Arthur J. Vayer Jr., MD, FACS of Woodbridge, Virginia is Board certified General Surgeon and a fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He specializes in surgery with a focus on Colon & Rectal Surgery and has over 20 years of general surgery experience. He is affiliated with Sentara Surgery Specialists.

After graduating from Brown University Medical School, Dr. Vayer completed his residency at University of Maryland Medical System. He is the immediate past president of the Prince William Medical Society. He has been recognized by Washingtonian Magazine and Northern Virginia Magazine as part of their Top Doctors list for several years.

His agenda for his presidency includes a focus on telehealth expansion, physician and PA mental health and wellness, and to uphold MSV's overall goal to make Virginia the best place to practice medicine and receive care.

Daniel Thibodeau DHSc, MHP, PA-C is a professor for the Physician Assistant and the Doctor of Medical Science Program at Eastern Virginia Medical School. Mr. Thibodeau is also the Director of Admissions for the PA Program. He clinically practices in cardiology and has clinical experience in emergency medicine and cardiac surgery. Mr. Thibodeau is an Eastern Virginia Medical School graduate, completing his Doctor of Health Sciences in 2021. Graduating in 1996, he holds a Master of Health Professions and his certificate of the physician assistant program from Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. Mr. Thibodeau also holds two undergraduate degrees, one in Physical Education with a concentration in sports medicine from Radford University and a second baccalaureate in biology from Old Dominion University. His faculty duties include clinical medicine lectures, cardiovascular medicine, and EKG interpretation. Mr. Thibodeau has been lecturing nationally for greater than 20 years on a variety of topics, and the bulk of his presentations are related to cardiovascular medicine and professional workforce issues. He has worked with several national organizations, including the American Academy of Physician Assistants, and the American College of Physicians Foundation national steering committee on the Initiative on Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke Prevention. He was also part of the ACPF national steering committee on Acute Coronary Syndrome. Mr. Thibodeau is a native of Virginia and resides in Williamsburg, VA, with his wife and four children. He is an advisory board member to the Hampton Roads Salvation Army Area Command and volunteers with other local and international organizations.

A graduate from the inaugural PACE University Masters PA Program in 2010, Alison has since worked in various surgical subspecialties with a primary focus in neurosurgery and stroke intervention. She currently holds clinical positions at both New York Presbyterian Brooklyn Hospital and NYU Langone Brooklyn in New York City while also serving as an adjunct faculty lecturer at the Seton Hall PA Program and clinical preceptor for the Weill Cornell PA Program.

Alison recently completed the Doctor of Medical Science program through the University of Lynchburg, where she simultaneously earned graduate certificates in Global/Disaster Medicine, Advanced PA Education, Health Administration, and Executive Leadership.

She continues to advocate for international recognition, medical training standardization, and reciprocity for the PA profession as the Opportunities Chair for the PAs for Global Health (PAGH) as well as a member of the International Physician Assistant Educators (IPAE). Her goal is to continue encouraging other PAs to recognize their own capabilities and practice to their highest potential.

Dr. Talreja is Director of the Catheterization Laboratory and Director of the Coronary Care Unit at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital. He is an Assistant Professor at Eastern Virginia Medical School of Medicine and Instructor in Clinical Medicine at the Mayo Clinic.

Dr. Talreja is a graduate of the University of Virginia, Vanderbilt University, and the Mayo Clinic.

Jeanine Gargiulo is a Virginia native who attended Saint Francis University in Pennsylvania where she graduated with her Bachelor of Health Science and Master of Physician Assistant Science degrees. Jeanine practiced full-time at the Anderson Orthopedic Clinic for 13+ years where she participated in clinical duties, research studies and international Operation Walk medical mission trips. In 2020, she graduated with her Doctorate of Medical Science certificate in PA education from the University of Lynchburg. Jeanine recently transitioned to part-time clinical practice after joining the University of Maryland's PA program as a member of their full-time faculty last year. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, fostering dogs, and teaching fitness classes at her local gym.

Kristyn Rudisill completed her Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science at Virginia Commonwealth University prior to completing her Master's degree in Physician Assistant Studies at Marietta College in 2012. She has practiced as a cardiology physician assistant in Richmond, VA since 2012 and has clinical interests in heart failure and electrophysiology.

