Meet The Team
Richard "Chip" Davis, PhD, Executive Director
Richard Davis is Johns Hopkins Medicine’s (JHM) Vice President for Innovation and Patient Safety, directing JHM’s system-wide effort to improve the quality, efficiency and safety of patient care. Dr. Davis also serves as Executive Director for: the JHM Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care; JHM Access Services; and the Johns Hopkins Health System’s East Baltimore Ambulatory Operations.
As Executive Director of the Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care, Dr. Davis oversees a multidisciplinary staff leading initiatives to facilitate innovative, patient-centered approaches to make Hopkins the safest place to receive patient care. The Center works to improve the quality and safety of patient care by providing faculty and staff with the means to identify, measure and correct system flaws and direct organizational change.
A faculty member of both The Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health’s division of Health Policy and Management, and the University’s Business of Medicine program, Dr. Davis has taught graduate level courses on leadership, organizational behavior and quality in medical settings for more than a decade. He regularly consults on leadership, quality, efficiency, cost control, patient safety and other related issues for public and private health systems nationally and internationally.
Dr. Davis has a Ph.D. in Health Policy and Management from The Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health, a Master’s degree from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education and a Bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Michigan.
Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD, FFCM, Medical Director, Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care
Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD is a practicing anesthesiologist and critical care physician, teacher, researcher, and international patient safety leader. Dr. Pronovost is a Professor in the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (Departments of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, and Surgery); in the Bloomberg School of Public Health (Department of Health Policy and Management) and in the School of Nursing. He is also Medical Director for the Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care, which supports quality and safety efforts at the Johns Hopkins Hospitals. In 2003 Dr. Pronovost established the Quality and Safety Research Group to advance the science of safety. Dr. Pronovost and his research team are dedicated to improving healthcare through methods that are scientifically rigorous, but feasible at the bedside. Dr. Pronovost holds a doctorate in clinical investigation from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
The author of more than 200 articles and chapters in the fields of patient safety, ICU care, quality health care, evidence-based medicine, and the measurement and evaluation of safety efforts, Dr Pronovost is also a frequent speaker on the topics of quality and safety leadership and implementation of large scale change. He chairs the JCAHO ICU Advisory Panel for Quality Measures, the ICU Physician Staffing Committee for the Leapfrog Group, and serves on the Quality Measures Work Group of the National Quality Forum. He also serves in an advisory capacity to the World Health Organizations’ World Alliance for Patient Safety, and is leading WHO efforts to improve patient safety measurement, evaluation, and leadership capacity globally. He has won several national awards for his research, including the 2004 John Eisenberg Patient Safety Research Award.
Dr. Pronovost has been chosen by the editors of Time Magazine as one of their 100 most influential people for 2008. His work in innovating ways to improve patient safety and care are changing the way, not just the US, how the world thinks about medical care.
Dr. Pronovost is currently leading several large national and international safety projects. To learn more about his work visit the Quality and Safety Research Group website: http://www.safetyresearch.jhu.edu/.
Renee Demski, MSW, MBA, Senior Director
Renee Demski currently serves as the Senior Director of Johns Hopkins Medicine's Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care as well as the Senior Director of Quality Improvement and Operations Integration for the Johns Hopkins Health System. In these roles, she is working on the effective integration of services across the health care continuum for The Johns Hopkins Health System with the goal of maximizing organizational improvement, efficiencies and the value of clinical services. Specifically, amongst other projects, Ms. Demski led the strategic design and implementation of the Johns Hopkins Medicine Revenue Recovery Initiative which applied Lean Sigma methodology to the front-end registration process. This initiative continues to be successful in driving outcomes with over $50 million return over a 5-year period.
Ms. Demski has been a Johns Hopkins employee for 20 years. She has an MSW from the University of Maryland School of Social Work and an MBA from the Johns Hopkins University Business of Medicine Program.
Hanan Aboumatar, MD, MPH, Associate for Education and Research
As a physician who trained and practiced in Family Medicine and General Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Dr. Aboumatar uses her background and experience to improve patient safety and healthcare quality via system-based interventions, health communications interventions, multidisciplinary education and training of health professionals, as well as by “hardwiring” behaviors into practice. Dr. Aboumatar is designing innovative, longitudinal patient safety curriculum for Johns Hopkins University’s School of Medicine and School of Nursing; as well as Teamwork and Communication training for multidisciplinary care teams throughout the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Dr. Aboumatar’s innovations in health professions education include multidisciplinary teaching, a variety of learning formats including online learning, incorporating patient safety throughout the formal curriculum, using traditional hospital structures in non-traditional ways (e.g., M&M rounds), and applying new communication behaviors and norms into clinical practice.
