Monique Adams
Executive Director, Global Head Diversity & Inclusion in Clinical Trials
Sanofi
Monique Adams is the Executive Director, Global Head, Diversity & Inclusion in Clinical Trials at Sanofi. Monique is working with internal and external partners to drive Sanofi’s vision, strategy and implementation of a holistic framework for inclusion and diversity in clinical trials.
Adrelia C. Allen, PharmD
Executive Director, Clinical Trial Patient Diversity
Merck
Adrelia Allen is the Executive Director of Clinical Trial Patient Diversity at Merck. She is responsible for the strategy and execution of activities to drive representation in clinical trials across the portfolio. Adrelia is one of PharmaVoice 2022-100 Most Inspiring People in the life sciences.
Angel Akinbinu
Director, Site & Patient Diversity
Syneos Health
Angel Akinbinu is the Director of Site and Patient Diversity at Syneos Health, where she leads the strategy development and implementation of diversity, equity, and inclusion in clinical trials.
Prior to joining Syneos, she worked in both CROs and large pharma, creating and executing patient recruitment and retention strategies, later transitioning to work focused on increasing representation and access for underserved and underrepresented patient populations in clinical trials. She has worked in multiple therapeutic areas including oncology, infectious disease and vaccines, neuroscience, and immunology.
Angel earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Hampton University and Master of Arts in Criminology & Criminal Justice from the University of Maryland. She lives in the Raleigh, NC area with her husband and two children.
Hera Arham, MBA, MA
Director of Marketing & Patient Engagement
DM Clinical Research
Hera Arham is the Director of Marketing & Patient Engagement at DM Clinical Research. She joined DM Clinical with over 10 years of experience in marketing, communications, and business development for organizations across the nation. She holds an MBA in Marketing and a Master’s in Global Affairs.
Deena Bernstein, MHS
Vice President, Customer Success
Datacubed Health
Deena Bernstein has deep expertise in healthcare leadership and the clinical research industry. Her career spans over twenty years in clinical research site development, operations and digital technology for the clinical research industry. Deena is a passionate leader with an entrepreneurial spirit that cares deeply about improving the clinical trial experience and process for study participants. She thrives on innovation and is the VP of Customer Success at Datacubed Health where she is focused on delighting customers, participant engagement & retention, decentralized clinical trial models and clinical research as a care option. She looks as her role as the Ambassador to Happiness Deena’s has held leadership and executive roles at large Healthcare organizations, IQVIA (Fortune 500), IRO’s and Datacubed Health where she’s expanded her horizons by entering the mHealth space which uses behavioral science and Saas Technology to improve patient compliance and retention to increase data quality in clinical trials.
Dave Bjork
Lung Cancer Survivor, Patient Advocate, Research Evangelist
Research Evangelist Podcast
I am the founder of Research Evangelist, LLC and the Research Evangelist Podcast. On my podcast I interview amazing people in life sciences making a difference (mostly in lung cancer) – researchers, clinicians and pharma advocacy leaders – talking about meaningful topics like health equity, access to care, health literacy, biomarker testing, lung cancer screening and diversity in oncology. I am adept at identifying and building trusting relationships and love working with people who care about the same things I care about. I’m also a champion for innovation in the biotech and pharma community while at the same advocating for patient communities and the stressing the important role patients play in developing new treatments. We must include the patient voice.
As a proven community-builder and connector of good people. I am Co-founder of Cannons Fighting Cancer and creator of FRAXA Biotech Games™.
My Why… I believe good things happen when you bring together and connect really good people who care.
Patient Advocacy & Engagement • Fundraising • Community Building • Business Development • Social Media Advocacy • Cancer Research Evangelist • Empowerment • Lung Cancer Precision Medicine • Partnership & Alliance Development • Connector of Good Humans
Jessica Brescher, MPH
Sr. Clinical Scientist, Immunology and Fibrosis
Bristol Myers Squibb
Jessica Brescher is a Sr. Clinical Scientist for Bristol Myers Squibb. In this role, she is responsible for the scientific design and conduct of Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials. Additionally, Jessica co-leads the Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Intersex Status (SOGIIS) team, which has implemented routine voluntary self-identification if SOGIIS status for patients in all US clinical trials. She believes strongly that diversity in clinical trials is a scientific, medical, and moral imperative. Jessica is also a doctoral student at Drexel University where she focused on the ethical inclusion of sex and gender diverse populations in clinical trials. Jessica brings more than 17 years clinical trial experience, plus a Masters of Public Health in epidemiology from the Rutgers School of Public Health.