Kristyn joined VCU Health's Cardiology-Advanced Heart Failure, Transplant, and Mechanical Circulatory Support program in 2015. She has been the Advanced Practice Provider Lead for Heart Failure and Outpatient Cardiology APPs since 2019 and is passionate about the education of her colleagues and students. She has been selected to 2020 and 2021 Richmond Top Docs- Physician Assistant.

Kristyn has presented a variety of clinical abstracts at Heart Failure Society of America and International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation. She has recent publications accepted at American College of Cardiology's Annual Meeting and has published within Circulation: Heart Failure journal.

Elyse Watkins has been a clinically practicing PA since 1993. She earned her PA degree from The George Washington University and was awarded a National Health Service Corps scholarship. She is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Lynchburg's Doctor of Medical Science Program where she teaches Global Health and Evidence-based Medicine, and is visiting faculty at Florida State University's and Elon University's PA programs where she teaches the reproductive medicine/women's health curriculum. She also teaches the women's health module for the University of Lynchburg's PA program.

Dr. Watkins was named Editor for the Women's Health section in the Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants. In addition, she speaks at multiple local, state, and national CME conferences on global and women's health issues. Her peer-reviewed publications include articles in the Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants, a chapter in a women's health textbook, a chapter in a pharmacology book, a book on professional practice issues for PAs, and a book on ob/gyn for clinical learners.

She is a member of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the Association of PAs in Ob/Gyn, PAs for Global Health, the North Carolina Academy of PAs where she is President-elect, the Piedmont Association of PAs where she served for several years as vice president, and the American Academy of Physician Assistants where she is a Distinguished Fellow.

Dr. Kimberly Sapre (suh'- pray) is a Medical Consultant in the insurtech industry and has been a PA for 13 years. Before transitioning to nonclinical work, she worked as an Emergency Medicine PA at the only Level 1 trauma center in northern Virginia. Kimberly loves teaching. She is an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Shenandoah University Doctor of Medical Science program where she teaches the Health Equity & Justice course. She is the Chief Delegate for VAPA and she is the Chair of the AAPA DEI Commission. She lives with her husband in Alexandria, VA, and enjoys reading in her free time.

Kim Zuber, PA-C spends her time traveling and teaching 'all things kidney' with over 300 oral presentations, 64 peer-reviewed articles, 8 guest editorships. She volunteers clinically as a consultant for a senior citizen group and is the executive editor for PA Clinics.

Kim graduated from UCSD with a bachelor's in molecular biology, picked up a teaching credential at San Diego State University and taught high school for many years. Deciding that medicine had to be easier than teaching teenagers, Kim attended the St. Louis University PA program.
Kim is an AAPA Distinguished Fellow and was selected as both the Renal Professional of the year and Outstanding PA of the Year in 2014

Mr. Largay is currently employed by AstraZeneca, as a Senior Medical Science Liaison, in Cardiovascular-Metabolic Diseases, with U.S. Medical Affairs for the states of North and South Carolina

Prior to this he was a Clinical Instructor in the Department of Medicine, at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill where he worked in the outpatient clinic in the Diabetes Care Center for 19 years where he managed complex patients. He also served as a sub-investigator in their Clinical Trials Program.

He graduated from the Hahnemann University PA Program in 1991.

In the past he has been a content expert for the AAPA and assisted in developing what is now the Diabetes Leadership Edge CME Program.

Dr. Stephen Lewia is an Emergency Medicine PA with Vituity at three emergency departments throughout Wichita, Kansas. He is also an Assistant Clinical Professor at Wichita State University's PA program. Dr. Lewia completed an Emergency Medicine PA Fellowship at Arrowhead Medical Center in Colton, California. During this Fellowship he also completed his Doctor of Medical Science degree from the University of Lynchburg.

He has served as a strong advocate for the advancement of the PA profession ever since attending PA school at the University of Lynchburg. While in school he was elected to the AAPA's Student Academy Board of Directors and served as Student Academy President. During that time he also represented the student voice on the AAPA Board of Directors as the Student Director. Seeing the need for an early career voice on the AAPA Board, he then ran for and was elected to a two-year Director at Large seat.

Dr. Lewia currently lives in Maize, Kansas, a suburb of Wichita, with his wife Hillary who is a Trauma/Critical Care PA.

Dr. Joshua Sill is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical School, in Norfolk, VA. He is the Pulmonary Section Chief and Director of the region's only pulmonary and critical care fellowship program.

