Affairs Ministry of Federal Government.

Between December 2012 to October 2015 became to be Medical Director of Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) ; That is a huge Institution in Healthcare Services in Mexico with approximately   2000 Medical Units since first level to High Speciality, 73,000 Physicians, 119,000 Nurses. Their projects and programmes were in that time linked to improve a better quality of medical services supporting healthy financial status of the Institution, continuing medical education and academic interchanging with prestigious national and international Institutions, special emphasis in certification of medical units. Before in IMSS between 2007/2010 became to be Head of Medical Education, Research and Health Public Policy’s.

He joined at the Mexican Academy of Surgery in 2015, coming as Member of Executive Committee (2017/2018-2018/2020).

Advisor of Ex Secretary of Health Dr. Julio Frenk. (2005/2006).( Dr. Frenk has been changed the Law in order to create Social and Health Protection Commission; Former Dean of Public Health School in Harvard, and Current President of the University of Miami). Also Dr. Davila has been Private Chair Staff Office Ex Secretary of Health Dr. Jose Angel Cordova (2011).( Dr. Cordova was Secretary when Flu Pandemia started in México in 2009.).

At Social Security and Social Services for Federal Employees in Mexico (ISSSTE), got his training in Craniomaxillofaciall Surgery with specific procedures in Congenital Deformities and Facial Trauma; publishing as coauthor the Chapter “Oblique Modified Lefort III Osteotomy” at Modern Practice in Orthognatic and Reconstructive Surgery with Dr. Willian H. Bell prestigious Surgeon.; in his training he got rotation in Boston University, visit as speaker and surgical procedures in Parkland with Profr. William H. Bell and Robert V. Walker, in Gottingen, Germany with Profr. Hans Luhr; Cambridge, France, Spain, Southampton, Israel, Japan, Brasil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Panamá, Uruguay. In the 90´s President of Mexican Association and College of Maxillofacial Surgery, and fellow of The International Association of this specialty and former member of two committees at the Executive Committees.

In 80´s and 90´s in ISSSTE his background also was as Head Department in his specialty, Head of Medical Education and Research in one of the most important Hospitals, Medical Director of two Hospital. In 2000/2005 Regulation Healthcare Services Chair, Prevention and Healthcare Promoting Services Chair and other professional and academic activities.

Dr Mike Durkin, MBBS, FRCA, DSc (Hon) is the Chairman of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation’s Governance Board.

Previously, Dr. Durkin was the NHS National Director of Patient Safety from 2012-2017.

He holds Visiting Professor appointments in Patient Safety at Imperial College London and the University of the West of England and is currently the Senior Advisor on Patient Safety Policy and Leadership at the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College.

He is an Associate Non-Executive Director at NHS Resolution. He qualified in Medicine at The Middlesex Hospital Medical School and has held clinical, research and teaching appointments in cardiovascular anaesthesia and critical care in London, Bristol and Yale Universities.

He started his 25 year medical management and leadership career as Executive Medical Director at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital in 1993 and held successive Executive Medical Director positions for Strategic Authorities between 2002-2012 culminating as the Medical Director of the NHS across the South of England supporting a population of 16M. He has led performance and clinical governance reviews in the UK and overseas.  He was the UK Department of Health National Clinical Director for Venous Thrombo-Embolism, an appointed Expert by the International Society for Quality in Healthcare and on the core team for the Patient Safety Campaign for England.  He led the National Patient Safety Programme for England developing the 15 Patient Safety Collaboratives across England and the Q Fellowship to build a community of 5000 quality improvers in partnership with The Health Foundation. He continues to support international development of patient safety systems with the World Health Organisation.  He convened the Berwick Advisory Board in 2013 to advise on creating conditions to improve the safety of patients in England and in 2015 he was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Health to Chair the Expert Advisory Group to advise on the establishment of the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch.  He led the establishment of Ministerial Inter-Governmental Summits on Patient Safety which have now been held in the UK (2016) and Germany (2017), and to be held in Japan in 2018. He holds an Honorary Doctorate from the University of the West of England and in 2017 he was awarded the highest accolade of the Royal College of Physicians of London for services to Patient Safety, their Honorary Fellowship. He is Chair of the Management Board of NICE National Clinical Guideline Centre and sits on national and international research, policy and patient safety Advisory Boards.

Omar Ishrak serves as Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board of Directors at Medtronic, and Chairman of the Board of Directors at Intel. Omar was CEO of Medtronic from June 2011 – April 2020.

