We are excited to host our 4th Annual DFW Student Summit organized by our ACHE of North Texas Student Council!

This event is geared toward current healthcare administration students preparing to move into a healthcare career, already in a healthcare occupation and nearing graduation, or recently graduated and employed in their first healthcare position. We welcome all those who are interested in learning more about the industry.

The agenda will consist of two panel discussions and conclude with a Keynote after lunch.

Please join us on Saturday, February 17 from 8:30am – 2:30pm at the UTA Fort Worth Center, 1401 Jones St, Fort Worth, 76102.

A special thanks to the University of Texas at Arlington for hosting this event at their Fort Worth Campus!

Event Itinerary

8:30am-8:50am: Coffee, Check-in, and Registration

8:50am-9:00am: Welcome and Introductions

9:00am-10:30am: Healthcare Operations Panel

• Crystal Brown, MBA; Vice President & Chief Operating Officer; Methodist Mansfield Medical Center
• Justin Pond; Chief Operating Officer; Baylor Scott & White Health Waxahachie
• Loren Fouch, LCSW; Chief Executive Officer; Millwood Hospital
• Gregory Chelsey, MHA; Chief Operations Officer; Medical Specialists Associated

10:30am-10:50 am– Break

10:50am-12:20pm– AI Healthcare

• Harvey Castro, M.D., MBA, FACEP; CEO of Convo with GPT, CCOO at Vitel Health

• Nick Kagal, FACHE; Vice President of Business Development, Customer Success; SpinSci Technologies
• Pamela Salyer, PhD, RN, NI-BC; BS, MS and Ph.D. in Nursing; Houston Methodist
• Ogan Gurel, MD; BioHealth Innovation Specialist at the University of Texas – Arlington; Multi-Interprofessional Center for Health Informatics (MICHI)

12:20pm-1:05pm – Lunch and Networking

1:05pm-1:50pm – Keynote

Speaker: Alexis Burnett; Division Vice President of Surgical & Procedural Services; Medical City Healthcare

2:00pm-2:30pm – Optional Networking

Register Here

Speakers Bios:

Crystal Brown, MBA, is a native of the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. She serves as the Vice President & Chief Operating Officer at Methodist Mansfield Medical Center in Mansfield, TX. In this role she is focused on service line growth & development, operational efficiency, and patient experience. At Methodist Health System, she serves on the W.O.M.E.N Women of Methodist Enrichment Network to foster the growth and development of women within the organization. She is also active in the Mansfield community and serves on the Mansfield ISD Education Foundation Board.

Crystal has a strong passion for personal and professional development that has been sharpened with over 24 years of experience in Human Resources, Supply Chain, and Hospital Operations. She is a proud graduate of Texas Woman’s University where she received her Master’s in Business Administration. She is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives serving on the Women Healthcare Executives Network Committee and the Board of Directors, National Association of Health Services Executives, and the Girls Scouts of Northeast Texas serving on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Corporate Council Committee.

Crystal has received numerous awards for her transformational leadership style. In June of 2023, she was awarded the Dr. Marion J. Brooks “Legend in the Making” award for her contributions in healthcare. In October of 2023, she was honored with the ACHENTX Executive Servant Leader Regent’s Award. She is passionate about the growth & development of girls, women, and healthcare leaders and often volunteers at local events, conferences, and colleges to donate her time and expertise.

Alexis Burnett is currently the division vice president of surgical and procedural services for Medical City Healthcare, a division of HCA healthcare. Additionally, she leads the abdominal transplant and robotics service lines across the 16-hospital system. A proud graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington, she was inspired to pursue a career in nursing and subsequently decided to advance her knowledge by obtaining a master’s in business administration and a doctorate in business administration. She is also certified in patient safety.

With almost 13 years in the healthcare industry, her passion is helping others. Initially rooted in helping patients, she found her calling in leadership. She finds joy in mentoring and helping other healthcare professionals advance their own careers.

When Alexis isn’t at work, she is chauffeuring her children to sports or trying to find time for a run.