Ryan Brown, MPA
VP, Diversity Solutions
Circuit Clinical
Ryan Brown supports Circuit Clinical’s, efforts in ensuring the organizations solutions enable diversity, inclusion and clinical trials as a care option for all potential participants in clinical trials. She came to Circuit following a stint leading Science 37 , a decentralized clinical trial technology company, Diversity in Clinical Trial efforts, as Sr. Director Global Head Diversity & Inclusion in Clinical Trials. Her experience spans Contract Research Organizations (CRO): PRA Health Sciences (ICON Plc), PPD (ThermoFisher Scientific), and Worldwide Clinical Trials. At the CROs, she was actively engaged in clinical operations, business development, and a strategic commercial leadership role. Ryan also has 15+ years’ experience driving diversity & high priority initiatives across academia, grassroots community organizations, clinical industry task forces: Advisory Board for the Yale Collaboration for Regulatory Rigor, Integrity, and Transparency (CRRIT), Association of Clinical Research Organizations (ACRO) and Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation (CISCRP) and collaborating with patient advocacy organizations such as International Children’s Advocacy Network. She is a sought after speaker and thought leader in the space participating in events featured in PharmaVoice Women of the Week, Yale’s Annual Healthcare Conference, WOCIP (Women of Color in Pharma), Women in Bio, JP Morgan and Consuli’s Clinical Trial Clubhouse on Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
Ryan earned her Bachelor of Science in Chemistry at Kentucky State University, Master’s in Public Administration- Healthcare Administration & Finance Concentration at the University of Kentucky and holds a Certificate in Diversity & Inclusion from Cornell University.
Jennifer Byrne
CEO
Javara
Jennifer Byrne’s career has been devoted to advancing the clinical research enterprise to better connect patients and providers to clinical trials. Her passion and commitment to transforming clinical research into an integrated component of healthcare are at the forefront of Javara’s mission.
Bree Burks, RN, MSN
VP of Strategy, Site Solutions
Veeva Systems
| Bree Burks has been involved in clinical research as a nurse, research coordinator, team manager, and director of a large central clinical trials office within three leading academic medical centers. At Veeva, she focuses on improving technology for research sites around the globe. |
Michelle Cencelewski
VP of Clinical Operations
ObjectiveHealth
Michelle Cencelewski, as Vice President of Clinical operations I excel as a Promoter, Builder & Nurturer of Clinical Research Teams & Centers of Excellence. I have more than 14 years of clinical research experience having started out as a Certified Clinical Research Coordinator. Having always been a natural leader I strive to lead and develop teams while navigating the ever-changing landscape of the clinical research field. My experience, having worked on over 80 clinical trials across ten indications and varying in phases allows me to have a vast area of knowledge and experiences throughout the industry throughout the years. Since joining the ObjectiveHealth team in 2019, I have worked to strive for the development of centers of excellence through my knowledge and leadership.
Mia Chester, MA
Senior Manager, Diversity and Outreach
Global Alzheimer’s Platform
Mia Chester is the Senior Manager, Diversity and Community Outreach, overseeing the Inclusive Research Initiative to expand participation from underrepresented communities in clinical studies. She holds a M.A. in Health Promotion from the University of Alabama.
Lacey Clements
Director of Patient Recruitment Strategy
IMA Clinical Research
Lacey started working 7 years ago for a few sites in San Diego and then moved to rare disease at a pharmaceutical company. She then joined IMA Clinical Research and has successfully expanded patient recruitment efforts with a focus on patient diversity.
Nader Daoud
Senior Manager, Clinical Trial Diversity & Inclusion
Moderna
My D&I role involves driving the equitable recruitment & retention of people in Moderna’s global clinical trials through data-driven strategies. I am passionate about health tech that is made with and for everyone. With justice at the heart of my work, I care about how we get to where we are going.
Dana Dornsife
Founder, Chief Mission and Strategy Officer
Lazarex Cancer Foundation
Dana Dornsife is Chief Mission and Strategy Officer at Lazarex Cancer Foundation, a nationwide non-profit organization she founded in 2006. The unique mission of Lazarex is to improve cancer health outcomes, FDA cancer clinical trial diversity and enrolment, and patient access to care by providing assistance with clinical trial navigation, reimbursing trial related travel costs, and partnering with at-risk communities to mobilize resources.
In 2016, Dana expanded the mission at Lazarex to bring sustainable and transformational change to clinical trial enrolment, retention, minority participation and equitable access with IMPACT (IMproving Patient Access to Cancer Clinical Trials). Most recently, Lazarex created collaboration around a public health initiative, the Lazarex Cancer Wellness HUBs. This bold initiative is aimed at creating a replicable model to address cancer health disparities and improve cancer health outcomes. Dana is a graduate of Drexel University in Philadelphia, serves on several Boards, and participates in many philanthropic initiatives with her husband Dave Dornsife.
