OUTSTANDING FACULTY REPRESENTING REAL-WORLD EXPERIENCE

"Great speakers presenting invaluable information that will change your organization in every way."
         - Pinnacle 2007 attendee

Pinnacle 2008 has gathered the most knowledgeable, most experienced faculty on the topics presented. You’ll receive up-to-the-minute information, insight into emerging trends and real-world tools you can put to use your next day on the job.

ROD BALLARD is the deputy fire chief of EMS for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department and president of San Diego Medical Enterprises. He has more than 30 years of EMS experience.

SCOTT BOURN is the national director of clinical programs for American Medical Response. He is an author, researcher and educator.

DAVID CARTER is the director of FirstHealth EMS, a regional service in Pinehurst, North Carolina. He previously directed the Children’s Hospital of Dallas Critical Care Transport Service and is the winner of the Pinnacle 2007 Award of Excellence.

DREW DAWSON is the chief of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA’s) EMS Division. He is the former EMS director for the state of Montana.

STEPHEN DEAN, PhD is the director of corporate training at Paramedics Plus in Oklahoma City. He completed his doctoral work at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, where he remains an adjunct professor in the Emergency Health Services graduate program.

JAMES DUNFORD, MD, FACEP is the medical director for the City of San Diego EMS and a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego.

JACK EADES is the executive director of the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority/MedStar in Fort Worth, Texas. He formerly served as the city manager of the city of Burleson, Texas.

JAMES (JIM) EASTHAM, JR., ScD is the chief executive officer of CentreLearn Solutions, LLC. He has more than 30 years of experience in emergency health services research, administration and education. Jim served on the Board of Directors of the National Association of EMS Educators and the Continuing Education Coordinating Board for Emergency Medical Services.

JOSEPH (JAY) FITCH, PhD, is the founder of the leading EMS/public safety consulting firm, Fitch & Associates. Jay is an author and leader with more than 30 years of consulting and major EMS system change management experience in all sectors, in addition to having worked as a paramedic and EMS director.

PHIL FORGIONE is the chief operating officer of San Diego Medical Enterprises, a partnership between Rural/Metro of San Diego, a branch of Rural/Metro Corporation and the city of San Diego.

JEFF FORSTER is a chief officer with Rocky Mountain Fire Control in Boulder, Colorado. He is the founder of Pridemark Paramedics in Arvada, Colorado, where he served as president and chief executive officer until 2005.

GUILLERMO FUENTES is the chief administrative officer of the Niagara Regional Police Service. He is the former associate director of EMS in Niagara, Ontario, Canada, and the former deputy director of operations for Urgentes-Santé, the EMS system for Montreal, Canada.

MARION GARZA is one of the most respected journalists in the EMS field. She is the editor of the EMS Insider and the news director for JEMS, the Journal of Emergency Medical Services.

BRANDON GRAHAM is the associate director of the Response to Emergencies and Disasters Institute (READI) at George Washington University. He previously served as the WMD operations program coordinator at the Texas Engineering Extension service at Texas A&M University, as well as in fire/EMS leadership positions and as a reserve police officer in the District of Columbia.

FRANK GRESH is the chief information officer for EMSA/Paramedics Plus in Tulsa/Oklahoma City and is an expert in technology requirements for both communications and administrative applications.

BRUCE GRIFFITHS is the chief executive officer of Organization Systems International, a firm specializing in consulting and training in management and leadership processes. He has worked with clients such as Nike, Hallmark, Disney and Wendy’s and is the developer of the Competency & Career Compass tool used by Fitch & Associates.

JOANNE HAYES-WHITE is the chief of the San Francisco Fire Department. A career firefighter, she is the city’s first female chief. She served in a leadership role in the Fire Department after it absorbed the San Francisco Department of Health Paramedic Division in 1997.

A.J. HEIGHTMAN is the editor in chief of JEMS, the Journal of Emergency Medical Services. He is also the editorial director for all Elsevier Public Safety publications. A.J. has served as a vice president of Jems Communications, director of the Emergency Care Information Center and director of the Jems Conference Division.

DOUGLAS HOOTEN is the director of the Metropolitan Ambulance Services Trust (MAST), the public utility model system serving Kansas City, Missouri, and one of the earliest high-performance EMS systems. He previously directed services in Tennessee and Texas.

