Shetal I. Shah, MD, FAAP

Dr. Shah is a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Neonatology in the Division of Neonatology, at the State University of New York, Stony Brook and Stony Brook Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Shah graduated Magna Cum Laude from Princeton University, with a degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. He received his MD degree with Honors from Cornell University Medical College in New York City and then completed a residency in pediatrics at Duke University Children’s Hospital in Durham, North Carolina, followed by fellowship in neonatology at New York University School of Medicine, also in New York City.

He serves as Legislative Chairman for the Long Island Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and serves on the New York State American Academy of Pediatrics Policy and Advocacy Committee. Dr. Shah’s work is centered on improving immunization access and delivery for the prevention of disease to newborns, and he has published over 50 peer-reviewed articles related to neonatal care. Bridging his scientific and public policy roles, Dr. Shah’s research and subsequent advocacy through the AAP resulted in the passage of two New York State Laws, the Neonatal Influenza Protection Act, in 2009 and the Neonatal Pertussis Prevention Act in 2012. Both laws will help protect over 50,000 newborns a year from life-threatening vaccine-preventable diseases.

He has worked with state legislators to widen smoking bans across the state, ensure fair payment for vaccination by primary care givers and improve physician negotiation opportunities across the state. He authored the official New York State AAP opposition toward proposals that would reduce the number of children immunized in New York State.

At the federal level, Dr. Shah often advises the Long Island Congressional Delegation on matters related to child health. He has worked with then-Senator Hillary Clinton to expand the State Child Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to pregnant mothers, and sought increased funding for pediatric research and graduate medical education.

A Fulbright Scholar, he received a citation from the 111th United States Congress for his role in advising federal legislators on the impact of health-care reform on children’s health. He is also the recipient of two proclamations from the 112th Congress for his work with the American Academy of Pediatrics.

He has also received an American Medical Association Physician Leadership Award, and multiple AAP research and advocacy awards. His book, Passport to Illness: Voyages in and Out of Medicine recounts his international experiences working in clinics around the world.

Dipesh Navsaria, MPH, MSLIS, MD

Dipesh Navsaria, MPH, MSLIS, MD, is a pediatrician with graduate training in children’s librarianship. An assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, his clinical work is primary care pediatrics at a community health center. Academically, he directs advocacy training for the pediatric residency program and is very recently involved significantly in the Department of Population Health around public health training for medical students.

One of his most proud accomplishments was overseeing the founding of Reach Out and Read Wisconsin, the statewide affiliate for the nationally-renowned early literacy promotion program. Combined with his work on the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Early Brain and Child Development Leadership Group, this has pushed the notion of early literacy promotion into the statewide consciousness as an evidence-guided, scalable model for foundational educational skill development in children at risk.

Dr Navsaria has extensive public engagement and involvement in a variety of child health arenas, including early childhood education, family literacy programs, and professional medical societies. Juggling these priorities can be tricky, and he is fond of quoting the author EB White: "But I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day." 
 
Born in London, raised in New York City, and trained in Boston, Washington DC, and Illinois, he finds the Midwest "agrees with him" and loves Wisconsin dearly. He also appreciates the support of his long-suffering wife, two amazing children, and a handful of animals, including his backyard chickens.

As he states: "I plan to remain at the fascinating intersection of translational science, policy, clinical medicine, public health, and education. Contemporary medicine should move beyond espousing a deep but single-minded interest in one, narrow area and instead encourage the discernment of connections between different fields. I value greatly the skillful diffusion of knowledge and understanding. Too often scientific and other intellectual breakthroughs are shrouded in obscurity. Basic science research may be interesting for its’ own sake, but it isn’t until it is applied to clinical situations, broadened to the population level, reflected in policy, taught to the next generation of clinicians, and shared clearly with the world that, at long last, it blossoms forth fully."

Dr. Kimberly S. G. Chang,MD

Dr. Kimberly S.G. Chang is a family physician and Site Director of the Frank Kiang Medical Center of Asian Health Services (AHS), a comprehensive community health center in Oakland, California’s Chinatown, which provides primary health care services to over 21,000 limited-English-proficient, low-income, and underserved Asian immigrants and refugees annually. Dr. Chang graduated from Columbia University with a B.A. in East Asian Languages and Cultures, and received her medical degree from the University of Hawai’i John A. Burns School of Medicine.  She completed her family medicine residency at the University of California at San Francisco – San Francisco General Hospital, working with and learning from urban underserved patients and populations.