Kim Down, MBA
Business Development Manager
National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)
Kim Down develops and maintains strategic relationships with global commercial and UK medical research charities and government agencies which fund clinical research. In her previous role she managed the INCLUDE project. A project aiming to achieve better healthcare through more inclusive research.
Brandon Doyle, MBA
Associate Director, Site Alliances | SME Global Site Diversity Strategy
Parexel
Brandon Doyle, MBA, is Associate Director, Site Alliances and SME Global Site Diversity Strategy for Parexel. In this role, Brandon serves as a site solutions consultant to prepare sites for the evolving needs and demands in the clinical research trial industry. Brandon joined the SCRS Diversity Program 4 years ago and represented Parexel as the first CRO to join the initiative. He is guided by the belief that every person should have access to clinical research as a continuum to their health care and that diversity, equity and inclusion is essential for a person’s ability to thrive and prosper. Brandon has 22 years in industry under various roles from study coordinator and program director at the site level and clinical enrolment manager and site management at the CRO level. Brandon brings a unique perspective on patient engagement and recruitment through his MBA Marketing degree from Carlson School of Business.
Audrey Escobedo-Escotto, MD, MPH
Research Director
Emerson Clinical Research Institute
Dr. Escobedo-Escotto holds a medical degree and a master’s degree in public health from The Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University. She has dedicated her last 8 years to the conduct of clinical research in the most underserved communities of the Washington D.C area. Her proficiency in English, French and Spanish has allowed her to gain the trust of the community. Dr. Escobedo-Escotto joined ECRI in 2013 and her goal has been to increase diversity in clinical trials. Currently she is the Research Director for Emerson Clinical Research Institute, and makes sure the studies are a benefit to all communities. She has always been focused to improve health access to minorities. As a result, she established and now the COO of Emerson Community Clinic, which provides low cost care to patients regardless of the financial/legal status.
Dr. Escobed-Escotto co-hosts of the Tv show “Tu Salud Tu Familia” on Telemundo and received her third Emmy for Outstanding Health and Science program special.
Dr. Escobedo-Escotto was recognized as one of the 40 Under 40 Leaders in Minority Health by the National Minority Quality Forum’s for her accomplishments in the Healthcare field and her potential to continue positively impacting minorities.
Altovise T. Ewing, PhD, LCGC
Global Health Equity Strategist and Senior Science Lead
Genentech
Dr. Ewing is a clinician-scientist with fifteen years of genetic counseling and health disparities research experience. She dedicates her career to ensuring that emerging genetic and genomic research, services and technologies do not further exacerbate health disparities and inequities. Her unwavering passion for equity and inclusion enables her to serve as a trusted and committed healthcare liaison to marginalized, medically underserved, and underrepresented communities, such as her own, in research. From 2020-2022, Dr. Ewing served as a Director- At- Large on the National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC) Board of Directors where she established and influenced strategic priorities among NSGC. Currently, Dr. Ewing is a Senior Science Lead and Strategist on the Global Health Equity and Population Science (HEPS) team at Genentech.
Nicholas Focil , MBA, MS
CEO
Fomat Medical Research
Nicholas Focil is the founder and CEO of FOMAT Medical Research– an Integrated Research Organization with over 10 years of experience conducting clinical research in a wide variety of therapeutic areas. As CEO of a medical research company, Nicholas aims to diversify clinical trials, bring innovative healthcare to underrepresented populations, and ensure that high-quality data is contributed to the scientific community to create better treatments. In recognition of the company’s innovative advancements in COVID-19 research, FOMAT was even named 2020s Innovative Business of the Year by Oxnard, California’s Chamber of Commerce. Nicholas is currently chairman and co-founder of Febo, an app chosen by the Northern California MIT Healthcare Association as a top 100 healthcare startup (and is part of the Plug and Play ecosystem). Nicholas also became an Execute Board Member of hyperCORE International, the second-largest research organization in the world. This membership is in addition to previous ones where the was once part of the Innovation Steering Committee of ACRP and Forbes Los Angeles Business Council back in 2018. Moreover, as early as 2008, Nicholas has done numerous publications and speaking engagements within the scientific and business fields and is part of his Alma Maters top 40 under 40.
Diana Foster, PhD
CEO
Total Diversity
Dr. Diana L. Foster currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer for Total Diversity Clinical Trial Management. She has worked with Total Diversity since inception and has guided Total Diversity as it has become a full-service contract research organization.
Judy Galindo, MS
Co-Founder, Director and Owner of Research
Latinos in Clinical Research and Sun Valley Research Center
Co-Owner of Sun Valley Research Center, Inc. located in Imperial County, California for the past 16 years and has experience recruiting and enrolling Latino participants in clinical trials. Co-founder of Latinos in Clinical Research Certified Clinical Research Coordinator through ACRP.
