 Desmond Bell, DPM, CWS A co-founder and executive director of the Save A Leg, Save A Life Foundation, Bell is a board-certified wound specialist (American Board of Wound Management) and a fellow of the American College of Certified Wound Specialists. He presently serves on the board of directors of the American Academy of Wound Management and is the founder of the Limb Salvage Institute and Wound Care on Wheels LLC, a service that provides wound care to patients in hospital and long-term care settings. He serves on the board of directors for the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care and the Barbara Bates-Jensen Wound Reach Foundation, is on the communications committee for the Jacksonville (FL) Chapter of the American Diabetes Association, and is on the conference planning committee for the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care. Bell is also a member of the Wound Healing Society and the Vascular Disease Foundation/P.A.D. Coalition. A graduate of Tulane University and Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine, Bell served his residency training programs at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Philadelphia and Delaware Valley Medical Center in Langhorne, PA. While at the VA, he received a commendation in part for his role in wound care. He served as chief podiatric surgical resident and was actively involved in the wound care center at Delaware Valley. A frequent lecturer and author on the subject of wound care, peripheral arterial disease, and diabetes, Bell is also a regular contributor to Today's Wound Clinic’s sister publication Podiatry Today. One who’s worked in private practice in Jacksonville, FL, since 1997, Bell is also on staff at Memorial Hospital of Jacksonville, St. Luke’s Hospital, St. Vincent’s HealthCare, and Specialty Hospital of Jacksonville, where he served on the medical executive committee, is active in the wound management program, and earned the First Humanitarian Award in 2009. A member of the speaker's bureau for Organogenesis Inc. and Cordis Corp., Bell also serves as a consultant with ev3, Advanced BioHealing, Cook Medical, and Healiance. |
 Stephen G. Bergquist, MD, CWSP Dr. Bergquist is the medical director of the wound center at Jackson Madison County General Hospital, Jackson, TN, and has been there for the last 10 years. He graduated high school in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He earned his bachelor of arts in theology from Twin Cities University, West Monroe, LA. He served as a U.S. Army officer helicopter pilot from 1974-78. He graduated from the American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine with his doctor of medicine degree. His internal medicine residency took place at the University of Alabama. He has practiced medicine for more than 30 years and has served as an adjunct professor at Bethel University and the University of Tennessee. His expertise has led to a variety of consultant and guest-speaking positions with companies such as Advanced BioHealing, Westport, CT; Shire, Lexington, MA; Hill-Rom, Batesville, IN; MiMedx, Marietta, GA; ManukaMed, Franklin, TN; and Tactile medical, Minneapolis, MN. A member of the editorial advisory board for TWC’s sister publication WOUNDS, for which he also serves as the section editor for biological wound matrices and as the multimedia editor, Bergquist also serves as the host of TWC’s regularly occurring podcast, which he helped launch last year. |
 Melodie Blakely, DPT, CWS Blakely, a doctor of physical therapy who has been practicing wound care since 1996, has been board certified as a wound specialist since 1999 and has established multiple interdisciplinary wound care and prevention programs in various care settings. In 2005, she helped establish an inpatient and outpatient wound program at Osceola Regional Medical Center, Kissimmee, FL, and was key in developing the outpatient wound center to one of the busiest in central Florida. She accepted a position with Mölnlycke® Health Care, Norcross, GA, in 2015 as a regional clinical specialist who supports negative pressure wound therapy in acute and postacute settings. Throughout her career, Blakely has consulted and spoken on the topic of wound care, presented numerous posters, and has been published in various industry-related publications, including TWC. She is also a member of the review board with The Journal of The American College of Certified Wound Specialists, and she currently holds a position on the executive committee of the American Board of Wound Management Foundation. She has also served as a contributing editor for each of the home-study preparation guides for the certified wound specialist, certified wound care specialist physician, and certified wound care associate credentials. |
 Donna J. Cartwright, MPA, RHIA, CCS, RAC, FAHIMA The senior director of strategic reimbursement services with Integra LifeSciences Corp., Plainsboro, NJ, Cartwright holds a bachelor of science degree in health records administration form York College of Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in public administration with a health services administration concentration from Kean College of New Jersey. A registered health information administrator and certified coding specialist with the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), she is certified as an ICD-10 trainer by AHIMA and has been designated a fellow of the American Health Information Management Association. In addition, she obtained her certification in regulatory affairs in 2001. Prior to her career at Integra, she held health Information management roles, including director of health information management, director positions for two healthcare consulting firms, and many coding management positions. She was a founding member of AHIMA’s Society for Clinical Coding and has been a past president and distinguished member of New Jersey’s Health Information Management Association. An active member of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care as well as the American Burn Association, she brings three decades of healthcare coding, reimbursement, and management experience to the industry. She has given numerous presentations on coding and reimbursement issues over the years. |
 Moira Skystus, MHA, RRT, CHT The vice president of operations with HyperbaRXs LLC, Atlanta, GA, Hayes has been working exclusively within the wound care and hyperbaric industry since 1992. She held a series of executive positions with outsourced wound care and hyperbaric management companies prior to starting her own consulting firm in 2007. She joined the HyperbaRXs team in July 2009 and leads the consulting service line for the company. She holds a baccalaureate degree in biology from Northeastern University and a master of health system administration from the University of Houston. A registered respiratory therapist and a certified hyperbaric technologist, she can be reached for questions or consultation at mhayes@hyperbarxs.com or 713-301-5707. |
