Texas EMS Alliance
EMS EVOLUTION 2015 | August 3-5, 2015 La Torretta Lake Resort | Lake Conroe, Texas
Faculty Biographies Gail Atnip
Provider Education Specialist, Novitas Solutions, Inc.
Gail Atnip has 36 years of experience in Medicare. She worked for TrailBlazer Health Enterprises, LLC for 34 years and September 2012 she joined the Novitas Solutions education team. During the time she has held various positions including claims processing, written correspondence, telephone customer service, and telephone appeal line and the enrollment call center. She holds the current position of Provider Outreach and Education Specialist where she has served providers for the past 16 years. This team is comprised of specialists who have an extensive background with Medicare policies and claims processing. The primary focus is to meet the educational needs of the physicians and suppliers. This is accomplished through conducting workshops, on-site visits and speaking to various groups.
Her specialties include Ambulance, Therapy Services (PT, OT SLP), Psychiatric Services, Non-Physician Practitioners, “Incident To” Services and the liaison for Indian Health Services (IHS). Melissa Ellis
Associate Compliance Officer, American Medical Response
Ms. Ellis joined American Medical Response’s Ethics and Compliance Team in March of 2015. Ms. Ellis has accumulated 25+ years of ambulance industry knowledge with a concentration of experience in billing and collections. Prior to joining the AMR Compliance Team, Ms. Ellis served as the Director of Government Programs for AMR’s Patient Business Services Department which included revenue cycle management oversight for 26 states. Among many other responsibilities, Melissa was responsible for preparing, reviewing and coordinating audit responses to support internal and external audits. Ms. Ellis has extensive knowledge of business requirements, clinical documentation, A/R management and EMS systems.
Eric Epley
Executive Director, Southwest Texas RAC
Eric Epley is a Certified Emergency Manager and Nationally Registered Paramedic, with nearly 30 years in public safety response and administration. Mr. Epley has been a nationally registered paramedic for over 25 years and was a licensed police officer for over 15 years, serving as a tactical paramedic at the Branch Davidian standoff, the Republic of Texas standoff and other high profile Texas incidents. Epley served as a flight paramedic for San Antonio AirLife for 10 years where he also received the National Flight Paramedic of the Year award in 1996. He responded to New Orleans for Hurricane Katrina as one of the Strike Team Leaders on the Texas Task Force-1 USAR Swiftwater team, and was director of the Regional Medical Operations Center (RMOC) in San Antonio for Hurricanes Rita, Dean, Dolly, Eduard, Gustav and Ike. Epley is certified as a Type III Incident Commander and has been the Deputy IC on the Alamo IMT since its inception. Mr. Epley is currently vice-chair of the DSHS Preparedness Coordinating Council and Chair of the Governor’s EMS & Trauma Advisory Council’s Disaster Committee, which develops hospital and EMS response plans for statewide disasters and oversees the Texas Emergency Medical Task Force (EMTF) Program.
Since STRAC’s founding in 1998, Epley has led the growing organization through many initiatives. A few of the projects Epley has led include the deployment and implementation of a regional wireless electronic medical records system for 31 EMS agencies and 2 air medical programs that now has over a million medical records, regional clinical care registries for trauma, cardiac, stroke and ICU care from 35 hospitals in South Texas, a regional 12-lead EKG wireless transmission system, a trauma data network research project for the US Army Institute for Surgical Research through Dept. of Defense funding, a back-up site for Joint Base San Antonio and 13 other AETC bases for their WebEOC software and the Texas WebEOC Interoperability Project (TWIRP) which provides statewide crisis information management for the Texas Division of Emergency Management and 53 servers throughout Texas. One of the shining achievements for Epley was the conceptualization, implementation and growth of the STRAC-ID credentialing program for physicians and first responders in San Antonio and South Texas.
Bobby Hillert
Bobby Hillert serves as the Texas EMS Alliance’s Administrative Coordinator. In this consulting role, he assists in the organization’s operations and communications.
Since 2008, Hillert has either led or served in a support role for several different health care trade associations based in Austin, Texas. His past and current roles include serving as the executive director and lobbyist of the Texas Orthopaedic Association, executive director of the Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society, executive director of the Texas Physician Hospitals Advocacy Center (physician-owed hospital trade group), and a consulting role for the State Association of Freestanding ERs (SAFER-Texas).
From 2001 to 2008, Hillert served on the Washington, DC staff of Congressman Pete Sessions. He served as Congressman Sessions’ health care aide and legislative director.
He is a Dallas native and a 2001 graduate of Southern Methodist University. He and his wife have two children and live in Austin.