Medtronic is the world’s leading medical technology company, with $29 billion in annual revenue, 90,000 employees and operations reaching more than 150 countries worldwide. Medtronic offers technologies and solutions to treat a wide range of medical conditions, including cardiac and vascular diseases, respiratory, neurological and spinal conditions, diabetes, and more. The Medtronic Mission is to use technology to alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life for millions of people around the world.

As CEO, Omar focused the company around three long-term growth strategies of Therapy Innovation, Globalization, and Economic Value. In addition, Omar engineered the acquisition of Covidien — a $10 billion global manufacturer of surgical products and supplies — the largest medical technology acquisition in the history of the industry. Medtronic is now executing on the strongest technology pipeline in company history, bringing to market a long list of innovations that will improve the lives of even more patients around the world and help healthcare systems become more efficient.

Omar is also passionate about inclusion and diversity. He established Medtronic’s Diversity Networks, and during his tenure the company has been recognized for its commitment to fostering an inclusive and diverse culture. In 2020, Medtronic was awarded the prestigious Catalyst Award, which is given to corporations driving global change by building workplaces that work for women.

In January 2020, Omar was named independent Chairman of the Board of Directors of Intel. Omar has served as a member of the Intel board since March 2017. Intel is a global technology company with $72 billion in annual revenue in FY19. Intel is an industry leader that creates world-changing technology that enables global progress and enriches lives. Inspired by Moore’s Law, Intel works to advance the design and manufacturing of semiconductors to help address customer challenges. By embedding intelligence in the cloud, network, edge and every kind of computing device, Intel harnesses the potential of data to transform business and society for the better.

Prior to joining Medtronic, Omar was President and CEO of GE Healthcare Systems. He held several other roles at GE during his 16-year tenure, including serving as an Officer and a Senior Vice President. Earlier in his career, Omar amassed 13 years of technology development and business management experience, holding leadership positions at Diasonics/Vingmed, and various product development and engineering positions at Philips Ultrasound.

He grew up in Bangladesh and earned a Bachelor of Science degree and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of London, King’s College. He is also a Fellow of King’s College. He was inducted to the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows in 2016 and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2020.

Omar serves on the Board of Directors of the Cleveland Clinic, a nonprofit academic medical center that is consistently named as one of the nation’s best hospitals by U.S. News & World Report. Omar is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Asia Society, the leading educational organization dedicated to promoting mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among peoples, leaders and institutions of Asia and the United States in a global context. In addition, he is a member of the Minnesota Public Radio Board of Trustees.

Joe Kiani is responsible for creating the Patient Safety Movement Foundation & Coalition and the Patient Safety Science & Technology Summit. Mr. Kiani founded the Patient Safety Movement Foundation (PSMF) in 2013 with a mission to reduce the more than 200,000 preventable patient deaths that occur in U.S. hospitals every year. Under Mr. Kiani’s leadership, the Patient Safety Movement held the first Patient Safety Science & Technology Summit in January 2013 with President Clinton as the keynote speaker. Mr. Kiani has convened hundreds of leading clinicians, hospital CEOs, and medical technology CEOs from around the globe and at this Summit, launched an aggressive goal – ZERO patient deaths by 2020.

As the founder, Chairman, and CEO of Masimo Corporation, a global medical technology innovator, Mr. Kiani has been a beacon for patient safety and innovation in healthcare for more than 30 years. Convinced that the use of adaptive signal processing could solve the problems of motion artifact and signal noise that plagued pulse oximetry–widely recognized as the 5th vital sign–he founded Masimo in 1989 to improve the accuracy of noninvasive patient monitoring.

Under his leadership, Masimo has grown from a “garage start up” into a successful publicly-traded company (NASDAQ: MASI) employing more than 6,000 people worldwide and providing its market-leading Masimo SET® Measure-through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry technology to leading OEM patient monitoring manufacturers. Today, Masimo is an innovative powerhouse delivering key noninvasive medical breakthroughs, including: Masimo rainbow Pulse COOximetry™–the first noninvasive blood constituent monitoring platform to measure multiple blood constituents that previously required invasive procedures and help reduce risky blood transfusions.

Mr. Kiani’s dream of transforming patient care thrives today as he works with legislators in Washington, D.C., to affect public policy that supports innovation and promotes good healthcare decisions. In 2010, he created the Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation and Competition in Healthcare to encourage and promote activities, programs, and research opportunities that improve patient safety and deliver advanced healthcare worldwide—fostering access to innovative medical solutions for those who may not otherwise benefit from their lifesaving capabilities. In 2011 he founded the Masimo Political Action Committee to spotlight the important issues that will shape healthcare policy.

Mr. Kiani believes in turning yesterday’s impossibilities into tomorrow’s possibilities and challenging the status quo. This is exactly what he and his company, Masimo, have done and are continuing to do, and his passion is to share this insight, knowledge, and the indomitable spirit of a true innovator to improve healthcare for Americans and patients around the world.

