Course Directors & Faculty

Baltimore, MD

Heidi Abdelhady, MD

I’m a board certified IM, Pulmonary and Critical Care Physician who wears many hats. This includes recently standing up Women in Medicine Gender Equity Standing Committee at my hospital and currently working to expand in our health system that includes 150 comprehensive hospitals. Additionally, I severe as our nation wide physician lead on our ABIDE (Appreciation, Belonging, Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity) Collaborative where our organization is looking to dismantle practices and policies that lead to inequity rooted in race, racism and systemic racism.

I would like to speak about gender and gender equity in medicine among physicians specifically so that others can take these ideas to their institutions to assess their environments and begin the journey that is unique to them.

Bellingham, WA

Kelly Casperson, MD

Dr. Casperson is a urologist in private practice who is interested in the power of the mind and science to change our views of sexuality. After many years in practice she had a life changing patient that made her curious to learn everything she could about female sexual wellness.

This inspired her to create a podcast You Are Not Broken
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/you-are-not-broken/id1495710329

From that she has created online courses teaching women the fundamentals of their anatomy and physiology, discussing their limiting beliefs, and normalizing their normal female sexual function, to empower them to live their best love lives.

Through pursuit of certification through the Life Coach School, she now combines her medical knowledge with mind-work to help women with surgical precision, using urology and sex-coaching to change lives.

Find her at www.kellycaspersonmd.com

Blue Ash, OH

Heather Dlugosz, MD

Associate Medical Director, Eating Recovery Center/Insight Behavioral Health

Westerville, OH

Laura Fortner, MD

Mom of 4 and married to high school sweetheart Craig. OBGYN Hospitalist in Newark, OH with over 21yrs experience and a certified life coach specializing in Litigation Stress

Aurora, CO

Sue Gu, MD

I was born in Wuhan, China but spent most of my life growing up in Ohio. I have felt personally impacted by the recent rise in Anti Asian racism and the rhetoric of former president Trump referring to the Coronavirus as “Wuhan Virus.” I’m passionate about understanding and helping others understand anti-Asian racism in historical context. I presented this topic at National Jewish Health recently and the video is available on Youtube (link made public in my profile) if you would like to see a version of this talk.

Louisville, KY

SarahBeth Hartlage, MD

University of Alabama. She also holds a Master’s Degree from Tulane University and her MD from the University of South Alabama. She completed a residency in anesthesiology at the University of Louisville, where she served as chief resident. Today she serves as an Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine at the University of Louisville, where she pursues her passion for educating residents and medical students. Dr. Hartlage lives in Louisville with her husband, daughter, and an excitable corgi.

Lancaster, CA

Mitika Kanabar, MD, MPH, FASAM

Dr. Mitika Kanabar MD MPH FASAM is an Addiction Medicine physician helping patients with substance use disorders in rural California. Dr. Kanabar did her Addiction Medicine fellowship from Stanford University. She is triple boarded in Addiction Medicine, Lifestyle Medicine and Family Medicine. Dr. Kanabar serves as voluntary Clinical Faculty with University of Southern California. As a member of the NEXT committee of the International Society of Addiction Medicine, Dr. Kanabar is involved in international networking, collaboration and mentorship for early career addiction professionals. As a part of her outreach efforts in the Indian subcontinent, Dr. Kanabar has spoken in public forums of the harms of process addictions and problematic internet use. Dr. Kanabar is a part of the working committee to address international challenges for treatment of gaming disorder. She has a keen interest in lifestyle modification for chronic diseases and application of the same in patients with substance use disorders.

Hudson, OH

Manjinder Kaur, DO

I am a board certified Endocrinologist and Obesity medicine diplomate. I have dedicated my entire career and practice to serving patients with obesity . During the journey I was shocked and embarrassed to find out about biases related to weight can impact the care we provide . Obesity bias is as prevalent is as racial or gender discrimination. My goal over the years has been to provide best possible care to patient suffering with obesity to reach their health goals as well to train my fellow colleagues, physician residents to be mindful of implicit biases related to weight that may impact patient care negatively and hence the health outcomes for our patients .

Houston, TX

Rashmi Kudesia, MD, MSc

Rashmi Kudesia, M.D., M.Sc., is a board-certified reproductive endocrinologist & infertility specialist at CCRM Fertility Houston in Houston, Texas, where she serves as the Director of Patient Education and Sugar Land Site Director. She is also Assistant Clinical Professor of OB/GYN at Houston Methodist Hospital, author of Understanding Fertility Awareness Methods: Gaining Control of Your Fertility, Medical Director for women’s health startup Simple Health, and member of the Board of Directors of Planned Parenthood of the Gulf Coast.

