| MTLI™ Regents & Instructors |
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Tom is the Vice President Operations for the West Region of Global Medical Response (GMR). His responsibilities include operations and business oversight for GMR operations in Nevada, North & South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Minnesota, Arizona, and New Mexico.
Tom is currently the President/CEO for MedFlight and MedCare Ambulance out of Columbus, Ohio. He has served as Chief Clinical Officer and Chief Operating Officer at MedFlight since 2004. MedFlight is a full critical care transport system with 9 helicopters and 4 Critical Care Ground ambulances completing over 5000 transports/year. MedFlight also owns and operates MedCare Ambulance. MedCare Ambulance is an ALS/BLS service with over 70 ambulances completing 60,000+ transports throughout Ohio. Mr. Allenstein began his career in air medical transport in 1985 when he was involved in the start-up of a flight program in Idaho Falls, ID. After a couple of years, he transferred his family back to Minnesota and continued in nursing in the cardiac surgical ICU before joining the Mayo One flight program as a staff flight nurse in 1987. He took on the role of Transport Nurse Manager for Mayo Medical Transport in 1996. Along with his duties with his program, Tom has served in the past as Chair of the Minnesota Air Medical Council and President of the Ohio Association of Critical Care Transport. Tom also has served as the Region II Director on the Board of Directors for AAMS as well as serving as the Secretary and the Vice President on the Executive Committee of AAMS. As part of his duties with AAMS, Tom also served several years as chair of the Research Committee. He was also involved in the merger of the Foundation for Air Medical Research (FAR) and AAMS Foundation into the Foundation for Air Medical Research and Education (FARE) which eventually has turned into MedEvac Foundation International. Currently in addition to be one of the Regents for the Medical Transport Leadership Institute, Tom is also a site Surveyor for the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems and is the past board chair for the Emergency Medical, Fire, and Transportation Board for Ohio and currently the President of the Central Ohio Trauma System. In his personal life, Tom is the father of 5 children ranging in age from 22 years of age to 34. Tom and his wife Anne have been married for 37 years this year. His hobbies include golf, running, and has completed several marathons.
René is the Administrative Director for Duke Life Flight in Durham, North Carolina. Prior to her current position, she served as Program Manager for Duke Life Flight from September 2014 to December 2017. Life Flight is a CAMTS accredited transport program that is available to transport critically ill or injured adult, pediatric, and neonatal patients. Life Flight operates a fleet of two rotor wing aircraft, eight critical care ambulances, and four ALS ambulances. Duke Life Flight also provides a code blue response team for the hospital campus and emergency medical response for Duke Basketball and football games as well as University events.
René began her flight nurse career at Duke in 1993. In 1999, she began working for Carolina Air Care at the University of North Carolina and served as the Chief Flight Nurse for that program for four of the nine years on the team. Her nursing experience also includes Intensive Care Unit and Emergency Department where she held roles in education and leadership.
She holds an Associate, Bachelors and Master’s Degree in Nursing. Her MSN was awarded with a concentration in Leadership from East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina. She is a Certified Medical Transport Executive (CMTE), and serves as Immediate Past Chair for the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS) and MedEvac Foundation (MFI) Board of Directors and Immediate Past President for the North Carolina Air Medical Association (NCAA).
During her free time, René enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, and playing with her dog Picco.
Vice President, Mobile Medicine, Atrium Health
Jonathan Collier is the Vice President, Mobile Medicine for Atrium Health in Charlotte, North Carolina. Atrium Health is an integrated non-profit hospital system with healthcare services across the southeast. Mobile Medicine provides services to Atrium and communities it serves across multiple states with specialties including air and ground transportation under the brands of MedCenter Air and AirCare, Mobile Integrated Health, communications/dispatch, Med-1 mobile disaster response, EMS/911, and general operations. MedCenter Air is a CAMTS accredited air and ground medical services program.
He has 22 years of senior and executive leadership roles in the air medical industry with Apollo MedFlight, Air Methods, PHI Air Medical, Summit Air Ambulance, and Rocky Mountain Helicopters. In each of his roles, Jonathan has focused on developing safe and quality operations, surrounding himself with incredible teams, developing strategy, building lasting relationships, and driving the culture. He has worked with healthcare systems and hospitals across the United States in establishing transport, building referral patterns, and improving communications. Jonathan recognizes his success has been driven by incredible mentors and key relationships in and out of the healthcare and air medical industries. Teaching and serving others have been the most rewarding aspect of each of his work and volunteer roles; he is excited to serve in a teaching role with an influential and meaningful program like the Medical Transport Leadership Institute (MTLI).
