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Tricia Bernecker PhD, RN, is a Professor in the Division of Nursing at DeSales University. She has a background in a variety of patient care settings. Her clinical experience includes cardiac, medical/surgical intensive care, neurosurgical intensive care, and trauma. Dr. Bernecker's teaching responsibilities include Nursing of the Acutely Ill Adult, Research, and Evidenced-Based Nursing on the graduate and doctoral levels. Dr. Bernecker teaches across all programs in the division. Dr. Bernecker received her BSN from West Chester University, her MSN from DeSales University as an adult advanced practice nurse and her Ph.D. from Widener University.  

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Hillary R. Bogner MD MSCE, is an Associate Professor in Family Medicine and a Senior Scholar in the Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics. Dr. Bogner earned her Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in Psychology with honors from the University of Chicago and received her medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania. She completed a residency in Family Medicine at the Thomas Jefferson University where she was Chief Resident in her third year. In 2001, she earned the Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Bogner investigates the integration of care for depression and medical co-morbidity in primary health care settings – a problem with high public health significance. She has chosen to focus on cardiovascular disease as a model for integration of care with depression. Her work in depression and CVD has focused on adherence to depression treatment as a serious problem limiting the public health impact of available effective treatment. In addition, she has contributed to materials directed at practicing physicians. Her work shows that early patterns of non-adherence to depression medication may be related to patient-level factors, setting the stage for targeted interventions. She has examined the role of medical co-morbidity in the recognition and treatment of depression among older adults, finding that depression is a significant contributor to mortality among persons with medical co-morbidity such as diabetes that can be mitigated with practice-based interventions. In other work, she studied how medical co-morbidity -- such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and other chronic medical conditions -- modifies response to depression treatment. Based on findings from patient interviews, Dr. Bogner developed an intervention integrating depression treatment with medical treatment for cardiovascular disease and has published the results of pilot studies testing its effectiveness. The intervention was informed by the findings of the K23 Award and the RWJF Generalist Physician Faculty Scholars Award. To further examine the effectiveness of integrated interventions for depression and cardiovascular disease she was awarded a Grant-in-Aid Award from the American Heart Association and a Clinical Research Award from the American Diabetes Association. She has a funded K18 (AHRQ) which is utilizing a participatory approach to inspire a new services delivery model for diabetes care. The basis of this model is to include patient’s nonbiomedical needs (financial, social, and emotional) as part of primary care treatment discussions and decisions. She is the Principal Investigator on a funded Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) project to fill gaps in the understanding of health care disparities as experienced by adults with disabilities and how differences in the quality of care received might be impacting their wellbeing. She recently completed an R21 (NIMH) to assess how different primary care practices approach implementation of the chronic care model for depression and diabetes and developed a tool kit to facilitate implementation.  She completed an R01 (NIMH) study to examine the course of depressive symptoms and medical comorbidity, studying the risk factors for the onset of major depression and suicidal ideation and an R34 (NIMH) to assess the feasibility of an intervention trial to improve adherence to depression and hypertension treatment. Her work has been recognized by the American Geriatrics Society, the American Public Health Association, and awards committees at the University of Pennsylvania.

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Jennifer Cummings, DO, Clinical Assistant Professor Emergency Medicine, Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, Greensburg/ Seton Hill Branch. Dr. Cummings is the BTG Program Director for Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, Seton Hill Branch. She's a dedicated clinical medical educator with specialty certification in both emergency medicine and addiction medicine. With a passion for improving patient outcomes and advancing medical education, Dr.  Cummings has spent many years providing compassionate, evidence-based care to diverse populations. As an educator, Dr. Cummings currently mentors and teaches medical students. She has mentored and taught a wide variety of students both in America and overseas. She has taught postgraduate medical education, residents, and interdisciplinary healthcare teams, fostering a collaborative learning environment. Her current commitment is addressing substance use disorders through harm reduction strategies, medication-assisted treatment, and community-based interventions, which has made a meaningful impact on patients and the healthcare system. Dr. Cummings completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry at West Chester University. She earned her medical degree at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in Philadelphia. She completed an Emergency Medicine residency and an EMS fellowship at Albert Einstein Medical Center. She worked overseas for several years as a volunteer, practicing medicine and teaching and training in Emergency Medicine and EMS. Her current clinical work is in Addiction Medicine. Dr. Cummings emphasizes equitable access to care, health advocacy, and innovative approaches to integrating addiction medicine into emergency care settings. She is committed to leveraging education and clinical expertise to support underserved communities and improve health outcomes through nonprofit initiatives. 