Doug Hooten
Executive Director, MedStar Mobile Healthcare
Doug Hooten is the Executive Director of MedStar Mobile Healthcare. He has over 34 years of experience in EMS, having served as senior vice president of operations and regional director for American Medical Response, CEO of the Metropolitan Ambulance Service Trust (MAST) in Kansas City, and a variety of leadership roles with Rural/Metro Ambulance, Inc. in South Carolina, Georgia, Ohio and Texas. Doug serves on the National EMS Advisory Council (NEMSAC) and is the co-author of “The Patient Experience Revolution” published in The Journal of Emergency Medical Services (JEMS) in February 2014.
Chris Johnson, MSS, CBES
Wellness Manager, Acadian Companies
Chris joined Acadian Ambulance Service in 1999. Prior work history at Health South Rehab hospital (Exercise Physiologist/Occupational testing) and Our Lady of Lourdes (Fitness Instructor/Cardiac Rehab) eventually saw him at Acadian to work on injury prevention and employee health and wellness aspects. Chris has steadily taken on more roles and responsibilities over the years, including completely revamping the post offer testing process, orientation for lifting and moving patients, ergonomic assessments, job analysis, and building the fitness for duty process for incumbents.
Following earning his undergraduate degree from Univ. of Southwestern Louisiana, Chris earned a Masters of Sports Science degree in Fitness Management from the US Sports Academy in Daphne, AL in 1992.
CEO, Trans Star Ambulance
Ryan is a licensed paramedic and has been active in the EMS community since 1993. He received degrees in biology and chemistry from Texas Tech University. He currently serves as a board member of the Texas EMS Alliance and as an executive board member of the North Texas Regional RAC (NTRAC). He has served as both the chair and treasurer of NTRAC. Ryan is also an active member and past president of the North Texas Regional EMS Provider Association and is a longtime member and current treasurer of Holliday Volunteer Fire and Recue, where he fills dual roles as a volunteer firefighter and paramedic first responder. Ryan serves as the private EMS representative on GETAC.
Asbel Montes
VP of Governmental Relations and Reimbursement, Acadian Ambulance
Asbel Montes began his employment with Acadian in May 2009. He oversees Acadian’s revenue cycle management, contract management, business office process improvements, and government relations for state and federal reimbursement policy initiatives.
Seventeen years ago, Asbel began working for an ambulance billing and consulting firm. After three years, he decided to work for a private, non-‐emergency ambulance service. Over the past seventeen years, he has provided leadership in revenue cycle management to four ambulance agencies located throughout the Southeast.
Asbel pursued his education the non-‐traditional way by attending college online while maintaining a full-‐time job. He received an associate's degree in accounting in 2007 and graduated in November 2010 with a bachelor's degree in business management.
Asbel has been a member of the American Ambulance Association (AAA) for eight years and has served on its Board of Directors; he has also served on the AAAs Reimbursement Task Force. Asbel also sits on the board of the Louisiana Ambulance Alliance.
Asbel is married to Stephenie Haney-‐Montes. He has one daughter and resides in Carencro, LA. Clint Noll
Director of Information Technology, East Texas Medical Center EMS
Clint Noll serves as the Director of Information Technology for East Texas Medical Center EMS. He received his B.I.S degree from the University of Phoenix and began his career in technology and software 17 years ago. Clint started his career in the Telecom industry, where he covered all facets of Technology in hardware, software, and database admin positions. After his 13 years in Telecom he joined the ETMC EMS team as IT Manager where he quickly promoted to his current position of Director. He has served as the IT Director for 3 years and 6 months.
Of all his accomplishments, Clint is most proud of his family. He has a beautiful wife, Candace, of 11 years and 3 beautiful daughters, Trinity age 10, Austyn age 6, and Camryn age 3. They are his support and backbone that helps him continue to be successful today
Butch Oberhoff
Director of Governmental Affairs and Business Development, Acadian Ambulance
Butch Oberhoff grew up in Baton Rouge, while spending summers and holidays in his father’s hometown of Rosenberg, Texas. He started as an EMT in 1988 while attending Louisiana State University and worked as a paramedic at Acadian Ambulance before moving into various leadership and governmental relations roles.
Though most of his career has been with Acadian, where he now serves as the Director of Governmental Affairs and Business Development, Butch also spent time as AMR’s governmental relations manager in Mississippi.
Butch now resides in San Antonio when he is not at the State Capitol. He is married to Cynthia, a neonatal nurse, and has two children. This year, he was made a permanent member and bass player of the House of Rock and Roll band, which is headed by Chairman Richard Raymond, and includes Chairman Joe Pickett, Representative Bobby Guerra and Representative Pancho Nevarez. The group performs without charge at many legislative events.
