Bradley Cole
University of South Carolina-Columbia
Masters of Business Administration
Columbia, S.C.

“My desire is to complete my MBA degreee and earn my CMPE professional certification to augment my current practice management skill set. I am also working very closely with my patient accounts department and my nurse manager to develop my skills in those areas, as those are the areas that I deem myself most in need of development. My goal is to become a Vice President in a hospital or Academic Medical Center and, ultimately, I feel called to teach practice management in an academic department.”

Cynthia Duncan
Indiana Wesleyan University
Masters of Business Administration
Columbus, Ind.

“My career goals are to obtain a Masters in Business Administration from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2012, complete the Fellowship in the American College of Medical Practice Executives by the end of 2012, and move to a more advanced health care mangement position in the near future. I enjoy health care management and have twenty-three years of experience behind me.”

Mollie Pillman
Rush University
Graduate program in Healthcare Management
Chicago, Ill.

“Through my experiences and education at Rush, I hope to obtain a position within a medical center or medical group that values its patients and employees and has a constant drive to be among the best in its field. The MGMA/ACMPE scholarships will go a long way in assisting with tuition, books, and bills and will allow me to remain a dedicated member of MGMA in the coming years. I am dedicated to lifelong learning, and I seek out any opportunity that I can in order to maintain that focus on improving myself as well as my surroundings.”

Paige Hosler
University of California-Los Angeles
Graduate program in Healthcare Management
Los Angeles, Calif.

“My goal after graduating from the dual MBA/MPH program at UCLA is to apply a business mindset to the management of a large medical group in southern California. In my opinion, successful medical group management is all about balancing three main forces at play- suppliers, buyers and rivalry. The key “suppliers” to medical groups are the providers and staff, although medical supplies, equipment, and technology would also fall under this category.”

Meredith Johnson
University of Iowa
Graduate program in Healthcare Administration
North Liberty, Iowa

“The opportunities I've been given, and especially the obstacles I've faced, have molded me into a passionate, vibrant future healthcare leader who is ready for the challenges of medical practice management.”

Elizabeth Wertz Evans, RN, MPM, FACMPE, CPHQ, CPHMS
Capella University
Doctorate in Organization and Management
Pittsburgh, PA.

“I want to utilize my extensive healthcare background, notable education, and diverse professional experience in clinical and operational aspects of healthcare to effect the adoption of interoperable electronic health records (EHR) by physician practices. I plan to create partnerships and successful joint ventures to help these practices increase revenue, decrease expenses, and increase safety and quality of patient care.”

Venus Biskis, FACMPE
Indiana Wesleyan University
Graduate program in Healthcare Administration
Indianapolis, Ind.

“I had the good fortune to meet colleagues at the Kentucky MGMA (KMGMA) that made a huge impact on my life. For the first time in my life the people that I wanted to be like were asking for my opinion and soon after they were encouraging me to seek an officer position with KMGMA. I served as the President of KMGMA in 2002-2003. As my story continues I earned my CMPE and my Fellow from the American College of Medical Practice Executives and achieved my BS in Business Administration in 2007. I seek assistance now to take my final step in the official education process and earn my MBA with an emphasis in Healthcare Administration. I want to continue to give back to new managers and colleagues.”

Patrick Ramirez
University of California-Berkeley
Graduate program in Healthcare Management
Merced, Calif.

“I have been exposed to careers that were usually one of the following: medicine, science or healthcare focused, entrepreneurial in spirit, community oriented or high intensity. Through it all I have realized a career that combined each of these would be an ideal fit, and I eventually made the decision to pursue my graduate studies at UC Berkeley to study healthcare management. I am still sorting through exactly what part of healthcare management I want to be in, but I know I will one day lead a network of community health centers, become a hospital administrator or run a medical group practice – all have unique benefits and I am eager to begin getting exposed to each.”

Trina Hannan, MHA, CMPE
Director, St. Vincent Healthcare
Billings, Mont.

“I am challenged with the development of a Medical Home and we are planning on participating in the pilot project for a major payor in the state and then plan on pursuing the ACO pilot project. I would like to learn and educate those that I can on the process, pros and cons, and any aspects that I learn during this project. The MGMA Annual Conference would provide me with education, networking, and advancement possibilities into the Fellow status.”

Richard E. Stroud, MBA, CMPE
Practice Manager, Department of Optometry, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Birmingham, Ala.

“I plan on continuing my career in medical practice management, and I think Fellowship is critical for my career success. It will add to my knowledge of medical practice operations, and will also be a tool to use for increased compensation and careeer opportunities. I would like to use the funding to attend the MGMA Annual Conference in October.”

Angela Anderson, CMPE
Dover, Del.

“Attendance at the MGMA 2011 Annual Conference will benefit my professional development and pursuit of Fellowship in ACMPE by providing the continuing education hours necessary to advance as a Fellow and maintain my good standing as Certified Medical Practice Executive. Furthermore, it will allow me to attend the Annual Fellow Convocation and pursue the necessary networking opportunities as I begin my transition from Active Duty Military Service to Civilian Health care.”

Jason B. Ruda, MS
Practice Manager Advanced, Guthrie Healthcare System
Sayre, PA.

“My intention is to be selected so that I may attend the MGMA 2011 Annual Conference. As a young administrator, I have the unique ability to bond with my colleagues from across the country, if not the world, to work together on helping to shape health care today. The amount of knowledge that we can read via email, websites, journals, magazines, etc is endless, but none of it compares to the face-to-face interaction of a conference setting. In a conference, we can work together and bounce ideas off one another.”

Wendy Peterson
Administrator
Yuma, Ariz.

Jordan McInerney
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Graduate program in Healthcare Administration
Arden, N.C.

“Practice management has provided me with excellent learning and growth opportunities. It has also allowed me to realize my passion for improving quality and efficiency in healthcare. However, in order to achieve my long-term professional goals I need exposure to the operational and financial strategies of integrated health systems. UNC-Chapel Hill’s MHA program is going to fulfill this need. It will provide an environment in which I can evolve my strategic thinking abilities from the perspective of practice management to the viewpoint of health systems administration. It will teach me the theoretical and practical knowledge necessary to understand the formation and management of a successful Accountable Care Organization. Ultimately, it will build upon my foundation in practice management and enable me to become a truly dynamic health systems leader.”