 Cathy Thomas Hess, BSN, RN, CWOCN Hess, vice president and chief clinical officer of Net Health Systems Inc., Pittsburgh, PA, has gained expertise in various acute care, long-term care, subacute care facilities, home-health agencies, and outpatient wound care department settings. With more than 25 years of experience in wound care, she's been engaged to share her command of knowledge in the industry with manufacturers (including biotechnology firms), product suppliers, insurers, law firms, and governmental agencies. She is the author of The Clinical Wound Manager™ Manual Series and Clinical Guide to Skin and Wound Care – Seventh Edition (also translated into Italian and Portuguese) and is creator of the Wound Care Strategies (WCS) Documentation System and TPS EMR. A member of the editorial advisory board for Advances in Skin and Wound Care (authoring the monthly "Practice Points" column), Hess is also an expert witness for the US Office of the Inspector General as well as past board member and marketing chair for the Wound, Continence, and Ostomy Certification Board. One who’s appeared in several educational videos, she’s also authored more than 100 journal articles and is a sought after national and international speaker. In 2002, she was cited as one of the “Best 50 Women in Business” by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. Prior to joining Net Health, Hess founded and served as president of Wound Care Strategies, a wound care solutions and services company. She’s a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Nursing and the Harrisburg Hospital School of Enterostomal Therapy. |
 Harriet Jones, MD, BSN, FAPWCA A 1998 graduate of the University of Mississippi (MS) School of Medicine, Jones completed an internal medicine residency and infectious diseases fellowship at the University of MS Hospitals and Clinics. Prior to becoming a physician, she worked as a registered nurse (1985, BSN; University of Southern Mississippi), working primarily in general and orthopedic surgeries as well as infusion therapies. After completion of her medical training, she joined the infectious diseases division at the medical center as an assistant professor and began the outpatient antimicrobial service. During this time, her clinical practice was devoted to the management and treatment of postoperative infections and chronic wounds. In 2005, with the opening of the Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine Center at River Oaks in Flowood, MS, she joined the clinic as medical director and full-time sole physician. In 2008, she founded the wound management group and continued her collaboration as a physician with other licensed healthcare providers. In August 2010, her group became affiliated with Mississippi Baptist Medical Center’s wound clinic, where Jones continued clinical practice while becoming more involved in public speaking to various advance provider groups in MS that emphasized the appropriate use of systemic antimicrobial agents. In April 2011, she returned to the University of MS Medical Center as an associate professor of medicine and has continued her full-time clinical practice in wound management. She’s also expanding her academic involvement with other academic programs at the university. Board certified in internal medicine, she received physician certification as a physician wound specialist in September 2010, and holds current memberships in the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care, American College of Physicians, State Medical Association of MS, and American Professional Wound Care Association. She frequently speaks at local, regional, and national meetings on the principles of wound management and the appropriate use of systemic antimicrobial agents when treating infections in acute and chronic wounds. She has also authored and co-authored several published articles. |
 Eric J. Lullove, DPM, CWS, FACCWS Dr. Lullove is in private practice in Boca Raton, FL, where he also serves as staff physician for West Boca Medical Center Wound Center. His focus and special emphasis is on wound healing and limb preservation with clinical interests in diabetic foot ulcers, venous leg ulcers and venous insufficiency, chronic wound healing, and peripheral arterial disease/critical limb ischemia. He has specific experience in reconstructive lower extremity surgery, clinical studies and research, collagen replacement wound therapy, and acellular/cellular dermal skin replacement tissues therapies. He also serves as adjunct clinical faculty at Northwest Medical Center and has received certifications from the American Board of Wound Management and the American Professional Wound Care Association with added qualification in physician wound management. After receiving his degree in psychology from Wayne State University, Lullove earned his doctor of podiatric medicine degree from the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine in 2002. Dr. Lullove is Editor of the podiatry column for the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care’s newsletter and serves on the AAWC’s regulatory affairs committee, is chairperson of the “Educating the Generalist” task force, and serves as AAWC liaison to the Alliance for Wound Care’s stakeholders. Lullove has also authored and co-authored articles regarding acellular dermal tissues, venous compression, wound healing, and practice management. He has lectured nationally and internationally on wound management topics and is active with Health Volunteers Overseas as well as Project Medishare in Haiti. |
 Rafael Mazuz, MBA Mazuz is managing director of Diligence Wound Care Global LLC, a leading advisory firm that empowers clients to become keener wound care executives, specialists, startups, and investors. From the wound clinic and operating room to the hospital administration and corporate boardroom, Mazuz has experienced the business of wound care from every perspective. Among other things, he has launched and directed award-winning wound clinics and hospital departments for the world’s largest provider of wound care services. One of the centers he directed became a company-wide mentor site for physicians, clinicians, and administrators. He has also worked for a leading venture capital firm, including evaluation of wound care investments. His clients include nearly half of the top wound care product firms, and he is regularly engaged by healthcare product and services investors and startups for discovery, due diligence, and other advisory. A well-travelled professional, Mazuz has lived, worked, and studied across five continents. He speaks four languages, holds an MBA from the Coller School of Management (formerly the Recanati School of Business Administration) at Tel Aviv University in Israel, with studies at Nanyang Business School in Singapore, and holds a bachelor’s of science degree in business information systems from the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland. He is also a certified Special Forces combat medic and Six Sigma Red Belt. He has been featured as an author in numerous industry publications, including TWC. He will also appear in a TWC video series on marketing and sales best practices this fall. |
