NEFS - Ballot 2015

I have been a member of NEFS for the past 7 years and the Maine Member at large for the past four. I have been providing frontline patient care as well as working on advocacy issues in the state of Maine since joining Boston IVF in 2011. This past year we helped to pass a Parentage Act in the state which clearly defines the rights of intended parents, carriers, and donors. I look forward to working with NEFS in the coming years.

MEMBERS ONLY! You must be a paid active member at the time of the election period. If you need to renew your membership, please click here before you submit this form >>RENEW MEMBERSHIP

The VOTING Period Begins: Thursday, November 19, 2015
The VOTING Period Ends: Friday, November 27, 2015 by 11:59pm

The 2016 Election Process ends on December 3rd with the announcement of the newly elected officers at the last quarterly meeting. The results will also be posted on www.nefs.org under Members: Election Results 2016 Executive Board Members.

After reading through the bios, please click ONE button per category. All categories MUST have a selection. If you do not wish to vote for that category, please select that button. You must fill in your Member Name and Email in the boxes below or this ballot will not be valid...thank you!

Bios of Candidates on the Ballot

PRESIDENT-ELECT CANDIDATES

John C. Petrozza, M.D.
Chief, Division of Reproductive Medicine & IVF/Massachusetts General Hospital
I am a native of El Paso, Texas, completing my medical school training at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, followed by a residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. I then completed my fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Tufts – New England Medical Center, under the tutelage of Drs. Alan DeCherney and Richard Reindollar, and stayed on staff after my training. In 2002, I moved to Massachusetts General Hospital and have been Division Chief for the last 11 years, helping the program double in size, improve its ART outcomes, develop and enrich programs in oncofertility, environmental health, menopause, PGD, and reproductive surgery.

I am co-investigator of the Earth Study, a unique collaboration with the Harvard School of Public Health, looking at environmental and dietary factors and reproduction. I was a recipient of the Harvard Medical School Faculty Development Award, which enabled me to look at growth factors and endometriosis. I am a classically trained reproductive surgeon and have spent countless hours working with resident and fellows in both traditional and robotic laparoscopic surgery and have been selected several times by the residents at Tufts and, more recently, Brigham & Womens/Massachusetts General Hospital for their annual gynecologic teaching award. I was involved with the initial studies looking at thermal balloon endometrial ablation, helped with the design and implementation of the very popular hysteroscopic morcellator, and have a patent on a novel remotely controlled uterine manipulator for laparoscopic surgery. In 2003, I started the MGH Integrated Program for Fibroids, a joint project with radiology, pathology, vascular interventional radiology, reproductive endocrinology, and gynecology.

I have been happily married for 22 years to his wife, Dawn, have 3 children ages 20, 18, and 15 and I love kayaking and hiking in my free time. I love my work and the reproductive endocrinology community and recently joined the Resolve Executive Board. I would be honored to be the next President-Elect for the New England Fertility Society.

Carol Wheeler, MD
Associate Professor, Alpert Medical School at Brown University/Women & Infants Hospital
I graduated from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, PA. I then did my residency training in Dayton, Ohio, and REI fellowship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Currently, I am an Associate Professor (Clinical) at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University. I have been practicing at Women & Infants Hospital since 1990. At Women & Infants, I am director of third party reproduction, fertility preservation and the director of the pediatric and adolescent gynecology clinic. I was a member at large for Rhode Island for NEFS from 1996 – 1999 and 2005 -2006. As president of NEFS, I hope to continue the tradition of providing an opportunity for education and networking among the diverse and inclusive membership. It would be an honor to serve this amazing group of professionals.

TREASURER CANDIDATE

Joe J. Travia, Jr., CPA, MBA has more than 25 years of senior management and leadership experience and is recognized for his expertise with start-up and turnaround organizations. Prior to joining IntegraMed and the Reproductive Science Center – New England, Joe held many senior management positions including President and CEO of Captstan, LLC, a managed behavioral healthcare company, Senior Vice President of APOGEE, Inc., a national behavioral healthcare provider and President and CEO of Pilgrim Health Applications, Inc, a national third party healthcare administrator and subsidiary of Arthur D. Little, Inc. Joe has an MBA from Babson College, a B.S. in Management from Boston College and is a Certified Public Accountant. Joe has also be an adjunct faculty member at Merrimack College, Bentley College Graduate and Undergraduate Programs, Middlesex Community College and Northeastern University. Joe has been a very dedicated and active member of the New England Fertility Society (NEFS) for the past thirteen years. He was elected Treasurer in 2003 at a time when NEFS was bankrupt, put NEFS in a solid financial condition during his three terms as Treasurer and each term was for a three year period. Joe was also elected President of the New England Fertility Society in 2007 (three year term as President Elect, President and Past President) and an Executive Member at Large. Joe has also been active with ASRM and served as Chair of ARM (Association of Reproductive Managers (a six year commitment each with a different title) and also served two years on the SART Committee.