Sarah is a Director for the Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation, and Competition, which awards grants to people and academic institutions such as the Carter Center that ameliorates patient safety, promotes efficient and cost-effective health care delivery, and provides advanced health care to people worldwide who might not otherwise have access to life-saving technologies.

Sarah has long practiced the spirit of giving as a devoted mother of three, wife and global philanthropist . She has aided Syrian refugees in resettlement and acclimation in the US and and helped build schools in Uganda with Clinton Global Initiatives. She is also a passionate scholar of Global Health as well as and an avid promoter of democracy abroad and has participated in international election observations.

As a tireless volunteer and advocate for women and children, she has created and helped many organizations extend their support through fundraising for JDRF, UNICEF, March of Dimes, and many other charities over the years.

David Mayer, MD is the former Chief Executive Officer of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation and remains a director on the governance board. Dr. Mayer is executive director of the MedStar Institute for Quality & Safety (MIQS). In this role, Dr. Mayer leads specific quality and safety programs in support of discovery, learning, and the application of innovative methods to operational clinical challenges.

Prior to his appointment as executive director, MIQS Dr. Mayer served for over six years as vice president, quality and safety for MedStar Health, overseeing the infrastructure for clinical quality and its operational efficiency for MedStar and each of its entities. Dr. Mayer also designs and directs systemwide activity for patient safety and risk reduction programs.

Dr. Mayer joined MedStar from the University of Illinois Medical Center in Chicago, Ill. Over the course of 10 years, he held numerous roles including co-executive director of the UIC Institute for Patient Safety Excellence, director of UIC Masters of Science Patient Safety Leadership Program, associate dean for Education, and associate chief medical officer for Quality and Safety Graduate Medical Education. Concurrent with his other roles, he served as vice chair for Quality and Safety for the Department of Anesthesiology, where he was an associate professor of Anesthesiology and director of Cardiac Anesthesiology. Dr. Mayer also founded and has led the Annual Telluride International Patient Safety Roundtable and Patient Safety Medical Student Summer Camp for the last thirteen years.

In addition, he has significant experience in the private sector as director of Medical Affairs of the Hospital Products Division of Abbott Laboratories and was president and founder of Esurg Corporation.

Dr. Mayer attended the University of Illinois at Chicago for both his undergraduate and medical degrees. He completed his internship and residency at Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center, followed by a fellowship in cardiac anesthesia. Additionally, he co-produced the patient safety educational film series titled “The Faces of Medical Error…From Tears to Transparency,” which won numerous awards including the prestigious Aegis Film Society Top Short Documentary Award.

Most recently, Dr. Mayer was listed on the Becker’s Hospital Review 2017 and 2018 lists of Top 50 people leading patient safety. He was one of four medical professionals presented with the 2017 Humanitarian Award from the Patient Safety Movement Foundation for his lifesaving achievements in patient safety. He was selected by the International Society for Quality in Healthcare (ISQua) as an International Quality and Safety Expert, has been presented with the 2013 Founders’ Award from the American College of Medical Quality, the University of Illinois/American Association of Medical Colleges Humanism in Medicine Award for his commitment to teaching, service and patient advocacy, and was recognized by the Institute of Medicine in Chicago in 2010 with the Sprague Patient Safety Award.

He regularly presents and writes on topics related to quality and patient safety, and has received grant funding from the United States Department of Education, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.

Dr. Mellin-Olsen is cand. med. from the University of Trondheim, Norway, from 1982. In 1987, she was the first Norwegian female physician to complete her (voluntary) military services, which she did by serving for the UNIFIL Forces in South Lebanon. She got involved in patient safety initiatives during her residency training in Trondheim University Hospital where she got her specialty in 1992. She has worked for the Red Cross in Pakistan and Serbia. She was the medical director for Europe, Middle East, and Africa for MedAire, Inc, based in Tampe, AZ, for ten years, dealing with remote medical advice, including for aviation and maritime. Since 2002, she has held a full-time clinical post in Baerum Hospital, Oslo, Norway.

Both in her home country and internationally, Jannicke is known for her dedication to organizational work. She has been active in the Veterans’ organization and in national and international medical organizations. During her term in the European Board of Anaesthesiology, she chaired the Patient Safety and Quality Committee before becoming president. During her presidency, she was the driving force for the Helsinki Declaration on Patient Safety in Anaesthesiology, which was launched in 2010. Since then, this Declaration has been signed and supported in all regions of the world and has become the industry standard. She is currently the secretary of the European Society of Anaesthesiology and the president-elect of the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists. In her home country, she is known as a promoter of a non-punitive approach to medical errors, according to the model of the NTSB’s. She is particularly committed to human factors, communication, and involvement of patients, relatives, and clinical staff as experts to improve patient safety.