He has been integrally involved in the COVID-19 preparations for Sentara and EVMS. He works in the designated COVID-19 ICU at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.

Prior to coming to EVMS, Dr. Sill spent 11 years in the US Air Force, working in the School of Aerospace Medicine. While there he taught in numerous courses including the Department of Defense's Pandemic Influenza and Biological Warfare Preparedness Coarse.

He is currently involved in several ongoing research projects and clinical trials related to COVID-19.

Sara Nicely graduated from Roanoke College with a degree in Biology and Medical Technology in 2000. She then received her PA degree from Jefferson College of Health Sciences (now Radford University) in 2002, and she earned a Master's in Physician Assistant Studies from University of Nebraska Medical Center in 2007. She advanced her education by earning the Doctor of Health Education degree at A.T. Still University in 2015. The focus of her dissertation was on developing an oral health curriculum for PA students.

Sara is now the Department Chair and Program Director for the Department of PA Studies at Radford University on the Radford University Carilion campus in Roanoke. She has worked in education since 2010. Sara's clinical background is in surgical fields, and she still works in Surgical Critical Care at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital one day per week.

Sara assumed the role of President-Elect for VAPA in 2020, and she looks forward to contributing to professional advancements in the Commonwealth of Virginia. She has developed a passion for the education and support of the PA profession and feels it important that all PAs know the history of the profession and the work that still needs to be done to allow all PAs to practice at the top of their education and licensure.

A PA for more than 40 years, Greg Thomas currently serves as Director of PA Relations with the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA). Previously, he worked for nearly 20 years with the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA), most recently as Senior Vice President of education, membership, and resource development.

Greg received his PA education at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX, and a masters degree in public health with focus on health care administration from the University of Texas School of Public Health also in Houston, TX.

Michelle Kerr has been a Physician Assistant for nearly 30 years, practicing initially in primary care and then expanding to urgent care. She has been at Atrium Health in NC for 13 years, practicing clinically in urgent care, and holding a leadership position within the organization. Michelle serves as an Assistant Specialty Medical Director responsible for 10 of the 30 Atrium Health Urgent Care locations, and as Chief APP (Advanced Practice Provider) for the entire Urgent Care division, advocating and representing over 120 APPs. She actively teaches, updates, and reviews the standard of care practiceses within the Atrium Healthcare system. She serves on several system-wide and interdisciplinary committees and strategy groups.
Michelle continues to serve as adjunct faculty at Rochester Institute of Technology's PA program for over 25 years, still returning yearly to lecture even after moving to NC.

Dan is a graduate of St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland and got his PA training at Johns Hopkins University. He is a past president of the Maryland Academy of Physician Assistants and was instrumental in getting legislation passed through the Maryland General Assembly giving PAs the right to prescribe.

Dan has worked in a variety of clinical settings, the last eleven years of which as a spine specialist, currently with LifeBridge Neurosurgery in Baltimore, Maryland.

Dr Dunne is a practicing Physician Assistant in both Internal Medicine and Chronic Wound Care in Williamsburg, VA. He holds certificates as a PA and Family Nurse Practitioner, and holds a Doctor of Chiropractic degree. He has served in both the Army and the Navy as a PA, and has retired as a Lieutenant Commander.

He has broad experience in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Psychiatry, Hospitalist Medicine, and onboard the USS America, an aircraft carrier. He has been on the Faculty at Palmer College of Chiropractic, Five Branches Institute of Chinese Medicine, and Cabrillo College. He has been a Speaker for several Pharmaceutical Companies.

Besides this conference, he will be speaking at the Veterans Caucus "Topics in the Tropics” conference in Cancun, Mexico this December.

Rodney Taylor is a successful medical science liaison with 20+ years' experience in multiple therapeutic areas. He has been with Gilead Sciences for 7 years working in respiratory, cardiology, inflammation and virology. He currently supports Veklury (remdesivir) for the treatment of hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Outside of Gilead, you can find him reviewing and reconciling residents' medications in assisted living homes.

Rodney received his Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Maryland Baltimore School of Pharmacy. He is married with 2 daughters, currently living in the Raleigh/Durham area of North Carolina.

Dr. Grayce Kim joined Gilead Sciences in 2019 as a member of the Inflammation MS team. Grayce started with Sanofi as a MSL supporting the Endocrinology and Cardiovascular pipeline. She transitioned to Amgen to support the Immunology pipeline, which included Etanercept and Denosumab. Prior to joining Gilead, she was with Novartis, supporting the Cardiovascular pipeline.