Dr. Kudesia has held many national leadership roles in organized medicine, allowing her to advance and advocate for women’s health through positions within the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, the American Medical Association, and more. She has received multiple grants and awards for her scientific research, which she has published and presented widely. Her research and advocacy focus on access to fertility knowledge, counseling and care, lifestyle medicine approaches to infertility and polycystic ovary syndrome, and LGBT fertility. She promotes reproductive health and empowerment through various advisory board appointments, community outreach and social media.

Dallas, TX

Binh-Minh “Jade” Le, MD

Dr. Le is board-certified in infectious disease and is a former Peace Corps volunteer in Gabon where she helped with the Ebola outbreak and vaccination campaigns for people in remote villages. Dr. Le received her medical degree from the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston and completed her internship and residency at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, where she was also chief resident. She completed her Infectious Diseases fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Prior to joining Access Physicians, Dr. Le served as the Infectious Diseases Clinical Director at William P. Clements, Jr. University Hospital in Dallas, specializing in transplant infections. She was also a recipient of both the Internal Medicine Residency Teaching Award and twice the Infectious Diseases Fellows Teaching Award. Dr. Le also worked at North Texas-based Texas Health Resources, where she expanded the Infectious Care Clinic’s outpatient services while receiving top-rated patient satisfaction scores. Dr. Le also serves on Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s Task Force for Infectious Diseases Preparedness and Response.

Nashville, TV

Adele Lewis, MD

Medical school University of Alabama ‘97, general surgery Vanderbilt ‘97-‘00, trauma/surgical CC Vandy ‘00-‘02, anatomic path Vandy ‘02-‘05, forensic path Nashville ME office ‘05-‘06, stayed there until 2016, then TN Deputy State Chief ME ‘16-‘’19, TN state chief ME 2019-present, 3 children adopted June 2005 between residency and fellowship, and hubs was starting a meeting residency too, twin girls born in China 3/2004 and boy born in Guatemala 7/2004

New Hyde Park, NY

Lisa Lih-Brody, MD

Chief women’s GI health and motility prohealth care association for 24 years now with NYU Langone specializing in swallowing disorders.

West Hartford, CT

Mariela Podolski, MD

Originally from Costa Rica, attended medical school at Universidad de Costa Rica. Completed residency in psychiatry at Institute of Living, and fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Medical College of Wisconsin. I have worked with eating disorder patients for the past 14 years , making it the focus of my career. Currently work at my private practice, and as a consultant for Walden Behavioral Care.

Santa Clara, CA

Sheryl L Recinos, MD

Sheryl Recinos, MD is a Family Medicine trained physician that works as a hospitalist in Los Angeles, CA. She is a mother of three, and she went through training while raising her kids. She is also the author of numerous books, including her memoir about her experiences as a homeless teen. She wants to see a world where children are protected and adults provide them with a safe, nurturing community where they can grow.

San Leandro, CA

Miriam Rhew, MD

Medical Director at a community group pediatric practice in Northern California that is dedicated to providing trauma informed care. The Life Coach School certified life coach.

Long Beach, NY

Andrea Sciberras, DO, AAHIVS, FACOI, FACP

I have been an osteopathic internist since 2003. However, I have several subspecialty areas. My passion is in HIV medicine, and I noticed there were no lecture topics on this last year. I would love to lecture on this! I am also a transgender specialist and do hospice work as well. I was a program director for many years and am also an outpatient preceptor for our IM residency. I also owned my own practice for 12 years. I have many different knowledge areas and multiple topics I can lecture on! Finally, I am a single mother by choice and my daughter will be turning 4 in June!

Seattle, WA

Tanmeet Sethi, MD

Tanmeet Sethi, MD is an Integrative Family Physician, writer, and TEDx speaker (Watch “Two Words That Can Change Your Life” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHTmiHB6aXk) who has dedicated her career to care for the most marginalized patients including Seattle’s refugee, uninsured and homeless populations as well as global communities traumatized by manmade and natural disasters as Senior Faculty for the Center for Mind Body Medicine. She has been Core Faculty in residency medical education for the last two decades focusing on inpatient and outpatient family medicine, integrative medicine, and anti-racism in medicine. She is certified in Functional Medicine through the Institute of Functional Medicine and fellowship trained in Integrative Medicine from the University of Arizona and has gone on to found and direct an Integrative Medicine fellowship at Swedish Hospital Cherry Hill Family Medicine Residency in Seattle, WA. Currently, she is also pursuing certificate training in psychedelic medicine, bringing together her passion for plant medicine and social justice. She is one of the original co-founders of APIChaya, an organization dedicated to supporting survivors of gender-based violence and human trafficking in the Asian/South Asian community. She lives in Seattle, WA with her husband and three children and is currently working on her first book.

