Scientific Advisory Boards

Cardiologist Dr. Vinh Chau is a practicing heart failure cardiologist and faculty member at Advocate Heart Institute, Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois. Board certified in internal medicine, cardiology and advanced heart failure and transplantation, he has a clinical interest in cardiometabolic management in heart failure. Dr. Chau also is also site principal investigator for clinical trials and trainee-initiated research projects related to cardiovascular disease. An author of numerous peer-reviewed journal articles in his field, he also co-directs the monthly Advocate Christ Heart Failure Lecture Series and annual Advocate Christ Heart Failure Symposium. 

Dr. Chau is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Medicine. Following an internal medicine residency at the Medical University of South Carolina, he completed a cardiology fellowship at VCU Medical Center, and then finished his training in advanced heart failure at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. 

Dr. Nihar Desai is an associate professor of medicine and associate chief of the Section of Cardiovascular Medicine at Yale University School of Medicine, an investigator at Yale’s Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation, and executive director for value innovation at the Yale New Haven Health System Heart and Vascular Center. His interests focus on cardiovascular health services and comparative effectiveness research, examining patterns of care, identifying opportunities to improve clinical outcomes, and evaluating the impact of novel care delivery systems on cost and quality. In addition, he serves as a clinical consultant on the CMS acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, and coronary artery bypass graft surgery readmission and mortality measures.

He graduated with highest honors from Lehigh University before completing an internship in the Clinton White House. He then earned a medical degree from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine before earning a master’s from the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Desai completed his residency in internal medicine as well as his clinical fellowship in cardiovascular medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. He then completed a research fellowship at the TIMI Study Group with Dr. Eugene Braunwald.  His scholarly work has been published in New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of the American Medical Association, Circulation, and the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 

Dr. Ashvin N. Pande is a clinical associate professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and attending physician at Boston Medical Center, where he is director of Invasive Cardiology and the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory. He oversees quality, performance and medical education in the interventional cardiology section, has clinical expertise in complex coronary, peripheral vascular, and advanced structural heart interventions, and has been instrumental in the development of institutional interdisciplinary programs in valvular heart disease and venous thromboembolism.

A graduate of Harvard College and Duke University School of Medicine, Dr. Pande completed post-graduate training in internal medicine, cardiovascular medicine and interventional cardiology at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. Board certified in internal medicine, cardiovascular disease, interventional cardiology and endovascular medicine, Dr. Pande is a member of the American College of Cardiology and a Fellow of the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions. He has served as site principal investigator for national trials in carotid and peripheral arterial disease and revascularization and pulmonary embolism. Dr Pande has also been active in global health over the past 20 years, including educational, service and teaching programs to Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Cuba and China, with a focus on program development in interventional cardiology.

Dr. Behzad Pavri is a cardiac electrophysiologist, a professor of medicine, researcher and educator at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with about 40 years of experience. With a focus on electrophysiology, he is an author of more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles, as well as numerous book chapters and abstracts in the field. Dr. Pavri also is a peer reviewer for several leading journals in cardiology.

Dr. Pavri has directed electrophysiology fellowship training programs for three decades, including at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital since 2001. His teaching efforts with medical students, interns and fellows have earned him multiple awards for educational excellence throughout his career.

Dr. Pavri obtained his medical education at the Seth G.S. Medical College, University of Bombay, India and had his internship and residency training in internal medicine at the Harlem Hospital Center, at Columbia University in New York. He completed his cardiology fellowship at the Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and his electrophysiology training at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

Dr. Nomen Azeem is an interventional pain and physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist who has distinguished himself as a practitioner, clinical leader and researcher. He is founder and CEO of Florida Spine and Pain Specialists, which introduced the first successful non-opioid based interventional pain clinic to the Sarasota area. His approach emphasizes engages patients and their families in developing treatment plans so that they understand the cause of the patient’s pain and available treatment options.

Dr. Azeem holds several leadership positions in his field, including: chair of the Foundation of Innovative Spine Procedures, World Academy of Pain Medicine United; president of the  Southeastern Society of Pain Intervention; board member of the Florida Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Foundation; and board member of the American Society of Pain and Neuroscience.

He has authored dozens of peer-reviewed articles, textbook chapters and posters on topics in his field. He has also served also principal investigator on multiple studies assessing the efficacy and safety of new pain interventions, including several ongoing studies. 

A graduate of Ross University School of Medicine, Dr. Azeem completed an internship at Medstar Harbor Hospital Center in Baltimore and a residency at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in Washington, DC, where he was the chief resident. After filling a faculty position at Medstar Georgetown University as a musculoskeletal medicine specialist, he went on to complete an ACGME interventional pain fellowship at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, under the guidance of internationally renowned pain physician Dr. Frank J. E. Falco.