Owen Garrick, MD, MBA
Chief Medical Officer, Clinical Trial Services
CVS Health Clinical Trial Services
Owen Garrick, MD is Chief Medical Officer of CVS Health Clinical Trial Services. In this role, Dr. Garrick is responsible for the overall medical strategy across the portfolio, overseeing medical compliance, clinical insights, publications and clinical innovation.
Almenia Garvey, MSc
Sr. Director, Site Network
Oncacare
Almenia has over 25 years’ experience in clinical research and during this time she has had the opportunity to work on a number of projects combining healthcare and technology. She specialises in site selection strategy, investigator identification and investigator relationship management. Almenia has a passionate interest in driving diversity in all aspects of clinical trials. She is on the board of Directors for Nvolve, a non-profit that focuses on preparing young women for STEM careers and the Advisory Board for (CISCRP)The Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation.
Catherine Gregor, MBA, CCRP, CCRC
Chief Clinical Trial Officer
Florence Healthcare
Catherine Gregor is a transformational leader with close to two decades of experience in clinical research. She currently serves as the Chief Clinical Trial Officer for Florence Healthcare and is a key opinion leader on patient-centric, decentralized and hybrid trial design.
Nadege Gunn, MD
Medical Director
Impact Research Institute
Gastroenterologist and a Certified Principal Investigator. Former United Sates Air Force Major and Chief of Gastroenterology at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. She is the founder of Impact Research Institute, a clinical trial facility that serves a large rural and underrepresented population.
Don Harder, MS
Head, Trial Solutions Design
Care Access
Don has spent his 25 year career focusing on design and innovation in clinical trials. He started as a biostatistician designing and analyzing clinical trials and has leveraged those experiences to implement innovative solutions with multiple pharma sponsor, service, site, and tech organizations.
Lloryn Hubbard
Head, Patient Diversity
PPD, part of Thermo Fisher Scientific
Lloryn Hubbard is the head of Patient Diversity at PPD, a part of Thermo Fisher Scientific. In this role, she has strategic oversight over the company’s clinical trial focused health equity efforts and leads a team focused on supporting and optimizing clinical development for patient diversity.
Sheila Marie Johnson, MBA
Patient Insights Board Member
Medidata
Sheila Marie Johnson, a 25-year United States Air Force military veteran who has been living with MBC for 13 years. She is a Patients Insights Board member for Medidata. Sheila helps to amplify diverse voices to bring real world expertise to the design of innovative digital health offerings.
Van Johnson
VP, Business Development
Velocity Clinical Research
Van is a natural relationship builder and prides himself on “Being There” for his client partners. Diversity is an issue of immense importance. It’s crucial across the board in all industries, but in particular to the clinical research field, in that it can have major health implications.
Denise Johnson-Sura
Associate Vice President, Design Hub Foundations
Lilly
Denise Johnson Sura joined Eli Lilly and Company in 2004 as a Clinical Research Associate and has since held a variety of positions across the organization supporting the global development of medicines. Presently, Denise leads the global organization responsible for the identification, qualification, support and collaboration with clinical trial sites participating in Lilly studies. Denise and her team recognize the value of site and patient feedback in the design of efficient and effective studies, ultimately leading to improved clinical trial experiences.
Nicholas Kenny, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Syneos Health
20+ years of experience in clinical development & consulting; background in biomedical research. CSO for Syneos Health -leads global Medical Team, Safety. ClinPharm & BioA. Governance lead on DE& I Council – central role in patient diversity efforts. Representative to MRCT Steering Committee.
Garo Kiledjian
Chief Operating Officer
Trialogic
Garo Kiledjian is the COO for Trialogic. He’s served in roles such as VP of Global Operations and Human Resources, as well as multilevel roles within administration, research, pharmacy, and finance. Garo has extensive experience in the LGBTQIA+ healthcare space and is an advocate for this community. He is currently on the executive committee for the National LGBTQ Task Force, a social justice group that focuses on legislative and policy changes from the grassroots level in DC. He is passionate about DEI and offers a unique perspective on how intersectionality of race and ethnicity overlap with gender and sexuality. Garo earned his Bachelor’s from UCLA and studied Leadership and Global Strategy at Woodbury’s Graduate School of Business.
Jaleeysa King
Business Analyst, Reporting & Analytics
Greenphire
Jaleeysa King is a visionary data analyst who is revolutionizing the link between data analysis, fair market value, and diversity in clinical trials. Her in-depth study of the disparities in participant diversity is instrumental to finding new ways for technology to broaden patient participation.
