Special Commission on Osteopathic Medical Licensure Assessment

Dr. Richard LaBaere is the associate dean for graduate medical education, the osteopathic postdoctoral training institution academic officer and an adjunct clinical professor of family medicine at A.T. Still University–Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine (ATSU-KCOM) in Missouri. He has served in various roles as family medicine residency program director, director of medical education and designated institutional official for over 27 years. Dr. LaBaere has presented to local, state and national audiences and has received a number of awards, including the 2006 Osteopathic Family Physician of the Year by the Michigan Association of Osteopathic Family Physicians. He was inducted into the American Osteopathic Association’s Mentor Hall of Fame in 2007 and as a fellow in the collegium of the Association of Osteopathic Directors and Medical Educators in 2008. He joined the NBOME Board of Directors in 2010, and is the current Vice-Chair on the Board of Directors. He also currently serves as a member of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Institutional Review Committee.

Dr. David Kuo is the associate dean for graduate medical education and an associate professor of family medicine at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM). He is also the chief academic officer of PCOM MEDNet. A 1996 graduate of PCOM, Dr. Kuo joined the family medicine faculty in 1999 after completing his internship and residency at PCOM. During his residency, he was appointed as chief resident and was awarded the Vickers Foundation Award in Family Medicine. Remaining actively involved with graduate medical education since he started at PCOM, in 2005 Dr. Kuo was appointed assistant program director for the PCOM family medicine residency program and as program director in 2009. Dr. Kuo began his service to the NBOME as a SOAP Note Rater in 2006 and has since been involved with several NBOME committees. He joined the NBOME Board of Directors in December 2015.

Dr. Brookshield Laurent is chairwoman and associate professor for the department of clinical medicine at New York Institute of Technology-College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYITCOM) at Arkansas State University. She is also the founding executive director for the Delta Population Health Institute, the community engagement arm of NYITCOM. Dr. Laurent’s experience and leadership in family medicine, population health, health equity, and medical education have informed medical curriculum development, leadership development, and community aims of becoming a culture of health through policy, system, and environment change. Dr. Laurent is a fellow of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine’s Osteopathic Health Policy Fellowship and is also a fellow of the Physician Leadership Institute through the American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians. She joined the NBOME Board of Directors in 2020.

Dr. Susan Belanger is the senior vice president for mission integration and the system ethicist at Covenant Health System in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, with an office in Lewiston, Maine. In her more than 30 years of progressive leadership experience, she has served as director of education, training and research at Sibley Memorial Hospital, as well as vice president of nursing and division leader of acute care services at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Lewiston, Maine. Dr. Belanger has published and presented widely on the subject of ethics and has more than 20 years’ experience providing clinical ethics consultations, as well as roles in education and training in programs ranging from in-hospital settings to the university environment. She has considerable experience with the osteopathic profession from her tenure as a hospital vice president in Maine and has earned numerous honors and awards, including being twice honored with the Founder’s Day Award from her alma mater. Dr. Belanger currently serves on the NBOME Board of Directors and the American Osteopathic Association’s Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation as a public member.

Dr. Natasha Bray is the associate dean for academic affairs / accreditation and a clinical associate professor of rural health at the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She also serves as a physician for the Choctaw Nation Health Services Authority, and has previously been the associate dean of clinical medicine at the Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine, as well as the designated institutional official for the North Broward Hospital District in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Dr. Bray is board certified in internal medicine, and was named a Fellow in 2012 by the American College of Osteopathic Internists (ACOI). She has been involved in many committees with several different organizations, a few of which include the Consortium for Excellence in Medical Education, the ACOI, and the Association of Osteopathic Medical Graduate Educators. Dr Bray currently serves as a member of the NBOME National Faculty, a member of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine UME-GME Task Force, as well as a member of the Oklahoma Osteopathic Association. She has also been involved as a member of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education’s (ACGME) Osteopathic Recognition Committee since 2015, and is currently serving as Chair of the committee, as well as serving as the Vice-Chair of the ACGME’s Committee on Review Committee Chairs.