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Thistle Elias, DrPH, MPA, is BTG Program Director for the University of Pittsburgh. She collaborated with the program for 15 years as academic coordinator, developing the weekly didactic and reflective sessions for students. Dr. Elias received her masters in public administration in 1991 with a certificate in nonprofit management and a special interest in community-based initiatives, followed two decades later by a Doctorate of Public Health.  In between she worked for the City of Pittsburgh launching a city-wide, school based community enrichment program and later joined the University of Pittsburgh as a research analyst. Dr. Elias has led and participated in a wide range of community-based research with a priority focus of underserved populations, including with Early Head Start staff and families, low-income elderly communities to improve healthy aging, pediatric practices to prevent child neglect and abuse, and multiple local and state program evaluation research projects. Dr. Elias teaches social sciences in public health, evaluation and health equity in the Graduate School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh. In 2019 Dr. Elias received the Chancellor’s Award for Distinguished Service for her years of community-engaged and –partnered work.

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Rosemary (Rosie) Frasso, PhD, CPH, is a health equity researcher, advocate, and public health educator. Dr. Frasso earned a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania's School of Social Policy & Practice, as well as two master's degrees from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her current research focuses on the integration of qualitative and quantitative methods in projects designed to improve population health, healthcare quality, access to health services for vulnerable populations and evaluation of educational endeavors in medicine, social work, nursing, allied health, and public health settings.  Recognized as an expert in mixed methods study design, Dr. Frasso provides consultation and oversight on qualitative projects for clinicians, researchers, and students as well as for partners from local, national and international organizations, including the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, WillsEye Hospital, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, the Federal Reserve Banks of Chicago and Philadelphia, LV Prasad Eye Institute in India, Ulster University in Northern Ireland, and Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy. Additionally, she has worked on several cross-disciplinary projects with educators, artists and economists who are committed to using qualitative methods to support and enhance community collaborations and to amplify the voices of vulnerable populations. Dr. Frasso directs the MPH Program at Thomas Jefferson University and is the Director of Mixed Methods Research, in the Asano-Gonnella Center for Research in Medical Education and Health Care, in Jefferson's Sidney Kimmel Medical College. She is the Victor Heiser, MD Professor of Population Health.

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Elissa Goldberg, MSS, LSW, the Bridging the Gaps Program Director for Drexel University, is Program Director in the Office of Community Engagement at Drexel University College of Medicine.  Along with her work with Bridging the Gaps, her responsibilities include co-directing the Health Advocacy courses for Drexel’s first- and second-year medical students, facilitating student volunteer projects and fourth-year medical student rotations.  She received her Master of Social Services degree in 1995 from Bryn Mawr College School of Social Work and Social Research.  She worked as a geriatric social worker for a number of years in Portland, Ore., and in Philadelphia, Pa. 

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Mara Gordon, MD, is an assistant professor of Family Medicine at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University and director of Cooper's Narrative Medicine program. Dr. Gordon attended the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, where she participated in the BTG-CHIP program as an intern at a community-based HIV and Hepatitis C testing program in Southwest Philadelphia. She stayed at Penn for residency training in Family Medicine. She has a longstanding interest in journalism and writing, and she was the Health and Media Fellow at National Public Radio during the 2018-2019 year, where she wrote about a variety of health news topics and hosted the NPR podcast Life Kit. At Cooper, she directs the Narrative Medicine program in Cooper's Center for Humanism. She continues to work as an occasional Life Kit host and writes for a variety of publications about the culture of medicine, medical education, reproductive health, and health disparities.​