Lorena Kuri, MS
Head, Diversity Strategy
BMS
Lorena is a people oriented, active and sensitive change agent leading the R&D efforts to help serve more Patients around the world. Her international experience and transferable skills helped Lorena change careers after more than 14 years in Commercial roles, finding a match in Clinical Operations, expanding the opportunity to help medically underserved populations. Lorena’s business acumen and customer focus have been key to demonstrating results in different roles, but more importantly to engage with key stakeholders. Lorena holds a Masters in Human Capital, and she is fluent in Spanish, English and Portuguese. Lorena believes in the value of connecting others and she is proud of building this connections and helping whenever is needed.
Lorena is an inclusion advocate. Lorena stands for what is right. As a Latina, Immigrant and a Woman, Lorena has found a personal purpose to help others, and she is trying to make it right by engaging with WOCIP and #redshoemoevent every day.
Ana Marquez, MSF, CRCP
CEO
Clinical Site Partners, LLC/ Flourish Research Orlando
| Ana T. Marquez, MSF, CRCP, is the CEO and Founder of Clinical Site Partners, LLC (now Flourish Research Orlando). She entered the medical research field 20 years ago, after obtaining a Masters of Science degree in Finance, from Florida International University in Miami. Ana has extensive experience in building research teams, establishing best site practices, training new investigators, as well as building quality assurance programs. Having conducted hundreds of clinical trial and budget negotiations, Ana is considered an industry expert in the topic, which has led to her co-authoring several industry white papers thru major global organizations like SCRS. She’s also passionate about creating and implementing financial policies leading to increased site efficiency. In 2021, Ana led her team in becoming the top global enroller on COVID-19 prevention and treatment trials, as the Company has played a significant role in the fight against the pandemic.
Ana is highly proactive in the research industry, presenting regularly at major industry conferences, serving on various pharmaceutical and peer advisory groups, through global research organizations such as SCRS, ACRP, Transcelerate, and DIA. |
Ashwin Mathew, MBA
Director of Analytics, Global Demographics & Diversity
GSK
Ashwin is the Director of Analytics in Global Demographics & Diversity at GSK. In his role, Ashwin is leading Analytics for clinical trial diversity planning, design and overseeing the delivery of programs and study level population planning including the delivery of
FDA Diversity Plans.
Karen McIntyre, MSc
VP, Global Site Alliances
Parexel
Karen has 30 years’ industry experience conducting clinical trials in a broad range of therapeutic areas across phase II through phase IV clinical trials. Karen’s main interest is exploring strategies to enhance the clinical trial pathway for patients.
Kelly McKee
Vice President, Decentralized Clinical Trials
Medidata
Kelly McKee serves as vice president of Decentralized Clinical Trials (DCTs) in Patient Cloud at Medidata. She is responsible for creating new solutions to engage clinical trial patients pre-trial, in-trial, and post-trial, as well as developing patient and product communications around all Patient Cloud Products for decentralized and hybrid clinical trials. Kelly is a proven clinical trial leader and trailblazer in operationalizing global patient-focused solutions across organizations including innovations in clinical trial awareness, access, and improvements in patient experiences. Prior to Medidata, she spent over 20 years within clinical operations and patient recruitment at top-tier pharmaceutical companies including Sanofi, Merck, Eli Lilly and Co., and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Kelly is passionate about celebrating the role that clinical trial participants bring in making new medicines and vaccines possible and was named one of Life Sci Voice’s Top Industry Leaders in 2022, PharmaVoice’s 100 Most Inspiring Leaders in 2020, Centerwatch’s Top 20 Innovators of 2018, and PharmaTimes’ Clinical Researcher of the Year, Clinical Research Teams, in 2012. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from Bryn Mawr College and a masters degree in clinical research administration from George Washington University.
Sophia McLeod, MA
Director, Government Relations
ACRO
Sophia is the Director of Government Relations at ACRO. Representing ACRO’s CRO and technology provider members, Sophia leads ACRO’s legislative strategy and regularly meets with Congressional offices on Capitol Hill to advance ACRO’s profile and policy priorities.
Mohammad Millwala, MBA, CPA
CEO
DM Clinical Research
With a life-long background dedicated to helping others and a keen eye for business, starting a career in the clinical space always interested Mohammad. As CEO and Founder of DM Clinical, Mohammad first set out to build an adept enterprise that not only was agile, but served a helpful niche in society.
