CDR Jessica Acosta-Van Den Berg, MSN, APRN, FNP-C, BC-ADM, CDCES, is a family nurse practitioner who has served with the Indian Health Service for 12 years. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Southwestern Oklahoma State University and a Master of Science in Nursing from Frontier Nursing University. She was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps in 2016 and began her advanced practice nursing career at the Clinton Service Unit in Oklahoma. In 2022, CDR Acosta-Van Den Berg joined the Haskell Indian Health Center in Lawrence, Kansas, where she provides primary care with a focus on chronic disease and diabetes management. She serves as a quality coordinator and diabetes educator and leads efforts to expand access to diabetes education and continuous glucose monitoring. Her work has included leading the development of an accredited Diabetes Self-Management Education program and expanding diabetes care services for American Indian and Alaska Native patients. CDR Acosta-Van Den Berg has received several honors for her service, including the 2024 USPHS Commendation Medal and the 2023 USPHS Achievement Medal. She is also an active member of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, has presented at national conferences, and serves as a preceptor for nurse practitioner students.
Dr. Joseph Morris is the chief of anesthesiology at Phoenix Indian Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona, and is board-certified in anesthesiology. A member of the Cherokee Nation, he has a strong interest in community building and fostering a positive, collaborative culture across departments. Dr. Morris is passionate about improving access to care and raising standards for American Indian and Alaska Native populations. He has received two National IHS Directors Awards, along with several service unit-level recognitions. Dr. Morris also serves as a clinical site coordinator for the Mayo Clinic, A.T. Sill University (ATSU) – Mesa, Midwestern University, and is an adjunct professor in anesthesiology at the University of Arizona and Creighton School of Medicine.
Dr. Lauren A. Eberly is a staff cardiologist at Gallup Indian Medical Center and Tohatchi Health Center. She co-directs the Naashá Cardiometabolic Women’s Prevention Clinic and the MUTTON-HF (Medically Utilized Tailored Traditional food to Optimize Nutrition in Heart Failure) program for the IHS Gallup Service Unit. Dr. Eberly is passionate about advancing equity and improving cardiovascular health in American Indian and Alaska Native communities through culturally responsive, community-informed programs. She also serves as an assistant professor in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, where her research focuses on innovative approaches to improving heart failure care.
Dr. Bengson is a board-certified dermatologist working as a full-time clinician. He sees both adult and pediatric outpatient and inpatient consultations, maintains an active dermatologic surgery service including slow Mohs surgery excisions and facial-plastics repairs following skin cancer removal, and runs a regional teledermatology program providing consultations to remote clinics in Arizona, Montana and Wyoming. Dr. Bengson is a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology and a diplomate of the American Board of Dermatology. He received his medical doctorate from the Uniformed Service University of the Health Sciences, his dermatology specialty training from the John Hopkins Hospital/Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and a master’s degree in Health Policy & Management from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Prior to medical school, Dr. Bengson worked for such public health organizations as The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The National Association of County and City Health Officials (through the W.K. Kellogg Foundation), The Barents Group Health Economics Practice, and KPMG Consulting, where he was heavily involved in public health and health systems planning, leadership, and process improvement initiatives.
Dr. Jeanie Ringelberg is an emergency physician at Northern Navajo Medical Center, where she currently serves as the emergency department director. She completed both medical school and emergency medicine residency at Dartmouth and an emergency ultrasound fellowship at the University of Arizona in Tucson. She also earned a Master of Public Health through The Dartmouth Institute. Before medical school, she served as executive director of a nonprofit that focused on community health. Dr. Ringelberg remains committed to improving systems that advance patient care and health equity, building a trauma-informed hospital culture that supports patient and staff wellness, and reducing the burden of illness among patients and throughout the community.