As a clinician for AHS’ teen clinic, which provides targeted health care to high-risk adolescents and young adults, Dr. Chang works with many commercially sexually exploited children (CSEC)/victims of domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) in the treatment and prevention of illness and disease. She advocates for community-based services to support victims before they are arrested and engaged in the juvenile justice system, and before they become further entrenched in the cycle of violence and exploitation.  She has also trained many clinicians, outreach workers, and educators in the identification of medical and mental health needs for CSEC/DMST. Dr. Chang’s advocacy for CSEC/DMST spans multiple disciplines, from the local level to the national level. She serves as a faculty member of the National District Attorneys Association’s (NDAA) National Center for the Prosecution of Child Abuse.

In addition to practicing full scope ambulatory and inpatient family medicine, Dr. Chang teaches and mentors pre-medical and medical students and residents at AHS.  She serves on multiple advisory councils, including the Association of Asian Pacific American Community Health Organizations’ National Research Advisory Council, the National Association of Community Health Centers’ Subcommittee on Healthcare Finance and Clinical Practice Committees, and the University of California at San Francisco’s Program in Medical Education for the Urban Underserved Advisory Council and Community Advisory Board. She serves as a faculty member of the National District Attorneys Association’s (NDAA) National Center for the Prosecution of Child Abuse

Dr. Michael P. Hirsh,MD

Dr. Michael Hirsh was born in New York City.  After attending Bronx High School, he matriculated at Columbia College, where he obtained a BA in 1975. He then went to Harvard Medical School, after which he completed a surgical residency training at Columbia Presbyterian University Medical Center and a pediatric surgical fellowship at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children of Temple University in Philadelphia.  Thereafter, he spent six years at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, serving as co-director of the Trauma Center.  He was also co-director of the Pediatric Critical Care Unit.   

Dr. Hirsh has held positions at Allegheny General and Mercy Hospital of Pittsburgh, where he began directing a consortium of injury prevention sites led by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.  He is currently a Professor of Pediatrics and Surgery at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Director of the Divisions of Pediatric Surgery and Trauma of the University of Massachusetts Memorial Children’s Medical Center. He is also Associate Director of Pediatric Critical Care. Dr. Hirsh became President of the Injury Free Coalition for Kids in January, 2009 and has also served as overall Trauma Director for patients of all ages.  During that time, UMMHC received its accreditation as a Level 1 Adult and Pediatric Trauma Center. 

Dr. Hirsh currently serves as President of the Injury Free Coalition for Kids, a consortium of 42 Injury Prevention sites based at Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Centers.  He also serves as the President of the Worcester District Medical Society.  He was recently appointed Surgeon-In-Chief for the UMass Memorial Children’s Medical Center. He has been happily married for 31 years to his wife, Julianne, and has 2 children, Scott, 28 and Esty, 23.

Dr. Anne Davis,MD, MPH

Anne Davis, MD, MPH is an Associate Professor of Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology at Columbia University Medical Center.  She is a graduate of the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons and completed a residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Washington in Seattle.  She was the first Kenneth Ryan Family Planning Fellow in Clinical Care and Research at Columbia University Medical Center and currently serves as co-director of that Fellowship.  After Fellowship, she completed a degree in Public Health at the Mailman School of Public Health. 

She is an attending at the Title X Family Planning Clinic of the Mailman School of Public Health. In addition, she provides and teaches the full range of family planning services in her practice within the Columbia Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.  Her current research focuses on contraception for women with epilepsy and use of intrauterine contraception after pregnancy. 

Dr. Davis has maintained an interest in advocacy for reproductive health throughout her career.  This advocacy includes clinical work directly on behalf of patients, reproductive health research benefitting special populations, and de-stigmatizing reproductive health through teaching.  Since 2009, she has served as Medical Director for Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health (PRCH).  In that role, she brings an evidence-based physician voice to local and national media as well as policy discussions in Washington and Albany.

Dr. Michael Gittelman,MD, FAAP

Dr. Michael Gittelman, MD, FAAP, is a pediatric emergency room physician at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio and an Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at the University Of Cincinnati School Of Medicine. He completed his undergraduate work at Swarthmore College and his medical school training at the Medical College of Pennsylvania. He completed his residency in Pediatrics at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, PA and a fellowship in Emergency Medicine at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

Dr. Gittelman works in the field of injury control. He has long recognized that fulfilling the principles of medical professionalism requires going beyond the traditional scope of practice in order to address the social, economic and political barriers that interfere with the health and wellbeing of our most vulnerable citizens. Dr. Gittelman was a first year fellow in pediatric emergency medicine when he first learned that unintentional injuries were the leading cause of death for young persons in this country. In response, he helped design and implement a mandatory two-week course for all pediatric residents on Injury Prevention and Advocacy. In the thirteen years since, this curriculum has educated countless pediatric residents in the principles of injury prevention and led them to be much more involved in the communities they serve. The American Academy of Pediatrics is currently working to develop a similar program nationally.

