People
Board of Directors
Karen Cox RN, PhD, FAAN
Chairman of the Board
Executive Vice President, Co-Chief Operating Officer, Children’s Mercy Hospitals & Clinics
Dr. Cox serves as Executive Vice President and Co-COO for Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics, a 314 bed academic pediatric medical center in Kansas City, MO. Dr. Cox led the organization to receive MagnetTM designation, becoming the first in Kansas and Missouri, and the third children’s hospital nation-wide. She serves as Assistant Dean for Clinical Partnerships at the University of MO – Kansas City. Cox is the first nurse to chair the National Initiative of Children’s Healthcare Quality (NICHQ). As a widely published journal and book chapter author in nursing workforce issues, she continues the work she began as a RWJ Executive Nurse Fellow in 1999 that led to the creation of a staff nurse work environment instrument, the Individual Workload Perception Scale-Revised (IWPS-R) now used throughout the US. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing where she serves as the Co-Chair of the Pediatric Expert Panel. In addition she serves on the National Advisory Panel for Nursing Education and Practice (NACNEP), a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) subcommittee.
Linda Thompson Adams Dr.PH, RN, FAAN
Dean and Professor of the School of Nursing at Oakland University
Dr. Thompson Adams brings more than twenty years of academic and administrative experience in significant leadership positions to NICHQ. Prior to joining Oakland University, she was the Associate Dean for Policy, Planning & Workforce Development at the University of Maryland School of Nursing and served concurrently as Director of the Center for Community Partnerships for Children and Families. Previous to that post, Governor Parris Glendening of Maryland appointed her as Special Secretary of the Governor's Office of Children, Youth and Families. She served as Director of the City of Baltimore's Office of Occupational Medicine and Safety-a Cabinet-level position under Mayor Kurt Schmoke. In addition, she has held administrative and teaching positions at the University of Maryland, The Johns Hopkins University, Coppin State College, and Hampton University in Virginia.
Polly Arango
Principal, Algodones Associates
Polly Arango’s youngest son, Nick, an artist, has multiple disabilities and is medically fragile. In 1992, Polly co-founded Family Voices and was its Executive Director for eight years. She is a writer, speaker, and advocate for children with special needs, children in foster care, families, and family-centered care. She has served on the National Foster Care Pew Commission; Heinz Award Jury; Bright Futures Expert Panel; Editorial Board, About Children; Faculty, IHI Triple Aim; National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality/NICHQ board of directors. In New Mexico, Polly co-founded PRO, the statewide parent organization, serves on the Board of Directors of New Mexico Voices for Children, the state Medicaid Advisory Committee, is a member of the state Supreme Court’s Court Improvement Project Commission, and is a member of the Board of Directors at El Pueblo Health Services and Tijeras Film Institute. Polly lived in Latin America with the Peace Corps and has traveled and lectured about family-centered care and family organizations throughout the United States and in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Norway, Russia, China, and Argentina. She is co-author of several books, including: New Mexico, a New Guide to the Colorful State; Touring New Mexico; Family/Professional Collaboration; and Partners at Work, as well as many articles on health care, New Mexico, foster children, and family. She is executive producer and writer of "What Does Normal Mean?" a PBS documentary film about inclusion. Polly has received many awards for her work on behalf of children, the most recent the 2008 Southwest Conference Justin Dart Disability Advocacy Award.
Jonathan R. Bates MD
President and CEO of Arkansas Children’s Hospital
A native of Ann Arbor, Michigan, Dr. Bates earned a BA from Reed College in Portland, Oregon, and a MD from the University of Missouri School of Medicine. He took his residency in pediatrics at Children’s Hospital Boston, where he was Chief Medical Resident. Dr. Bates was an instructor in pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and specialized in ambulatory medicine and emergency medicine at Children’s Hospital Boston before becoming involved in hospital administration there. He was Senior Vice President at Children’s Hospital and Health Center in San Diego and administrator at Memorial Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach, California, before taking his current position at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in May of 1993.