Dr. Harvey Castro is a Physician, Author, CEO, and AI Healthcare Advisor.  With over two decades of experience as a physician, entrepreneur, and former CEO of a healthcare system, Dr. Castro expanded his influence into healthcare management, working with physicians, and integrating healthcare management into modern practices.

His commitment to revolutionizing healthcare through AI has led him to serve as a Strategic Advisor for ChatGPT & Healthcare. Dr. Castro aims to create a seamless symbiosis between healthcare professionals, AI developers, and innovative AI solutions. Healing with Data, One Byte at a Time.

Gregory D. Chesley, MHA, is the Chief Operations Officer for Medical Specialists Associated in Dallas, Texas. He holds a master’s degree in Health Administration (MHA) from the University of Southern California. His undergraduate degree is from Mercyhurst University in Erie, PA with a double major in Finance and Marketing and a minor in Business Administration.

In 1996, he relocated to Dallas and began his career in the healthcare field as a staff accountant with HCA covering 23 ambulatory surgery centers. His career progressed to an ophthalmology physician practice management company (Physicians Resource Group) as a senior accountant. In 1999, he took a financial analyst position with another specialty physician practice management company (CareSelect). He ended his time at CareSelect as the Director of Purchasing, Planning, and Development.

Greg assumed the helm of Texas Cardiac Associates as the Chief Executive Officer in 2001 until their acquisition in 2015. During the acquisition he became the Practice Administrator – Dallas Market, covering over 8 locations and 14 specialty providers, for Tenet Healthcare. In 2016, the organization transitioned ownership to the Baylor Scott & White Health System. Upon that transition he became the Practice Administrator III for the East Dallas Region over Cardiology and Pulmonology. In this role he managed 14 locations, 20 specialty providers, 120+ employees for Baylor Scott & White.

In 2019 Greg became the Regional Market Director – Dallas / Ft. Worth for DispatchHealth. Dispatch Health is a mobile urgent / acute care option focused on decreasing the cost of healthcare through the reduction of emergency department utilization. In this role he managed the relationships with strategic partners, payors, providers, and consumers. In 2021 Greg took over as the Vice President of Operations for Premier Management Company (ACO). He was responsible for three Accountable Care Organizations spanning four states managing multiple provider offices, ventures, and Medicare Advantage contracts.

Currently, Greg is the Chief Operations Officer for Medical Specialists Associated. He is responsible for the operational, financial, and clinical oversight of an independent provider group of 15 internal medicine specialists. We also offer external consulting and RCM services to external private practice groups in the local North Texas area.

In addition, Greg is an Adjunct instructor for the Executive Master of Health Administration program at the University of Southern California. He teaches Strategic Management, Operations Management, and Leading People in Healthcare Organizations.

On a personal note, Greg is the husband of a fellow USC Alumni and father to a 5 year old boy. In his free time, Greg is an avid martial artist and holds the ranks of Godan (5th Degree) in two styles of martial arts and a Sandan in Jujutsu. He enjoys traveling, running, and biking.

Loren Fouch, LCSW is the CEO of Millwood Hospital, a 134 bed inpatient behavioral health facility in Arlington Tx with and 4 outpatient clinics across the DFW Metroplex. Loren is a licensed clinical social worker and has worked in a wide variety of behavioral health settings throughout her career to include inpatient and outpatient settings, crisis intervention teams with local law enforcement, schools, emergency departments, and medical social work. She began her career working in West Africa as an intern and developed a passion for social work and advocating for underrepresented communities. After receiving her Master of Science in Social Work from The University of Texas at Austin she has spent her career in the great state of Texas. Her clinical specialties have been around child and adolescent mental health to include play therapy and family interventions. AS she transitioned into administrative roles, she found that her clinical experiences assisted in bringing a human-centered approach to both leadership and providing care to those in need. Her passion is helping individuals and families find a place of peace and understanding along their recovery.

