Board
President
David V. Hunter, BS, MBA
The Mary Wade Home
David V. Hunter, the Mary Wade Home’s chief executive officer, has served as its executive since 1981, and has been a licensed nursing home administrator for 30 years. Mr. Hunter is responsible for directing the expansion of the campus from a single service provider to a continuum of long-term care and community-based services for the aging, including skilled nursing, residential, adult day care, and transportation and out-patient rehabilitation. He is also the president of MWH Holdings Company, a corporation established to obtain and retain properties to further expand the mission of Mary Wade.
Mr. Hunter is involved in many community health associations, including the Connecticut Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, where he served as a chair of the board of directors and was a recipient of the Association’s Humanitarian Award; the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, where he served on the budget and finance committee and as a Connecticut delegate for the Association; the Institute for Long Term Care Policy, where he served as a chair of the Institute; and the Agency on Aging of South Central Connecticut Interagency Council, where he also served as chair.
Mr. Hunter is a graduate of Southern CT State University with a B.S. in Economics and received his M.B.A. from the University of New Haven.
Past-President
Sister Suzanne Gross, FSE
Franciscan Home Care & Hospice Care
ssuzanne@franciscanhc.org
Sister Suzanne Gross is the Administrator of Franciscan Home Care
and Hospice, a home health care and hospice care provider, licensed
to serve in 31 towns in Connecticut. The agency has 85 employees.
Ten years ago she obtained Medicare certification for the agency's
hospice program. The agency is accredited by CHAP, the Community Health
Accreditation Program. Sister Suzanne has a Masters Degree in Public
Administration from the University of Hartford and a Masters Degree
in theology from Holy Apostles College, Cromwell, CT. Sister Suzanne
is also the Chairman of the Physicians' Health Alliance, an organization
comprised of 220 physicians and organizations serving the Central
Connecticut region. Sister Suzanne also works part-time for the Archdiocese
of Hartford by coordinating programs on end of life and the dignity
of the human person. Sister is a member of the Franciscan Sisters
of the Eucharist with headquarters in Meriden, Connecticut.
Vice-President
Thomas E. Quinn, APRN, MSN
Pain and Palliative Care Educator/Consultant
Tom is an advanced practice oncology nurse with experience in multiple clinical settings, industry, clinical education, and consulting. He feels his interest in symptom management and end-of -life care is a natural outgrowth of his many years of caring for cancer and other patients with advanced disease. He has a particular interest in pain management and founded a newsletter and website devoted to pain, as well as a being the current editor of YaleCares, a palliative care newsletter sponsored by the Connecticut Challenge Survivorship Clinic at Yale Cancer Center.
Treasurer
Christine Ceccarelli, MS, MBA, RN, CNN
Yale University, School of Nursing
Chris is a fifth year PhD student in the Yale University School of Nursing with a research interest in state policy affecting family home caregivers. Formerly Director of Dialysis Services at Hartford Hospital, Chris's interest in family caregiving and end-of-life issues developed out of her own experience caring for her husband at home until his death in 2002. She currently participates in the End-of-Life Issues Study Group at Yale and began her dissertation research in May, 2008.
Chris received her B.S. and M.S. in nursing from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a M.B.A. from the RPI/Hartford Graduate Center program. She has held chapter, regional and national positions in the American Nephrology Nurses Association (ANNA) and currently serves as chairperson ANNA's Ethics Committee. Work with members of this committee has culminated in the development of educational modules focusing on advanced care planning for dialysis patients. Combining a focus on the use of dialysis technology with care of critically ill patients with renal disease, Chris's Nursing Journal's (NNJ) opinion piece, "The Issue May Not Be Whether, But How You Offer Dialysis" appeared in a 2007 issue of the Nephrology Nursing Journal's Controversies in Nephrology Nursing section. She and members of her committee have also authored "Advanced Care Planning in CKD Patients: Why Aren't Nurses More Involved?" to appear in the November/December issue of NNJ.
Secretary
Karrie Hendrickson, BS, MSN, PhD
Yale University School of Nursing
Karrie is a Post-Doctoral Fellow at Yale University School of Nursing and an adjunct faculty member at Quinnipiac University. She received her Ph.D from Yale University, her M.S.N. from Vanderbilt University School of Nusring, and her B.S. from the University of Mississippi. This is her first term on the Board of the CT Coalition to Improve End-of-Life Care.
Karrie's research interests involve end-of-life care for children and
bereavement of parents of children who die. She has worked closely with Dr. Ruth McCorkle and together, they wrote the article, "A Dimensional Analysis of the Concept: Good Death of a Child with Cancer," which appeared in the Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing in the Spring of 2008.
Roxanne Aaron-Selph
CT Dept. of Social Services
roxanne.aaron-selph@po.state.ct.us
Marlo Bish, RN
Marlo has earned her RN degree from Wilcox College of Nursing and continued her studies at the University of Hartford. Prior to her current recognition as a National Nursing Consultant within the Health Care Industry, she was The National Nurse Education Program Manager for Walgreens. Previous positions held include pharmacy arena experience as a Regional Director of Business Development and Client Relations, as well as, the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Regional Director of Sales, Marketing and Managed Care for Harborside Healthcare. She has also held positions at Aetna Insurance Company, Middlesex Hospital and Mid-State Hospital. Marlo currently remains active with many health care organizations where she is a board member and active participant on many committees.