Dr. Alexios Carayannopoulos is the chief of the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Lifespan Physician Group, Newport Hospital, and Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island. He is also a clinical associate professor of neurosurgery at the Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University, and previously served in the United States Navy until 2007. Dr. Carayannopoulos is board certified in both physical medicine and rehabilitation as well as in pain medicine. He completed his residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School and his fellowship in pain medicine at Dartmouth Medical School/Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire. He earned a master’s degree in public health from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and obtained special certification in medical acupuncture from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Carayannopoulos is internationally known as a leader in rehabilitation, interventional spine treatment, and pain medicine. He holds leadership roles for several national and international committees, serving on the Board of Directors of the American Society of Pain and Neuroscience; President of the Rhode Island Society of Interventional Pain Physicians; Vice President of the American Association of Osteopathic Examiners; Co-Chair of the International Neuromodulation Society Young Neuromodulator Committee; Vice-Chair of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine Neuromodulation Special Interest Group; and member-at-large on the American Academy of Physical Medicine Evidence Committee and the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine Research Committee.

Dr. Jane Carreiro is vice president of health affairs and dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine at the University of New England. She is a tenured professor and has served as director of graduate and continuing medical education, and Chair of the department of osteopathic manipulative medicine. Dr. Carreiro currently serves on the HRSA Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry, as well as the Executive Board of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine. She is past chairman of the Board of Directors of the Osteopathic International Alliance and past-president of the American Academy of Osteopathy. She served on the inaugural Osteopathic Recognition Committee for the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and currently serves on their appeals committee. She has been an expert advisor on training and practice guidelines for the World Health Organization. Dr. Carreiro also holds visiting faculty position at the Winer Schule fur Osteopathie in Vienna, Austria and is honorary chief of pediatric manual medicine for the Deutsche Geselishaft fur Osteopathische Medizin (Germany Academy of Osteopathic Medicine). She has served as faculty and medical consultant at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University in Melbourne Australia, the European School for Osteopathy in Maidstone England, and the Osteopathic Centre for Children in London. Her research interests include efficacy of manual medicine on chronic otitis media, and the innervation patterns and functional anatomy of the spine and pelvis. She has published in Spine, Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, and the Journal of the American Academy of Osteopathy. Dr. Carreiro has contributed to many clinical texts and authored Pediatric Manual Medicine and An Osteopathic Approach to Children, both of which have been translated into multiple languages. Dr. Carreiro has received numerous awards for teaching and service including the 2017 William Sutherland Memorial Lecturer; the 2012 Harold H. Blood Memorial Lecturer; and the 2015 Andrew Taylor Still Medallion of Honor. Her clinical practice focuses on the non-pharmaceutical management of pain and other neuro-musculoskeletal disorders in children. She holds board certifications from both the American Osteopathic Board of Family Physicians and the American Osteopathic Board of Special Proficiency in Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine.

Dr. Kristen Conrad-Schnetz is an assistant professor of surgery at Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine through Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. She is also the program director for the general surgery residency program at South Pointe Hospital Cleveland Clinic, in Cleveland, Ohio. Dr. Conrad-Schnetz is board certified in general surgery and surgical critical care, and has previously been awarded a Presidential Citation from the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons (ACOS). She is highly involved in the medical community, with organizations that include the ACOS, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), and the ACOS – Medical Student Section. Currently, Dr. Conrad-Schnetz is the Secretary/Treasurer for the ACOS, is on the Surgery Board of Appeals for the ACGME, and is involved with the Association of Program Directors in Surgery.

Dr. David Forstein is Rocky Vista University’s (RVU) inaugural provost in Parker, Colorado. Before joining RVU, Dr. Forstein was dean and professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine – Harlem Campus. He has a long history as a medical educator, having served as residency director and associate professor of OB/GYN at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine and as a clerkship director at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. A leader in the osteopathic medical world, Dr. Forstein is currently the Chair of the American Osteopathic Association’s Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation and serves on the Board of Directors of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, where he is also Chair of the Committee Requirements. Dr. Forstein has also served in other notable roles including clinical faculty appointments at Clemson University School of Health Research, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey – School of Osteopathic Medicine, Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, and Jefferson Medical College.

