Advisory Committee
Meet the esteemed members of our Advisory Committee and Staff.
Advisory Committee Members
Chairperson
Kristin Perez | Certified Nurse-Midwife, CNM | Topeka
Expertise:
- Nurse-midwifery; maternal patient safety, Forensic nursing
Facility/Position:
- Stormont Vail Health, Topeka, KS: Certified Nurse-midwife, Maternal Fetal Medicine (MFM) and The Birthplace; Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE), SV Forensics Team; Manage two off-site OB clinics at Grace Med Capitol Family and Topeka Correctional Facility
Past-Chair
Dr. Parul Nguyen | OB-GYN, MPH
Expertise:
- Public health, health equity and maternal health outcomes
Member
Emersen F. Freeman | MPH
Expertise:
- Health equity, public health, and health policy
Facility/Position:
- Stormont Vail Health, Director of Health Equity & Policy
Patient/Family Representative
Position Open
Member
Jeri Harvey | MSN, RN, CNL | Topeka
Expertise:
- Quality improvement, education
Facility/Position:
- Baker University School of Nursing, Instructor
- Stormont Vail Health, Maternal/Child Educator
Member
Kysha Nichols-Totten | MD
Expertise:
- Surgical and nonsurgical Obstetrics, Family Medicine inpatient and outpatient care
Facility/Position:
- Citizens Medical Center, Colby, KS: Board certified in Family Medicine with a Fellowship in Obstetrics, General Practice Family Medicine, Director of Perinatal Sterling College Graduate 2009, KU School of Medicine Graduate 2013, Smoky Hill Family Medicine Graduate 2016
Member
Jenna Sloan | MD, FACOG
Expertise:
- Rural Obstetrics and Gynecology
Member
Dr. Sharla Smith | PhD, MPH
Expertise:
- Health economics, policy and management
- Founder and director of the Kansas Birth Equity Network
- Works to improve Black birthing outcomes in Kansas through community-centered approaches
Facility/Position:
- KUMC, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Population Health and Director of Birth Equity, Dept. of OB-GYN
Ex-Officio
Dr. Cara A. Busenhart | Certified Nurse-Midwife; PhD, APRN, CNM, FACNM | Kansas City
Expertise:
- Nurse-midwifery; quality improvement and research; education
Facility/Position:
- University of Kansas School of Nursing, Director, Advanced Practice. Director, Nurse-Midwifery; Clinical Assistant Professor
- University of Kansas Hospital, Certified Nurse-Midwife
- JayDoc Free Health Clinic (student-run medical clinic), Attending; Certified Nurse-Midwife
Ex-Officio
Dr. Kourtney Bettinger
Facility/Position:
- University of Kansas, Peds
Ex-Officio
Karen Braman | RPh, MS | Topeka
Expertise:
- Quality and Patient Safety, Data/ Analytics, Pharmacy
Facility/Position:
- Kansas Hospital Association, Senior Vice President, Clinical and Strategic Initiatives
Ex-Officio
Tara Chettiar | MD, FACOG
Facility/Position:
- Kansas Maternal Mortality Review Committee, Co-Chair
Staff
Kayla Nicole Stangis, MPH, CHES
KDHE, Maternal Health Innovation Coordinator
Contact Kayla:
[email protected]