Grayce earned her Bachelor of Science in pharmacy from Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science and her Doctor of Pharmacy from University of Maryland, Baltimore.

Grayce currently resides in Maryland with her husband and two young children. She loves to spend her time with family and friends enjoying the outdoors, traveling, and trying new restaurants in the Washington DC area.

Sandy L. Chung, M.D., FAAP, FACHE, is the CEO of Trusted Doctors, a pediatric group in northern Virginia and Maryland with over 120 providers in 22 locations in northern Virginia and Maryland, and CEO of Health Connect IPA, a primary care clinical integrated network of over 200 providers in northern Virginia.

With twenty years of pediatric experience, Dr. Chung is active in multiple state and national organizations, with a focus on mental health advocacy and health information technology. She is Medical Director for the Virginia Mental Health Access Program (VMAP), Medical Director of Informatics for the Pediatric Health Network, member of the Connect Virginia Governing Board, and member of the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation Board.

She is immediate Past President of the Virginia Chapter of the AAP, past Chair of the Board for the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth and past President of the Medical Society of Northern Virginia. She is an Associate Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University Health Sciences and Associate Professor at Georgetown University School of Medicine. She has four amazing children and her interests include health information technology, health policy, expanding access to pediatric mental health care, practice management, and advocacy for children and pediatricians.

Dr. Gillian is a private practice General Surgeon who completed one of the first fellowships for laparoscopic surgery in the nation. He is a former President of the American Society of General Surgeons. His practice has been providing "state of the art”, minimally invasive surgery to his patients in the Northern Virginia/DC Metro area since 1998. This was a unique time in minimally invasive surgery as many of the innovative techniques and equipment used now trace their roots to that time. Consequently, Dr. Gillian had the rare opportunity to participate in the development of many procedures, equipment and surgical materials that are in use today. Many of the "cutting edge” procedures that are often touted by surgeons and hospitals were a routine part of Dr. Gillian's practice more than a decade ago. For example, Dr. Gillian has been performing selected surgeries with the DaVinci Robotic platform since 2009 and in 2013 was the first surgeon in Virginia or Washington D.C. allowed to implant the LINX device for reflux control. Dr. Gillian has become a common fixture on the national lecture circuit for surgeon training and at times a featured speaker on the international stage.

Dr. Gillian is experienced and proficient in many areas of laparoscopic surgery, but he maintains a particularly strong focus on the evaluation and management of patients with hernia issues and gastroesophageal reflux disease. He established and directs the Heartburn Center at INOVA Alexandria Hospital Center where he facilitates the evaluation of patients with heartburn, swallowing disorders and unexplained chest pain of both his patients and those referred from other Surgeons, Gastroenterologists, Cardiologists, Pulmonologists, ENTs and Primary Care physicians. If needed, Dr. Gillian will correct the defects with either Laparoscopic or Robotic surgery. He has done nearly 5000 anti-reflux surgeries to date. His practice was named one of the few epicenters for LINX surgery in the country and due to his experience and results he was also selected to train other surgeons in this procedure.

Dr. Gillian's techniques and experience in laparoscopic abdominal surgery and inguinal hernia repair are well known in the surgical community and it is not unusual to have visiting surgeons in his operating room to learn his techniques many times a year. In fact he often gets referrals from regional surgeons to evaluate patients due to his expertise in this complex and evolving field. He has been asked to lecture and train other surgeons on a wide variety of laparoscopic surgical subjects including: inguinal hernias, incisional hernias, sports hernias, chronic groin pain, cholecystectomy (gallbladder), solid organ surgery, adrenalectomy, splenectomy, explorations for chronic abdominal pain, hiatal hernia repair, and Nissen fundoplication for reflux. The motivation for these teaching events has been to further spread the humanistic benefits of laparoscopic surgical techniques to surgeons in a variety of fields and to make it a safer and more comfortable experience for the patients in our care. Dr. Gillian's practice continues publish research articles and to participate in a number of research projects with other medical centers and surgical companies around the country.

Terri Babineau graduated with Distinction from the University of Virginia with a BSN prior to working as a Pediatric ICU and Transport Team Nurse. She then attended Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS), earning her M.D. and graduating as a member of AOA Honor Society. She was a resident and Chief Resident at Portsmouth Family Medicine and has practiced in her own practice, for large multispecialty groups and for the vast majority of her career been in medical education and working extensively with the Gold Humanism in Medicine Honor Society, continuing that work on the GHHS National Advisory Council.