Dominick Maggio, MD, has been working as an emergency medicine physician within the Indian Health Service and tribal health care systems for more than a decade and currently serves as director of the emergency department at Whiteriver Indian Hospital in Arizona. He oversees a high-volume rural emergency department serving the White Mountain Apache Tribe, and has led initiatives focused on trauma care, pediatric emergency readiness, quality improvement, and emergency department operations.In addition to emergency department leadership, Dr. Maggio co-founded the Bridge Clinic, an outpatient primary care clinic specializing in the management of patients with substance use disorders.. He also developed the Substance Abuse Navigator program to help integrate substance use treatment pathways into emergency care services. Dr. Maggio received his medical degree from SUNY Upstate Medical University and completed his residency at Alameda Health System, Highland Hospital.
Dr. Amy DeLong is a family physician and a Ho-Chunk tribal member who has worked for the Ho-Chunk Nation Department of Health since 2006. She received her Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Michigan, completed medical school at the University of Minnesota and completed her training in family medicine at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, MN. She earned her Master’s in Public Health in the maternal child health track while completing an adolescent health fellowship through the University of Minnesota Department of Pediatrics. Her passions include public health efforts to prevent chronic disease like obesity, especially in childhood, promoting healthy pregnancy outcomes, reducing health disparities by diversifying the workforce, and being outdoors with her family.
Geriatrics and Palliative Care - Maria Bellantoni, LCDR, MD
Lt. Cmdr. Maria Bellantoni, MD, is an internist and geriatrician at the Phoenix Indian Medical Center. She is a graduate of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and a commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service. Dr. Bellantoni is a cum laude graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and worked as a Fox Public Service Fellow for Catholic Charities New Orleans before attending medical school. She completed an internal medicine residency at the Johns Hopkins Hospital and a fellowship in Geriatric Medicine & Gerontology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Her clinical interests include integrated geriatrics practice in primary care, dementia care models, and substance use disorders in older adults.
Dr. Leslie Stewart is an infectious disease physician and the director of communicable disease prevention and control at the Indian Health Service in Chinle, Arizona. Her clinical and professional interests focus on the prevention of infectious diseases, hepatitis C elimination, and sexually transmitted infection care, with a particular emphasis on rural and underserved communities. Dr. Stewart has worked at Chinle Comprehensive Health Care Facility since 2018 and also serves as an adjunct assistant professor of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. She completed her internal medicine residency and infectious disease fellowship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Stewart is a contributing author to the IHS PrEP Guidelines and is actively involved in medical education and mentorship, including participation in the HIV ECHO program.
Jennie Wei has been working as an internal medicine physician at Gallup Indian Medical Center since 2012, spending half of her clinical time as a hospitalist and half as a primary care physician. She received her undergraduate, medical, and master of public health degrees at Harvard and completed internal medicine residency and chief residency at the University of California, San Francisco, where she is an assistant clinical professor. She is board certified in internal medicine and addiction medicine. In addition to general medicine and primary care, she has a clinical interest in substance use disorders.
Dr. Nichele Salazar, DNP, CNM, is a certified nurse-midwife at Northern Navajo Medical Center. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Georgetown University, a Master of Science in Nurse-Midwifery from the University of New Mexico, and her Doctor of Nursing Practice from Duke University. Before joining Northern Navajo Medical Center, Dr. Salazar practiced in the private sector and served on the New Mexico Maternal Mortality Review Committee. She is also a founding member of the New Mexico Midwives of Color, reflecting her longstanding commitment to advancing equity in maternal health. Dr. Salazar is passionate about mentoring the next generation of nurse-midwives, with a particular focus on increasing the number of Indigenous nurse-midwives serving Indigenous families. She is committed to advancing rural health care and improving care for American Indian and Alaska Native populations.
Dr. Mike Stitzer is a board-certified neurologist who has worked with the Indian Health Service in the Navajo Area since 2012 and currently works at the Winslow Indian Health Care Center. His areas of interest include migraine, epilepsy, stroke, improving access to rural neurological care, teleneurology, and education. He has been a member of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology’s Physician Burnout Task Force, the American Academy of Neurology’s Diversity Leadership Program and Health Care Disparities Task Force, and currently serves on the AAN’s Diversity Leadership Committee and Digital Strategy Subcommittee. He is also an enrolled member of the Enterprise Rancheria Estom Yumeka Maidu Tribe.