His desire to ensure DM Clinical achieved the latter was exacerbated in 2008, when Millwala’s three-day-old nephew was stricken with illness and Mohammad was forced to watch as his newest family member’s life hung in the balance. Witnessing first-hand the real world impact of healthcare drove Millwala’s goals to new heights, and in his own words the life of DM Clinical “took on new meaning” after this experience. No longer was DM Clinical solely a business operating in an impact-driven space; DM Clinical was now a full-time large scale infrastructure dedicated to successfully helping individuals on a patient-by-patient basis. Mohammad keeps close to his heart the knowledge that DM Clinical serves the individual, and every recipient of the treatment DM Clinical helps provide is someone’s loved one in need of care. This drive has set DM Clinical apart from its competitors by utilizing successful business practices such as organization, collaboration, and flexibility to drive patient empowerment.
At his core, Millwala is a multifaceted, dynamic learner who above all values honesty and humility. Those close to him describe him as focused, dedicated, and passionate leader with a mind and proficiency for progress. His leadership style is to value those he works with, and he prides himself on being an excellent listener with an open-door policy.
Millwala views DM Clinical as a life-long mission, and on the back of taking a leading role in the COVID-19 Vaccine mission, the next steps for DM Clinical are to continue to grow in size and breadth and take their patient-driven approach to a national presence.
While Millwala remains focused on his business, he does enjoy reading and can often be heard quoting one of his two favourite books, “Rich Dad Poor Dad,” and “Who Moved my Cheese?” or reminding others of his favourite quote, a nod to Mother Theresa, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.”
From a collaborative perspective, Millwala looks for partners and employees who are serious about working together to create a real world impact. He prefers to engage in those with solid mettle as opposed to “yes people.” As DM Clinical rapidly grows, Mohammad still feels a great sense of personal responsibility to foster a culture that takes care of their own and makes the company one that both the employees and the public recognize as being “the best place to work.”
To Mohammad, DM Clinical is not a business, but a home. A home built on the foundations of respect, ethics, and fairness throughout, and a home with open doors that is dedicated to improving the community.
Danielle Mitchell
Founder & CEO
Black Women in Clinical Research (BWICR)
Danielle Mitchell has helped many professionals increase their reach and opportunities through Black Women in Clinical Research (BWICR), Black Men in Clinical Research\ (BMICR), and Minorities In Clinical Research (MICR). Presently, the organization has over 15,000 active members.
Lovie Negrin, DNP, APRN, FNP, AG-ACNP
CEO, Director of Research
Randomize Now Research Centers
| Dr. Lovie Negrin is the CEO of Randomize Now, a medical research company that increases the participation of black & underserved people in clinical trials. Dr. Lovie has strategically implemented tactics to educate marginalized communities and ensure accessibility to novel therapies. |
Marta Nelson, MSc
Director of Operations
MplusM Research Network
Marta Nelson is co-founder of MplusM Research Network and holds the position of Director of Operations. Marta previously worked in health policy consulting, collaborating with large pharmaceutical companies. Marta graduated from the London School of Economics with a MSc.
Carlos Orantes, MBA
Chief Executive Officer
Alcanza Clinical Research
Over 28 years of experience in the drug development industry ranging from the pre-clinical sector through late stage clinical space. This includes senior executive management roles for large and small, private and publicly held entities, as well as domestic and international companies.
Daniel Perez, CCRP
Global Head, Patient Experience, Diversity & Inclusion
Worldwide Clinical Trials
At Worldwide Clinical Trials, Daniel serves as strategic counselor and architect for patient engagement, diversity, and inclusion. His focus is on expansion of capabilities to cultivate a thriving ecosystem of investigative sites, clinician investigators, and patients.
Leah Peters
Clinical Operations Program Lead
Genentech/Roche
Leah is a Clinical Operations Program Lead and core member of the Patient Access & Inclusive Research Community within Clinical Operations, a team dedicated to embedding inclusive research in drug development. She also leads the Diversity in Clinical Trial Participants initiative at Transcelerate.
Jeff Repper
Executive Vice President, Strategic Site Solutions
Transformative Pharmaceutical Solutions
Jeff has 16 years of experience in the Life Sciences industry. At TPS, he leads the Site Solutions function, with the overall responsibility of delivering these solutions. Prior to joining TPS, Jeff served as the Vice President of MediSync Clinical Research, a network of clinical trial sites. At MediSync, he was responsible for building and managing the business unit including sites operational oversight, sponsor relationships, trial quality, safety and performance, and MediSyncs’ profit and loss. Prior to joining MediSync, he was a Clinical Research Associate at Medpace Inc.
Kim Ribeiro, MS
Head, Diversity & Patient Inclusion
AbbVie
Kim Ribeiro, MLS (ASCP) CM, MS, has over 10 years of clinical trial patient experience with her most recent position being at AbbVie. She has a strong focus on strategy development for patient engagement, recruitment and retention planning as well as digital outreach and raising clinical trial awareness in underrepresented populations. Most notably, Kim is a published author, has served as an executive faculty member at several conferences, and has been recognized as one of the ASCP’s Top 40 under 40 global medical technology professionals.