Karen Bullock, LCSW, PhD
University of Connecticut School of Social Work
Dr. Bullock is an associate professor at the University of Connecticut School of Social Work where she teaches in the area of gerontology and chairs the Black Studies Substantive Area. She hold an appointment as a senior research scientist at the Institute of Living at Hartford Hospital and also serves on the Hartford Hospital Ethics Committee. Dr. Bullock is a graduate of Columbia University (MSW) and Boston University (PhD). Karen has been the recipient of the SOROS Foundation, Project on Death in America Award and the Gerontological Society of America/John A. Hartford Faculty Scholar Award to conduct research on end-of-life care. See an article about Karen's work with end-of-life care in African-Americans, originally published in the Hartford Courant.
Victoria Carlson
CT Department of Public Health
victoria.carlson@po.state.ct.us
Leonard Comeau, MD
Connecticut Children’s Medical Center
Len Comeau is a physician specializing in Pediatric Critical Care Medicine. His primary clinical responsibility has been in caring for children in the 18-bed Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center for the last 11 years. Other responsibilities include physician leadership of the hospital’s Sedation and Analgesia Committee, Co-chairmanship of the Pain Steering Committee, and leadership of the Comfort Care Program, CCMC’s palliative care program. He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics of the University of Connecticut School of Medicine.
Ronald Dischinger
The Elim Park Baptist Home, Inc.
Ronald Dischinger is a licensed nursing home administrator with more than 30 years experience in the health care field. Currently he is the President/CEO at The Elim Park Baptist Home, Inc. in Cheshire, Connecticut.
He holds a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Hartford. Mr. Dischinger also has his Retirement Housing Professional Fellow (RHPF) certification from the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA), in Washington, DC. He is a surveyor for the Commission on the Accreditation of Rehab Facilities - Continuing Care Accreditation Commission (CARF-CCAC).
Mr. Dischinger has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Association of Non-profit Providers for the Aging, (CANPFA). He has served six years as a member of the House of Delegates of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA). He has served 6 years as a member of the Cheshire Human Services Committee.
Presently he also serves on the Board of Directors for The Connecticut Alliance for Long Term Care (CALTC), a non-profit organization of post acute care providers. Mr. Dischinger also serves on the Board of Directors of the Cheshire Chamber of Commerce, and chairs the Community Relations Committee. He has also been a member of the National Alumni Board of Directors for Bethel University, St. Paul, Minnesota since 1998.
Virginia Humphrey, BSN, MPH, FHHC
Fellow of Hospice and Home Care, National Org
CT Association for Homecare (Retired)
Ginny is a retired executive of the Connecticut Association for Home Care, the trade association for the state's home care and hospice agencies. Her career began as a Medical/Surgical Instructor at Mercer Hospital, Trenton, NJ, but her passion for home care from her experience in Brooklyn and Harlem as a student nurse at Columbia University School of Nursing led her to working with Visiting Nurse Associations after her family moved to CT. Her most rewarding work was with terminally ill patients who were often told in the 60s and 70s by their physician, "Go home to die because there's nothing more to do for you." Since there was so much more to do, such as symptom management and spiritual support, even if in a bittersweet way, she was thankful to learn of a small dedicated group working to bring the first hospice to the United States -- thanks to Florence Wald -- and so she became an employee of the first hospice developing their home care programs around the state at the time the Branford in-patient facility was being built.
Ruth McCorkle, PhD, RN
Yale University School of Nursing
Ruth McCorkle is a national and international leader in cancer nursing, education, and cancer control research. She did Post-Master's work at St. Christopher's Hospice in London in 1972 and is a Founding Member of Hospice of Seattle, established in 1976. She has served on the Board of Directors of the Oncology Nursing Society, the International Society of Nurses in Cancer Care, and the American Psychosocial Oncology Society. She was elected to the American Academy of Nursing in 1979 and the Institute of Medicine in 1990. Ruth is the Florence S. Wald Professor of Nursing at the Yale University School of Nursing and has twice been designated an American Cancer Society Professor . She is Director of Yale’s Center for Excellence in Chronic Illness Care and was Chair of the School of Nursing’s doctoral program from 1998-2004. She is internationally known for her program of research in testing the role of the advanced practice nurse on patient and caregiver outcomes in cancer care, including end-of-life and bereavement.
Kate McEvoy, Esq.