 Matthew Regulski, DPM, ABMSP, FASPM, FAPWH(c) Dr. Regulski is a board-certified foot and ankle surgeon who has been practicing for 14 years. A graduate of the Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine who performed his surgical residency at Main Line Health, Philadelphia, he currently serves as medical director of the Wound Care Institute of Ocean County, Toms River, NJ, and is a senior partner at Ocean County Foot & Ankle Surgical Associates P.C., also located in Toms River. A member of the editorial advisory board for six peer-reviewed journals, including TWC’s sister publication WOUNDS, and the associate editor for a seventh publication, he has also served as the principal investigator for many randomized controlled trials related to wound healing and tissue regeneration. Regulski has published multiple papers and texts in several peer-reviewed journals concerning wound healing, tissue regeneration, and biofilm, and he lectures nationally and internationally at multiple conferences on wound healing and tissue regeneration. He also sits on numerous advisory and consulting boards of companies involved in wound healing and tissue regeneration. He will appear in an ongoing TWC video series on stem cells this fall/winter. |
 Pamela Scarborough, PT, DPT, MS, CDE, CWS Scarborough is a physical therapist with more than 30 years of experience as a clinician, team leader, and professional educator. Her clinical practice has included the settings of acute and long-term care, outpatient services, and home health. In addition to holding a license to practice physical therapy in the state of Texas, she is board certified as a diabetes educator and wound care specialist. She is currently the director of public policy and education for American Medical Technologies Inc., a national company specializing in wound care education, services, and products for the long-term care industry. An educator and speaker who’s well-known and highly sought after, she frequently presents at national symposiums and state conferences on the topics of wound management and diabetes care and complications, has published numerous articles and monographs, and has contributed to book publications on topics related to wound care and diabetes management. Currently on the board of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care, where she serves as the liaison to the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel, she enjoys a quiet, nature-filled life in the Texas Hill Country when not traveling. |
 Susie Seaman, NP, MSN, CWOCN A board-certified family nurse practitioner and a wound, ostomy, and continence nurse, Seaman practiced in the home healthcare arena for eight years before moving to the outpatient clinic setting in 1998. At that time, she founded the Sharp Grossmont Hospital Wound Healing Center, La Mesa, CA, which at one point was the busiest hospital-based wound clinic in San Diego County. She left there in 2006 to open a wound clinic for Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Group, a 420-physician, multispecialty medical group with offices throughout San Diego. She has a special interest in the treatment of lower-extremity ulcers and the diagnosis and treatment of atypical wounds. Her master's thesis examined Braden Scale scores and the incidence of pressure ulcers in the home hospice setting. She can be reached at susie.seaman@sharp.com. |
 Pamela G. Unger, PT, CWS, FCCWS A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in physical therapy, Unger has spent three decades specializing in wound care and wound center management. Her clinical experience involves acute, long-term, outpatient, and subacute care. She created and established one of the premier multidisciplinary outpatient wound care clinics in the US and is the vice president of medical affairs and education at Celleration Inc., Eden Prairie, MN. She has published more than 25 articles and textbook chapters, and has presented more than 200 times to healthcare professionals regarding the use of low-frequency ultrasound and electrical stimulation for wound healing, the multidisciplinary approach to wound care, and multiple reimbursement issues related to wound care. She’s the recipient of multiple service awards and lectureships from the American Physical Therapy Association and the Pennsylvania Physical Therapy Association. |
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 Frank Aviles, Jr., PT, CWS, FACCWS, CLT A physical therapist who devotes much of his work to patients residing in rural areas, Aviles received his PT degree in 1991 from Florida A&M, where his passion for wound care began. A member of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) since 1990, he’s also a board-certified wound specialist through the American Academy of Wound Management (since 2007), a fellow of the American College of Certified Wound Specialists, a member of the APTA’s Academy of Clinical Electrophysiology & Wound Management, a certified lymphedema therapist (since 2010), and is currently working on his board examination through the Lymphology Association of North America. One who has served on multiple wound management task force committees, Aviles is also a member of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care and is currently pursuing the certified hyperbaric technologist credential through the National Board of Diving & Hyperbaric Medical Technology.His passion to learn and to educate others has led to work opportunities with continuing education companies, as a consultant/advisor, and for a speaker’s bureau with multiple industry partners. He has lectured at the local, national, and international level. An instructor and advisor for the Academy of Lymphatic Studies, Aviles has also presented multiple posters at various conferences and has published articles, columns, and book chapters for multiple publications. In 2005, he launched, hosted, and moderated multidisciplinary wound care educational events in his hometown of Natchitoches, LA, that in 2010 transitioned into a series of Wound Healing Roundtable seminars that provide evidence-based education on wound care and products for healthcare professionals. Aviles has also developed a shadowing/preceptorship program utilized by multiple facilities in his region for college students in various medical fields and for existing clinicians to increase their wound care education and to observe how staffs work together to provide optimal results.Beginning in the early 1990s, Aviles began to travel to various hospital systems in an effort to help educate, develop, and/or institute formal multidisciplinary skin/wound care programs. He holds other therapy designations and has worked in every setting throughout the continuum while serving in supervisory and/or director roles of therapy departments. In 2010, Aviles opened Cane River Therapy Services LLC in Natchitoches, a business that he operates and for which he serves as a PT/wound care consultant (especially as it pertains to patients with limited resources). His long-held vision of launching a local hospital-based outpatient wound care center became a reality when he initiated and assisted in the opening of wound care services at Natchitoches Regional Medical Center (NRMC), where he serves as wound care service line director and wound care center board member, in April 2015. In addition to working with physicians, marketing, education, and program development teams, Aviles oversees and actively works within all NRMC settings, including acute care, outpatient care, long-term care, long-term acute care, and community outreach. His column, Let’s Be Frank, publishes regularly in TWC.
