The Speakers

Mr. Perman has served as the Executive Director of the Maryland Primary Care Program Management Office since September 2021. He previously served as the Program Director. On behalf of the Maryland Department of Health, Mr. Perman was a member of a small team that co-designed the innovative advanced primary care program with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services from 2016 to 2017. He now oversees Maryland’s $200 million annual partnership with CMS, Medicare’s largest state based advanced primary care program in the Nation. Focused on integrating public health and primary care, Mr. Perman has been a key advisor to the Maryland Department of Health on health transformation and population health initiatives since 2015. Mr. Perman previously served as the Director of Health Systems Transformation within the Department’s Office of Population Health Improvement. Prior to working for the State, Mr. Perman served as a consultant with Health Management Associates (HMA). Mr. Perman conducted health policy analyses and provided consulting services to public- and private-sector clients focused on publicly financed health care. Mr. Perman has also presented at a variety of state and national meetings as well as authored several peer-reviewed publications. His abstract, “Innovative Payment Mechanisms in Maryland Hospitals" was selected as the 2014 Best of Academy Health Research Meeting. Mr. Perman leverages expertise in the areas of public policy analysis, consumer engagement, econometrics and performance measurement through a variety of engagements with federal agencies, universities and policy institutes. Mr. Perman has also served on a variety of boards and workgroups including the Herschel S. Horowitz Center for Health Literacy (University of Maryland) Advisory Board and the Maryland Primary Care Investment Workgroup.

Raghavi serves as the Quality and Learning Manager at the MDPCP Management Office, where she manages the Quality Improvement, Learning, and Chronic Disease work for the team. She spearheads quality improvement initiatives, develops content for and manages the MDPCP Learning System, and uses data to create strategies to support the program. She has diligently worked with the MDPCP Learning Team and JIA Staffing to deliver this year's Staff Training Academy. Raghavi graduated from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health with a Master of Public Health and a certificate in Quality, Patient Safety, and Outcomes Research.

Rebecca S. Etz, Ph.D., is a Professor of Family Medicine and Population Health at Virginia Commonwealth University, and Co-Director of the Larry A. Green Center - Advancing Primary Health Care for the Public Good. Dr. Etz has deep expertise in qualitative research methods and design, quality and accountability, primary care measures, practice transformation, and engaging stakeholders. Her career has been dedicated to learning the heart and soul of primary care through two main lines of inquiry: 1) bridging the chasm between the business of medicine and the lived experience of the human condition with research that demonstrates the integration of medicine with in the fullness and dignity of humanity, and 2) exposing the ways in which current trends in health care transformation and stakeholder engagement fall short of their desired goal to bring the worlds of medicine, public health, and communities together in collaboration for improved population health. As a member of the VCU Department of Family Medicine and Population Health, and previous co-director of the ACORN PBRN, Dr. Etz has been the Principal Investigator of several federal and foundation grants, contracts and pilots, all directed towards making the pursuit of health a humane experience. Recent research activities have included studies in primary care measures, behavioral health, simulation modeling, care team models, and adaptive use of health technologies. Dr. Etz was a member of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine consensus study, “Implementing High Quality Primary Care”, and currently leads the Vitality Signs project, creating a new mental, behavioral, and social health patient-reported survey funded by the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services.

Lisa is currently a Primary Care Provider and COO of Urgent Wellness, LLC, a place-based primary care clinic and care management organization in the District of Columbia.  She completed both her Family Nurse Practitioner and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner degrees from George Washington University.  Her natural curiosity and care for people, the body, and the mind drew her to nursing in 2002.  Her passion for social justice and quality healthcare for all led her to Urgent Wellness in 2022. She spends her spare time enjoying the four generations of her family, cooking with her children, and traveling with her husband.

Dr. Ward is an expert in advancing anti-racism efforts within health professions education and in designing curricula to enable students and faculty to competently promote health and racial equity in practice. Her research focuses on diversity, equity, inclusion, justice and antiracism educational interventions as well as stakeholder-engaged community-focused studies on HIV, Black women's health, and youth identity. As a member of the DC Center for AIDS Research (DC CFAR), she is the principal investigator on Two in One: HIV and COVID Screening & Testing Model that allows her to lead a national research-based educational intervention for primary care practitioners to routinize screenings for HIV, PrEP/PEP, and the COVID vaccine. This research will lead to a set of policy recommendations for overall practice-based changes for all patients and culturally responsive messaging for racial, ethnic, sexual and gender minoritized patients. She is also skilled in the application of participatory action research methods. When she is not teaching or serving on-campus as an Assistant Professor and Director of Equity in the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences, she is engaged in DC in a range of capacities. For instance, she is on the board of trustees for the Washington School for Girls and the DC Mayor, Muriel Bowser, appointed her to fill an advisory board seat on the Mayor's Commission on Health Equity.  

When asked, she describes herself as a community educator, curriculum developer, and youth builder. She has strong commitments to service-learning, equity, community legacy, youth development, and honoring youth voice. Maranda earned the 2024 Dorothy Nyswander Health Equity award by the Society for Public Health Education, the 2023 GW Black Alumni Impact award, the 2022 Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Community Engagement Award by Transform Mid-Atlantic, the 2020-2021 GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences Diversity and Inclusion Award as well as the 2021 Stigma Warrior Award during the 12th Annual International Conference on Stigma at Howard University for going above and beyond in her field to fight discrimination among historically marginalized populations. She has been consulted by Ebony.com, Rolling Out Magazine, DCist, the Washington Post for her research on HIV disparities and featured on a live segment of Good Morning Washington, NPR’s Morning Edition and the KevinMD podcast for her health equity expertise. 