Dr. Gittelman currently runs the Injury Prevention Program within the Division of Emergency Medicine. He also works with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, conducting the Injury Free Coalition for Kids site work both locally and nationally, and is in the process of building an integrated injury prevention center in Southwest Ohio. In recognition of his work, Dr. Gittelman was appointed the Chairperson of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Section on Injury, Violence, and Poison Prevention, where he serves nationally as an advocate and educator.

Dr. Gittelman has made a powerful impact on his own community, as evidenced by a reduction in injuries by as much as 42% in one of the high-risk areas served by his local Injury Free Coalition. The Injury Free Coalition developed and redesigned areas of the community to support the erection of 6 state-of-the-art playgrounds in Avondale, OH. Furthermore, the Injury Free Coalition built a football stadium and spearheaded the construction of speed bumps in high pedestrian-injury areas. In addition to building infrastructure, Dr. Gittelman’s organization worked with the community to develop after-school programming for at least 150 elementary students per day and a football league for more than 600 youth each year.
He also ensures that all graduating pediatricians know how to serve their patients as an advocate. Dr. Gittelman has made an impact on the education of many more pediatricians nationally through his advocacy work within the American Academy of Pediatrics. Furthermore, he demonstrates his deep commitment to improving the health of children by also promoting healthy eating and physical activity as well as safety education.

Dr. Gittelman is a true physician advocate who overcomes obstacles and challenges with passion and persistence. We are proud to honor him for his commitment to finding the most effective ways to educate families and providers about preventable injuries and developing the best practices to keep children safe.

XinQi Dong,MD, MPH

XinQi Dong, MD, MPH, is an Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, Behavioral Sciences and Gerontological Nursing at the Rush University Medical Center. He received his BA from the University of Chicago, his MPH from the University of Illinois at Chicago, his medical degree from Rush Medical College, and his clinical training in internal medicine and geriatric from Yale University Medical Center.

Having emigrated from China, Dr. Dong has a long standing interest in human rights issues and social justice for vulnerable populations. Dr. Dong focuses on healthy aging and violence prevention in the communities and works to improve community understanding of the prevention, detection, and intervention strategies for elder abuse. He also works to promote civic engagement to advocate for these issues. Dr. Dong was instrumental in the Chicago Wellbeing Task Force and Legislative Task Force, which helped pass the IL Elder Abuse Act into law. He helped to guide the task force in its efforts to provide educational resources and training to 50,000 city workers, grass-roots organizations, and local social services agencies on the issues of vulnerable seniors and elder abuse.

Dr. Dong has partnered with various community organizations, initiated a community advisory board, created an innovative &"Saturday with Senior” program to provide health promotion exercise training, and provided relevant advice on community health issues in a column called &"Ask Dr. Dong” in a local newspaper. He is actively involved in many other advocacy organizations and continues to work to pass and implement legislative initiatives related to elder abuse. Dr. Dong currently serves as an APSA Congressional Policy Fellow/ Health and Aging Policy Fellow in DC to further advocate for the issues of elder abuse and neglect at the national level.

In addition to his advocacy work, Dr. Dong has conducted extraordinarily diverse research, addressing a range of issues that is truly exceptional. His recent research has focused on the epidemiological studies of elder abuse, including overall mortality and cardiovascular related mortality. He has written extensively on psychosocial factors affecting the elderly suffering elder abuse and on the barriers encountered by minorities in the health care system. He highlights the potential of health care professionals to acknowledge and effectively make a positive social impact by addressing this important—but frequently under-acknowledged—issue.

Dr. Dong is a true innovator in his advocacy work, and he strives not only to satisfy scientific curiosity, but also to help care for the patient and inform practice and policy changes that ultimately aim to promote health and wellbeing. He has made invaluable contributions to the public good both by bettering the lives of the elderly and by honoring a broad obligation to society that extends far beyond the traditional physician-patient relationship. We are proud to have the opportunity to publicly recognize such important work.