Jannicke’s publication list mainly contains articles and book chapters related to patient safety, education, and manpower. She is a well-known speaker at anaesthesiology meetings globally and holds several honorary positions.

Miceli has set the vision and mission for the University of Vermont Medical Center Supply Chain operation, ranked #1 and #2 by the University Health System Consortium/Vizient in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. The effectiveness of the supply chain has supported the clinical mission and operations of the University of Vermont Medical Center, OneCare Vermont, and the University of Vermont Health Network

Miceli has also served as the Vice President of Information Systems for the University of Vermont Medical Center as well as the CIO for the OneCare Vermont Accountable Care Organization

Key accomplishments include sponsoring the successful integration of biomedical devices with the EPIC EHR, as well as championing interoperability of key clinical applications with EPIC (McKesson PACS).

Prior to joining Fletcher Allen/University of Vermont Medical Center in 2008, Miceli held leadership positions in supply chain, biomedical engineering, and support services at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Loyola University Medical Center, The University of Chicago Hospital and Health Systems, and Partners Healthcare System in Boston. He has also served as an expert consultant in change management/turn around, cost management, and information systems.

An avid guitarist, Miceli and colleague McKenna Lee founded the musical group McKenna Lee and the Microfixers in 2010. Over the past 7 years the group has helped raise over $20k for charitable causes. He has two adult children with wife Mari, an RN and fellow patient safety advocate who designed and developed the PatientAider app that the Miceli’s donated to the Patient Safety Movement Foundation.

Dr. Michael Ramsay is the organization’s Chief Executive Officer, having been previously appointed Chairman of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation, taking Joe Kiani’s place in 2020. In addition, he sits on the PSMF’s Board of Directors and serves as the Chair of the “Failure to Rescue: Post-Operative Respiratory Depression” workgroup.

Dr. Ramsay also currently holds the title of Chairman Emeritus of the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Management at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, and serves as a member of the Baylor University Medical Center Board of Trustees. He is Past Director of Anesthesia for the liver transplant program at Baylor and has personally provided anesthesia for over 1,000 liver transplant recipients. Dr. Ramsay is also Past President of the International Liver Transplantation Society and previously was an at-large delegate to the United Network for Organ Sharing, Dr. Ramsay is a professor at Texas A & M Health Science Center and holds a clinical professorship in anesthesiology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School.

Dr. Ramsay developed the first Sedation Scale, a measurement designed to interpret the depth of sedation for patients in the critical care unit. This scale was adopted around the world. He has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles and numerous chapters in textbooks. 

As President of Baylor Scott & White Research Institute (BSWRI) from 2000 to 2020, Dr. Ramsay directed clinically relevant research efforts. While with the organization, he developed a successful infrastructure that increased the number of clinical trials from 250 to more than 2,000 active trials. He also executed a multimillion-dollar collaboration agreement with Roche pharma that supported very early research projects and accelerated their completion. This pilot project has since been replicated at many academic centers around the world.

Dr. Ramsay is currently a Study Monitor of several clinical trials to improve the outcomes of brain trauma victims.

Dr. Abbasseh Towfigh has been with Santa Monica Podiatry Group since completing her surgical residency in 1993. She brings a unique set of skills to the practice in the areas of podiatric surgery and in the treatment of children and adolescents. She offers intuitive solutions when it comes to podiatric issues for our female patients. Being multilingual affords her the ability to develop unique connections with diverse communities. Her special interest lies in the area of teaching with particular interests in patient education as well as residency training.

Dr. Towfigh has been acting as Ayeneh Foundation’s executive director and secretary since the inception of this educational and humanitarian nonprofit organization. She devotes much of her time to Ayeneh and its goals and objectives, supporting such issues as human rights violations, substance abuse, HIV/AIDS, environment justice, and the plight of children of labor and refugees among others.

Vonda Vaden Bates is an alliance builder and leadership coach. For over 30 years Vonda has guided professionals to succeed on behalf of their organizations and careers. She helps people move from potential to action, set and reach goals, manage engaged teams, and communicate with influence. Her creative approach has influenced major market shifts in television, retail, banking, technology and education.

In 2013 Vonda decided to contribute her skills on behalf of safety in health care after researching how her husband, Yogiraj Charles Bates, died from one of the most common preventable causes of death, hospital-associated venous thromboembolism. Advocating for every person in the care system, Vonda brings a compassionate voice, strategic skills, and collaboration expertise to improve communication and safety in health care.