Dr. Gregory Harris is a physician at the Harbin Clinic in Rome, Georgia. He graduated from the University of Pikeville Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2010, and went on to complete an internal medicine residency and a hematology/oncology fellowship at the Michigan State University Genesys Regional Medical Center, where he served as chief resident and chief fellow. During his tenure at Genesys Regional Medical Center, Dr. Harris conducted several research studies. Dr. Harris is currently a member with the American Society of Hematology, American College of Osteopathic Internists, the Georgia Osteopathic Medical Association, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and has previously served on the Board of Trustees of the Michigan Osteopathic Association and the Michigan Society of Hematology and Oncology. He currently serves as the Chair of the Bureau of Emerging Leaders and the New Physician in Practice Member of the AOA Board of Trustees.

Student Doctor Dominic Gigliotti is a third-year osteopathic medical student at the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) in Dothan, Alabama. He is also pursuing a Master of Science in Adult Education from Troy University in Dothan, Alabama. Student Doctor Gigliotti is involved with the Council of Osteopathic Student Government Presidents (COSGP), currently serving as the National Medical Education Representative. He is a member of the American Osteopathic College of Pathologists, the American Society for Clinical Pathologists, the Student American Academy of Osteopathy, and the Alabama Osteopathic Medical Association.

Dr. Kurt Heinking is a professor and chairman for the department of osteopathic manipulative medicine at the Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine/Midwestern University (CCOM/MWU) as well as a staff physician for the Family Medicine Clinic at CCOM/MWU, in Chicago, Illinois. He is currently board certified in family medicine, sports medicine and neuromusculoskeletal medicine. Dr. Heinking holds the distinction of Fellow of the American Academy of Osteopathy (FAAO). Dr. Heinking lectures at national and international programs and has numerous scholarly publications. He is an active researcher in both osteopathic manipulative medicine and sports medicine. Dr. Heinking sees patients at the MWU Multispecialty Clinic, in Downers Grove, IL. Dr. Heinking maintains membership to the Illinois Osteopathic Medical Society, American Academy of Osteopathic Family Physicians, American Academy of Osteopathic Sports Medicine, the Cranial Academy, the American Academy of Osteopathy and the American Osteopathic Association. He is involved with the NBOME National Faculty to write and review items, and is also highly involved with the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine’s Educational Council on Osteopathic Principles.

Dr. Joanne Kaiser-Smith is a professor of medicine and the associate dean for graduate medical education (GME) at the Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine (RowanSOM) in Stratford, New Jersey. She has been involved in GME for over 30 years, having previously served as the program director for an internal medicine residency program as well as for a transitional rotating internship. Dr. Kaiser-Smith is board certified by the American Osteopathic Board of Internal Medicine in internal medicine and geriatric medicine.

Student Doctor Brysen Keith is a fourth-year osteopathic medical student at the A.T. Still University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona (ATSU-SOMA) where he is currently based at the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center on West Oahu, Hawaii. He also holds a Master of Bioengineering degree from the University of Colorado, and has been named Student DO of the Year by ATSU-SOMA. Student Doctor Keith is currently serving as the National Clinical Education Representative with the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine’s Council of Osteopathic Student Government Presidents where he advocates for issues impacting 3rd/4th year clinical rotations and licensure. He also is a member of the American College of Physicians, the American College of Osteopathic Internists, and the Hawaii Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons.

Student Doctor Amir Khiabani is a third-year osteopathic medical student at the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) in Dothan, Alabama. He also holds a Master of Health Science with a concentration in Molecular Medicine from the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa, Florida. Student Doctor Khiabani is highly involved in the American Osteopathic Association’s National Student Osteopathic Medical Association (SOMA), currently serving as the National Treasurer. He also has been involved in producing the “D.O. or Do Not” podcast, and is a member of the Emergency Medicine Residents’ Association, the American College of Emergency Physicians, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American Medical Student Association.

Kevin M. Klauer, DO, EJD AOA Dr. Kevin Klauer is the chief executive officer for the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), representing more than 151,000 osteopathic physicians (DOs) and medical students throughout the U.S., and is also a clinical assistant professor at the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. He previously served as chief medical officer for hospital-based services, chief risk officer and executive director of the patient safety organization at TeamHealth, a leading clinician services organization. He also served as a clinical assistant professor at Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine. Outside of full-time professional work, Dr. Klauer is involved in and has been recognized by numerous health care organizations. He was honored by the American College of Osteopathic Emergency Physicians with the 2018 Outstanding Educator of the Year award. Dr. Klauer was elected to the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) board of directors in October 2016 and he previously served as ACEP Council Speaker. Dr. Klauer also serves as the medical editor-in-chief for ACEP Now, ACEP’s monthly publication, and was editor-in-chief for Emergency Physicians Monthly.