MASSACHUSETTS MEMBER AT LARGE CANDIDATES

Shruthi Mahalingaiah, M.D.
Assistant Professor and Attending Physician, Boston University School of Medicine/Boston Medical Center
Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah is an Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. She has a long standing appreciation of the benefits of a clean, balanced, and resilient environment on promoting health. Her lab group at Boston University School of Medicine/Boston Medical Center focuses on identifying environmental exposures and modifiable risk factors in the pathogenesis of polycystic ovary syndrome. She is currently funded on the Reproductive Scientist Training Program, RSDP K12, and was previously supported as a Scholar on the Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) program to study air pollution and risk of gynecologic disease incidence. Her current research focuses on environmental exposure and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) incidence, severity, metabolic sequelae, and risk modification. Dr. Mahalingaiah was born in India and immigrated to Connecticut with her family at an early age. She continued her learning at Middlebury College in Vermont. Prior to medical school, supported by a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, she lived in Bali and the Ecuadorian Amazon Basin studying the role of ritual in the healing process. She attended Harvard Medical School and completed her residency in the OB/GYN Combined Program at Brigham and Women’s/Massachusetts General Hospital. After completing her fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, she joined the faculty at Boston University School of Medicine. She recently completed her Masters of Science in Epidemiology program at Boston University School of Public Health. Dr. Mahalingaiah has three daughters – two of which are identical twins. As the Member-at-Large-Massachusetts for the 2-year term of 2016 and 2017, I would bring my experience as a clinician-investigator, as a reproductive endocrine/infertility care provider for a under-resourced community, and as a mother to contribute to the NEFS boards activity. I look forward to sharing ideas, improving access to care, and promoting the efforts of the NEFS.

Samuel A. Pauli, M.D.
Reproductive Endocrinologist, IVF New England/Boston IVF
It is an honor to be nominated again as a candidate for the office of Massachusetts Member-At-Large. For those of you I haven’t had the chance of meeting yet, this is my fifth year of practice in Massachusetts. I currently practice at IVF New England / Boston IVF. I did my medical training at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, residency at Yale New Haven Hospital, and my reproductive endocrinology and infertility fellowship at Emory University in Atlanta. I have been currently serving as the Massachusetts Member-At-Large over the past two years during which time the Executive Committee has worked hard to bring in exciting and dynamic speakers to our quarterly and annual meeting, as well as to advance infertility initiatives in New England. I believe it is an exciting time to be involved with NEFS as our field will undoubtedly continue to be affected by the changes in our healthcare landscape over the next few years. I would appreciate your vote to continue to serve the NEFS in the role of Massachusetts Member-At-Large.

Cori Tanrikut, MD, FACS
Reproductive Endocrinologist, Massachusetts General Hospital
Cigdem ("Cori") Tanrikut, MD, FACS, is a reproductive urologist at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Assistant Professor of Surgery (Urology) at Harvard Medical School. After graduating summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Tanrikut received her medical degree from the Georgetown University School of Medicine. She completed her Urologic Surgery residency training at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, and then continued on to Weill Cornell Medical College in New York to pursue a fellowship in Male Infertility and Microsurgery. Upon completion of her fellowship training she took a staff position at MGH in 2007 as the Director of Male Reproductive Medicine at the MGH Fertility Center. In 2015 she was named the Quality Chair for the MGH Department of Urology. Dr. Tanrikut’s current research endeavors include translational efforts aimed toward devising a novel method of sperm vitrification, assessing dietary and nutritional patterns and how they may impact male reproductive health, and outcomes studies related to patients on testosterone replacement for hypogonadism. Dr. Tanrikut has been a member of the New England Fertility Society since 2009 and welcomes the opportunity to serve the Society and her constituents as Member-at-Large for Massachusetts.

Alison E. Zimon, M.D.
Reproductive Endocrinologist, Boston IVF
As a 12-year NEFS member, I have most appreciated the Society’s commitment to fostering community and collaboration among its members. If elected to serve as Member-at-Large for Massachusetts, I would work to further support the NEFS collaborative spirit to achieve outreach, education, and support to fertility professionals and patients. I believe my network of experience at the local and national levels will allow me to well represent our Massachusetts society members. I have a busy REI practice with offices in Quincy, West Yarmouth, Foxboro and Providence and am thereby well connected with providers and patients across a large demographic of New England. I am engaged in teaching at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center & Harvard Medical School and lecture at several New England hospitals whereby I educate and collaborate on the technological and practice advances in our field. On the national level, I am an appointee to the ACOG Committee of Practice Bulletins for Gynecology and am an active member of ASRM, both organizations serving as platforms for me to represent our region while keeping abreast of national developments in REI. I believe that NEFS has long recognized that regional progress in our dynamic and exciting field can best be achieved through community, education and collaboration and it would be an honor for me to serve NEFS in this continued mission.