She is the CEO of 10th Dot®, a company founded by her late husband, which coaches and trains individuals, teams and organizations to perform at their best.

Dr. Najmedin Meshkati is a (tenured, full) Professor of Civil/Environmental Engineering, Industrial & Systems Engineering; and International Relations at the University of Southern California; an Associate (former Research Fellow) with the Project on Managing the Atom at Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School; and an Associate with the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at Harvard.

Meshkati was a Jefferson Science Fellow and a Senior Science and Engineering Advisor, Office of Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary of State, US State Department, Washington, DC.  He is a Commissioner of The Joint Commission (a not-for-profit organization that accredits and certifies nearly 21,000 healthcare organizations and programs in the United States and operates in 92 countries around the world) and is on the Board of Directors of the Center for Transforming Healthcare.  He is a member of the Board on Human-Systems Integration (BOHSI), Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, The National Academies (Sciences, Engineering and Medicine).  He has served as a member of the Global Advisory Council of the Civilian Research and Development Foundation Global, chaired by Ambassador Thomas R. Pickering.

For the past 35 years, he has been teaching and conducting research on risk reduction and reliability enhancement of complex technological systems, including nuclear power, aviation, petrochemical and transportation industries. He has been selected by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and National Research Council  for his interdisciplinary expertise concerning human performance and safety culture to serve as member and technical advisor on two national panels in the United States investigating two major recent accidents: The NAS/NRC Committee “Lessons Learned from the Fukushima Nuclear Accident for Improving Safety and Security of U.S. Nuclear Plants” (2012-2014); and the NAE/NRC “Committee on the Analysis of Causes of the Deepwater Horizon Explosion, Fire, and Oil Spill to Identify Measures to Prevent Similar Accidents in the Future”.

Dr. Meshkati has inspected many petrochemical and nuclear power plants around the world, including Chernobyl, Fukushima Daiichi and Daini.  He has worked with the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, as an expert on human factors and safety culture, on the investigation of the BP Refinery explosion in Texas City, and served as a member of the National Research Council  Committee on Human Performance, Organizational Systems and Maritime Safety. He also served as a member of the NRC Marine Board’s Subcommittee on Coordinated R&D Strategies for Human Performance to Improve Marine Operations and Safety.

Dr. Meshkati is the only full-time USC faculty member who has continuously been conducting research on human factors and aviation safety-related issues (e.g., cockpit design and automation, crew resource management, safety management system, safety culture, and runway incursions,) and teaching in the USC 63-year old internationally renowned Aviation Safety and Security Program, for the past 25 years.  During this period, he has taught in the “Human Factors in Aviation Safety” and “System Safety” short courses.  From 1992 to 1999, he also was the Director and had administrative and academic responsibility for the USC Professional Programs, which included Aviation Safety, as well as for the Transportation Safety, and Process Safety Management (which he designed and developed) programs.  He has worked with numerous safety professionals from all over the world and has taught safety short courses for private and public sector organizations, including the US Navy, US Air Force, US Forest Service, California OSHA, Celgene, Metrolink, Exelon, FedEx, the Republic of Singapore Air Force, Singapore Institution of Safety Officers, China National Petrochemical Corporation, Canadian upstream oil and gas industry (Enform), Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Republic of Korea), etc.

Dr. Meshkati is an elected Fellow of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society; the 2015 recipient of the HFES highest award, the Arnold M. Small President’s Distinguished Service Award, for his “career-long contributions that have brought honor to the profession and the Society”; and the 2007 recipient of the HFES Oliver Keith Hansen Outreach Award for his “scholarly efforts on human factors of complex, large-scale technological systems.”  He is the inaugural recipient of the Ernest Amory Codman Lectureship and Award (form The Joint Commission for his leadership and efforts in continuously improving the safety and quality of care).  He is an AT&T Faculty Fellow in Industrial Ecology, a NASA Faculty Fellow (Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 2003 and 2004), and a recipient of the Presidential Young Investigator Award from the National Science Foundation in 1989.

He has received numerous teaching awards at USC, which include the 2013 Steven B. Sample Teaching and Mentoring Award from the USC Parents Association, the 2000 TRW Award for Excellence and Outstanding Achievement in Teaching from the USC Viterbi School of Engineering; the 1996, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2016 Professor of Year Award (Excellence in Teaching and Dedication to Students Award) from the Daniel J. Epstein Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering; the Mortar Board’s Honored Faculty Award (2007-2008) from the University of Southern California’s Chapter of the Mortar Board; and the Outstanding Teaching Award from The Latter-day Saint Student Association at USC.  He was chosen as a Faculty Fellow by the Center for Excellence in Teaching, USC.