Dr. Brett Carey is a licensed physical therapist who specializes in using computer-aided design and 3D printing to fabricate custom orthoses for hand and foot injuries. Dr. Carey owned his own private practice and also served as a practice management consultant for over a decade before transitioning to serve as an adjunct faculty member for Hawaii Pacific University’s Doctor of Physical Therapy Program. Clinically, he takes on specialty cases as needed, mostly for children with developmental conditions requiring custom medical devices.

Dr. Carey is also a financial advisor, assisting private practices and clinicians with retirement planning and investment selection. Dr. Carey is passionate about nonprofit organizations and currently serves as the board president for Project Expedite Justice, the finance chairman for the Nowell Family Foundation, and chairman for the Hawaii Island Community Health Center Foundation. 

Dr. Joline Heo is a board-certified internal medicine physician and a fellow of the American College of Physicians. She serves as the medical director of managed care for Sutter East Bay Medical Group, a multi-specialty medical group in Northern California with over 300 physicians spanning more than 25 specialties. 

In her role as medical director, she oversees quality improvement projects to help streamline and improve utilization management processes to ensure that managed care patients have a smooth experience in obtaining care from a robust network of providers. Her clinical practice focuses on primary care for adults and managing their chronic health conditions.

Dr. Heo is a graduate of the Boston University School of Medicine and completed her residency at the University of California, Davis.

Patrick Ives is an Illinois-based physical therapist with extensive experience managing orthopedic and neurologic conditions in both outpatient and home health settings. Drawing on deep knowledge of best practice clinical guidelines, he works closely with orthopedic surgeons to address patients’ surgical and non-surgical needs in a seamless care plan. 

With a passion for improving the lives of patients in their own environments, Dr. Ives seeks to provide individualized, comprehensive care that enhances patients’ mobility, independence and overall well-being. He has significant experience working with rural homebound patients, and he works closely with healthcare teams to assess and plan ongoing care to improve patients’ outcome and quality of life. 

He earned a Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Azusa Pacific University in 2018.

Dr. Matthew Walker is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon in Charleston, West Virginia, with more than 20 years of clinical experience. Specializing in spine surgery, he believes in fostering a more connected patient journey, by ensuring the most effective use of physical therapy, imaging, pain management, and surgical procedures.  

Dr. Walker previously served as medical director of musculoskeletal surgery at Evolent, where he oversaw efforts to ensure coordinated, high-quality care for patients experiencing spine and joint pain, as well as other orthopedic conditions.  

Dr. Walker received his medical degree from West Virginia University School of Medicine in Morgantown, receiving multiple awards including the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. He completed his residency in orthopedic surgery at Summa Health Systems, where he was also honored for his research contributions. Dr. Walker later completed an orthopedic spine fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.    

Dr. Shamoona Ahmed is a practicing physician and clinical leader at University Medical Center (UMC), a 564-bed facility in Las Vegas, Nevada. In her role as vice chief of medicine, her duties include improving inpatient clinical services, ensuring evidence-based practice, and overseeing provider performance evaluations and credentialing. As a member of UMC’s Performance Improvement Committee, she has also contributed to efforts to improve patient outcomes and patient safety, as well as efficiency of operations.

Dr. Ahmed is experienced in complex care management in a variety of settings. Since 2012, she has practiced at UMC as a hospitalist, responsible for all aspects of admitting, managing and discharging general medicine and critical care patients, while coordinating closely with subspecialty physicians. She also manages complex patients with acute and chronic conditions for Encompass Rehabilitation Center in Las Vegas.

Dr. Ahmed received her medical degree from Baqai Medical College in Pakistan and completed a residency in internal medicine at UMC. 
 

Dr. Walter Forred is a retired professor of family and community medicine and director of geriatrics at the University of California San Francisco at Fresno. He has over 50 years of experience in primary care and has been residency director at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and the University of Arizona-affiliated Phoenix Baptist Medical Center. He has extensive experience in family medicine, geriatric medicine and aviation medicine.

Dr. Forred has authored articles for peer-reviewed journals and contributed to the Oxford Textbook of Primary Care. He has been a series editor for the Radiologic Decision Making series, which was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Family Physicians, as well as a peer reviewer for Family Practice Management and the Journal of the American Academy of Family Physicians.

Dr. Forred earned his medical degree from the University of Kansas. He served his internship at the Letterman General Army Hospital at the Presidio of San Francisco and his residency at the Silas B. Hayes Army Hospital, Fort Ord, California. He also holds a Certificate in Healthcare Management Development from the Foster College of Business Administration, Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois.
 

Dr. Seth Hardy, an associate professor of radiology with the Penn State Cancer Institute, brings a unique combination of experience as a clinician, researcher, and patient to the work of improving oncology care.

His experience as a leukemia survivor who is currently enrolled in a Phase II trial at the National Institutes of Health has given him a patient's perspective on the delivery of hematology/oncology care, clinical trials and potential shortcomings of our medical system.