Denver, CO

Kamleh Shaban, MD

I grew up in Denver Colorado in a second generation Arab American household with expectations that I’d be a doctor. I went to CU medicine and scrambled into a psychiatry residency where I really thrived. I’ve been working as an outpatient child psychiatrist for the past four years. I teach medical students, residents, and fellows. I have created an anti-racism psychiatry curriculum. I have one daughter, and am happily married to a very supportive partner. I love learning about racism, anti-racism efforts, and mental health.

Evesham, NJ

Angela Skrzynski, DO

Dr. Angela Skrzynski is board certified in Family Medicine and Sleep Medicine, having completed her training at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Philadelphia and the University of Michigan. She serves as the Clinical Lead for the Remote Practice at Virtua Health in Southern New Jersey. She has been instrumental in developing the Urgent Care Telehealth, ED and Inpatient Remote Patient Monitoring, and Care After COVID programs within the practice. She has been with the team since its inception and is responsible for clinician oversight and training, maintaining quality and safety, and direct patient care via telemedicine. She lives in New Jersey with her husband and 2 little girls.

New Orleans, LA

Nilong Vyas, MD

Dr. Nilong Vyas is a pediatrician, public health specialist, and board-certified sleep expert. Getting your baby to sleep is one of the most controversial, contradictory, and confusing aspects of parenting and Dr. Vyas takes your personal parenting goals into consideration. She is knowledgeable not only of the common sleep approaches but more importantly, has a pediatric medical knowledge base. Her patients and clients adore their sleep doctor because she considers everything when giving advice knowing that sleep is not a solitary issue but intimately involved with the rest of the child’s holistic wellbeing, diet, development, behavior and day-to-day schedule.

Lawrence, NJ

Denise Wunderler, DO, FAOASM

Dr. Wunderler is a sports medicine physician, who graduated from Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences in Missouri, and then completed her family medicine residency and sports medicine fellowship within the Cleveland Clinic Health System in Cleveland, Ohio. Prior to her medical training, she graduated from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA, where she played collegiate basketball for 4 years and was Team Captain. She then worked as a research scientist at Merck in New Jersey for 6 years, before attending medical school in Kansas City, Missouri. She currently works in private practice in Freehold, NJ.
She is a mom of 3, including her youngest Vienna, who died at age 2.8 years, without explanation on 11-12-17.
She is the Founder and President of her family’s 501c3 nonprofit Team Vienna 4 SUDC (Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood) Awareness Inc. (in honor of her daughter) and a Co-Founder of The SUDC Coalition. She is also the Founder of Vienna’s Day of International SUDC Awareness.
Dr. Wunderler has been a Team Physician with USA Volleyball and FIVB for the past 12 years and travels internationally to support Team USA.
She was honored as one of the top 10 inspiring women in osteopathic medicine in a national publication in 2020. She was a nominee for the International ATHENA Award for 2020.
She is a national speaker, published author in peer-reviewed journals, has been interviewed dozens of times by the media, co-wrote a song for her deceased daughter Vienna, co-designed the Vienna Collection of designer handbags, and designed the “V halo” logo in honor of Vienna.
Because of her family’s tragedy and that SUDC is rarely known among physicians, Dr. Wunderler works tirelessly educating the medical community and the general public world-wide about Vienna’s story and SUDC. She is very passionate about finding causes for SUDC, and is currently working directly with medical schools to incorporate SUDC into the yearly permanent curriculum and presenting Grand Rounds presentations to hospital medical staff.

Pittsburgh, PA

Elizabeth Zona, DO

I am an Anesthesiologist that is also board-certified in addiction medicine. I am passionate about community outreach for awareness and substance use prevention, as well as educating fellow physicians. I have presented several academic topics, to anesthesia departments such as University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and Penn Medicine at Princeton. I also have spoken to internal medicine departments and surgical/obstetric/trauma departments. Many topics have been presented, most recently related to addiction and clinical issues regarding management of patients being treated for substance use disorders and alcoholism. I am also a physician mother and founder/benefactor of a local high school educational series and annual scholarship.