Dr. Janice Knebl is the UNT Regents Tenured Professor and Dallas Southwest Osteopathic Physicians Endowed Chair in Geriatrics and the interim chair, department of internal medicine and geriatrics at the University of North Texas Health Science Center Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNTHSC/TCOM) in Fort Worth, Texas. She is a pioneer in the treatment of older adults and has made a lasting impact on geriatric training for osteopathic medical students and health care professionals. She continues an active clinical geriatrics practice providing care in the ambulatory clinic setting, house calls, nursing homes and assisted living communities, in addition to being a medical director of several nursing facilities. Dr. Knebl is very active on a national level in the osteopathic profession, and has been the Chair of NBOME Board of Directors and the American Osteopathic Association’s Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (AOA COCA). She has recently graduated from the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine’s prestigious Osteopathic Health Policy Fellowship and now participates as an Alumni Osteopathic Health Policy Fellow and was recently appointed to the National Quality Forum Geriatrics and Palliative Care Standing Committee. Dr. Knebl has received numerous awards in her more than 30 years of service, which include the Unsung Hero Award from the AOA and the UNTHSC President Faculty Excellence Award in Research.

Dr. Sharon Obadia is an associate professor and the associate dean of clinical education and services at the A.T. Still University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona (ATSU-SOMA) in Mesa, Arizona. She was previously the chair of the clinical science education department and the co-course director for medical skills courses for OMS I and II for ATSU-SOMA. Dr. Obadia is a general internist, certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine. After leaving residency, Dr. Obadia immediately began supervising residents, interns, and medical students in her previous residency program’s internal medicine outpatient clinic, while also volunteering to see patients for the Healthcare for the Homeless Clinic in downtown Phoenix. She has been recognized for her achievements to the osteopathic community, with awards such as the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award presented by The Arnold P. Gold Foundation. She is currently a fellow with the National Association of Osteopathic Medical Educators, a member of the NBOME National Faculty, and a member of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine’s Society of Medical Educators Steering Committee.

Dr. Barbara Walker has had an extensive career in academic medicine, medical leadership and regulation, always working to improve patient care. A past-president of the American Association of Osteopathic Examiners, a member of the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB), and a past member and President of the North Carolina Medical Board (NCMB), now working as a consultant with the NCMB Office of the Medical Director, Dr. Walker has tirelessly advocated for osteopathic credentials and qualifications, contributing to the universal acceptance of COMLEX-USA for licensure by the NCMB, FSMB, and all of the nation’s state medical and osteopathic medical licensing boards. In addition, she is an osteopathic family physician, a medical educator, a former residency program director in Wilmington, NC, a past American Osteopathic Association trustee, and President Emeritus of the North Carolina Osteopathic Medical Association. In recognition of her service to patients, Dr. Walker has received numerous awards, both civilian and military, including medals for service stateside and overseas operations in Yugoslavia, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Southwest Asia.

Dr. Michael Wieting is the senior associate dean and a professor of osteopathic manipulative medicine as well as physical medicine and rehabilitation at the Lincoln Memorial Debusk College of Osteopathic Medicine (LMU-DCOM) in Harrogate, Tennessee. He has impacted the lives of countless future physicians in his 25 years in osteopathic medical education, and in addition to his classroom teaching and clinical practice, Dr. Wieting spends much of his time mentoring individual students and assisting them with both academics and preparations for the residency match and future careers. Dr. Wieting also serves as the President of the American Association of Osteopathic Examiners and President of the Tennessee Board of Osteopathic Examiners, and Immediate Past Chair of the Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists for the American Osteopathic Association (AOA). He is the Vice President of the International Society of Communication in Medical Education, a global interdisciplinary research center dedicated to improvement of quality and safety of health care worldwide focusing on communication through research in communication science. Dr. Wieting is a member of the NBOME National Faculty serving on the Test Accommodations and Liaison Committees as well as the COMAT FBS Body Systems Task Force, and was previously awarded the 2018 Educator of the Year from the American Osteopathic Foundation and the 2019 Physician of the Year for the Tennessee Osteopathic Medical Association.