Maranda earned her Doctorate in Education from GW, her Master's in Public Health from Tulane University, and her Bachelor's degrees in Sociology and Anthropology from Spelman College. She enjoys learning from youth, traveling, and brunch.

For more information, visit www.marandaward.com

Magaly Rodriguez de Bittner, PharmD, FNAP, FAPhA is the Gyi Endowed Professor in Pharmapreneurship, Associate Dean for Clinical Services and Practice Transformation and Executive Director of the Center for Innovative Pharmacy Solutions at University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. Past Fellow in Population Health at the University of Maryland Health System working with interprofessional value based integrated networks. She served in the American Pharmacists Association Board of Trustees from 2018-2023 and is past President of the Maryland Pharmacists Association and the American Pharmacists Foundation. She served on the ACPE International Commission from 2013-2019 (Chair 2017), Chair of the Pharmacy Academy of the National Academy of Practice and Community Pharmacy Residency Director and Preceptor.

She has implemented a variety of innovative advanced pharmacy programs including the Maryland P3 Program, the e-Heath Center at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, the Prince George’s Hospital Interprofessional Care Transition Clinic, and pharmacy services within Primary Care and Integrated Primary Care Network (QCN) in value-based models and the Maryland Primary Care Program a CMMI Innovation model.  She practiced at the Baltimore VA Medical Center as an ambulatory care provider for many years.

Some of her honors and awards include  The Maryland Daily Record Maryland 100 Women in 2024, APhA Next 10 Women In Pharmac in 2022, the 2019 NAP Creativity in Practice and Education Award, 2015 APhA Foundation Individual Pinnacle Award, 2014 Maryland Innovator of the Year, 2013 UMB Entrepreneur of the Year, 2013 APhA Daniel B. Smith award, 2007 APhA Community Pharmacy Residency Excellence in Precepting Award and 2005 Bowl of Hygeia. She has many national and international publications and presentations.  

Natasha C. Miller - The Medical Mompreneur®, MSHIM, RHIA, CPC, CPB, CRC, CPC-I, is a Health Information Management Consultant, Professor, Author, and Speaker.

She has over 24 years of combined experience as a healthcare professional in revenue cycle, medical coding, auditing, training, project management, clinical provider education, and more. Natasha has helped healthcare organizations increase their revenue through findings from audits of missed opportunities and has traveled all over the Pacific Coast training providers on proper reimbursement. She is an international speaker presenting webinars and workshops to healthcare professionals and providers.

Natasha C. Miller received her Master of Science in Health Information Management (MSHIM) from The College of St. Scholastica in 2016.  She received her Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Management from Walden University in 2012. Natasha Miller received her Associate of Science degree in Social Sciences from Sacramento City College in 2007.

Natasha holds a Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA) through AHIMA. She is certified through the AAPC with her Certified Professional Coder certification (CPC), Certified Professional Biller (CPB), Certified Risk Adjustment Coder (CRC), Certified Professional Coder – Instructor (CPC-I), and is AAPC Certified ICD-10-CM Trainer.

As CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield’s Health Equity Enterprise Manager, Jasmine is responsible for being the resident good troublemaker, leading all department health equity initiatives, and managing the CareFirst relationship with Children’s National Hospital. With a passion for health equity and over ten years’ experience, Jasmine has paved her way as an advocate for historically excluded, pediatric, and adolescent communities. Since 2020, she has brought thought provoking educational seminars to thousands building knowledge on the historical impacts of slavery, institutional discrimination, and medical mistreatment based on race. Jasmine earned a bachelor’s degree in Human Biology and Africana Studies from Brown University, a Master of Public Health in Public Health Informatics with a Health Equity Focus from the University of Minnesota, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Public Health concentrated in Health Equity and Social Justice at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health as an Adolescent Health Bloomberg Fellow.

Meagan Dunham is a licensed master social worker (LMSW) and public health enthusiast. She has dedicated interests in data analysis and mental health, allowing her to contribute to multiple trauma-informed projects that focus on improving overall care, healing, and treatment coordination for unhoused families, women with substance use disorders, and people living with HIV. In addition to her work to end the HIV epidemic, Meagan manages a federal demonstration project designed to reduce suicidality and improve the mental health outcomes of Black youth in New Orleans through policy. Meagan enjoys working in various levels of care, including community-level prevention, treatment, linkage to care, and surveillance of quality measures. She has also studied global health on an international landscape in Southern Europe. She explored health disparities and health communication in Italy, Greece, and Budapest. Meagan earned her Bachelor of Arts in Public Health and Sociology from the College of Charleston and her Master’s in Social Work from the Catholic University of America, where she focused on clinical social work practice. Meagan is also a 2023 U.S. Fellow in Global Health Corps, a fellowship designed to support global health leaders committed to health equity and justice. Meagan enjoys serving at the intersection of public health and social work to provide equitable services to the New Orleans community and beyond.

Kelsey is a Learning Intern at the MDPCP Management Office and has been with the team since March 2023. She assists the learning team with coordinating learning activities, creating learning resources, and researching potential learning opportunities. Kelsey recently graduated from Boston University with a Master of Public Health and is passionate about increasing access to quality healthcare for under-resourced populations. She has previous experience working in rural health access and primary care equity programs.

Shiva is currently the Learning Coordinator at the MDPCP Management Office, working closely with the team to develop learning initiatives in the program and maintain the MDPCP Learning System. He graduated from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health with a concentration in Health Leadership and Management. Shiva has a background in training and education projects, is committed to optimizing health systems, and is passionate about improving access to vulnerable populations.