Darrell Pile
CEO, Southeast Texas RAC
Darrell Pile has been a healthcare executive for over 30 years and earned his master’s degree in Healthcare Administration from the George Washington University in 1982. By the age of 24, he began his career as a hospital administrator and has led acute, rehabilitation, and long term acute care hospitals. In 1991 he was named CEO of the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council. During that time, he has been active with the Texas Emergency Trauma and Acute Care Foundation, the TDEM steering committee and other related organizations.
Mr. Pile has also been active in the community in a variety of roles including Chairman of the Northwest Houston Chamber of Commerce, and as board member with the Northwest Houston Chapter of the American Heart Association, Cypress Creek EMS, and as founder of the Emergency Service District 11.
Edward Racht, MD
Chief Medical Officer, American Medical Response
Edward M. Racht, M.D. is the Chief Medical Officer of American Medical Response, the largest EMS provider in the nation. He also serves as the Associate Chief Medical Officer of Evolution Health, an Interprofessional practice of mobile integrated healthcare. He has been involved in Emergency Medical Services and healthcare systems for 28 years. Most recently, he served as the Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of Medical Affairs for Piedmont Newnan Hospital in Metro Atlanta. Prior to this, Racht was the first full-time Medical Director for the Austin/Travis County Emergency Medical Services System, where he spent 13 years. The System was nationally recognized in the Institute of Medicine’s Report on the state of emergency care for its collaborative approach to challenging healthcare integration issues.
Racht received his undergraduate and medical degree from Emory University in Atlanta and completed his residency at the Medical College of Virginia. He was an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Associate Chief of the Medicine Section of Emergency Medical Services at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond. He was appointed by two Governors of Virginia to three successive terms on the Virginia State EMS Advisory Board.
In 1999, Racht was appointed as the first Chairperson of the State of Texas EMS & Trauma Advisory Council and served as Chair until 2008. He has also been extensively involved at the volunteer level with the American Heart Association both locally and nationally. He has been active in International healthcare, serving as a consultant to the World Bank and as the American founder of the Vladivostok and Moscow, Russia EMS Training Centers.
Racht served as the Federal Medical Advisor for the NHTSA Educational Standards Project, the coordinator of the Take Heart Austin Cardiac Arrest Initiative and serves on multiple national and local committees and advisory boards. Racht is a frequent educational and keynote speaker at the international level for acute healthcare, systems integration and the complexities of medical practice in the streets. He is well known for his “operationalizing medicine” initiatives.
Racht is the recipient of numerous awards including being named EMS Medical Director of the year for the State of Texas in 1999, the American Heart Association’s Paul Ledbetter MD Physician Volunteer of the Year Award, and being named a “Hero of Emergency Medicine” in 2008 by the American College of Emergency Physicians. In 1997, Racht was featured in a cover
article in JEMS magazine on a “New Breed of Medical Directors”. In November 2008, Racht became the third Inductee in the Texas EMS, Trauma and Acute Care Foundation Hall of Fame. Racht lives in Austin, Texas and has three teenagers that remind him of those insightful words from his mother for all those years, “you just wait until you have kids of your own”…
Ernesto Rodriguez, Chief
Austin – Travis County Emergency Medical Services
With more than 34 years of experience in Emergency Medical Services, Ernesto (Ernie) Rodriguez began his career as a volunteer firefighter. He served as a paid firefighter and paramedic for in the Corpus Christi Fire Department and became their first uniformed Assistant EMS Director. He served with the State of Texas as Assistant State EMS Director and led programs in disaster preparedness, the development of the State’s first EMS children’s training program, and awarded grant dollars to EMS agencies through the EMS Local Project Grants program. He served a combined ten years as the Assistant to the Medical Director and the Director of Operations for the MedStar EMS System in Fort Worth. Ernie graduated from West Texas A&M University with a Bachelor’s degree in Emergency Management Administration. Since beginning at ATCEMS in 2008, Ernie has implemented department reorganization, implemented new clinical initiatives, and a large number of process improvements, which resulted in high customer satisfaction. Ernie is passionate about leadership in EMS. He believes that the combination of education and training is vital. He has been actively involved in Texas to improve the quality of education of future EMS leaders.
Ernie was a key founder of the EMS Leadership Academy and received the “Charles King Innovation Award” for his work. He also helped design the EMS Leadership program offered by the A&M Texas Engineering Extension Service (TEEX). For several years he received the National Emergency Management Association’s esteemed "Executive of the Year” award. He is one of the few persons to receive the annual "EMS Administrator" award twice from the Texas Department of State Health Services; once early in his career and most recently in November 2011. Ernie currently serves as a board member on the Texas EMS Alliance.
Aside from his busy professional life, Ernie enjoys time with his wife and two children, playing his guitar, wood-working, and volunteering at his church.