Dr. Ogan Gurel has had a wide-ranging career spanning clinical medicine, scientific research, industry and academia. He currently serves as a BioHealth Innovation Specialist at the University of Texas – Arlington and the Multi-Interprofessional Center for Health Informatics (MICHI). Dr. Gurel has had an extensive career in healthcare innovation with familiar names such as IBM, Samsung, Booz Allen as well as dozens of startups worldwide. Bridging the worlds of industry and academia, he has also held previous academic appointments as a Visiting Professor at the Solbridge International School of Business, Vice-Chair & Distinguished Invited Professor in the Management of Innovation program at DGIST (Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science & Technology) as well as Honorary Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Adjunct Professor of Bioengineering at the University of Illinois – Chicago and Roosevelt University. Dr. Gurel’s over 35 years of experience spans multiple sectors: biomedical science, clinical medicine, strategy consulting, marketing, business development, executive management, marketing, and R&D management, with domain expertise in medical devices, digital healthcare, healthcare IT, molecular biophysics, and medical imaging. Prior to surgical training at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr. Gurel obtained an MD degree Alpha Omega Alpha from the Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, also doing graduate work in structural biology (M.Phil degree) and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Biochemical Sciences cum laude from Harvard College working with Prof. Martin Karplus (Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2013). Authoring 14 peer-reviewed scholarly papers (as well as a novel, Waves), presenting nearly 200 conference proceedings, and co-inventor on ten patent applications (four granted), Dr. Gurel has also given keynote addresses and other speeches at scientific and business conferences and seminars worldwide. He has taught the mini-MD, a comprehensive overview of medicine for healthcare professionals for the past decade in locations worldwide, including South Korea, the United States, Italy, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand.

Nick Kagal is the Vice President of Business Development and leads Customer Success for SpinSci Technologies, a healthcare technology solutions provider focused on driving patient engagement. Nick previously led Customer Success for the Western United States for Premier Inc.’s Performance Services division supporting informatics solutions and services focused on cost, quality, and safety. He has over 25 years of experience in the healthcare industry and has held leadership roles with several Dallas/Fort Worth health systems including Parkland Health & Hospital System, Medical Center of Plano, and HealthSouth.

Nick received his BA in Biology and psychology from Austin College and holds an MBA from Texas A&M University. He is a Fellow of both the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) and the Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), a board member of DFW HIMSS, and a Commissioner on the City of Plano Cultural Arts Commission. Nick serves on various ACHE committees including Advancement (a former chair), Education, and is a co-chair of the Asian Healthcare Leaders Community (AHLC). Nick lives in Plano, Texas, and is an avid sports fan, a weekend warrior athlete, a long-distance cyclist, and plays guitar & bass in the local cover band Sonic Dissonance.

Justin Pond serves as the Chief Operating Officer at Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – Waxahachie. He first joined the Baylor Scott & White family in 2011 as a registered nurse in the emergency department and moved to the administrative team in 2015.

A native of North Carolina, Justin received a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He completed his Master of Business Administration from Baylor University. Prior to joining the healthcare industry, he served in the United States Marine Corps.

He is a board member of the United Way of West Ellis County and former Chair of the Texas Hospital Association Leadership Development Council. His experiences in the military and healthcare helped him to uncover a passion to serve others.

Justin and his wife, Kristen, enjoy spending time with their two children, James and Ellie. They love to travel and can frequently be found anywhere there are mountains to hike.

Pamela Salyer, PhD, RN, NI-BC is a Texas Woman’s University (TWU) Alumni, with a B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in Nursing. She has worked at Houston Methodist for 42 years, with 34 of those years in Information Technology, doing every aspect of IT from product selection and procurement to post-implementation review of and strategic planning for clinical and corporate systems. She served as Corporate Compliance Officer for the IT Division for five years before leaving Houston Methodist in 2008 to assist in setting up

the Gulf Coast Regional Extension Center at the University of Texas (UT) School of Biomedical Informatics. She returned to Houston Methodist in 2012, becoming the Project Manager for the Chief Information Officer and a Consultant for the Houston Methodist Center for Innovation. In addition to her work at Houston Methodist, Dr. Salyer taught the Information Management class in the MHA Program at TWU for 24 years, and graduate-level Project Management and Systems Analysis at the UT School of Biomedical Informatics for 11 years. She is ANCC-certified in Nursing Informatics, with expertise in IT regulatory and legal compliance, electronic medical records, analytics, and healthcare technology innovation.

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