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Dr. Mary Haus, MD, attended Albany Medical College. She did her surgical internship at Allegheny General Hospital and her orthopedic residency at Pennsylvania State University Hershey Medical Center. Her fellowship in orthopedic trauma surgery was done at Medical College of Ohio. Dr Haus is board-certified in both Orthopedic Surgery and Addiction Medicine. She is a Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine
 

Leah Labranche, PhD is the Bridging the Gaps Program Co-Director for Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM). She is also an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anatomy at LECOM, and teaches anatomical sciences courses to graduate and medical students. Dr. Labranche earned her Master of Science in Clinical Anatomy from Western University in London, Ontario, and her PhD in Anatomy Education at LECOM. In addition to Bridging the Gaps, her commitment to community service includes coordinating elementary and high school outreach trips to the LECOM anatomy laboratory.

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Abby S. Letcher, MD, Faculty Associate/Medical Director of Caring Place Family Healthy Program, was a lecturer for the University of Michigan Department of Family Medicine, prior to moving to the Lehigh Valley area.  Dr. Letcher earned her bachelor’s degree in English and African studies from Yale University. She completed a doctorate degree in medicine from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in 1995. Dr. Letcher is an alumna of the Family Medicine Residency Program at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. After graduating, she participated in the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program and was also a NIMH/Measey Fellow.  She is a member of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine and the North American Primary Care Research Group. Her special interests include adolescent health care and healthy communities.

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Ellen Martinak, MS, is the Associate Director for the Bridging the Gaps Program and the University of Pennsylvania Bridging the Gaps Program Director. Ms. Martinak received her Bachelor of Science in education from West Chester University and her Master of Science degree from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, SMART (Statistics, Measurement, Assessment, and Research Technology) Program. Prior to her work with Bridging the Gaps, Ms. Martinak taught Middle and High School in the New Jersey public school system.

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Bridget McCormick, MS, is the Operations Manager for Bridging the Gaps at the University of Pennsylvania. Bridget earned her bachelor's degree in business management with a minor in accounting at the University of Scranton. After graduation, she worked in the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine's business office for two years within the Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, before assuming her role in BTG. In 2020, Bridget earned her Masters of Science in Social Policy from the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice. 

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Holly E. Metzgar, DO, FACOG, NCMP, is the Bridging the Gaps Program Director for Drexel University College of Medicine at Tower Health (Reading, PA).  In addition to a highly successful and flourishing clinical practice with All About Women, Dr. Metzgar is an assistant clinical professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology at Drexel University College of Medicine.  She serves as DUCOM’s Ob/Gyn Pathway Director for 4th year medical students pursuing careers in Ob/Gyn, and also facilitates several medical student small-groups in foundations of patient care and professionalism.  In every role, Dr. Metzgar brings remarkable patience and acceptance that allows for collaborative and supportive relationships with patients, learners and colleagues. Dr. Metzgar is a Fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a NAMS Certified Menopause Practitioner.  She was selected to represent ACOG nationally for the prestigious Women’s Wellness through Equity and Leadership (WEL) Project, a collaborative effort among 10 leading U.S. medical associations that work to create healthier, more equitable work experiences for women physicians.  Locally, she was selected to the United Way of Berks County’s inaugural class of Leadership Berks, and serves as a cabinet member for Emerging Leaders United. She received her medical degree from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed her residency at Reading Hospital. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Moravian College.  She is a Pennsylvania Master Naturalist.  She believes her most important and rewarding role is mother to 3 wonderful children.

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Laura Mullin, MS, the Bridging the Gaps Program Coordinator for Drexel University, is the Educational Coordinator in the Office of Community Engagement at Drexel University College of Medicine. In this role she supports students in their various placements with local community organizations and helps develop new opportunities to offer to the students. She is also the Program Coordinator for the Medical Humanities Scholars Program where she maintains the ever-evolving courses and lectures offered and helps support students who are completing a capstone for the Medical Humanities scholars track. Laura received her Master of Science degree from Drexel University. 

