2012 VCPI Connections – Speaker Bios (in alphabetical order) Susan Bukunt RN, MPA, CPHQ, Sr. Director Clinical Quality & Patient Safety, El Camino Hospital In her current role with El Camino Hospital, Ms. Bukunt is responsible for providing high-level direction of key performance improvement activities across 2 campus organizations. She provides leadership for the hospital-wide quality program, risk management initiatives, infection control program and Case Management, and is responsible for all regulatory compliance (Joint Commission, CMS and Title 22) and licensing issues. Ms. Bukunt is also the Patient Safety Officer and a key participant in the hospital’s implementation of EMR and other information system projects and Lean Performance Improvement. She has an M.P.A. in Health Services Administration from Saint Mary's College, Moraga, Ca. and a B.A. in Health Services Administration from Mercy Hospital School of Nursing, Baltimore Md. She is a Nursing Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality. David Chess, MD, Founder and Chief Medical Officer, eSNF, LLC David Chess is a Geriatrician, Internist, and Entrepreneur with 30 years of experience striving to improve care for patients. David has focused his career on understanding the necessary elements required to meaningfully connect with people and move them to a better level of health with a specific interest in system design. Combining a deep respect for people with an understanding of the limitations of our current health care system, David has created novel health care companies, providing alternative, patient-friendly, and value-creating approaches to care. David’s career includes over 25 years of direct patient care, building large integrated medical groups, starting both private and public health care companies, designing and implementing one of the largest Medical Home programs in the country, working with a team to create “Clinically Home,” a scalable hospital-at-home company, and creating medical support systems in nursing facilities in six states. David received his Medical Degree from Creighton University School of Medicine, performed his Internal Medicine Internship and Residency at Albert Einstein School of Medicine, and was Chief Resident in Internal Medicine at Bridgeport Hospital. He is an Alpha Omega Alpha recipient, among numerous other academic achievements, and an Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at Yale University School of Medicine. David lives in Stratford, Connecticut with his wife Barbara and their 5 children. Loren Claypool, Managing Director, VCPI, and CIO, Extendicare Loren Claypool is among the post-acute care industry’s leading experts for driving technology strategy to improve financial and operating performance. Claypool has been with VCPI since 2003 and offers executive-level experience in insurance, healthcare, technology and retail. Prior to VCPI, he co-founded AmVista Group, a specialty workers compensation insurance company and was COO of American Workers Assurance. Claypool also served as CIO and Sr. Vice President of eBusiness at USI Insurance Services; Global eBusiness Practice Leader at Royal and Sun Alliance and CIO of the RSA/USA Commercial Division; SVP Business Processes and CIO at EBI Companies; COO for Citynet Corporation; and Vice President of Information Services for Acordia National. Claypool also enjoys composing and performing music. - 1 - Mary A. Evans, Chief Operating Officer, Covenant Care Mary Evans has been the Chief Operating Officer of Covenant Care for 12 years. Covenant Care owns and operates 56 facilities providing skilled nursing and therapy services in 7 states. Mary has twenty-five years experience in healthcare, including long-term care, acute, regulatory and managed care. Prior to joining Covenant Care in 1999 Mary served as the Senior Vice President of Operations for the largest managed care medical group in California. While with them she implemented their full risk contracts for 350,000 lives and managed all physician practice relation care management and billing. She previously served in executive positions overseeing clinical operations for large national long-term care companies. Evans earned an Associate of Science degree from Solano College, a Bachelors of Science in Nursing and her Masters in Health Care Administration at Sacramento State University. She was an adjunct professor at George Mason University and served 21 years in the U.S. Air Force. R. Brent Hardaway, MS, Vice President, Premier Consulting Solutions (PCS) Mr. Hardaway has 25 years of experience in various facets of health care operations, planning and strategy development. He is currently responsible for PCS Strategy and Transformation Practice. Since joining Premier Consulting Solutions (previously Phase 2 Consulting until June 2009) in 1994, he has led projects ranging from accountable care delivery system development to strategic planning to financial turnarounds, to hospital/physician alignment. From 2004 thru 2006 he served as COO of Phase 2, a wholly-owned subsidiary of RehabCare, and was responsible for the operations and strategic direction of the 50 person firm, including transitioning the firm from a partnership to a subsidiary of a publicly traded corporation. Prior to joining Phase 2, he was Vice President of Planning for the Texas Hospital Association. His responsibilities included the development and implementation of strategic/marketing plans and market research for the organization. Before THA, he held a number of positions with Kaiser Permanente, including Director of Planning of its Texas Region. Mr. Hardaway received his M.S. from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas and his Bachelor’s degree from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas. He is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, the Healthcare Financial Management Association and the Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development. He serves on the Board of Trustees of Westlake United Methodist Church and Trinity University Health Care Administration Alumni Association’s Board. Bob Hillis, CEO & Founder, Direct Supply Inc. Bob is the founder of Direct Supply, one of the nation’s largest providers to healthcare networks. An engineer turned marketer, he is a visionary who built the nation’s first true “virtual distributor” in 1985. Bob is also the Founder and Chairman of the Alliance Partners, a group of healthcare suppliers who support The Alliance for Quality Home Nursing Care. He also chairs the Strategic Policy Group in Washington D.C., composed of the Alliance, AHCA and LeadingAge. Bob has been very active on the political scene representing the Senior Living profession in Washington with the White House, HHS, CMS, Congress and public policy groups throughout the nation. The hallmark of Bob’s management style has been not to manage. His companies have run with no organization charts, almost no hierarchy, ownership for every employee and an “open book” style of management since the first company was formed over 25 years ago. Well-known throughout the country as a “rebel leader,” Bob can’t stand to do it the regular way. Bob grew up in Indiana, graduated from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in 1969 with a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and then earned an MBA from Indiana University in Bloomington. He received an honorary Doctorate in Engineering from the Milwaukee School of Engineering in 2007. - 2 - Gerald Louis "Jerry" Kramer, retired Green Bay Packer, Author and Motivational Speaker For 11 seasons with Green Bay, Jerry Kramer was the lead destructive force behind Coach Vince Lombardi’s signature and unstoppable “Packers Sweep.” During his career, Kramer underwent 22 surgeries in 11 seasons, but despite these setbacks, he led the offensive battle and the Packers to win five NFL titles and the first two Super Bowls. Jerry also served as the team’s placekicker from 1962-1963 (being the team’s leading scorer with 91 points in 1963) and part of 1968. Since retiring from the Packers, Jerry has not been idle. He has written numerous books, and when he’s not at home in Idaho, he travels the country telling his story and that of the Green Bay Packers and Coach Vince Lombardi. Treating people with class and dignity has always been a part of Jerry. In 2007 he founded the Gridiron Greats, an organization that focuses on the humanitarian side of post-football related issues, including the coordination of social services for retired players who are in need due to a variety of reasons including inadequate disability and/or pensions. “…the Packers were then, as now, the only small-city team in the National Football League, in part because they so emphatically dominated the league, in part because they were an uncommonly appealing group of men, and in large part because they were coached by Vince Lombardi.” Instant Replay, Foreword by Jonathan Yardley. Les Levinson, Partner, Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP Les serves as Chair of Edwards Wildman Palmer’s Healthcare Practice Group. During his more than 30 years representing public and private companies, Les has completed more than 300 M&A and financing transactions. While he represents a wide range of companies in various industries, Les concentrates his practice on transactions for clients within the healthcare and communications industries. He provides representation on acquisitions and dispositions, public and private equity and debt offerings, securities compliance matters, restructurings and reorganizations as well as counseling on many other types of business