South Central CT Area Agency on Aging
Kate McEvoy is the Deputy Director of the Agency on Aging of South Central Connecticut (AASCC). She is also the legislative liaison for the Connecticut Association of Area Agencies on Aging (C4A), and represents C4A on the Steering Committee of the Connecticut Elder Action Network (CEAN) and the Connecticut Long Term Care Advisory Council. Further, she is the Chair of the Law Task Force of the Connecticut Coalition to Improve End-of-Life Care. In these capacities, she is a frequent lecturer on advance directives, Medicare, home and community-based services, entitlements and policy issues. Among other articles, she is the author of "Should We Focus More on the Individual? A Discussion of Advance Care Planning Law in Connecticut" for Connecticut Medicine. Her work on advance directives and changes to Connecticut’s statutes were passed in 2006. Kate is the Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee of the Elder Law Section of the Connecticut Bar Association.In 2005, Kate was appointed to the Task Force on Re-Establishment of the Department on Aging. She also currently serves as the co-chair of the United Way of Greater New Haven’s Community Impact Cabinet. Kate is a graduate of Oberlin College (Oberlin, Ohio) with a B.A. in Economics and English and received her law degree from the University of Connecticut School of Law.
Kenneth J. Popillo
Carmon Community Funeral Homes
Kenneth J. Popillo had spent many years as a Jet Engine Technician until changing careers. He has an array of experience in the funeral industry and has been in the field as a professional for over 16 years. With a degree in Religious Studies from St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield and also a Mortuary Science degree, he brings insight and compassion to many families. Kenneth is a Licensed Funeral Director, embalmer, a Certified Funeral Service Practitioner, a Licensed Insurance Agent and the Advance Planning Manager for the eight Carmon Community Funeral Homes. Kenneth often speaks locally and nationally on the features and benefits of planning ahead including; Why, How and When to Plan Ahead, Medicaid and Title 19 Rules in Connecticut, Veteran's Benefits, Cremation/Burial Options, Personalization, Trust vs. Insurance Funding, How to Guarantee Costs Against Inflation Forever, and so much more. He assists civic organizations and other business professionals through training and seminars, and has written several articles for local and national publications. Some of his activities and achievements include: A member of Pratolana M.B. Society in Hartford, Member of CT Funeral Director's Association and The National Funeral Director's Association, Parish Council member at the Holy Spirit Church in Newington, board member of TASN (Tri-Town Aging Services Network) and a member of The Consortium for Geronotological Education.
Patrice Tadel, RN, MSN, CHPN
VITAS Innovative Hospice Care
Pat Tadel, MSN, RN, CHPN received her post-doctoral certificate in Clinical Ethics from the University of Chicago. She is the Patient Care Administrator for VITAS Innovative Hospice Care for the Waterbury office. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau and chapter president for 2006, NHPCO, ASBH, ADEC, HPNA, AAHPM, NurseHealers' Organization, ONS, and the Midwest Center for Practical Bioethics. She is a site leader for the WIT Project, and an ELNEC trainer. She has worked in hospice and end of life for over 17 years in various roles, including field nurse/case manager, director of nursing, performance improvement specialist, and interdisciplinary clinical educator.
In conjunction to her work with VITAS, Pat continues to balance this with academia as adjunct faculty and consultation in palliative care/ethics. She is a national speaker on issues related to clinical ethics and palliative care. She is committed to increasing access to hospice, community education, and outreach to underserved populations. She is involved in research and written numerous articles on these subjects. Individualized care at the end of life which demonstrates collaboration with the patient and family is a personal driving force in her work as it assures meaningful life experiences.
Patricia Trotta, RN, MSN
American Cancer Society
Pat is the manager of the New England Pain Relief Project off the American Cancer Society and a coordinator for the Connecticut Cancer Partnership (CCP). She is a board member of both the Coalition and the Connecticut Council for Hospice and Palliative Care and is actively involved in many projects to improve pain management and end of life care in Connecticut. Currently she co-chairs the Hospice and Palliative Care Committee of the CCP, serves on the steering committee for the newly created Hospice Veteran Partnership of CT, participates in the CT Hospice Prison Initiative, and serves on a work group formed by Representative Peggy Sayers to identify strategies to improve pain management in Connecticut nursing homes. Pat received her masters in nursing from Yale University School of Nursing and subsequently spent 25 years as an oncology clinical nurse specialist in several Connecticut hospitals including the VA Newington, Hartford Hospital and MidState Medical Center.
Help Us Help You! Please take our Survey
The State of Connecticut Department of Public Health and the Coalition to Improve End-of-Life Care need your help to gather information on the educational needs of health care professionals, pharmacists, social workers, chaplains, funeral directors and others in Connecticut who provide palliative and end-of-life care.
Please take a few minutes to help us help you by completing our confidential online survey. You will be entered into a lottery to win free registration to the 2009 Annual Conference of the Connecticut Coalition to Improve End-of-Life Care.
Upcoming Events
January 21st, 2009
CULTURE MATTERS IN END OF LIFE CARE
Karen Bullock, LCSW, PhD
UCONN School of Social Work
Click here to download registration form
Click here for directions to this event
April 3, 2009
6TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE
CONTINUING THE CONVERSATION...
ADVANCES IN END OF LIFE CARE
8:00AM-4:30PM
Crowne Plaza Hotel,
100 Berlin Road, Cromwell, CT
Continuing Education Units/Credits Available for Nurses, Pastoral Care, Physicians, Social Workers, and Funeral Directors