Michael is the Chief Quality Officer and Director of Clinical Care for Boston MedFlight. A Nebraska native, he began his career in EMS with an AAS in Emergency Medical Services from the Johnson County (KS) Community College and has a BS in Nursing from the Johns Hopkins University and an MS in Nursing from the University of Connecticut. Michael’s transport and medical experience includes positions as an EMT, Paramedic, Flight Communications Specialist, ED and ICU nurse, and transport nurse. His non-clinical education includes a BA in Economics and Political Science from the University of Kansas, a Certificate in Health Care Quality from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, and a Six Sigma Black Belt from the American Society for Quality. He has been a CMTE since 2010 and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Michael joined the MTLI faculty in 2016.
Christopher Hall serves as the Program Director of Government Affairs & Industry Relations at PHI Health, LLC. As a member of the leadership team, Chris acts to educate and inform legislative and regulatory policymakers on medical transport issues. Chris also serves as the primary contact for PHI’s interactions with the various associations that have an interest in medical transportation. PHI Health is a leading healthcare provider, with business lines of PHI Air Medical, PHI Patient Navigation, and PHI Cares. PHI Air Medical provides medical transportation services in numerous states, from independent air medical bases and in partnership with health systems and medical providers. PHI Health also supports medical transportation services on an international scale. PHI Health, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of PHI Group, Inc. PHI Group has 75 years of aviation history and is the world leader in rotary wing aviation, logging over twelve million flight hours. Chris received his MBA from Western Governors University, and his B.S. in Health Promotion & Fitness Management from Southern Oregon University in Ashland, Oregon. With over 25 years in emergency services, Chris has worked in a variety of medical transport models, including private not-for-profit air & ground ambulance, volunteer and professional fire service, hospital-based air medical services, commercial ground ambulance, and commercial air medical transport. His background includes clinical practice, clinical education and training, policy formulation, and medical transportation advocacy. Chris also serves in several medical transport-related associations and currently serves as an At-Large Director on the Board of Directors for the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS), Past President of the International College of Advanced Practice Paramedics (I-CAPP), and founding (past) Board member for the Tim Hynes Foundation. Chris enjoys travel, golf, running, outdoor activities, Chicago Bears football, and time with his family. Chris has finished several half and full marathons and he will complete the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington DC for the third time this year. Chris and his wife, Amy, are raising their family just outside of Phoenix, Arizona.
James Houser serves as President and CEO of Pittsburgh-based UPMC’s Center for Emergency Medicine. The center is responsible for emergency medicine education, research, and specialized treatment and transport. STAT MedEvac, the transport arm of the center, operates two critical care ground units and 18 helicopter bases across Pennsylvania and surrounding states and the District of Columbia.
K.C. has been involved in EMS and education for more than 35 years and has served in many educational and leadership roles. K.C. started his EMS career as a medic and served as a Field Training Officer for Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a former tenured faculty member /program director in the Health Science Department at BYU-I. He was a flight medic/Education Coordinator for Erlanger Life Force and a flight medic for Air Idaho Rescue.
Kolby is the Chief Clinical Officer at Life Link III in Bloomington, MN. He has served in his role at Life Link III since 2012. Life Link III is an air medical transport program that boasts 11 bases throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin. Life Link III is a non-profit consortium comprised of 10 health systems spanning three states including Minnesota, Wisconsin and North Dakota. Life Link III has 12 helicopters at 11 bases and offers Fixed-Wing services to the lower 48. Life Link III is CAMTS accredited in Ground, Rotor, and Fixed-Wing including all specialties (Neonatal, High-Risk OB, Balloon Pump, and ECMO).
David Miller is the Director of Operations at Apollo MedFlight in Amarillo, TX. Apollo MedFlight is a privately-owned Air Medical Services Company, servicing traditional and hybrid partners along with community-based service models in both fixed-and rotor-wing operations. Through Apollo’s subsidiary, Integra Aviation, David is the FAA Part 119-designated Director of Operations for their Part 135 Operating Certificate. Apollo currently operates a fleet of 28 aircraft, including Bell 407s and 429, Airbus EC135, EC145 and EC145C2e, Beechcraft King Air 90s and Pilatus PC-12NG. David began his air medical career at Air Methods, working his way from Line Pilot to Regional Aviation Manager of the Midwest Region. He transitioned roles in 2018 to Metro Aviation where he served in various aviation and leadership capacities until his relocation to Apollo in January 2022. During his time as an air medical pilot, David has flown the BH407, EC135, EC145 and BK117 along with sustaining his Single Pilot IFR qualifications. Along with his duties at Apollo, he serves on the Board of Directors for the National EMS Pilots Association (NEMSPA) as Treasurer since 2021. David brings a unique perspective to the air medical industry as he is also a licensed registered pharmacist and has owned a medical services company. David completed the Medical Transport Leadership Institute (MTLI) in 2021 and holds the Certified Medical Transport Executive (CMTE) certification and has completed AAMS’ Safety Management Training Academy (SMTA). His aviation certifications include single- and multi-engine airplane, seaplane, helicopter, and instrument instructor ratings. In his personal life, David and his wife Kelley enjoy many outdoor recreational activities from mountain hiking to scuba diving. In his spare time, he is working on finalizing the completion of his MBA with a focus in Healthcare Administration and the Lean Six Sigma Black Belt.
