Speaker Biographies
Dr. Zowie Barnes
In 2007, Dr. Zowie Sheena Barnes graduated from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. During her time at UConn, she served as the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) Chapter Co-president 2004-2005 and SNMA Regional Director for Region VII 2005-2007.
In 2001, Dr. Barnes earned her Associates in Science (A.S) degree in Chemistry, with high honors, from the County College of Morris. She then matriculated to Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, where in 2003 she received her Bachelors in Science (B.S) degree in Biological Sciences with highest honors.
Dr. Barnes completed her residency at the University of Maryland Department of Family and Community Medicine in June 2010. Since then she has been working as an Independent Contractor in Maryland and the District of Columbia. She has returned to her residency program to work on a grant awarded by the Center for Reproductive Health Education in Family Medicine.
Throughout her education, Dr. Barnes served on several admissions and search committees and held numerous leadership positions. Additionally, over the last few years, she has enjoyed writing. In her last year of residency she was appointed Resident Editor for the Maryland Academy of Family Physicians (MAFP) Editorial Board and, as such, authored articles for several editions of “The Maryland Family Doctor,” MAFP’s official quarterly accredited publication. Dr. Barnes, now continuing on the Editorial Board, served as edition editor for the Fall 2011 edition on Women’s Health, a focus of Dr. Barnes’ practice.
In the upcoming months, Dr. Barnes will continue to expand on her leadership and advocacy skills by participating in the Physician for Reproductive Choice and Health (PRCH) Leadership Training Academy in Washington D.C and New York City.
Christine Castater
Christine Castater is a MD/MBA candidate for the class of 2014. She has served as the School of Medicine Admissions Program Interview Day Coordination interviews at UConn for two years. In addition to her involvement with interview coordination, Christine is very involved in student organizations at UConn.
Rashad A. Collins
Rashad A. Collins is the Director of Workforce Development for the Community Health Center Association of Connecticut (CHCACT). He oversees all of CHCACT’s Workforce Development and Emergency Preparedness programs including CT SEARCH, Community HealthCorps/AmeriCorps, National Health Service Corps, Human Resource policy development and recruitment & retention initiatives. A native of Springfield Massachusetts, and a graduate of Springfield College, he has worked in the non-profit sector for over ten years.
The Connecticut Area Health Education Center and Eastern AHEC
The Connecticut Area Health Education Center and Eastern AHEC, Inc provide a wide range of cultural and linguistic competency trainings for healthcare professionals, administrators and ancillary staff. All training programs and workshops qualify for continuing education credits by the International Association of Continuing Education and Training (IACET)
The mission of the CT AHEC Medical Interpreter Program is to ensure the cultural and linguistic competencies of healthcare providers and their organizations to have improved patient-provider communication, interaction and reach mutual achievement of personal and family health goals.
The Medical Interpreter Training Program aims to:
1. Provide basic and advanced medical interpreter training opportunities for potential interpreters, and qualified and trained interpreters,that promote thorough and accurate interpretation and cultural brokering.
2. Improve physician-patient communication through the proper use of a medical interpreter.
3. Strengthen the capacity of healthcare organizations to provide medical interpreter services by assessing and qualifying bi-lingual staff as dual-role interpreters.
4. Ensure quality control/improvement of medical interpreters by providing continuing education credits specific to interpretation of healthcare topics designed by identified training needs.
5. Customize basic and advance medical interpreter training for hospitals and other healthcare facilities.
6. Support the professionalization and workforce development of medical interpretation.
7. Empower medically underserved communities through advocacy and education to achieve self-directed access and use of health care resources.
8. Provide continuing education and training in the Cultural and Linguistic Assessment.
ASHER DELERME, M.S., LADC, CCS, C-CDP
Asher Delerme has long been a pioneering force in Connecticut social services, community health and supportive housing programs. As Executive Director of C.A.S.A., Delerme has been continually involved in advocating for culturally-based clinical and institutional practices on state and national levels. Having overseen human services programs for the past 20 years, his experience ranges from behavioral health treatment to community-based programs and higher education.
Dr. Mark Greenstein
Dr. Greenstein is one of the senior faculty at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine (UConn SOM) and an Associate Program Director in the Department of Pediatrics. He is “triple boarded”, holding board certification an Pediatrics and Clinical Genetics and subspecialty boards in Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics (DBPeds). He has worked for many years in both medical student and resident education and has particular interests in autism spectrum disorders and the relationship of genetics to child development. . He coordinates the Pediatric Scholars program at the UConn SOM and is the adviser for the student-run pediatric clinics at the UConn SOM. He is also a recipient of the Leonard Tow faculty award for Humanism in Medicine (Gold Humanism Honor Society).