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 Shaun Carpenter, MD, FAPWCA, CWSP Dr. Carpenter is a certified wound specialist physician who has specialized in wound and hyperbaric medicine since 2004. He graduated college from the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in molecular and cell biology, and received his medical doctorate from Tulane Medical School. He was subsequently board certified in emergency medicine after completing his residency at Louisiana State University-Charity Hospital, New Orleans, in 2004. Over the past decade, Dr. Carpenter has developed an aggressive wound healing program for hospitals, nursing homes, and clinics. He’s the inventor of TeleWound,TM a process by which homebound patients receive aggressive wound healing via telemedicine. He also has several patents pending for wound products and devices, including the Carpenter CuretteTM surgical wound debridement instrument. Dr. Carpenter also serves as director of wound medicine for Baton Rouge (LA) General Hospital; Post Acute Medical Specialty Hospital of Covington, LA; and Promise Hospital of Baton Rouge. A national speaker who’s recognized as one of the top experts in his field and one who has authored several abstracts and publications to advance the specialty of wound medicine, Carpenter is the founder and chief executive officer of MedCentris, a comprehensive wound management company with facilities throughout Louisiana, Mississippi, and California. MedCentris Specialty Group is made up of highly trained physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners currently involved in the treatment of several thousand wound patients across the country. MedCentris’ comprehensive wound management programs are dedicated to helping hospitals, nursing homes, and clinics achieve maximum healing rates while maintaining cost-effective care.
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 Kara S. Couch, MS, CRNP, CWS Couch is a family nurse practitioner and certified wound specialist who graduated with her master’s of science in nursing from Georgetown University in 2002. One who has practiced as an NP solely in wound care ever since, Couch earned her CWS through the American Board of Wound Management in 2004 and became recertified in 2014. Her primary wound interests are in amputee care, wound infection, and venous ulcers. She spent seven years at the Center for Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Medicine at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, DC, and then spent five years running the wound team at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, MD. Currently, she works as an NP in the Wound Healing and Limb Preservation Center at George Washington (GW) University Hospital, Washington, DC. She is adjunct clinical faculty for the department of physical therapy at GW. Couch is also a board member of both the Alliance of Wound Care Stakeholders and the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care (AAWC). She has been a member of the AAWC’s guidelines committee for more than 6 years and has served as co-chair of the International Consolidated Venous Ulcer Guideline, which was recently updated and resubmitted to the National Guidelines Clearinghouse, since 2015. Her work with the Alliance focuses on healthcare policy and coverage/reimbursement issues. Couch is the liaison for the American Association of Nurse Practitioners to the Alliance. Teaching residents, medical, nursing, and physical therapy students is one of her passions. Couch lectures nationally on various wound care topics and is the primary author or co-author of numerous book chapters and peer-reviewed journal articles.
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 Helen B. Gelly, MD, FUHM, FACCWS, UHM/ABPM Chief executive officer and founder of HyperbaRXs, Marietta, GA, Dr. Gelly is emeritus medical director of the Hyperbaric Physicians of Georgia, Atlanta, and is subspecialty certified in undersea and hyperbaric medicine by the Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS). An assistant professor of emergency medicine at Emory University School of Medicine from 1984-98, she is currently a fellow of the UHMS and the American College of Hyperbaric Medicine, and was a founding fellow of the American College of Clinical Wound Specialists. Dr. Gelly has practiced hyperbaric medicine and wound care since 1991 and is co-chair of the UHMS committee on quality, utilization, authorization, and reimbursement as well as a member of the UHMS education committee. She lectures both nationally and internationally on wound healing and hyperbaric medicine, teaching introductory courses on both hyperbaric medicine and wound care. Dr. Gelly’s other areas of interest include policy and regulatory aspects of hyperbaric medicine and wound care.
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 Heather Hettrick, PT, PhD, CWS, CLT-LANA, CLWT Dr. Hettrick is an associate professor in the physical therapy program at Nova Southeastern University. As a physical therapist, her expertise resides in integumentary dysfunction with clinical specialties in wound, burn, and lymphedema management. One who holds three certifications (including the certified wound specialist by the American Board of Wound Management [ABWM], certified lymphedema therapist by the Academy of Lymphatic Studies, and a dual certification internationally as a certified lymphedema and wound therapist through the International Lymphedema Wound Training Institute), Hettrick maintains a diverse work experience in academia and the private sector. Her more recent employment history includes: assistant professor and director of clinical education, University of New Mexico; vice president of academic affairs and education, Gordian Medical Inc. (doing business as American Medical Technologies), Irvine, CA; clinical assistant professor in the department of physical therapy, New York University; adjunct professor, Drexel University; program coordinator for burn rehabilitation research, William Randolph Hearst Burn Center at New York-Presbyterian Hospital; and master clinician, Hospital for Joint Diseases at the Diabetic Foot and Ankle Center – NYU Langone Medical Center. Dr. Hettrick is a past president of the ABWM and has served on the executive committee and board of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care. She was recently appointed to the board of the World Alliance for Wound and Lymphedema Care and is helping to establish a lymphatic filariasis morbidity plan for the country of Haiti through her active missionary work. Dr. Hettrick is also actively involved in numerous professional organizations, conducts research and publishes in multiple print/online journals, and presents/teaches at the national and international level on integumentary-related issues.