He is the co-editor and a primary author of the book Human Mental Workload, North-Holland, 1988. His articles and commentaries on public policy; the risk, reliability, and environmental impact of complex, large-scale technological systems; and foreign policy-related issues have been published in several national and international newspapers and magazines such the New York Times, International New York Times (International Herald Tribune), Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, The Economist, The Hill, Baltimore Sun, Charleston Gazette, Houston Chronicle, Sacramento Bee, MIT Technology Review, Japan Times, Korea Herald (South Korea), Strait Times (Singapore), Times of India, Hurriyet Daily News (Turkey), Gulf Today (UAE), The Nation (UAE), Gulf News (Qatar), Iran News (Iran), Shargh (Iran), South China Morning Post (Hong Kong), Winnipeg Free Press, Waterloo Region Record, Windsor Star (Canada), Scientific Malaysian, etc.

As chairman of the “group of experts” of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA), Dr. Meshkati coordinated international efforts which culminated in the joint publication of the United Nations’ International Labor Office (ILO) and IEA Ergonomic Checkpoints: Practical and Easy-to-Implement Solutions for Improving Safety, Health and Working Conditions book in 1996, for which he received the Ergonomics of Technology Transfer Award from the IEA in 2000.  According to the ILO, this book has so far been translated and published into 16 languages including Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Bahasa Malaysian, Chinese, Estonian, Farsi, French, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Thai, Turkish, and Vietnamese.  The second edition of this book was released by the ILO/IEA in 2010.

Dr. Meshkati simultaneously received a B.S. in Industrial Engineering and a B.A. in Political Science in 1976, from Sharif (Arya-Meher) University of Technology and Shahid Beheshti University (National University of Iran), respectively; a M.S. in Engineering Management in 1978; and a Ph.D. in Industrial and Systems Engineering in 1983 from USC.  He is a Certified Professional Ergonomist.

Philip Lumb, M.B., B.S., MD, Master FCCM is Professor of Anesthesiology and Trauma Surgery and Adjunct Professor of Dentistry at the Keck School of Medicine the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.  He is the former Department Chairman and current Director of Anesthesiology Research.

Dr. Lumb is former Secretary-General and Chancellor of the American College of Critical Care Medicine (ACCM) and former President and Secretary-General of the World Federation Intensive and Critical Care (WFICC).  He has published over 100 articles and numerous abstracts and editorials, authored 50 book chapters, edited ten textbooks or monographs and presented over 600 invited scientific lectures at national and international conferences.  

Dr. Lumb is the immediate past Editor-In-Chief of the Journal of Critical Care (JCC).

He was recently awarded the Academy of Anesthesiology’s Distinguished Service Award and Citation of Merit and the Society of Critical Care Anesthesiology’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Jim Messina is arguably one of the world’s most successful political advisors. The mastermind behind President Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign, Jim Messina seized the reins on what Bloomberg Businessweek dubbed “the highest-wattage crash course in executive management ever undertaken”—and succeeded, earning the President another term in the White House. With the guidance of technology’s foremost leaders, Jim abandoned every step of a traditional presidential campaign and merged technology and politics in a way that was both unpredictable and unprecedented.

Jim’s strategies established the modern presidential campaign—Google’s Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt called it “the best-run campaign ever.”  The American Association of Political Consultants later crowned him the Campaign Strategist of the Year (2013).

Since then he has gone on to advise Presidents and Prime Ministers on five continents including: UK’s Theresa May and David Cameron, Mexico’s Enrique Peña Nieto, Argentina’s Mauricio Macri, Italy’s Matteo Renzi and in 2016 helped Spain’s President Mariano Rajoy win a surprising re-election margin.

In 2013, Messina launched The Messina Group. In this role, Messina provides strategic consulting to businesses around the world.  The firm has been involved in winning public policy campaigns on five continents.  Clients include Uber, Airbnb, Google, Delta Air Lines, Hutchison Whampoa, and over 70 others.

Previously, Jim served as Deputy Chief of Staff in President Barack Obama’s White House, where he was integral to the passage of the historic health care bill, the economic stimulus act credited with saving the US economy, and the landmark repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.”

Messina continues to advise and guide Democratic candidates and organizations at all levels, as well as providing insight on news outlets such as MSNBC, CNN, Bloomberg, BBC, and others.

Jim serves on the boards of Organizing for Action (OFA), Virgin HyperloopOne, Google’s Advanced Technology Panel, Vectra.ai, Pillpack, Patient Safety Movement Foundation, LanzaTech, Hyp3r, the United States Soccer Foundation, and the Montana Land Reliance.