As a researcher, Dr. Hardy focuses on the intersection of hematology/oncology, imaging, patient-centered care and value creation. He is currently developing a pilot clinical trial in patients on checkpoint inhibitors to develop imaging biomarkers that may provide efficacy feedback inside the typical 16-week cycle for CT/MR iRECIST.

He is a peer reviewer for Applied Radiology and Clinical Imaging. He has also served on several committees with the American College of Radiology and as a board member of the Pennsylvania Radiological Society.

With a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering, a commercial pilot’s license and an MBA, Dr. Hardy brings perspectives from multiple fields to the work of improving oncology and health care in general.  

Dr. Jihad Kudsi is a bariatric surgeon, clinical leader, entrepreneur and author based in Chicago. He is chair of the Department of Surgery and a member of the Clinical Board of Directors at Duly Health and Care, the largest independent, multi-specialty physician-directed medical group in the Midwest. He also serves as the medical director of bariatric surgery at University of Chicago AdventHealth LaGrange Hospital. Board-certified in general surgery and obesity medicine, he has a special interest in laparoscopic and robotic general surgery, as well as bariatric surgery.

Beyond his clinical practice, Dr. Kudsi is a serial entrepreneur and co-founder of VitaTrends, a bariatric vitamin startup dedicated to addressing the unique nutritional needs of sleeve gastrectomy patients. He is also the author of a patient-focused book on sleeve gastrectomy surgery. 

Dr. Kudsi earned his medical degree from Aleppo University in Syria, completed his general surgery residency at The George Washington University, and pursued a fellowship in minimally invasive surgery at Houston Methodist Hospital. In addition to his medical training, he holds an MBA and a Master of Finance from Indiana University.

Dr. Chintan Modi is a board-certified gastroenterologist with nearly 20 years’ experience who specializes in all aspects of digestive diseases and diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy. He has a special interest in managing complex liver diseases and inflammatory bowel diseases.

Dr. Modi obtained his medical degree from Smt. N.H.L. Municipal Medical College, India. He then completed his internal medicine residency and gastroenterology fellowship at Seton Hall University. Dr. Modi is president and founder of Premier Gastroenterology, a gastroenterology and hepatology private practice in Edison, New Jersey. 

Dr. Modi is a clinical assistant professor at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine in New Jersey. He is a member of the Executive Committee and Peer Review Committee at JFK University Medical Center, part of the Hackensack Meridian Health network. Dr. Modi also serves as a teaching faculty in the gastroenterology fellowship program at Bayonne Medical Center. 
 

Dr. Deepak Sudheendra (aka Dr. Sudi) is a board-certified vascular interventional radiologist and an international leader in the treatment of the complications of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and peripheral artery disease, as well as other complex vascular conditions. He is the medical director of 360 Vascular Institute, the first nationally accredited office-based  interventional radiology practice in  Ohio that he founded in 2022 to focus on comprehensive, personalized vascular care. Previously, he served for more than a decade as founder and director of the DVT & Complex Venous Disease Program at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. The program — which grew to be one of the largest of its kind in the United States — attracted patients from throughout the U.S. and internationally for treatment of complex vascular disease. 

A prolific author of peer-reviews articles and book chapter in his field, Dr. Sudi has delivered numerous presentations internationally and across the U.S. He has also served as an investigator on multiple clinical trials in interventional radiology. Dr. Sudi has trained over 150 residents and fellows and has received awards for his dedication to teaching future physicians. 

Dr. Sudi earned his medical degree from New York Medical College. After nearly four years of general surgery residency at Georgetown University, he completed an interventional radiology research fellowship at the National Institutes of Health. He went on to complete four years of diagnostic radiology residency at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, followed by a fellowship in vascular interventional radiology at the George Washington University Medical Center.
 

Dr. Neelima Thakur is a board-certified neurologist and epileptologist with over 15 years of experience in the diagnosis, monitoring and management of epilepsy. As an assistant professor of neurology at Tufts University School of Medicine, she specializes in advanced epilepsy care, including Video-EEG monitoring for seizure characterization, antiepileptic medication management, intracranial EEG evaluation, and epilepsy surgery assessment.

A graduate of Rangaraya Medical College in India, Dr. Thakur completed her neurology residency at the University of Nebraska Medical Center – Creighton University and pursued a fellowship in clinical neurophysiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.

Beyond clinical practice, Dr. Thakur is deeply committed to advancing epilepsy research, medical education and digital innovations in patient care. She actively mentors medical students and neurology residents while contributing to professional organizations and strategic initiatives that shape the future of epilepsy treatment.

In addition to her expertise in neurology, Dr. Thakur is currently training in integrative medicine and Ayurveda, seeking to incorporate holistic approaches into epilepsy and neurological disorder management. Her dedication to blending modern neuroscience with integrative therapies underscores her mission to enhance patient care through comprehensive, evidence-based treatment strategies.