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 Audrey Moyer-Harris, BSN, RN, CWCN, MBA The program director at Mercy Hospital Jefferson Wound & Hyperbaric Center, Crystal City, MO, Moyer-Harris graduated from Maryville University in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in nursing. She has worked in the wound care field since 1996, and earned her CWCN in 2000. In 2010, her passion for best practices and healthcare business empowered her to complete her MBA in healthcare administration. Moyer-Harris' experiences encompass wound healing across the continuum and as a clinical specialist focusing on creating limb-preservation programs across the country. She recently launched LEAP Synergies Inc., a not-for-profit organization contracting services to Healthcare facilities seeking to create centers of excellence for limb preservation. Additionally, she’s an active member of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care and the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses SocietyTM (WOCN®) organization, serving on several committees for both. She has also served on planning panels for conferences as well as presented at regional conferences. In 2014, she received the Industry Nurse of the Year award from the St. Louis WOCN. She is a staunch advocate that vascular assessment of all lower extremity ulcers is mission No. 1. In her spare time, Audrey enjoys family time, traveling, hiking, sightseeing, motorcycle riding, scuba diving, and scrapbooking.
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 Roger Shindell, MS, CHPS, CISA The chief executive officer of Carosh Compliance Solutions, Crown Point, IN, a national HIPAA compliance consultancy that specializes in HIPAA compliance consulting for small to midsize practices and their business associates, Shindell is chair of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society work group and is a member of the American Health Information Management Association’s privacy and security council. He has more than 30 years of multidisciplinary experience and has served as an advisor and principal to a number of healthcare technology and service companies. His column HIPAA Privacy & Security Compliance publishes in TWC.
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Caroline Fife, MD, FAAFP, CWS Co-editor of Today’s Wound Clinic, Fife received her bachelor's and master's degrees from Texas A&M University College of Medicine. After a residency in family medicine at the University of Texas, Southwestern, she completed a two-year fellowship in undersea and hyperbaric medicine at Duke University, then joined the faculty of the University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, where she served on the faculty for 23 years, ending her academic career as a professor of medicine in the division of cardiology. She is subspecialty board certified in undersea and hyperbaric medicine through the American Board of Preventive Medicine and has been a certified wound specialist since 1998. Past and present board activities include the American Academy of Wound Management, the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care, and the American Professional Wound Care Association. She initiated the Memorial Hermann Center for Wound Healing, which is affiliated with the University of Texas, Houston, in 1990, and the Memorial Hermann Center for Lymphedema Therapy in 1998. She is a past president of the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society and is co-editor of the books Wound Care Practice and Women and Pressure: Diving and Flying, both published by Best Publishing Company. She’s also the chief medical officer of Intellicure, a Texas-based software company, which since 2000 has provided a specialty-specific electronic medical record system to wound and hyperbaric centers across the US. She is the director of clinical research for the US Wound Registry, a nonprofit corporation that provides data for comparative effectiveness studies in wound care and hyperbaric medicine. She is currently the medical director of St. Luke's Wound Clinic, The Woodlands, TX.
Christopher A. Morrison, MD, FACHM, FCCWS Morrison, a nationally recognized speaker and educator on the subjects of wound care and hyperbaric medicine, has devoted his full-time medical practice to the development of the specialty of wound care. He serves as a wound care and hyperbaric medicine physician, as well as medical director with numerous Florida hospitals. Triple board certified: diplomate (American Board of Family Practice), diplomate (American Board of Preventive Medicine, subspecialty undersea and hyperbaric medicine), and diplomate (undersea and hyperbaric medicine, American Academy of Wound Management, certified wound specialist), Morrison has also been designated a fellow of the American Professional Wound Care Association. As previous president and founder of Nautilus Health Care Group, Morrison now serves as executive medical director of Healogics Specialty Physicians, a nationally recognized physician group and leader in wound center management, hyperbaric medicine, wound care, dermatology community-outreach services, and healthcare provider education and training. He has also served as associate chief medical officer for Medical Multiplex Inc., providing comprehensive clinical and management solutions to hospitals and long-term care facilities. He’s the founding regional chapter president of the Save A Leg, Save A Life Foundation and has received the Jefferson Davis, MD, Memorial Award for Clinical Excellence in his specialty. Additionally, Morrison serves as medical director for Wound Systems, Atlanta, GA, a leader in wound management medical equipment and support surface technology. The past-president of the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society - Gulf Coast Chapter, Morrison received his bachelor’s of science degree from Indiana University in Bloomington and his MD degree from Indiana University School of Medicine — completing his residency and fellowship training in sports medicine at Bayfront Medical Center, St. Petersburg, FL, where he served as chief resident. He is a member of numerous medical organizations and serves on several professional panels dedicated to the development and furtherance of the subspecialty of wound care.
Kathleen D. Schaum, MS As president and founder of her own consulting company, Kathleen D. Schaum & Associates Inc., Lake Worth, FL, Schaum assists wound care professionals in establishing their own businesses or in improving their existing businesses. As a service to the wound care industry, she provides cutting-edge coding, payment, and coverage knowledge through two wound care journals. The author of the Today's Wound Clinic column “Business Briefs,” she also pens “Payment Strategies,” a regular column that appears in Advances in Skin & Wound Care. She speaks at many national, regional, and local wound care meetings. She earned the Woman of the Year Award for 2011-12 by the National Association of Professional Women for her medical reimbursement work and dedication to the wound care industry.