Dr. Patricia 'Tricia' Capo is the chief clinical consulant for obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN CCC) physician at Alaska Native Medical Center and Southcentral Foundation in Anchorage, Alaska. She graduated from Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine and completed her residency training at the Mayo Clinic and Greenville Hospital System in South Carolina. Dr. Capo has an inherent passion for Indigenous women’s health. She is a member of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe and raised on the White Earth Reservation in northern Minnesota.
Dr. Dara Shahon is the chief of ophthalmology at the Phoenix Indian Medical Center and adjudicator for the IHS/JVN Tele-ophthalmology program. She joined the Indian Health service in 2015 after practicing in Scottsdale, Arizona. Originally from Canada, Dr. Shahon attended the University of Toronto medical school, completed one year of internal medicine followed by a residency in Ophthalmology at the Albert Einstein/Long Island Jewish Hospital program. Dr. Shahon has a particular interest in dry eye conditions and telemedicine screening for diabetic retinopathy.
CAPT Greg Smith started his career in 2006 as a Lieutenant in the US Navy stationed at Quantico, VA. In 2009, he commissioned with the USPHS and since that time has served as chief of optometry at the Fort Belknap Service Unit in Harlem, MT. He serves as externship director and has also served in extended details as hospital CEO and clinical director at the Fort Belknap Service Unit. CDR Smith is active as an officer on the board of the Armed Forces Optometric Society. He holds adjunct faculty status at two colleges of optometry and has a passion for mentoring and teaching.
CAPT Chris Cordes is an optometrist in the US Public Health Service stationed at Albuquerque Indian Health Center(AIHC). He is the supervisory optometrist at the AIHC. CAPT Cordes completed his residency in hospital-based optometry at the Crownpoint Healthcare Facility in Crownpoint, NM. He served as deputy chief of optometry at Crownpoint following his residency. He then served as the chief of optometry at the Acoma Canoncito Laguna Indian Health Hospital until transferring to the Albuquerque Indian Health Center.
Thomas Faber, MD, MPH, FAAP, serves as the chief clinical consulant for Pediatrics for the Indian Health Service. He has been with IHS since 2006, serving as the clinical director of the Zuni IHS Hospital until 2022. Dr. Faber was chief medical officer of the Albuquerque Area from 2005-2022, and he is currently serving as the clinical director of the Albuquerque Indian Health Center. His interests include adolescent medicine and integrating trauma-informed approaches into the care of children and families. He is the founder and former executive director of the Zuni Youth Enrichment Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the mental and physical health of Native American youth. Dr. Faber has received many honors, including the Con Alma Foundation Hero for Health Award and the American Academy of Pediatrics’ F. Edwards Rushton Award. He earned his medical and public health degrees from Tufts University School of Medicine and completed the Harvard Combined Internal Medicine and Pediatrics Residency Program.
Dr. Claire Nechiporenko is a board-certified pediatrician and a proud member of the Diné (Navajo) Nation, currently serving as the chief of pediatrics at the Phoenix Indian Medical Center (PIMC). She earned her medical degree from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences in 2008, completed her pediatric residency at Phoenix Children's Hospital/Maricopa County in 2011, and began her career at Tséhootsoí Medical Center in Fort Defiance, Arizona. She joined PIMC in 2012 as a staff pediatrician and was appointed chief of pediatrics in 2018. In addition to inpatient care, she mentors medical residents and contributes to improving pediatric outcomes for American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Dr. Nechiporenko also moonlights as a pediatric hospitalist at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.