VERMONT MEMBER AT LARGE CANDIDATES

Jennifer Brown, MD
Reproductive Endocrinologist, Northeastern Reproductive Medicine
Jennifer Brown is a board-certified REI physician at Northeastern Reproductive Medicine in Colchester, Vermont. She is thrilled to be back in Vermont where she completed her Fellowship from 2009-2012. Dr Brown started her career at the Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine where she quickly gained broad experience in caring for complex infertility patients. She was active in the CO Gynecologic and Obstetric Society’s Executive and Legislative Committee and has been happy to immediately transition to working with the New England Fertility Society’s Executive Committee. Dr. Brown is excited to continue promoting awareness of NEFS and the educational opportunities available for members, as well as advocating for women’s health and reproductive rights through the work of NEFS. She is also working to ensure “Sugar on Snow” is available at our upcoming Stowe Meeting in 2016!

Navid Esfandiari, PhD
Director of Embryology/Andrology Laboratories-Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center
Dr. Navid Esfandiari is Director of Embryology and Andrology Laboratories at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, and an Associate Professor of Ob-Gyn and Pathology at Geisel School of Medicine in Lebanon, New Hampshire. He also serves as off-site ART Laboratories Director in Vermont Center for Reproductive Medicine and holds an adjunct Associate Professor position in University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont. Navid received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from University of Tehran, Iran and completed his residency and PhD in Reproductive Immunology in Medical Sciences University of Tehran. He then completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the Departments of Urology and Obstetrics and Gynecology, the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, in Cleveland, Ohio. Prior to joining Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Navid was the Director of Embryology, Andrology and Immunoassay Clinical and Research Laboratories for 12 years at Toronto Centre for Advanced Reproductive Technology (TCART), a University of Toronto affiliated fertility program where he developed successful oocyte freezing and trophectoderm biopsy programs. Navid has been a faculty member since 1994 and has lectured and taught Reproductive Immunology, Embryology, and Assisted Reproductive Technology to graduate students, residents, and fellows. He takes great pride in his embryology team members, many of whom are currently well-known ART Laboratory Directors. The REI fellows associated with him are successful fertility practitioners all around the world. Navid is an active member of the American, Canadian, and European Societies for Reproductive Medicine and is board certified through the American Association of Bioanalysis as a High Complexity Laboratory Director (HCLD) as well as an Embryology Laboratory Director (ELD). He is also certified as ART Laboratory Director, by the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society (CFAS). Navid has an extensive research background with more than 100 publications in the field of human reproduction and fertility. He is an editorial board member of several medical journals including Fertility Sterility. I have been impressed by the genuine commitment and care that my colleagues in the fertility field bring to this aspect of their work, and would like to play a role in supporting and nurturing these ongoing efforts. I am thankful for being nominated by my colleagues to run for the New England Fertility Society office of Vermont Member-at-Large. It will be my privilege to represent the VT members for a two-year term. I am hoping to get to know the research interests of my peers at NEFS and develop a collaborative research program across New England with the ultimate goal of exploring options for the reproductive and fertility futures of patients. It would be ideal to avoid possible duplication of research effort and to better share resources and funding for research projects among NEFS members.

MAINE MEMBER AT LARGE CANDIDATE

Ben Lannon, MD
Reproductive Endocrinologist, Boston IV

INDUSTRY CANDIDATES

Tony Basile
NE Reproductive Specialist – Progenity
As a member of the Society for the past 8 years, I appreciate the nomination and a chance to offer my experience as a result orientated professional in clinical, marketing and networking abilities in the Reproductive Medicine Industry. I have recruited several members for NEFS in the past and have made many partnerships and friends over the past years in this scope of Fertility. I am always impressed with the hard work and dedication with all the professional I have met and been able to work with. I offer a collaboration of skills to the Board with networking, promoting, and strategic business execution to meet the never ending challenges and opportunities that NEFS and the people involved in our industry face on a regular and consistent basis. I have had several levels of marketing and sales responsibilities and presently the New England Reproductive Specialist of New England for Progenity. Thank you for this unique and special opportunity to serve and look forward to our organizations continued success.