Management, Sullivan is also the clinical manager of advanced wound care services and hyperbaric medicine at Capital Regional Medical Center, Tallahassee, FL. A clinician and educator in wound management for nearly 20 years, she has lectured and presented on local, regional, and national levels as well as been published on wound care, physical therapy, and care for the underinsured. As a member of the American Physical Therapy Association and its Section on Clinical Electrophysiology and Wound Management, she also serves as the section’s practice committee chairperson. She has been an active member of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care for 15 years, serving on the Quality of Care Task Force. She was one of the recipients of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care’s Distinguished Member Awards in 2012. She is also a member of multiple clinical advisory boards and is on the board of directors for the Save A Leg, Save A Life Foundation.
Dot Weir, RN, CWON, CWS The clinical coordinator at Osceola Regional Medical Center, Kissimmee, FL, Weir has held the offices of treasurer and president of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care, and is a member of the Wound Healing Society, the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society, and the Florida Association of Enterostomal Therapists. Co-chair of the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care, she is also co-editor of Today’s Wound Clinic; is on the faculty of the Wound Certification Prep Course; is co-chair of Present Wounds, an educational platform designed for nurses and physical therapists; is a consultant and speaker for several manufacturers; and is a frequent speaker on all aspects of wound healing. Her clinical experience includes acute care, long-term care, and home care. She spent seven years in industry, where she learned the business of healthcare and traveled the country, meeting wound healing thought leaders, researchers, teachers, and providers of evidence. Weir’s dear friend and colleague Karen Durigan presented her with her first opportunity to manage an outpatient center — responsibilities that have brought the kind of fulfillment that she said will carry her until retirement and have offered her the chance to assist the facility in opening an outpatient wound clinic. She still can recall the most pivotal day of her career, reflecting back to fall 1979, when her nursing director sought volunteers to attend a three-day ostomy school taught by nurse Anita Kotheimer. Attending the seminar set the stage for her involvement in what she calls a richly rewarding specialty where she learns something every day.
Desmond Bell, DPM, CWS A co-founder and executive director of the Save A Leg, Save A Life Foundation, Bell is a board-certified wound specialist (American Board of Wound Management) and a fellow of the American College of Certified Wound Specialists. He presently serves on the board of directors of the American Academy of Wound Management and is the founder of the Limb Salvage Institute and Wound Care on Wheels LLC, a service that provides wound care to patients in hospital and long-term care settings. He serves on the board of directors for the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care and the Barbara Bates-Jensen Wound Reach Foundation, is on the communications committee for the Jacksonville (FL) Chapter of the American Diabetes Association, and is on the conference planning committee for the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care. Bell is also a member of the Wound Healing Society and the Vascular Disease Foundation/P.A.D. Coalition. A graduate of Tulane University and Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine, Bell served his residency training programs at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Philadelphia and Delaware Valley Medical Center in Langhorne, PA. While at the VA, he received a commendation in part for his role in wound care. He served as chief podiatric surgical resident and was actively involved in the wound care center at Delaware Valley. A frequent lecturer and author on the subject of wound care, peripheral arterial disease, and diabetes, Bell is also a regular contributor to Today's Wound Clinic’s sister publication Podiatry Today. One who’s worked in private practice in Jacksonville, FL, since 1997, Bell is also on staff at Memorial Hospital of Jacksonville, St. Luke’s Hospital, St. Vincent’s HealthCare, and Specialty Hospital of Jacksonville, where he served on the medical executive committee, is active in the wound management program, and earned the First Humanitarian Award in 2009. A member of the speaker's bureau for Organogenesis Inc. and Cordis Corp., Bell also serves as a consultant with ev3, Advanced BioHealing, Cook Medical, and Healiance.
Melodie Blakely, DPT, CWS Blakely, a doctor of physical therapy who has been practicing wound care since 1996, has been board certified as a wound specialist since 1999 and has established multiple interdisciplinary wound care and prevention programs in various care settings. In 2005, she helped establish an inpatient and outpatient wound program at Osceola Regional Medical Center, Kissimmee, FL, and was key in developing the outpatient wound center to one of the busiest in central Florida. She accepted a position with Mölnlycke® Health Care, Norcross, GA, in 2015 as a regional clinical specialist who supports negative pressure wound therapy in acute and postacute settings. Throughout her career, Blakely has consulted and spoken on the topic of wound care, presented numerous posters, and has been published in various industry-related publications, including TWC. She is also a member of the review board with The Journal of The American College of Certified Wound Specialists, and she currently holds a position on the executive committee of the American Board of Wound Management Foundation. She has also served as a contributing editor for each of the home-study preparation guides for the certified wound specialist, certified wound care specialist physician, and certified wound care associate credentials.
Donna J. Cartwright, MPA, RHIA, CCS, RAC, FAHIMA The senior director of strategic reimbursement services with Integra LifeSciences Corp., Plainsboro, NJ, Cartwright holds a bachelor of science degree in health records administration form York College of Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in public administration with a health services administration concentration from Kean College of New Jersey. A registered health information administrator and certified coding specialist with the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), she is certified as an ICD-10 trainer by AHIMA and has been designated a fellow of the American Health Information Management Association. In addition, she obtained her certification in regulatory affairs in 2001. Prior to her career at Integra, she held health Information management roles, including director of health information management, director positions for two healthcare consulting firms, and many coding management positions. She was a founding member of AHIMA’s Society for Clinical Coding and has been a past president and distinguished member of New Jersey’s Health Information Management Association. An active member of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care as well as the American Burn Association, she brings three decades of healthcare coding, reimbursement, and management experience to the industry. She has given numerous presentations on coding and reimbursement issues over the years.