David A. Bergman MD
Associate Professor in Pediatrics at the Stanford University School of Medicine
Dr. Bergman is currently a Professor of Pediatrics at Stanford University School of Medicine. He is actively involved in the re-design of clinical systems to improve access and patient-care and communication. Dr. Bergman attended Yale University and University of Illinois School of Medicine. He completed his residency in pediatrics and a fellowship in the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar Program at Stanford. He has been involved in quality improvement and practical redesign for the past fifteen years and has chaired the AAP committee on quality improvement. Dr. Bergman was involved in the development of practice guidelines and is currently researching the use of telemedicine and web based tools for children with special healthcare needs. Dr. Bergman serves on NICHQ’s Board of Directors and is the past chair.
Molly P. Cole
Associate Director, University of Connecticut Center on Disabilities;
National Field Coordinator, Family Voices
Molly Cole is Associate Director for the Center on Disabilities at the University of Connecticut. She has more than thirty years of experience in the field of disabilities. Mrs. Cole is a founding member of Family Voices and has been the state coordinator for that organization since 1992. She has directed numerous family support initiatives including the Family Center at CCMC and FAVOR, Inc, a statewide organization for children’s behavioral health, the Family Support Council and several medical home initiatives. She has collaborated with many organizations in the development of programs and policies affecting children with special health care needs and currently co-chairs the Medical Home Advisory Council for the Department of Public Health. She is the parent of a child with complex medical needs and disabilities.
James B. Conway MS
Board Clerk
Senior Fellow at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement; Senior Consultant at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI)
From 1995-2005 Mr. Conway served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of DFCI. Prior to joining Dana-Farber, he had a 27-year career at Children’s Hospital, Boston in Radiology Administration, Finance, and as Assistant Hospital Director for Patient Care Services. His areas of expertise and interest include executive leadership, patient safety, change management, and patient-/family-centered care. He holds a Master of Science from Lesley College, Cambridge, MA. An adjunct Faculty member at the Harvard School of Public Health, Mr. Conway was the 2001 winner of the first Individual Leadership Award in Patient Safety by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) and the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). He is a member of the IOM Committee on Identifying and Preventing Medication Errors, a Distinguished Advisor to the National Patient Safety Foundation, and a member and Vice-Chair of the JCAHO Sentinel Event Alert Advisory Group.
Stephen Dance
Board Treasurer
Former Senior Vice President, Finance, and Chief Financial Officer, ViaCell, Inc.
Mr. Dance joined ViaCell as Senior Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer in January 2004. Prior to this, he was Senior Vice President, Finance at SangStat Medical Corporation, a biotechnology company, from April 1999 until December 2003, adding the additional title of Chief Financial Officer in December 2002. Previously, Mr. Dance spent one year with Plantronics, Inc., a telecommunications company, where he was responsible for worldwide financial accounting, reporting and planning activities. He spent 15 years with Syntex Corporation, a pharmaceuticals company (later part of the Roche group), in a variety of increasingly responsible finance positions including controller of US sales, marketing and manufacturing operations. Mr. Dance holds a CPA (California) and FCA (United Kingdom) qualification in accounting and spent seven years with Deloitte & Touche in both the United Kingdom and the United States. He received his B.A. degree in French at the University of Leeds in England.
Fay Donohue
President and CEO of Dental Service of Massachusetts
Ms. Donohue is the President & CEO of Dental Service of Massachusetts (DSM). Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, DSM is the fourth largest dental benefits company in the country. Prior to serving as President and CEO, Ms. Donohue held positions as President, COO and EVP of DSM. Before joining DSM, she served as Vice President of Chartwell Therapies and Vice President of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts. Ms. Donohue serves on the board and executive committee of Operation Able, the board and executive committee of the Massachusetts Taxpayers foundation, the board of the Delta Dental Plan Association, and the Board of Associated Industries of Massachusetts. Her prior board service includes the National Association of Dental Plans, Camp Fire Boys and Girls where she served as President of the Board. A graduate of Bryn Mawr College, Ms. Donohue also holds a masters degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and a Masters in Business Administration from Boston College.