Mike serves as Chief Operating Officer for MedFlight of Ohio and MedCare Ambulance. As COO, he oversees all aspects of ground and helicopter operations for both organizations.
Susan earned her RN from Rappahannock Community College in 1993 in rural Virginia. She moved to Roanoke, VA upon graduating, in search of opportunities to accelerate her learning in a trauma center / teaching hospital. She began her career at the Carilion Clinic as a Trauma ICU and ER nurse prior to becoming a flight nurse with Carilion Clinic Life-Guard in 1996. While working as a full time flight nurse, she progressively developed her leadership skills with additional roles in critical care ground, fixed-wing, rotor-wing, and the communications center over a 10 year period, during which time she also earned her BSN from Jefferson College of Health Sciences and her MBA from Averett University. Susan first attended MTLI in 2004 and earned her CMTE the following year. That same year, she transitioned into her current position as the program director of Carilion’s three-helicopter program and the neonatal-pediatric transport team. She is a strong advocate of safety, achieving the nation's first FAA approved "Incapacitated Pilot Procedures" for medical flight crew, CAMTS' "Best Practice" of Crew Wellness initiatives, and legislative changes to Virginia Code for Drone Safety. She is equally as passionate about crew morale and engagement as noted through externally validated tools, exceeding industry averages each year. Susan’s teaching experience was developed as adjunct faculty with Jefferson College of Health Sciences and Radford University. Since then, she has presented multiple times at AMTC and other state and regional conferences. She has served for many years as a board member with AAMS. Outside of work, Susan enjoys international volunteer work and cooking, running, cycling, kayaking, and hiking in her beloved Blue Ridge Mountains with her husband and spending time with their grown children and grandchildren every chance they have to visit!
Starting as a ‘new grad’ in 1995, Kevin’s clinical career spanned critical care, Level I trauma, and eventually flight. As Chief Flight Nurse, Kevin first attended MTLI in 2007. After several years of leading the hospital based flight program, Kevin was promoted to Director of Emergency Services, a position he held until moving to Med-Trans Corporation in 2012. Like countless others in our industry, Kevin’s career in Emergency Medical Services started in 1986 quite by accident – as a volunteer. The community volunteer fire department started Kevin down a path familiar to many of you; EMT, fire-fighter, nursing school... Kevin received a MSN in Administration from University of New Mexico. He has been very active in education, in both leadership and clinical arenas. Kevin has presented at the regional, state and national level and is an active Transport Provider Advanced Trauma Course instructor. Kevin is the Director of Patient Safety and Medical Risk Management for Med-Trans Corporation. Throughout his tenure in leadership in the industry, Kevin has been actively involved with the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS). Volunteer activities include Habitat for Humanity builds, Family Kitchen homeless shelter, and various local charitable causes. Kevin’s time is occupied by his 18-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter, and wife of 21 years.
Jared is currently the Chief Operations Officer and President of Guardian Flight LLC. Prior roles include serving as the Vice President of Operations Northwest for Global Medical Response, Executive Director of Guardian Flight, CFO & COO of LifeMed Alaska, a Medevac program located in Anchorage, AK. LifeMed was a joint venture established in late 2008, merging two competing hospital based programs and soon after the acquisition of two ground ambulance programs. Sherman joined LifeMed in late 2010. This was his first position both in EMS and the Medical Transport Field. Sherman received his B.B.A from Baylor University, majoring in Risk Management Finance & Business Management. Prior to entering the Medical Transport field Sherman served in a variety of roles within Risk Management. He was the Health, Safety, Environmental & Training Manager for UIC, an Alaska Native Corporation from 2008-2010. UIC experienced a tragic workplace injury resulting in the death of an employee. Sherman was the first employee hired into the Department of Safety and tasked with development and implementation of the HSE & Training Program. The bedrock of the initiative was to create a culture change within the organization. Once the culture took root and the system was producing results, Sherman looked for his next challenge; accepting an opportunity with LifeMed Alaska. Sherman has worked for in all aspects of administration within the Medevac Industry. Starting as a Director of HR & Compliance and spending the majority of his tenure as Chief Operating Officer. Sherman has applied his business and financial background to create effective systems & processes within the organization he has led.