She was Assistant Dean for Student Affairs at EVMS developing and teaching in free clinics where she witnessed the extreme stress and burnout of students, physicians, staff and patients. She left EVMS to study for a Master's degree in mindfulness at the University of Oxford in the U.K., writing her dissertation on burnout while practicing and teaching students and residents in a mountain based rural practice at the base of the Appalachian Trail.

Having completed her Oxford degree, Terri joined the faculty of the University of Virginia (UVA) School of Medicine and is the Lead Physician at the rural UVA Family Medicine clinic in Crozet, a small farming town community outside of Charlottesville. She is also the Clerkship Director for the UVA Primary Care Clerkship for third year students in the School of Medicine. Terri speaks and writes on Humanism in Medicine as well as strategies to combat burnout and is the volunteer Chief Medical Officer for the SafeHaven Physician Wellness Program for the Medical Society of Virginia. She always looks for more great adventures in addition to living with her family on a small horse farm in the Blue Ridge mountains.

Dr. Rohit "Roh" Adyanthaya is a Retinal Specialist at Virginia Eye Consultants.

He completed fellowship training from Johns Hopkins Hospital and Valley Retina Institute.

He has published articles in numerous peer reviewed journals and has presented and spoken at National level meetings.

He is an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia.

John Lynch, DMSc, PA-C, has a long-standing interest in infectious diseases and disaster medicine. Dr. Lynch received his doctorate in medical science from Lynchburg University, a master of science in biosecurity and emergency planning from Saint Louis University, a masters of physician assistant studies from Rosalind Franklin University, and an undergraduate degree in microbiology from Arizona State University.

Dr. Lynch travelled extensively during a 30 year career in the federal government and, after retirement in 2015, gained further experiences in urgent care and family practice. Dr. Lynch has been involved in local, regional, and international disaster or pandemic responses.

He is currently the clinical team leader for CareTeam, a growing health care company, and is responsible for 20 clinics scattered across the United States.

James Cannon was elected to the board in 2008 where he has served in various roles including treasurer, secretary and committee chair. He is a commander in the U.S. Coast Guard and director of field operations overseeing the non-clincial operations of 45 clinical sites across 13 regions, and managing an annual budget in excess of $400 million.

As a certified PA and psychiatry CAQ holder, he clinically practices in substance and Tele-psychiatry in addition to adjunct teaching at the Hazelden Graduate School of Addiction in Minneapolis, MN.

James is also clinically active in a small Chesapeake, VA wellness practice where he works part-time on a clinical team with his supervising physician. He is married to Jina Cannon, a pediatric emergency nurse and has a daughter attending college in Texas.

Dr. Carly R. Varela is a pediatric hematologist/oncologist at Pediatric Specialists of Virginia, Inova L. J. Murphy Children's Hospital in Falls Church, VA and Children's National Hospital in Washington, DC.

Dr. Varela received her medical degree at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. She completed her pediatric residency and was subsequently selected as Chief Resident at Yale New Haven Hospital followed by her subspecialty training in pediatric hematology/oncology at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Dr. Varela was awarded fellow teacher of the year at CHOP and has subsequently received numerous teaching awards.

Dr. Varela's areas of expertise include the evaluation and management of patients with disorders of hemostasis, thrombosis, and solid tumors. She is a member of the Renal Tumor Committee for the Children's Oncology Group, where she is leading the development of a clinical trial for patients with metastatic Wilms tumors. Dr. Varela is also a Yoga Alliance certified yoga instructor with a special interest in promoting wellness for health care providers and patients.

Dr. Rachel Casey is the Chief Strategy Officer and Medical Director of Gynecology for Pediatric Specialists of Virginia, a nonprofit organization providing high-quality pediatric specialty care to the children in Virginia, and holds privileges at Inova Fairfax Women's and Children's Hospitals. She is a board certified Obstetrician/Gynecologist with a Focused Practice Designation in Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology. She holds leadership positions with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology.

Dr. Casey is a passionate advocate and educator for the healthcare of women and children. This spans from educating her patients, to events in our local community to work on national healthcare initiatives. She feels truly honored to provide medical care to young women and strives to care for them on a broader level through education, advocacy and leadership.