Lucia Rodriguez, MS, ACRP-CP
Director of Research
Evolve Clinical Research
Lucia has worked in the industry for over 12 years as the lead coordinator for 200+ trials and has been an independent consultant for academic centers, multi-site organizations and stand-alone research sites. Currently, she is in charge of the day-to-day operation of 7 sites in Arizona.
Andres Rozo
CEO
IntegralIT
Andres is a CEO at Integra IT, an electronic engineer, and an entrepreneur with over 25 years of experience, passionate about finding solutions through technology that solves critical problems. Dedicated to serving organizations that improve people’s quality of life, he has served Latin American healthcare and clinical research organizations for the last four years, bringing his knowledge and 15 years of experience in IBM Latin America, with a high focus on diversity, inclusion, and growth in emerging markets by embracing patient-centered, and professionals-centered software, services and analytics. Andres enjoys serving others; he loves a good soccer game with friends, a nice BBQ, a good book, spending quality time with his family, and Colombian coffee.
Fabian Sandoval, MD
President & CEO
Emerson Clinical Research Institute
Dr. Fabian Sandoval, CEO & Research Director, has over 25 years of bench to bedside research experience. His diversified research career has been in academia, healthcare systems and the public sector. He received his Bachelors of Science in molecular and cellular biology from Marymount University, and his Doctorate of Medicine from the Autonomous University of Guadalajara, School of Medicine.
Before opening the doors to Emerson Clinical Research Institute (ECRI) Dr. Sandoval’s research activities have included bench research at the National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) where he focused his work on Early Onset Alzheimer’s Disease, and Cretzfelt-Jakob Disease. At the NIHs’ Clinical Center conducting research in the outpatient Oncology unit, followed by his successful support of an NIH RO1 grant on preventing epilepsy in post-traumatic brain injury patients in adults and children, simultaneously run at the Washington Hospital Center, and Children’s National Medical Center.
Dr. Sandoval served as the Supervisory Research Integrity & Compliance Officer in the Army Human Research Protections Office in the Office of the Army Surgeon General. Responsibilities included establishment, and oversight of Human Research Protection Programs across Army commands. His input has been instrumental in the review, development, and selection of protocols, in addition to education and training for resident and hospital faculty.
Dr. Sandoval has since started the Emerson Community Clinic, in order to support un-insured patients across the DC metro area, as well as starting the Emerson Diversity Health Foundation, who’s mission is to educate patients and providers in the importance of participating in clinical research and accesses to care.
Patricia Salter
Senior Director, Head of Global Decentralized Clinical Trial Operations
IQVIA
Patricia started her clinical research career in 2006 at Quintiles. During her time at Quintiles and now IQVIA, Patricia held positions of increasing responsibility in project management, customer management, clinical operations, and Operational Transformation. In 2020, Patricia went on secondment from her position leading the North America Clinical Support office to support the DCT team to operationalize the COVID vaccine work. This included the oversight of the tech strategy development, building customer relationships and working with cross functional teams to address issues. From there, Patricia led the development and deployment of the DCT Transformation Program which includes the development of a sustained operating model for DCT Hybrid studies. Patricia is now Head of the Global DCT Operations team.
Steve Satek, MBA
Chief Commercial Officer
Flourish Research
Steve has >30 years’ experience in clinical trials with senior management roles at the Chicago Center for Clinical Research, Radiant Research and Cognitive Drug Research. He founded his own research site network in Chicago, Great Lakes Clinical Trials, which he sold to Flourish Research in 2021.
Brian Simmons
Lead, Trial Landscape
H1
Alicia C. Staley, MBA, MS, IS
VP, Patient Engagement
Medidata
Alicia Staley serves as vice president of Patient Engagement at Medidata. She oversees the Patient Insights Program and the Patient Insights Board. She works to infuse the patient perspective throughout the product development lifecycle and help engage patients in novel ways.
Brittane L. Strahan, RN, MSN, CCRP
Research Nurse Specialist
BEKHealth
Brittane’s background is in biology and nursing and she has spent several years as a hospital nurse before transitioning to clinical research as a certified clinical research coordinator for a small NCORP in Pennsylvania. Currently, Brittane is a research nurse with BEKHealth.
Brandy Starks, MBA, MSHS, CDE
Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
EmVenio Research
Brandy Starks is a clinical research professional, research participant, and certified diversity executive. She is currently the Head of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategy at EmVenio research. A vocal patient advocate, Brandy sits on several boards and committees including the NIH All of US Patient Advisory Board and Cedars-Sinai’s IRB and patient experience boards. She is also the founder of Clinical Trials in Color Foundation, bringing clinical research education and conversations to communities of color.