Dana L. Cappello
Strategic Account Manager – Allergan
I am honored to be nominated once again to serve New England Fertility Society as a candidate for the office of Industry-Member-At-Large for 2016. I have been a dedicated member of and contributor to the society since 2011 and enjoyed being part of the executive committee in 2015. I currently am a Strategic Account Manager with Allergan, focusing on a portfolio of medications in Women’s Health, including Fertility. I have been servicing fertility clinics in New England for the past four years building strong partnerships with providers as well as being dedicated to their practices and patients. My experience goes beyond my professional scope. Fertility treatment is near and dear to my family and me, and I have personal experiences that drive my passion in this specialty. Please rely on me to bring the most up-to-date knowledge of industry trends and experiences at any time. I am and have been committed to attending and participating in the NEFS quarterly and annual meetings with the utmost ethical principles.

Teru Jellerette-Nolan, PhD, MS, TS(ABB)
Medical Science Liaison Ferring Pharmaceuticals
I am honored to have been nominated by my peers for the member-at-large for Industry. I am currently the Medical Science Liaison in the Northeast for Ferring Pharmaceutical. I am a New England native and have been an active member of NEFS for many years. Prior to my position at Ferring I enjoyed a long career as a Reproductive Physiologist and Senior Embryologist with greater than 10 years of experience in clinical research and Embryology. As Assistant Professor, my research sought to understand several molecular causes of infertility. As an Embryologist, I had the honor of helping numerous patients achieve parenthood. I have enjoyed my transition to Ferring where I am able to continue to support my colleagues; the dedicated physicians, nurses, embryologists, scientists, mental health and support staff in the field of ART. I believe my background provides a unique perspective that will help to support the mission of the New England Fertility Society.

Paul Kaplan, Ph.D., HCLD (AAB)
Senior Manager – Ferring
I am a Senior Manager in the Medical Affairs Division at Ferring Pharmaceuticals. My goal is to increase participation and support of industry in NEFS educational programs. Thank you for your consideration.

Ruth E. Saremi
Thought Leader Liaison, EMD Serono
Ruth Saremi has been working for EMD Serono for over 13 years now. Most of her time with EMD Serono has been in sales as both a Key Account Manager and a Strategic Account Manager. Ruth was promoted to a Thought Leader Liaison in 2012. This is a field based marketing position and there are only 6 positions like this in the division. Ruth manages the North East and also travels the country if need be. Besides managing key accounts in her area, Ruth works on special initiatives including a focus on the Onco-fertility and social preservation patient. She developed the strategy for the LGBTQ patient focus within our company and was able to launch their first LGBTQ advisory board this year with some of our very own NEFS members as part of this board. Ruth has been a member of NEFS for 13 years and has served as the Member at Large for Industry in the past. Since Fertility trends are constantly changing and she is in a marketing role, Ruth feels that she would be a great fit for this position and can bring her skills and knowledge to the team

NURSING MEMBER AT LARGE CANDIDATE

Franci Sheehan
Senior Clinician and Nurse Manager - New England Fertility
Franci Sheehan has a Masters in maternal and child health nursing from Boston College and is a Women's health care nurse practitioner. She began her career in infertility in 1989 working with Selwyn Oskowitz MD at Boston IVF and was a member of the Boston Fertility Society. After moving to Connecticut in 1995. Franci has worked at Connecticut Fertility, Park Avenue Fertility and was on the faculty at Yale University. Since 2008 she has worked as senior clinician and nurse manager at New England Fertility in Stamford , Ct. Franci has been a member of ASRM for more than 20 years As a member of the NEFS board I would like to work towards educating nurses to enable them to practice more independently.

LEGAL MEMBER AT LARGE CANDIDATE

Lee Collins, JD
Partner, Ropes and Gray and RESOLVE
I am grateful to be nominated to serve NEFS, where I have been a member for many years and on the board for the past year. In the infertility field, I am a patient advocate. A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School and formerly a litigation partner with Ropes & Gray in Boston, my personal experience of secondary infertility led to my interest in the cause of infertility awareness and advocacy. Among other efforts, I volunteer my time with RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association to defeat legislative initiatives such as "embryo personhood" bills and ballot initiatives that would interfere with IVF and other needed treatments, and I co-wrote the bill to expand the Massachusetts infertility insurance mandate, which became law in 2010. I served on the RESOLVE Board of Directors from 2002-2012 and was re-elected in 2014. I write and give presentations regularly and have won awards for patient advocacy, including RESOLVE's Barbara Eck Founder's Award in 2014. I served on the Board of RESOLVE of the Bay State, 2001-2009, and the Howard and Georgeanna Jones Foundation for Reproductive Medicine from 2004 to 2014. I currently serve as a member of the Ethics Committee of ASRM. I believe strongly in giving back to a field that has meant so much to me, and I would like to offer to NEFS my background in public policy at a time when we all recognize the growing importance of legislative action and policy.