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Sarah Papperman, MPH, is the program coordinator for Bridging the Gaps at the University of Pittsburgh.  Sarah earned her master’s degree in public health with a certificate in program evaluation through the University of Pittsburgh.  Sarah also coordinates evaluation research at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health.  Additionally, Sarah has experience in community-based organizations focused on aging social services, volunteerism, and harm reduction.

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Abby Quinn Peterson, DMD, MPH, is Clinical Associate Teaching Faculty at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine in the Division of Community Oral Health.  Dr Peterson received her BA in Biological Basis of Behavior, DMD and MPH all from the University of Pennsylvania.  She teaches clinical dentistry to pre-doctoral students in community sites and coursework in public health.  She serves on the Board of Directors of Kids Smiles, a not-for-profit children's dental center.  Her interests include mobile delivery of care and reducing barriers to care for children and families.

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Anthony L. Rostain, MD, MA, is Chair and Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University and is Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.  He is Chief of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at Cooper University Healthcare where he directs the clinical, education and research activities of the Department.  He is also Medical Director of the Penn Adult ADHD Treatment and Research Program.  His clinical focus is “lifespan neurodevelopmental psychiatry,” which includes caring for patients with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Tourette Syndrome, Learning Disabilities (verbal and nonverbal), Neurogenetic Disorders (e.g. Fragile X, Rett) and related social-emotional learning disorders.

Dr. Rostain served as Vice Chair of Education for the Department of Psychiatry at Perelman School of Medicine from 1998-2017 and was Co-Chair of the University of Pennsylvania's Task Force on Student Psychological Health and Welfare from 2014-16.  Dr. Rostain was President of the American Professional Society for ADHD and Related Disorders (APSARD) from 2011-2016 and Co-Chair of its Education Committee from 2016-2020.  He currently serves on the Medical Advisory Board of the Tourette Association of America. Dr. Rostain's research interests focus on improving clinical outcomes for patients across the lifespan with neurodevelopmental disorders, and on creating effective service systems for these patients and their families. He has co-authored two books on adult ADHD (with J. Russell Ramsay, Ph.D.) entitled The Adult ADHD Tool Kit: Using CBT to Facilitate Coping Inside and Out, and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Adult ADHD: An Integrative Psychosocial and Medical Approach (Routledge, 2015).  He is also co-author (with B. Janet Hibbs, Ph.D.) of The Stressed Years of Their Lives: Helping Your Kid Survive and Thrive During Their College Years (St. Martin’s Press, 2019).

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Noelle R. J. Thielman, PhD, is the Assistant Coordinator for the Bridging the Gaps Program for Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM).  She is also an Assistant Professor of Immunology and Microbiology and teaches courses in the topics of cellular biology, biostatistics, immunology, microbiology and pharmacology to graduate and medical students at LECOM. Dr. Thielman completed her doctorate at Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine in the Cellular and Molecular Medicine program in Baltimore, MD.  In addition to Bridging the Gaps, Dr. Thielman aids community involvement of medical students as the faculty advisor for LECOM’s student government association.  She also has a research lab at LECOM which focuses on better understanding of the immune microenvironment in pancreatic cancer. 