Sarah Thompson Schick, JD, MS
Counsel, FDA Regulatory and Compliance
Reed Smith, LLP
Sarah advises on FDA regulatory and compliance matters intersecting with strategic business decisions. She counsels clients on GCP and clinical trials, safety reporting, medical communications, GMP, and ClinicalTrials.gov. Sarah has also written and spoken extensively on clinical trial diversity.
Jane Thurston
Senior Patient Recruitment Lead
Parexel
My background is in biology and nursing and I spent several years as a hospital nurse before transitioning to clinical research as a certified clinical research coordinator for a small NCORP in Pennsylvania. Currently, I am a research nurse with BEKHealth.
Karri Venn, RD, CCRC
COO, President of Operating Board
Centricity Research
Karri Venn brings over 24 years of clinical research experience working at clinical research sites. Ms. Venn has brought experience, knowledge and drive to many of the positions held at LMC Healthcare since 1999. In 2006, Ms. Venn was promoted to Director, Research of LMC Clinical Research, in 2015 to President, Research of LMC Manna Research and 2021 to COO, President of Centricity Research (formerly LMC Manna, True North and IACT Health). Under her tenure, she has been responsible for the successful openings of 13 LMC Healthcare clinics across Canada, including Canada’s only Diabetes Clinical Research Unit and establishing the largest Canadian non-academic Endocrinology Research program, and the integration of various primary care and specialty clinical research sites to form one of the largest integrated research organizations in North America that include therapeutic expertise in all phases of research inclusive of real world/big data. Centricity Research has more than 40 site locations across 4 provinces and 2 states.
Ms. Venn has led the project management teams for > 2000 clinical trials and led the response to > 50 Sponsor & Regulatory audits. Centricity Research has become a reputable program and has received the distinct award as a Centre of Excellence in Diabetes clinical research, PRIME status with IQVIA, awarded in the Top 50 Great Places to Work for Canada and SPRIA winners at the 2017 SCRS conference. A founding member and present CEO of hyperCORE International, a leading Super Network of clinical sites which comprises of 100 sites, 5 countries and 10 site networks.
Ms. Venn has been certified in project management through the Project Management Institute, as well as longstanding certification as a Clinical Research Coordinator and Diabetes Educator.
Today, she is a founding Board member of the Canadian Association of Independent Clinical Research Sites (CAICR), hyperCORE International, and great supporter of both Society for Clinical Research Sites (SCRS) & Association of Clinical Research Professionals (ACRP).
David Vulcano, LCSW, MBA, CIP, RAC, ACRP-CP
Honorary President, Vice President for Clinical Research Compliance & Integrity
SCRS, HCA Healthcare
David is a well-known thought leader and change agent in the clinical research industry through numerous associations, boards, initiatives, publications, presentations and contributions. A native of New Orleans, he has a Master’s degree in both Social Work and Business Administration and maintains the additional credentials of Certified IRB Professional (CIP), Regulatory Affairs Certification (RAC) and Fellow for the Association of Clinical Research Professionals (FACRP). Among other things he is the a Vice President for Clinical Research Compliance & Integrity for HCA Healthcare, providing research-related compliance and strategy consultation to their portfolio of hospitals, physician practices and healthcare technology companies. He also currently serves as the Honorary President for the Society for Clinical Research Sites (SCRS) and President of the Music City Angels. David and his wife are empty-nesters living south of Nashville, Tennessee where they involve themselves in work, family life as well as other charitable and entrepreneurial opportunities.
Betsy Wagner, MPH
Director, Cancer Center Support Services
Inteliquet, an IQVIA Business
Betsy Wagner is a seasoned clinical research professional with 15+ years of site, CRO, and vendor experience. She has worked in academic and community research settings, with deep background in operations and recruitment, using traditional and tech-enabled solutions.
Jamila Watkins, MBA
Associate Director, Patient Engagement and Solutions
Chinook Therapeutics
Passionate about enhancing the diversity of clinical trials and optimizing the conduct of clinical research to advance health equity, Ms. Watkins has worked for more than 20 years on the development of several novel medical therapies in not only women’s health, but also infectious disease, ophthalmology and cardiovascular health, etc. She completed her BS in biology at Syracuse University and Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing MBA at Saint Joseph’s University.
David Windsor, MBA
Clinical Trial Diversity Lead
Pfizer
Pharmaceutical professional with 20+ years of experience in study/project management and now coordinating and implementing strategies for specific interventional clinical trials that allow for the recruitment and retention of diverse and representative populations.