BEHAVIORAL MENTAL HEALTH MEMBER AT LARGE CANDIDATES

Alice Domar, PhD
Domar Center for Mind/Body Health
Alice D. Domar, PhD is a pioneer in the application of mind/body medicine to women's health issues. She not only established the first Mind/Body Center for Women's Health, but also conducts ongoing ground-breaking research in the field. Her research focuses on the relationship between stress and different women's health conditions, and creating innovative programs to help women decrease physical and psychological symptoms. She is the founder of the Mind/Body Program for Infertility and is one of the top experts on the stress/fertility connection. Dr. Domar received her M.A. and Ph.D. in Health Psychology from Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Ferkauf School of Professional Psychology of Yeshiva University. Her post-doctoral training was at Beth Israel Hospital, Deaconess Hospital, and Children’s Hospital, all in Boston. She has conducted research on infertility, breast cancer, menopausal symptoms, ovarian cancer, and premenstrual syndrome. Dr. Domar has earned an international reputation as one of the country's top women's health experts. She is currently the Executive Director of the Domar Centers for Mind/Body Health, and the Director of Mind/Body Services at Boston IVF. She is an associate professor, part-time, of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology at Harvard Medical School, and a senior staff psychologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Dr. Domar has compiled an impressive list of accomplishments as a best-selling author, media authority and sought-after public speaker. She is the author of numerous books including “Six Steps to Increased Fertility” and “Conquering Infertility”, and is on the Board of Directors of Resolve, the National Infertility Association. She has been on the Board of Experts for LLuminari and a columnist for Redbook and Health magazines. She was also a featured expert on the online social health network BeWell.com. Three of her books have been finalists for the Books for a Better Life Award. She was also the Series Editor for a series of mind/body books by Harvard Medical Publications/Simon and Schuster. She is the narrator of the DVD’s “Stress and Relaxation Explained” and “Infertility Explained”, both of which won silver Telly Awards. Dr. Domar has appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, Dateline NBC, CNN, PBS, and the CBS and NBC Evening News, to name a few. She presents lectures and conducts workshops throughout the US and around the world and went on tour with Oprah in the spring of 2004 and 2005 with the LLuminari team. Dr. Domar was named to the prestigious list of 15 “Women to Watch in 2004” by Lifetime TV and the top experts in women’s health by Mind/Body Green in 2015. Her newest book, “The Stress Bump” will be coming out in 2016.

Susan Levin, LICSW
IVF New England/Boston IVF
Susan Levin is a clinical social worker and has worked in the field of infertility and reproductive and women’s health since 1978. In her capacity as a member of a medical team and a private practitioner she has provided consultation to other providers and their patients. Susan is published in this field and has also helped to develop many of the protocols used in the infertility practices she has been affiliated. Her interest in reproductive issues started at the Beth Israel Hospital where she was a staff clinician in OBGYN and Director of psychological services for the BI Infertility clinic. She is currently a member of the counseling department at IVFNE/Boston IVF and has worked there since 2003. Susan has been a member of ASRM for over 30 years. For the past 37 years Susan has continuously been a member of multidisciplinary medical teams. Through this experience she has developed an interest in the process of integrating behavioral health services into medical practices. As the Member-at-Large Mental/Behavioral Health Susan would continue to bring her experience and this perspective to the board.

Elisabeth Morray, PhD
Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates
Susan I am a licensed psychologist in at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, where I serve as the Consulting Psychologist for the Center for Fertility and Reproductive Health. I also maintain a private practice where many of the patients with whom I work are struggling with issues related to fertility and pregnancy loss. For the past six years I have been a Health Expert for the Kotex brand, contributing content to their brand website and consulting in the context of women's health concerns. I completed my doctorate at the University of Texas at Austin, where my dissertation focused on the impact of fertility treatment on individual and relational distress, and particularly how these mental health consequences are influenced by gender role conformity. Trained in both individual and group therapy, I have co-led Mind/Body groups for fertility patients at Harvard Vanguard, worked with individuals and couples, and led trainings for medical staff on the emotional sequellae of fertility treatment. I am also interested in the application of energy psychology techniques, including EFT, to treat trauma related to pregnancy loss. As a committee member, it would be my goal to be a voice for the emotional needs of fertility patients, as well as for the medical staff who strive to meet these needs in an effective and empathic manner.

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