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Lucy Wolf Tuton, PhD, is an Adjunct Professor of Medicine in the Department of Medicine and Adjunct Professor of Prevention and Population Health in the Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Tuton’s work is in two areas focusing on building programs that support community academic partnerships and providing professional/career development for faculty and trainees. Dr. Tuton serves as Executive Director of Bridging the Gaps, a program linking the training of health professionals with the provision of health-related service for marginalized populations. A program with over 6000 alumni who have partnered with over 600 community organizations over its 33-year history, Dr. Tuton has played a role in the leadership of this program since the program’s inception. Bridging the Gaps has been established at eight academic health center/university locations in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and one in New Jersey who partner each year with community organizations serving disadvantaged populations. In addition to the Bridging the Gaps Community Health Internship Program in all locations, the Philadelphia Bridging the Gaps Program has developed two additional program components, the Bridging the Gaps Seminar Series and the Bridging the Gaps Community Health Rotation. She is Co-Founder and Associate Director of the Penn Community Scholars Program, a training program for community organizations offering skill development in community-academic research partnerships, and of REACH (Research and Equity in Academic-Community Partnerships for Health) an initiative that fosters successful, sustainable, and equitable community academic partnerships. Dr. Tuton is also the Director of Professional Development for FOCUS on Health & Leadership for Women, a program which promotes advocacy, education and research in women’s health and the advancement of women in academic medicine. In this capacity, she has developed professional skill-building curricula as well as curricula designed to offer women (and men) faculty and trainees opportunities to identify and work towards the fulfillment of personal and professional goals. Due to her role in FOCUS, she was a co-investigator on the unique RO1-funded NIH-TAC (Transforming Academic Culture) study to examine causal factors and interventions that promote women’s careers in science and medicine. This 4-year trial, the first of its kind, implemented a 3-tiered intervention in a cluster-randomized design across an entire school of medicine, aimed at improving the academic productivity and job satisfaction of women faculty. Dr. Tuton served as an Associate Director of the Perelman School of Medicine's Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program and at its conclusion became an Associate Director until 2020 for the National Clinician Scholars Program. In these roles, she co-directed a career development curriculum and provided expertise for community-focused efforts. Due to her experience in professional and career development, Dr. Tuton co-directs other related initiatives focused on faculty and trainees at the Perelman School of Medicine. Since 2013, along with a multidisciplinary team of Penn colleagues, Dr. Tuton is one of four faculty leaders for the Provost-initiated Penn Faculty Pathways Program.​

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Zoë Van Orsdol, MA, MPH, is the assistant program director for the public health program in the Jefferson College of Population Health where she works closely with students and community organizations. Zoë has an MPH from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where her research focused on nutrition and equitable food systems, and an MA in African American Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Before joining Jefferson, Zoë worked for a community-based organization in Philadelphia, leading their public health work with a focus on the social determinants of health and trauma-informed principles. While there, she worked on collaborative effort to create a trauma- informed engagement curriculum that community members could share with one another. Prior to her public health work, Zoë taught history for many years focusing on the intersection of civil rights, race and public health.
 

Brian Work, MD, MPH, is an Internal Medicine Hospitalist, Addiction Medicine Physician and Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine. The majority of his career has been spent working with minority, underserved and extremely marginalized populations.  At Penn, where he was for 19 years before coming to Temple, he volunteered at and Co-directed the largest of Penn’s student run free clinics, United Community Clinic at First African Presbyterian Church in West Philadelphia.  He also taught in the Public Health Program at University of Pennsylvania and was very active in Penn’s Center for Public Health Initiatives. He was faculty member in Penn’s Bridging the Gaps program and now holds the same position in Temple’s Bridging the Gaps program. Brian has been working in and around the issues of addiction medicine for over 25 years in clinical care and research.  For much of that time he has worked on the street with individuals suffering from homelessness and IV opioid use disorder.  He has been at Prevention Point Philadelphia for 20 years, having volunteered at and directed their Streetside Health Clinic for most of that time.  At Prevention Point he is on the Board of Directors and previously served as their Board Chair.  He also served on the Mayor’s Task Force to Combat the Opioid Epidemic in Philadelphia. He is currently serving on Temple's Inpatient Opioid Committee, where his main priority is to ensure that inpatient opioid withdrawal is treated aggressively to enable those with IV opioid use disorder to remain in the hospital to complete their treatments for their severe medical illnesses and thus increase their chances of surviving to recovery. 

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Jerome Wright, MSW, LSW, is the BTG Co-Program Director for Temple University. After earning a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania, Jerome worked as a reintegration worker with adjudicated youth, as a special education administrator in Chester, PA, and as a campus coordinator at a nursing school in Trenton, NJ. He came to Temple 6 years ago as the Doctoring course coordinator and currently is the Senior Coordinator for the Office of Student Support at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine. In his role, Jerome works to promote student wellness, support student government, and activities through events and personal counseling. Jerome is currently earning a Masters degree in Social Work (MSW) with an anticipated graduation date in May, 2024.

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