Joseph W. Schmider
Texas EMS Director, Office of EMS/Trauma System Coordination
Joseph W. Schmider is currently the Texas Department of State Health Services and formally the Pennsylvania’s Emergency Medical Services Director since January 8, 2005. Joe served as Acting Director for 6 months, and previously as Program Manager within the Bureau of Emergency Medical Services for 2 years within the PA Department of Health.
Joe was the Regional EMS Director for Bucks County for 10 years before accepting a position with the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Joe has served emergency services as a Firefighter with the Warminster Fire Department and a Firefighter/EMT with Dublin Fire Company and Ambulance since 1979. Joe served as Squad Chief for Dublin EMS for 10 years, and trained/certified as a Firefighter, EMT, EMT-Instructor, a HazMat Technician, Rescue Technician, and formerly EMA Director for Bedminster Township.
Mark J. Smith, JD
Mark has been a licensed attorney in Texas since 1999. He has worked on both sides of the bar – representing plaintiffs in cases involving employment law, contract disputes, personal injury claims, and other legal matters and businesses as general counsel.
Since 2004, Mark has represented Harris County Emergency Corps (“HCEC”, formerly Harris County Emergency Services District No. 1), a premier EMS agency in Southeast Texas. During that time, he served as Vice President of Administration and General Counsel for the organization of 200+ employees and volunteers and serving more than 400,000 residents of Harris County, Texas. Since returning to private practice, Mark has added a number of small businesses to his growing practice, including Manvel EMS, Angleton Area Emergency Medical Services, Inc., Art & Kustom Kreations, the Wellness Integration Center, Deep South Builders, LLC, and more.
Mark is certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and a Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP), which exemplifies Mark’s expertise to help small and mid-size businesses with their employment-related legal and general business issues.
Mark is General Counsel and Secretary of the Board of Directors for Harris County Emergency Corps (a nonprofit 911 EMS agency), General Counsel and Director for the Board of Directors for the Outdoor Association for Texas Heroes, Inc. (OATH) (a nonprofit focused on helping disabled veterans through outdoor recreational activities), General Counsel and Secretary for the Pearland Foundation for the Performing and Visual Arts (a non-profit granting scholarships for students in the fine or performing arts), and General Counsel and Secretary for Aggies Helping Others (a charitable non-profit of former Texas A&M MBA graduates). He is also co-owner ofOlsonSmith Solutions, LLC, an emerging IT staffing and consulting firm.
A graduate of Texas A&M University’s Mays Business School with an MBA, Mark serves as a class agent and keeps in frequent contact with his classmates.
Jeffrey Thibodeaux, N.R.E.M.T – P Chair, East Texas Gulf Coast RAC
Jeff Thibodeaux serves as an operations and governmental relations supervisor for Acadian Ambulance Service in the Southeast Texas Operations area. He also serves as the chair of the East Texas Gulf Coast Regional Trauma Advisory Council.
Dudley Wait City of Schertz
Dudley Wait has been employed by the City of Schertz since June, 2001. Until April 2015, he served as the EMS Director for Schertz EMS when he was promoted to his current position as the Executive Director of Public Safety. He has been in the EMS industry since 1985 when he joined the volunteer ambulance service at Texas A&M University. Dudley obtained his bachelor degree in Management in 1992 from Texas A&M and during his time there he also became certified first as an EMT and then as a Paramedic.
Dudley has worked in all types of EMS systems to include volunteer and paid, private and public, city and county, fire based and third service.
After graduating from Texas A&M, Dudley took a position as a paramedic with Sunstar Paramedics in Pinellas County Florida. In his ten year career in Florida, he advanced through a number of positions including field supervisor, Communications Center Manager and finally Operations Manager where he was responsible for the day to day operations of Sunstar, a large county-wide EMS system that answers over 120,000 requests for service annually.
Since arriving in Schertz in 2001, Dudley has overseen the beginning of a new, fully paid municipal ambulance provider that left its volunteer days behind it a few months before his arrival. In addition, Schertz is situated in an area that has experienced amazing growth and expansion over the last decade. Our population has increased by over 70% and our call volume has grown by 150% and continues to increase approximately 12% a year. We have worked to not only keep up with this rapid increase in demand but to also position ourselves in front of it to appropriately plan for our future.
Dudley is also a big believer in regional collaboration and in actively working to improve the ambulance industry. Dudley currently sits as the Chair of the Governor’s EMS and Trauma Advisory Council’s EMS Subcommittee, is the Treasurer for our Regional Advisory Council (STRAC) and chairs our regions Cardiac Care Committee where doctors, nurses and EMS personnel have built a regional cardiac care system that is unrivaled in the State.
Dudley met his wife Cindy in Florida and brought her back to Texas with him. They currently have two sons, Zayden (4 yo) and Zachary (2 yo) that were adopted over the last 2 years. They also have three “other children”, Sadie, Diesel and Pepper, their English Bulldogs.