Thomas Hansen MD
Chief Executive Officer, Seattle Children's Hospital
Thomas N. Hansen, MD, joined Seattle Children’s in October of 2005 as CEO. He is a Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Dr. Hansen received his medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine, with postdoctoral fellowships in neonatal medicine at Baylor and in pediatric pulmonary disease at the University of California, San Francisco. Formerly Dr. Hansen served as Chairman and CEO of Nationwide Children’s while retaining his title of Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics. During his ten-years in Columbus, Nationwide became one of the nation’s five largest, free-standing children’s hospitals and one of the ten largest pediatric research centers. Under Dr. Hansen’s leadership, Seattle Children’s has consistently been placed among the nation’s best children’s hospitals by U.S. News & World Report and has ranked in the top five in National Institutes of Health funding for pediatric research. He is working closely with board members, physicians, staff and the community to significantly expand the hospital’s clinical and research capabilities to support a growing need for the specialized services that Seattle Children’s provides to the region. He leads the organization with a bold vision of becoming the best pediatric hospital in the nation. Dr. Hansen is a member of the Seattle Chamber Community Development Roundtable, and currently serves on the Board of the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce.
Steven Kairys MD, MPH
Chairman of Pediatrics, Jersey Shore University Medical Center
Dr. Kairys has more than thirty years of experience in academics and healthcare administration. Since 2002, he has served as Chairman of Pediatrics at the Jersey Shore University Medical Center and as Director of the New Jersey Pediatric Council on Research and Education, the quality improvement arm of the New Jersey Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Prior to his role at the Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Dr. Kairys held positions as Vice-Chairman of Pediatrics at Dartmouth University and Senior Dean for Clinical Affairs at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and was a professor of pediatrics at both institutions. He has also held positions as President of the New Hampshire Chapter of the AAP and as Chairperson of the AAPs National Committee on Abuse and Neglect. Dr. Kairys received his bachelor of arts and medical degrees from Temple University, his master of public health degree in epidemiology from Boston University School of Public Health and completed his pediatric residency at Dartmouth Medical School. He was awarded WHO Fellowships in 1982 and 1989; the Best Teacher Award from Dartmouth in 1982 and 1989; and the Governor’s Award for Service to Children in New Hampshire in 1998.
Barbara Royal MA, CASE
Executive Director, MOMENTUM
Barbara Royal, MA, CASE, is Executive Director of MOMENTUM, Alabama's highly recognized leadership program and serves both nonprofit and corporate executives as a private coach. She served as Executive Director of Discovery Place Children's Museum and Discovery 2000, and developed the ground work for Birmingham's McWane Science Center. She is a graduate of Leadership Birmingham and Leadership America. Barbara also served as an administrator at UAB's School of Health Related Professions. Some of Barbara current volunteer commitments include serving as a Robert Wood Johnson Nurse Fellows mentor, on the National Advisory Forum of the Women's Museum, a Smithsonian affiliate the Board, Dallas, Texas; on the National Initiative for Children's Healthcare Quality in Boston, MA; and UAB President's Advisory Council; she has also served on the UAB Medical School Admissions Committee, President of Harbert Center Management Inc., and co-chaired UAB's fund drive for its new Radiation Oncology Center, opening spring 2010. Barbara was named a Top Ten Birmingham Businesswomen by Birmingham Business Journal, as one of 25 Intriguing People To Watch by Birmingham Magazine, and a Women of Distinction by Cahaba Girl Scouts. She has served on numerous boards, including the Women's Fund, The YWCA, the Downtown Rotary Club, Beth El Foundation and Birmingham International Festival.
Joan Wood
Senior Vice President, Leadership and Organization Development,Genzyme Corporation
Ms. Wood is responsible for the overall development of Genzyme Corporation’s global biotechnology workforce. Her focus is in the areas of management and leadership development, and organizational development, diversity and college relations. Programs under her direction include Genzyme’s Mobilizing Talent initiative, and Genzyme’s MBA Management Development and Summer Internship Programs. Previously, Wood was Senior Vice President at Scudder Investments, where she led the Learning and Development function for Scudder’s U.S. Mutual Fund Group and oversaw customer education for the AARP family of funds. Ms. Wood also previously was Director of Curriculum Development for Service Delivery University at Fidelity Investments. Ms. Wood’s current special interest is in executive coaching, particularly in the areas of visionary and metaphoric thinking and conflict resolution.