Jessica Johnson
Jessica Johnson is a fourth year student in the MD/MPH program at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. She has a long-standing interest in health policy, primary care workforce development, and improving health care access and quality for vulnerable populations. She worked as a Health Policy Intern with the Primary Care Coalition of Connecticut (PCCC) with a focus on strategic planning, coalition building, policy analysis, and advocacy. Johnson has been an active student leader in the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and is currently serving as Student Director on the AAFP Board of Directors. She is a member of the Gold Humanism Honor Society and was recently awarded a Pisacano Leadership Scholarship.
Dr. Cato T. Laurencin, M.D., Ph.D.
Cato T. Laurencin, M.D., Ph.D.is an elected member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences and an elected member of the National Academy of Engineering.
Dr. Laurencin is the Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Chair in Orthopaedic Surgery, and Professor of Chemical, Materials and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Connecticut. In addition, Dr. Laurencin is a University Professor at the University of Connecticut (the 5th in the institution’s history). An internationally prominent orthopaedic surgeon, engineer, and administrator, Dr. Laurencin directs the Institute for Regenerative Engineering at the University of Connecticut Health Center, and is Chief Executive Officer of the Connecticut Institute for Clinical and Translational Science. Dr. Laurencin previously served as Vice President for Health Affairs and Dean of the School of Medicine at the University of Connecticut Health Center. Previous to that Dr. Laurencin was the Lillian T. Pratt Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Virginia.
Dr. Laurencin earned his undergraduate degree in chemical engineering from Princeton University and his medical degree Magna Cum Laude from Harvard Medical School. During medical school, he also earned his Ph.D. in biochemical engineering/biotechnology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Dr. Laurencin has been named to America’s Top Doctors and America’s Top Surgeons, and is a Fellow of the American Surgical Association, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Dr. Laurencin’s research involves tissue engineering, biomaterials science, nanotechnology and stem cell science. He is an International Fellow in Biomaterials
Science and Engineering and a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and the Biomedical Engineering Society. His work was honored by Scientific American Magazine as one of the 50 greatest achievements in science in 2007. Dr. Laurencin was named the 2009 winner of the Pierre Galletti Award, medical and biological engineering’s highest honor and was named one of the 100 Engineers of the Modern Era by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers at its Centennial celebration.
Dr. Laurencin’s work in mentoring students is well known. He received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring from President Obama in ceremonies at the White House.
Dr. Laurencin has been a member of the National Science Foundation’s Advisory Committee for Engineering (ADCOM), and has served both on the National Science Board of the FDA, and the National Advisory Council for Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases at N.I.H. He currently is a member of the National Advisory Council for Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering.
Dr. Laurencin is a former Speaker of the House of the National Medical Association, and currently serves as Chairman of the Board of the W. Montague Cobb/National Medical Association Health Policy Institute. Dr. Laurencin is also a member of the National Academies Board on Life Sciences, the N.I.H. National Advisory Council for Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, and sits on the National Academies Roundtable on Value and Science Driven Health Care.
Dr. Stanton Wolfe
Dr. Stanton Wolfe is currently a professor in the UCHC School of Medicine Department of Community Medicine and Health Care, serving as the course instructor for the MPH Program’s Practicum in Public Health, Field Experience in Public Health, and Foundations of Strategic Planning, and is a conference leader for the HDH Clinical Epidemiology course. He is the coordinating director for the UConn Undergraduate Public Health Initiative, and the instructor for the Introduction to Public Health undergraduate course. In addition to Stan’s teaching and research responsibilities, he serves on the MPH Program Advisory Committee, and as Chair of the MPH Program Community Partnerships Committee. Dr. Wolfe has most recently been elected to the Governing Council of the American Public Health Association (APHA), and is the Principal Investigator for UConn for the CT/RI Public Health Training Center.
Dr. Wolfe, a Diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS), completed his residency and fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Medical Center. His professional career began as a professor of OMFS in the UCHC departments of medicine and dentistry, followed by 15 years in private clinical practice and teaching. During these years he became a leader and spokesperson for increased access to clinical care for underserved populations, and for the control of infectious disease in healthcare practice. After receiving his MPH, Dr. Wolfe dedicated himself to public health education and community public health service full-time, serving as the State Oral Health Director at the CT Department of Public Health (DPH). While at DPH, he created the CT Community Integrated Service Systems project, and OPENWIDE, a nationally recognized model program for building community health capacity through innovative education and training for health and human services providers. Just prior to returning to UCHC, Dr. Wolfe served as Professor and Head of Public Health and Community Service at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, and as a Faculty Fellow of Tufts’ College of Citizenship and Community Service.
Tricia Marriot
Tricia Marriott graduated from the Yale School of Medicine Physician Associate Program and has been a PA for 25 years. She has held many leadership positions at the State and National levels, including President and Government Relations Chair for the Connecticut Academy of Physician Assistants. She is also a PA member of the CT State Medical Society. Tricia is currently on staff at the American Academy of Physician Assistants, the national organization representing PAs as Director of Reimbursement Advocacy in the Advocacy and Outreach Division. She lectures frequently on reimbursement and payment policy, billing, and regulatory concerns affecting healthcare practitioners.