ALLEN JOHNSON is the chief executive officer of Montgomery County Hospital District, which provides emergency ambulance service and coordinates indigent care in a growing community north of Houston. He is a member of the Governor’s EMS & Trauma Advisory Council in Texas.

DONALD JONES is the vice president of business development for health care at Qualcomm Inc., a leader in wireless communication. Donald spent 22 years developing and growing health care enterprises. He previously served as the chief operating officer of MedTrans and as senior vice president of marketing for HealthCap, then the second-largest provider of women’s health care in the United States.

RICHARD KELLER is a partner at the EMS/public safety consulting firm Fitch & Associates. A leading authority on the economics of EMS, he has reviewed and designed high-performance EMS systems, and frequently consults on finance, reimbursement and system design issues.

JOSH KRIMSTON is an engineer/paramedic with the Bonita Fire Department in San Diego County. He also serves as the director of operations for EPIC Medics, a community-based nonprofit organization dedicated to mobilizing EMS personnel to help prevent childhood injuries.

ANGELA MARR leads a team of professionals whose aim is to strengthen the ability of state injury and violence-prevention programs. As an epidemiologist at the CDC, Angela was named leader of the Division of Injury Response Program Team in February 2005.

PAUL MAXWELL is a San Diego area paramedic and the founder of EPIC Medics, a community-based nonprofit organization dedicated to mobilizing EMS personnel to help prevent childhood injuries.

BRIAN McGRATH is president of CAD North and developer of a real-time adaptive CAD training simulator. He is the former manager of communications systems for Toronto EMS, the largest municipal EMS provider in Canada.

DAVID MILLER is the vice president of operations at United Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota, the largest hospital in the eastern Twin Cities area. He is the former director of transportation services at Allina Healthcare.

JERRY OVERTON is the executive director of the Richmond Ambulance Authority. He is a former president of AAA and served as a member of the National Academies of Science IOM/EMS Committee. Jerry has provided technical assistance to EMS systems in Europe, Asia, Australia and Canada.

EDWARD RACHT, MD, is the full-time medical director for the city of Austin/Travis County EMS system. He has been involved in EMS for 20 years and is active at the state, national and international levels. His presentation style is unique, cutting across clinical, administrative and motivational arenas.

R. MICHAEL SCARANO, JR., is a partner and vice-chair of Foley & Lardner’s Health Care Industry Team, a highly regarded national law firm. He speaks regularly before health care organizations and has published numerous articles on a variety of health law topics.

TODD STOUT is the chief executive officer of FirstWatch Solutions Inc. He is an expert in improving productivity and pioneering early detection systems, situational awareness and data awareness software in the EMS community.

MIKE TAIGMAN is an educator, author, consultant, former paramedic and lifelong student. Mike helps EMS leaders and organizations improve the care and service they provide to their communities and has worked with advanced emergency medical systems for more than 20 years.

DAVID WILLIAMS is a senior associate at the EMS/public safety consulting firm Fitch & Associates. He is the researcher and author of the annual JEMS 200-City and Salary & Workforce Surveys. He is the former commander of systemwide quality management for the Austin-Travis County EMS system.

GARY WINGROVE is the director of government relations and affairs for Mayo Clinic Transport in Rochester, Minnesota. In 2006, Gary received a recognition award from the National Organization of State Officers of Rural Health for his help in advancing the State Office of Rural Health Movement and bringing rural health and EMS closer together.

STEVE WIRTH, ESQ., is a partner in the EMS law firm of Page, Wolfberg & Wirth. Steve has 30 years of experience as an EMT, paramedic, flight paramedic, EMS instructor, fire officer, and EMS administrator. He is currently one of the three members of the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS), the national ambulance service accrediting body.

DOUGLAS WOLFBERG, ESQ., is a partner in the EMS law firm Page, Wolfberg & Wirth. Doug has been involved in EMS for more than 25 years, first as an EMS provider and instructor, then as an EMS administrator serving at the county, regional, statewide and federal levels, including the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

CHRISTINE ZALAR is a partner at the EMS/public safety consulting firm Fitch & Associates. A former flight nurse, she has served multiple terms as the chair of the Foundation for Air Medical Research and Education (FARE) and is a consultant expert in air-medical and hospital-based programs.