Dr. Aboumatar holds her MD from the American University of Beirut, and both her MPH and Health Finance and Management Certificate from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She received her postgraduate training in Family Medicine at Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals of Cleveland, in Cleveland, OH and her General Preventive Medicine and Public Health training at Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, MD.
David R. Baker, Dr. PH, MBA, Manager, Operations, Metrics, and Patient Flow
David Baker has 15 years of experience in domestic and international project management, strategy, quality improvement and change management. Mr. Baker has been with the Center for Innovation since 2003. At the Center, Mr. Baker oversees Center operations and works with Johns Hopkins Hospital units to develop, facilitate, measure, and replicate quality improvement efforts. He has helped develop, implement and facilitate ongoing use of hospital-wide quality and safety measurement tools. Through both his academic and professional experience, he has developed expertise in analyzing complex systems problems and facilitating patient flow improvement. Mr. Baker is trained as a Black Belt in Six Sigma quality improvement methodology and is a fluent speaker of Russian.
Mr. Baker has a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Yale University School of Management and a Doctor in Public Health in Health Policy and Management from The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Mark J. Bittle, Dr. PH, MBA, Senior Director for Ambulatory Operations and Practice Management, and Director of Ambulatory Quality and Patient Safety
Mark Bittle has 20 years of health care management experience. His experience spans the spectrum of health care settings with the majority of his experience is in the large health system ambulatory services and academic and community physician group practices. He has held a variety of mid-level management and senior level executive positions, including President and COO of large physician community-based physician group practices. His background also includes experience in managed care and management of health care under global risk contracts. Dr. Bittle has led numerous performance improvement teams and is especially interested in patient identification, care delivery model innovation, and creating sustainable improvement. To that end, Dr. Bittle recently completed a book chapter for The Joint Commission.
Dr. Bittle has a BS in Emergency Health Services, a MBA, and holds the professional designation of Certified Healthcare Executive (CHE) through the American College of Health Care Executives. He has a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) in Health Policy and Management from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. His area of focus is on Organization and Leadership, with emphasis on leading complex organizations through system-level change. His experience has allowed him to serve on a number of professional association boards and committees, including a three year term on the Governing Council of the American Public Health Association. Dr. Bittle was recently appointed to the Steering Committee of the Ambulatory Care Council for the University Healthcare Consortium (UHC). Dr. Bittle also serves on the Executive Board of the Baltimore Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America. In addition, Dr. Bittle is on the faculty in the Bloomberg School of Public Health and Carey Business School at the Johns Hopkins University where he teaches Management and Organizational Behavior and Health Services Administration.
Howard Carolan, Administrative Resident
Eston Harden, BS, Quality and Innovation Data Specialist
Richard “Rich” Hill, BS, Certified Six Sigma Green Belt, Quality and Innovation Coach
Rich Hill has 15 years of finance and continuous improvement experience working in the aerospace industry. He received extensive training in the areas of lean processes, Six Sigma, team dynamics, and facilitation, and has led and participated in numerous cross-functional process improvement teams over the years. Mr. Hill has a BS degree in Business Administration/Management from Bryant College in Smithfield, Rhode Island.
Deborah Baugher Hobson, BSN
Deborah Hobson is the Quality Improvement Chairperson and a Staff Nurse in the Johns Hopkins Hospital’s Surgical Intensive Care Unit. Ms. Hobson has been with Hopkins since 1980. In addition, she is a Coach for the Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care. In this role she is co-leader of several collaboratives including: internal ICU, DVT, medication reconciliation, and surgical site infection. She also works with the Johns Hopkins Quality and Patient Safety Research Group conducting research on quality and safety in critical care, palliative care, eliminating blood stream infections, eliminating surgical site infections, and sepsis care. Ms. Hobson earned her BS (honors) in Nursing from the University of Maryland.
Robert Hody, MS, Certified Master Black Belt, Lean Kaizen Consultant
Robert Hody trains and mentors both Six Sigma and Lean projects across the institution and his focus areas are Lean Kaizen events and Design-for-Lean. Beginning in 1995, as one of GE’s first wave of Master Black Belts, he trained and led projects in Engineering, Operations, Finance, and IT. Mr. Hody has also mentored projects in Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Sales as a Master Black Belt and Six Sigma Director with Black & Decker. His involvement with Lean began in 1999, leading to roles as Production Manager and Lean Site Leader in GE Healthcare where he directed internal Kaizen Action Work Outs, Design-for-Lean and plant-wide Shingijutsu events. Mr. Hody earned a BSEE from the University of Virginia, and Masters degrees in both Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Virginia Tech.