Moira Skystus, MHA, RRT, CHT The vice president of operations with HyperbaRXs LLC, Atlanta, GA, Hayes has been working exclusively within the wound care and hyperbaric industry since 1992. She held a series of executive positions with outsourced wound care and hyperbaric management companies prior to starting her own consulting firm in 2007. She joined the HyperbaRXs team in July 2009 and leads the consulting service line for the company. She holds a baccalaureate degree in biology from Northeastern University and a master of health system administration from the University of Houston. A registered respiratory therapist and a certified hyperbaric technologist, she can be reached for questions or consultation at mhayes@hyperbarxs.com or 713-301-5707.
Cathy Thomas Hess, BSN, RN, CWOCN Hess, vice president and chief clinical officer of Net Health Systems Inc., Pittsburgh, PA, has gained expertise in various acute care, long-term care, subacute care facilities, home-health agencies, and outpatient wound care department settings. With more than 25 years of experience in wound care, she's been engaged to share her command of knowledge in the industry with manufacturers (including biotechnology firms), product suppliers, insurers, law firms, and governmental agencies. She is the author of The Clinical Wound Manager™ Manual Series and Clinical Guide to Skin and Wound Care – Seventh Edition (also translated into Italian and Portuguese) and is creator of the Wound Care Strategies (WCS) Documentation System and TPS EMR. A member of the editorial advisory board for Advances in Skin and Wound Care (authoring the monthly "Practice Points" column), Hess is also an expert witness for the US Office of the Inspector General as well as past board member and marketing chair for the Wound, Continence, and Ostomy Certification Board. One who’s appeared in several educational videos, she’s also authored more than 100 journal articles and is a sought after national and international speaker. In 2002, she was cited as one of the “Best 50 Women in Business” by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. Prior to joining Net Health, Hess founded and served as president of Wound Care Strategies, a wound care solutions and services company. She’s a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Nursing and the Harrisburg Hospital School of Enterostomal Therapy.
Harriet Jones, MD, BSN, FAPWCA A 1998 graduate of the University of Mississippi (MS) School of Medicine, Jones completed an internal medicine residency and infectious diseases fellowship at the University of MS Hospitals and Clinics. Prior to becoming a physician, she worked as a registered nurse (1985, BSN; University of Southern Mississippi), working primarily in general and orthopedic surgeries as well as infusion therapies. After completion of her medical training, she joined the infectious diseases division at the medical center as an assistant professor and began the outpatient antimicrobial service. During this time, her clinical practice was devoted to the management and treatment of postoperative infections and chronic wounds. In 2005, with the opening of the Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine Center at River Oaks in Flowood, MS, she joined the clinic as medical director and full-time sole physician. In 2008, she founded the wound management group and continued her collaboration as a physician with other licensed healthcare providers. In August 2010, her group became affiliated with Mississippi Baptist Medical Center’s wound clinic, where Jones continued clinical practice while becoming more involved in public speaking to various advance provider groups in MS that emphasized the appropriate use of systemic antimicrobial agents. In April 2011, she returned to the University of MS Medical Center as an associate professor of medicine and has continued her full-time clinical practice in wound management. She’s also expanding her academic involvement with other academic programs at the university. Board certified in internal medicine, she received physician certification as a physician wound specialist in September 2010, and holds current memberships in the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care, American College of Physicians, State Medical Association of MS, and American Professional Wound Care Association. She frequently speaks at local, regional, and national meetings on the principles of wound management and the appropriate use of systemic antimicrobial agents when treating infections in acute and chronic wounds. She has also authored and co-authored several published articles.
Eric J. Lullove, DPM, CWS, FACCWS Dr. Lullove is in private practice in Boca Raton, FL, where he also serves as staff physician for West Boca Medical Center Wound Center. His focus and special emphasis is on wound healing and limb preservation with clinical interests in diabetic foot ulcers, venous leg ulcers and venous insufficiency, chronic wound healing, and peripheral arterial disease/critical limb ischemia. He has specific experience in reconstructive lower extremity surgery, clinical studies and research, collagen replacement wound therapy, and acellular/cellular dermal skin replacement tissues therapies. He also serves as adjunct clinical faculty at Northwest Medical Center and has received certifications from the American Board of Wound Management and the American Professional Wound Care Association with added qualification in physician wound management. After receiving his degree in psychology from Wayne State University, Lullove earned his doctor of podiatric medicine degree from the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine in 2002. Dr. Lullove is Editor of the podiatry column for the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care’s newsletter and serves on the AAWC’s regulatory affairs committee, is chairperson of the “Educating the Generalist” task force, and serves as AAWC liaison to the Alliance for Wound Care’s stakeholders. Lullove has also authored and co-authored articles regarding acellular dermal tissues, venous compression, wound healing, and practice management. He has lectured nationally and internationally on wound management topics and is active with Health Volunteers Overseas as well as Project Medishare in Haiti.
Pamela Scarborough, PT, DPT, MS, CDE, CWS Scarborough is a physical therapist with more than 30 years of experience as a clinician, team leader, and professional educator. Her clinical practice has included the settings of acute and long-term care, outpatient services, and home health. In addition to holding a license to practice physical therapy in the state of Texas, she is board certified as a diabetes educator and wound care specialist. She is currently the director of public policy and education for American Medical Technologies Inc., a national company specializing in wound care education, services, and products for the long-term care industry. An educator and speaker who’s well-known and highly sought after, she frequently presents at national symposiums and state conferences on the topics of wound management and diabetes care and complications, has published numerous articles and monographs, and has contributed to book publications on topics related to wound care and diabetes management. Currently on the board of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care, where she serves as the liaison to the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel, she enjoys a quiet, nature-filled life in the Texas Hill Country when not traveling.