Dr. Michael Ramsay is the organization’s Chief Executive Officer, having been previously appointed Chairman of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation, taking Joe Kiani’s place in 2020. In addition, he sits on the PSMF’s Board of Directors and serves as the Chair of the “Failure to Rescue: Post-Operative Respiratory Depression” workgroup.

Dr. Ramsay also currently holds the title of Chairman Emeritus of the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Management at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, and serves as a member of the Baylor University Medical Center Board of Trustees. He is Past Director of Anesthesia for the liver transplant program at Baylor and has personally provided anesthesia for over 1,000 liver transplant recipients. Dr. Ramsay is also Past President of the International Liver Transplantation Society and previously was an at-large delegate to the United Network for Organ Sharing, Dr. Ramsay is a professor at Texas A & M Health Science Center and holds a clinical professorship in anesthesiology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School.

Dr. Ramsay developed the first Sedation Scale, a measurement designed to interpret the depth of sedation for patients in the critical care unit. This scale was adopted around the world. He has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles and numerous chapters in textbooks. 

As President of Baylor Scott & White Research Institute (BSWRI) from 2000 to 2020, Dr. Ramsay directed clinically relevant research efforts. While with the organization, he developed a successful infrastructure that increased the number of clinical trials from 250 to more than 2,000 active trials. He also executed a multimillion-dollar collaboration agreement with Roche pharma that supported very early research projects and accelerated their completion. This pilot project has since been replicated at many academic centers around the world.

Dr. Ramsay is currently a Study Monitor of several clinical trials to improve the outcomes of brain trauma victims.

Dr. Sanaz Massoumi is the Chief Operating Officer of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation. She draws on her unique expertise to work with healthcare leaders, policymakers, innovators, patient safety partners, and patients to advance patient safety around the world.

Previously, Dr. Massoumi served as the Director of Patient Safety and Regulatory and Patient Safety Officer at Keck Medicine of USC in Los Angeles, overseeing Keck and Norris hospitals. Prior to that, she held positions that involved integrating technology and healthcare. She served as the Senior Director of Performance Excellence at Tagnos, a high-tech healthcare startup, and worked for the Quality Assurance department of Broadcom Corporation, a major infrastructure technology leader. In these roles, Dr. Massoumi honed her skills in utilizing qualitative methods as well as statistical analysis techniques for analyzing the outcome of care, improving and enhancing health systems and processes, incorporating high-reliability principles, integrating patient safety initiatives, providing methodical continuous improvement solutions, optimizing care processes, and creating innovative root cause analysis techniques.

Dr. Massoumi received her Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Industrial and Systems Engineering from the University of Southern California Viterbi School of Engineering. While working on her Ph.D., she was a lead researcher in the fields of high reliability principles, patient safety, performance analysis, quality of care, outcome measures, and care coordination while collaborating extensively with Keck and Los Angeles County hospitals.

Inspired by the many accomplished and caring patient safety experts she’s encountered throughout her education and career, Dr. Massoumi is committed to leveraging her knowledge and experience to bring necessary and positive changes to benefit patients worldwide.

In her capacity as Donor Engagement Manager for PSMF, Tamara Kenworthy works to create strategic and effective fundraising plans, identify donor prospects, and develop relationships with the Foundation’s core donor base of individuals, corporations, and institutions.

Previously, as Executive Director of Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Tamara was responsible for securing JDRF as the first charity ever selected to benefit from the Kraft Nabisco LPGA Celebrity Pro-Am Golf Tournament. She has also worked at other nonprofits, including the American Diabetes Association and the Muscular Dystrophy Association as a District Director, where she expanded corporate and individual donations, increased volunteer engagement, organized fundraising events, and managed staff.

Nabil Soliman is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA) who serves as PSMF’s Accounting and Finance Manager, overseeing all accounting operations, including planning and implementation of financial strategy and budgeting. He also handles the Foundation’s financial accounts, payroll, and financial assets.

Previously, Nabil was Accounting and Financial Manager at Farmawell, in charge of financial operations, including planning and implementing the company’s financial strategy and managing the accounting team. Prior to that, he worked at Schlumberger for over a decade, first as Senior Management Accountant and then as Geo–Market Finance Manager, developing and implementing new accounting processes and handling various accounting, budgeting, and financial reporting functions. His career has spanned multiple countries, giving him insight into working with a wide diversity cultures and people.

Nabil received his CMA from American Institute of Management Accountants and a Bachelor of Science in Commerce with concentration in financial accounting at Ain Shams University. He volunteers each tax season as a tax preparer with AARP to assist seniors and low-income people with their tax returns.