Robbie joined Erlanger Health System in 1998 and worked his way through the ranks as a Flight Paramedic, Program Manager, and Administrator of the LIFE FORCE flight program. Throughout his tenure, he has served the health system as a Sr. Director and Vice President of Operations. In 2023 Robbie was named Vice President of Patient Logistics for Erlanger Health System, where he leads LIFE FORCE, a six‐helicopter air medical program based in Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina. Erlanger’s Regional Operations Center (EROC), Telemedicine/Virtual Care, Emergency Management, Pediatric / Neonatal Transport, Pre‐Hospital, and Disaster Medicine Programs. In February 2020, at the start of the COVID‐19 pandemic, Robbie was appointed Incident Commander by the systems CEO and tasked to lead the system in responding to the pandemic.
Jana is the President & CEO of the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS) and the MedEvac Foundation International (MFI), the air medical trade organization and its charitable arm respectively. These organizations and their global members seek to make high-quality transport medicine accessible to all. Jana has more than 35 years’ experience in the EMS, healthcare, incident management, and air medical communities and likes championing its people and programs while gathering perspectives from many vantage points. She is proud of the dynamic AAMS team and relishes the renewed collaboration amongst members and across the medical transport community. She believes we are better together.
Allen is the Senior Director for LifeLink III in Minneapolis. Minnesota. He is responsible for the initial, recurrent education and clinical performance of LifeLink III 120 plus clinicians at 11 bases in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Prior to Life Link III, Allen was Director of Clinical Education for Air Methods Corporation in Denver, Colorado. He was responsible for the initial, continuing education, and clinical quality assurance for 170 bases and over 1400 clinical employees. Allen has also completed his certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Ivory league powerhouse eCornell in 2021. Mr. Wolfe started his career in air medical transport in 1990 as a flight nurse for MedSTAR Transport in Washington, DC. His time before joining MedSTAR was entrenched in critical care and trauma resuscitation at large inner-city hospitals. In 2000, he became Chief Flight Nurse/Critical Care Clinical Specialist for the program. Allen is one of the leading experts in the country in the prehospital management of Left Ventricular Assist Devices (LVADs). He developed a color-coding system for prehospital management which was later adopted by Abbott, Inc as part of their patient teaching for EMS across the globe and a joint commission best practice. In 2010, he became the Regional Clinical Director for Air Methods Corporation’s western region and later became the Director of Education in 2012. He is a major speaker at conferences in the US and abroad. He has published multiple articles, research projects are the co-editor of the Principle and Practice textbook, the industry's biggest-selling publication. In 2007, he received the Katz-Mason award by Air and Surface Transport Nurses Association (ASTNA), the Community Service Award for his LVAD patient safety initiative, the Jordan award in 2009 for outstanding contribution to air medical journalism, the Barbara A. Hess award in 2010 for outstanding contribution to education and 2017 he received the prestigious Marriott-Carlson Lifetime Achievement Award. He was the president of ASTNA (2014) and currently is chairperson-elect for the Board of Certification of Emergency Nurses.
Over forty-seven years of progressive experience in the development and management of not for profit hospital, for profit private, and public corporate services that have included emergency ground and air medical programs. BS in business with an emphasis in finance from Regis University. EMT/1975 Paramedic/1979. 1983 - After having managed ALS ground based services, helped start Flight For Life, Colorado Springs, Colorado. As Director of Prehospital Services, developed a program that included rotor, fixed wing, ground 911, and EMS education. 1992 - Moved to the administrative side of Penrose-St. Francis Healthcare as an Internal Consultant on administrative and planning issues. From 1990 to 1994, 1998 to 2004, and 2010 to 2016 served as a board member of the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS). Current Board Member of the Association of Professional Flight Chaplains (APFC), National EMS Memorial Service, and Board of Regents Medical Transport Leadership Institute. 1995 - Joined Rocky Mountain Helicopters establishing department of Business Development and Government Affairs. Responsible for supporting the marketing, public relations, research, and new business development needs of RMH and its customers. Involved in the creation of the LifeNet product line of Alternative Provider Service and Cooperative Partnership Service programs of RMH. 2002 - Air Methods Corporation acquired RMH, became the VP of Business & Compliance for the new LifeNet Division that incorporated all the “independent” programs under one division. In 2006 became part of the senior team at Air Methods responsible for overall corporate and international development. 2013 - Appointed Chief Executive Officer of joint venture HeliStar responsible for development and operations for opportunities in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Upon sale of HeliStar, established the Yale Group, LLC. an association of domestic and international independent consultants specializing in all aspects of transport medicine. Frequent speaker and author on the business of Aviation Medicine, serving on several governmental committees. Founding Regent of Medical Transport Leadership Institute and Instructor 24 years. Testified before Congress and NTSB on behalf and at request of the industry. 2016 recipient of Marriott Carlson Lifetime Achievement / Leadership Award. |
David Miller, CMTE
Kevin Schitoskey, RN, MSN, CFRN, TCRN, CMTE