Patty Langan-Raines, Administrative Coordinator, Center Operations
Jennifer Lofthus, MHSA, Quality & Innovation Project Administrator
As a Quality & Innovation Project Administrator for Johns Hopkins Medicine, Ms. Lofthus guides project teams in efforts to improve patient safety and efficiency. She is a Lean Sigma Green Belt and has led or mentored Lean Sigma projects in the pediatric and outpatient pharmacies, cardiology, psychiatry, perioperative services, and radiology. Prior to joining Hopkins Ms. Lofthus worked for the Delmarva Foundation as a Knowledge Transfer Manager to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Her focus was on leading projects that translate research into practice. In particular she managed projects on high reliability organizations, chronic disease, and healthcare disparities. Ms. Lofthus holds a B.A. in International Studies from The Johns Hopkins University and a Master of Health Services Administration from the University of Michigan School of Public Health.
Lori Paine, RN, MS, Director of Patient Safety
Lori Paine leads the strategic planning process for patient safety at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Ms. Paine facilitates the Hopkins Patient Safety Committee activities, manages the hospital’s event reporting system (PSN) and coordinates the Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program (Executive rounds). Ms. Paine has been with Hopkins since 1988 where she has held various roles in labor and delivery nursing, management, hospital administration, product line development, and work process redesign. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from Nazareth College and a Master’s degree in Applied Behavioral Science and Change Management from the Johns Hopkins University.
Stephanie Peditto, MHS, Director of Innovation
Stephanie Peditto is charged with developing strategies for the Center. Ms. Peditto’s role includes identification of opportunities for innovation, improvement, and external collaborations on quality and safety topics. In addition, she develops curriculum in leadership and organizational behavior as it relates to quality and safety. She has worked in clinical quality and patient safety collaborations in the U.S., Latin America, Europe and Middle East. In addition, Ms. Peditto is a Faculty Associate for the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. Ms. Peditto’s previous role was as Director of Inpatient Services for the Johns Hopkins Hospital.
Ms. Peditto has worked with the National Quality Forum (and the former National Committee for Quality Health Care) to provide consultative, analytical, and writing services in support of its Executive Institute and National Quality Healthcare Award. In that role, Stephanie has been the project lead on the CEO Survival Guides to Performance Measurement, Pay for Performance, Electronic Health Records, and Patient Safety. She has a MHS from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and her BS from Juniata College.
Irma Purisch, MBA, Director, Business Development
Irma Purisch has more than 20 years of experience in marketing, strategic planning, international contract negotiation, venture capital investment, financial analysis and human resources. Ms. Purisch has been with Hopkins since 2005, her first role was in Johns Hopkins Medicine International managing relationships with overseas hospitals. In her current role, she develops proposals and manages external training and consulting projects for Johns Hopkins Medicine’s Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care. Prior to joining Hopkins, Ms. Purisch worked managing small- and medium-business global marketing for Hewlett-Packard Company. She also worked for the World Bank Group and developed new overseas offices for United Parcel Service and an information technology integrator company. Ms. Purisch holds a master’s in business administration in international marketing and a bachelor’s of business administration (The George Washington University). She speaks native Portuguese and English, fluent Spanish and some French.
Eldonia Ross, Administrative Coordinator, Lean Sigma
Steven Ragsdale, Quality and Innovation Coach
Steven Ragsdale has more 18 years of healthcare experience with proven results in aligning strategy with business goals, enhancing business processes and implementing solution oriented strategies. His experience is a result of managing central operations, implementing key strategies and developing quality healthcare initiatives at both the Johns Hopkins Medical Institution and Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.
Steven’s knowledge base is primarily in operations and project management, IT development, process engineering, strategic planning, and policy analysis as it relates to both an integrated healthcare delivery system and the Federal Employee Health Benefit Plan. Steven has over 20 years experience and training in relationship/customer management, including six years monitoring legislative and regulatory affairs on the federal level.
Steven is also currently a member of the Johns Hopkins Diversity Leadership Council where he focuses attention on issues of Disparities in Medicine.
I-Fong Sun, SM, Quality and Innovation Coach
I-Fong Sun’s primary role is to guide clinical teams throughout the hospital to improve patient safety and quality of patient care, and to increase efficiency by reducing waste and introducing disruptive innovation. Prior to joining Johns Hopkins, Ms. Sun was an Implementation Specialist with American Management Systems' Healthcare Practice where she implemented computer-driven solutions to improve services and increase efficiency. Ms. Sun earned an MS in Health Policy and Management from the Harvard School of Public Health and a BA in Economics and Healthcare from Brown University. She is currently pursuing a Dr.PH in Health Management and Leadership from The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Laura Winner, RN, MBA, Manager, Lean Sigma Deployment Manager
Laura Winner leads the Center’s lean sigma both in the training/certification program and providing lean sigma consulting services. Ms. Winner earned her MBA in the Business of Medicine program at the Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies. She completed Six Sigma Black Belt training at Motorola University. Prior to her work for the Center for Innovation in Quality Patient Care she worked as a clinical nurse at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in the departments of emergency and cardiology.