Consuelo Tolentino serves as PSMF’s Executive Assistant, assisting the organization’s COO, Dr. Sanaz Massoumi, and CEO, Dr. Michael Ramsay. She also performs bookkeeping duties as the finance and marketing coordinator for PSMF’s accounting department. As a prior intern at PSMF, Consuelo conducted fieldwork research, created patient stories, and wrote blog articles, elucidating the importance of PSMF’s vital work.

Consuelo graduated from the University of California, Irvine, in spring 2022 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Ecology. She has been very involved in social activism and community outreach and is passionate about working toward reliable and equitable healthcare experiences for all.

As PSMF’s Quality and Patient Safety Strategist, Armaan Meshkati develops plans to achieve a streamlined commitment model and process map for the actionable evidence-based practices (AEBP). Armaan collaborates with key stakeholders to ensure that AEBP blueprints are peer-reviewed and practical to enhance the outcome of care and improve safety at hospitals. He is also in charge of managing the fellowship program.  

Previously, as the Associate Research Specialist in the Hematology/Oncology Laboratory at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), Armaan worked with key stakeholders to discover and address data discrepancies within multiple databases. He developed a process map to eliminate potential data mishandling and input errors. Prior to CHLA, he worked at Keck Medicine of USC in the Value Improvement office, facilitating the tiered huddle escalations and the joint commission survey readiness. 

Armaan graduated from USC with a degree in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention. While at USC, Armaan volunteered in research projects relating to diabetes. Armaan hikes around the San Bernardino mountain ranges frequently and loves to golf in his free time.

As Finance & Data Coordinator for PSMF, Collin generates reports on all aspects of the organization’s activities, supports the Accounting and Office Manager with a wide range of accounting tasks, plans and designs email communications in close collaboration with internal and external stakeholders, and performs various data management and analysis duties.

He has worked with companies and foundations to analyze their finances as well as collect and interpret data to help understand trends and guide strategic plans. Collin’s experience working with patients in critical condition as a Hospice Aide inspired him to pursue work in the field of patient safety. 

Collin earned a Bachelor of Science in Geospatial and Database Management Systems at Oregon State University.

Samar Hassan holds a master’s degree in healthcare quality management and is a registered pharmacist and certified healthcare quality professional with the National Association for Healthcare Quality (NAHQ). In addition, Hassan has worked with the Health Care Accreditation Council (HCAC) in Jordan and the region’s quality improvement and patient safety institution since 2018, where she has been involved in the design, implementation, and evaluation of standards for quality and patient safety across health and social care institutions. She has also participated and supported HCAC’s advocacy and public awareness programs to synthesize professionals, the public, and decision-makers on adopting and implementing quality improvement approaches.

Dr. Elizabeth Namugaya Igaga attended Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda for medical school, as well as her master’s degree in anesthesia and critical care. She is currently doing her clinical practice at the Uganda Heart Institute. Igaga’s interest in patient safety was sparked after multiple firsthand experiences during residency that resulted in near misses or catastrophic outcomes. Since then, she has been passionate about fostering and building a culture of safety in perioperative care in Uganda.

Dr. Ebikapaye Okoyen works in the Ministry of Health in Yenagoa, Nigeria as the deputy director and state program manager for Saving One Million Lives Program for Results (SOML PforR) – a World Bank-funded, results-based program financing maternal and child health and nutrition aimed at improving quantity and quality of service. He is a fellow and member of several professional associations including the Nigerian Medical Association, the Society for Quality in Healthcare in Nigeria (SQHN) and is a certified SQHN Health Facility Surveyor with a specialist certificate on the Fundamentals of External Evaluation Surveying from the International Society for Quality in Healthcare (ISQua). He has also published papers in health services research.

Dr. Luis Torres Torija Arguelles is a physician with a specialty in quality of clinical care from the Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico. He currently works as a quality and patient safety coordinator at Hospital Español in Mexico City, Mexico where he is responsible for the management, design, evaluation, improvement, and innovation of clinical care and patient safety processes, incorporating methodologies for continuous improvement and better communication. His efforts to implement all the Patient Safety Movement Foundation’s Actional Patient Safety Solutions have earned his hospital 5-star Hospital recognition.

KateYeonjae Jeong is a high school student studying in downtown Houston with a concentration in creative writing. Kate is an advocate for the integration of the arts and sciences and has founded a community outreach initiative providing art therapy and educational workshops. A communicator and storyteller at heart, Kate enjoys creative expressions in forms of writing and photography. With her work with the Patient Safety Movement Foundation, she hopes to bridge the gap between all ages in the mission of preventing patient harm and creating an impactful and positive change.