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IPE 2012 Keynote Speakers

Mandy Lowe, BSc(OT), MSc

Mandy Lowe received her BSc(OT) from the University of Toronto in 1993 and her Masters in Rehabilitation Science (continuing education focus) from the University of Toronto in 2004.  She is also a graduate of the Education Scholars Program, Centre for Faculty Development, University of Toronto (2010) and holds a status appointment as Assistant Professor with the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto.  She is currently the Interim Director of Education at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, University Health Network; Faculty Lead, Clinical and Professional Development at the Centre for IPE, University of Toronto and co-director of the University of Toronto’s EHPIC (Educating Health Professionals for Interprofessional Collaboration) faculty/professional development certificate program.  She is strongly committed to IPE, collaboration, knowledge translation and faculty/professional development.  Mandy has been involved in all phases of education and educational research including undergraduate, graduate and continuing education.  She has been an investigator on a wide range of research projects and initiatives that address knowledge translation, learning and collaboration, particularly from an interprofessional perspective.

Robert Graham, MD

Dr. Graham currently serves as the Director of the Aligning Forces for Quality Program (AF4Q). AF4Q is one of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s major initiatives to improve the quality, efficiency and equity of the U.S. healthcare system. There are presently 16 sites throughout the United States participating in the project. The National Program Office for AF4Q is based at George Washington University in Washington, DC, where he is also a Research Professor in the Department of Health Policy, School of Public Health & Health Services.

Dr. Graham has long been associated with the discipline of Family Medicine, having served as the Executive Vice President/CEO of the American Academy of Family Physicians, (AAFP) (1985-2000), the head of the Academy’s Foundation (1988-1997), and the Administrative Officer of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine (STFM) (1973-1975). He remains an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Family & Community Medicine at the University of Cincinnati where he held the Robert & Myfanwy Smith Endowed Chair from 2005 to 2011.

In addition to his activities in Family Medicine, Dr. Graham has held a number of leadership responsibilities in the Federal Health Sector, including the position of Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) (1981-1985), during which time he held the rank of Rear Admiral in the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service, and served as an Assistant Surgeon General. He also served in senior positions at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (2001-2004), the Health Resources Administration (1976-1979), and the Health Services and Mental Health Administration (1970-1973). From 1979-1980, he served as a Professional Staff Member of the U.S. Senate Sub-committee on Health.

Throughout his career, Dr. Graham has written and spoken extensively about a number of critical topics in health policy, such as healthcare reform and the need for universal coverage, federal health workforce policy, and the organizational characteristics of effective health systems. Dr. Graham’s contributions and expertise in health policy have been recognized by his election to the National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine (1990), and his selection as Board Chair of the bipartisan Alliance for Health Reform (2007). His current areas of interest are leadership development, organizational change, and improving the effectiveness of the U.S. healthcare system.

Dr. Graham, a native of Kansas, is a graduate of Earlham College, Richmond, Indiana (1965), and the University of Kansas, School of Medicine in Kansas City, Kansas (1970).  He is married to Dr. Jane Henney and they maintain residences in Cincinnati and Washington DC.

Deborah B. Gardner, Ph.D., RN

Deb has over 35 years of healthcare experience as a clinician, manager, teacher, and consultant across public and private institutions.  Currently, she is wearing two hats- serving as a senior advisor and acting director of the Division of Workforce Planning and Performance in the Bureau of Health Professions, HRSA.  Formerly, the Chief of Organizational Development at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, Deb served as an organizational consultant, course designer, and facilitator.  A master’s in psych-mental health nursing, she holds a Ph.D. in Healthcare Policy and Administration from George Mason University.  Her dissertation research focused on interdisciplinary collaboration in healthcare teams.  A graduate of the Georgetown Family Systems Post-Graduate School in family therapy, she is a certified mediator and trainer in conflict negotiations. Deb serves on the Editorial Board of Nursing Economics and is author of the Health Policy and Politics Column.