Susie Seaman, NP, MSN, CWOCN A board-certified family nurse practitioner and a wound, ostomy, and continence nurse, Seaman practiced in the home healthcare arena for eight years before moving to the outpatient clinic setting in 1998. At that time, she founded the Sharp Grossmont Hospital Wound Healing Center, La Mesa, CA, which at one point was the busiest hospital-based wound clinic in San Diego County. She left there in 2006 to open a wound clinic for Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Group, a 420-physician, multispecialty medical group with offices throughout San Diego. She has a special interest in the treatment of lower-extremity ulcers and the diagnosis and treatment of atypical wounds. Her master's thesis examined Braden Scale scores and the incidence of pressure ulcers in the home hospice setting. She can be reached at susie.seaman@sharp.com.
Pamela G. Unger, PT, CWS, FCCWS A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in physical therapy, Unger has spent three decades specializing in wound care and wound center management. Her clinical experience involves acute, long-term, outpatient, and subacute care. She created and established one of the premier multidisciplinary outpatient wound care clinics in the US and is the vice president of medical affairs and education at Celleration Inc., Eden Prairie, MN. She has published more than 25 articles and textbook chapters, and has presented more than 200 times to healthcare professionals regarding the use of low-frequency ultrasound and electrical stimulation for wound healing, the multidisciplinary approach to wound care, and multiple reimbursement issues related to wound care. She’s the recipient of multiple service awards and lectureships from the American Physical Therapy Association and the Pennsylvania Physical Therapy Association.
Andrew J. Applewhite, MD, CWS, UHM A native of Texas, Applewhite graduated from Plano Senior High School and received his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Texas at Austin in 1991. He attended the University of Texas Medical School in Houston, where he received his doctorate of medicine in July 1996 and went on to complete his family medicine residency at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Conroe in July 1999. He became interested in wounds and hyperbarics while working there with Dr. Robert Wariner. After residency, Applewhite moved to Chicago to practice family medicine in the northwestern suburbs. He became involved in the local community by serving as the team physician for three area high school football teams and teaching prenatal classes to expectant parents. In 2003 he returned to Dallas, where he devoted full-time practice to the specialty of wound care and hyperbaric medicine, and was named medical director and helped launch the Wound Care and Hyperbaric Center at Methodist Hospital of Dallas. He accepted the position of medical director at Baylor University Medical Center’s Comprehensive Wound Care and Hyperbaric Center in Dallas in November 2008. He has lectured nationwide and internationally on hyperbaric oxygen therapy and comprehensive wound care while continuing his involvement in the local community by conducting lectures and educational events for students and fellow medical practitioners. A diplomate of the American Academy of Family Physicians, a diplomate of the American Academy of Wound Management, and a certified wound specialist, Applewhite is board certified by the American Board of Preventive Medicine with a subspecialty in undersea and hyperbaric medicine. He can be contacted via email at andrew.applewhite@baylorhealth.com.
Trisha Markowitz, MSN, MBA-HCM, RN, CWCN, DAPWCA A registered nurse with nearly 20 years of experience in wound care and hyperbaric medicine, Markowitz serves as the vice president of clinical operations with Wound Care Advantage, Sierra Madre, CA. Her work in various roles has led to extensive experience in the development of policy, education programs, and competency as well as clinical quality oversight and regulatory requirement maintenance for a national network of outpatient wound clinics. Markowitz holds a master’s degree in business and in nursing from the University of Phoenix. An active member of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care and diplomat of the American Professional Wound Care Association, she is also certified as a wound care nurse through the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nursing Certification Board. Markowitz speaks locally and nationally on various topics related to wound care, is published, provides consultative services to the industry, and is a legal consultant and expert witness in the field of wound care. She is passionate about providing quality wound care and educating healthcare professionals. She can be reached for questions or consultation at gutzy01@aol.com or 602-449-9845.
Tere Sigler, PT, CWS, CLT-LANA A physical therapist for nearly 30 years, Sigler has worked in a range of settings, including acute care, outpatient care, long-term care, and home health. She has been focused on wound care since 1991. In 1999 she established the Archbold Center for Wound Management at Archbold Memorial Hospital, Thomasville GA, where she’s the clinical director. In 2007 the center expanded to include Hyperbaric Medicine. An active member of the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care, Sigler earned her CWS through the American Academy of Wound Management in 2000. She has also served on advisory boards and participated in focus groups for several companies in the wound care industries, and began lymphedema management in 1996 after completing training in manual lymph drainage through the Vodder School in Walchsee, Austria. She passed the board exam to become certified as a lymphedema therapist through the Lymphology Association of North America in 2002.
Randall Wolcott, MD, CWS Founder of Southwest Regional Wound Care Center, Lubbock, TX, a facility that specializes in biofilm-based wound care, Wolcott is a certified wound specialist by the Academy of Wound Management who has more than 10 years of wound care experience. One who has presented at many wound care conferences nationwide, he is passionate about healing wounds and educating healthcare professionals on how to do so. His wound center offers many disciplines in wound care, including debridement, venous procedures, hyperbaric oxygen treatment, IV therapy, and skins grafts.