CAPT Brian Burt is a commissioned officer currently serving as a surgical PA at Phoenix Indian Medical Center. He has been a practicing PA for 23 years with experience in primary care, urgent care, emergency medicine, wilderness medicine, and general surgery. He holds a certificate of Added Qualification in Emergency Medicine. He is a subject matter expert in vaping and an instructor in Basic Tobacco Intervention Skills for Native Communities. He serves as the director of student services for the department of surgery and coordinates medical and physician assistant students’ clinical practicum. He is a founding member of Rapid Deployment Force Team 3 and has deployed on numerous occasions. He holds a Master of Science in PA Studies from the George Washington University.
Dr. Chelsae May, DPM, is a podiatric physician with the Indian Health Service and a former recipient of the IHS Scholarship Program. She is originally from Oklahoma and is an enrolled member of the Muscogee (Creek) tribe. She completed her Doctor of Podiatric Medicine degree at Dr. William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science and her surgical residency training at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center and John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County in Chicago, IL. Dr. May has extensive experience in diabetic foot management, wound care, limb preservation, and multidisciplinary care for high-risk, underserved patient populations. She is passionate about strengthening podiatric services across the IHS system, expanding access to specialty care, and supporting the recruitment and development of future clinicians. Dr. May is dedicated to advancing high-quality, culturally informed care for American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
Dr. Phillip Tutnauer, DPM, FACPM, FASPS, is a podiatric physician at Pinon Health Center, Chinle Service Unit, where he serves as Acting Chief of Primary Care, Acting Chief Medical Officer, and Deputy Incident Commander. He brings extensive experience in podiatric medicine and surgery, with expertise in diabetic foot care, wound management, limb preservation, and lower extremity reconstruction. Dr. Tutnauer has led the development of innovative clinical programs focused on peripheral arterial disease, peripheral neuropathy, wound care, and fall prevention. He is passionate about improving access to specialty care for American Indian and Alaska Native communities through multidisciplinary collaboration, provider education, and quality improvement initiatives. Dr. Tutnauer also has a strong background in emergency management and provider mentorship, having served in leadership roles during public health emergencies and throughout his career in health care and public service.
Dr. Travis Austin is the Director of Preventive Medicine at Whiteriver Indian Hospital in Arizona, where he also works in the Emergency Department and provides palliative care. In his current role, he has led or supported initiatives focused on syphilis and other STI testing and follow-up, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever prevention and surveillance, mobile clinic outreach, RSV vaccine outreach, maternal-child health, improved transitional care following hospital discharge, pediatric anemia follow-up, and community education. Dr. Austin completed his Emergency Medicine Residency, Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship, Leadership Preventive Medicine Residency, and Master of Public Health at Dartmouth. He earned his medical degree from the University of Arizona-Phoenix campus.
Dr. Paul Pierce is a psychiatrist working through the Oklahoma City Area Offices of Indian Health Service providing telehealth services to rural clinics in Oklahoma since 2013. He is a board-certified psychiatrist having completed his B.A. in the Plan II Honors Program at the University of Texas at Austin, medical school at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, and a general psychiatric residency at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Pierce has received multiple teaching awards from medical students and residents he has supervised over the years. Additionally, he completed a 7-year term as a board member of the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. Dr. Pierce’s professional interests include office-based treatment for opioid dependence, mindfulness meditation, the role of controlled substances in the treatment of mental illness, and the limits of our knowledge in psychiatric diagnosis and treatment.
CDR Colin Smith, MD, is an internist and psychiatrist at the Phoenix Indian Medical Center and a commissioned officer in the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. He completed his undergraduate studies at Sacred Heart University and graduated with a Master of Science in Global Health from Duke University Graduate School. He completed a combined internal medicine and psychiatry residency at Duke University Hospital, where he served as chief resident. His clinical interests include integrated behavioral health and consultation-liaison psychiatry.
Pulmonary Critical Care - Juantina Johnson, MD, MHA
Dr. Johnson received her medical degree from Meharry Medical College in 2003. She completed an internal medicine and emergency medicine residency at LSU New Orleans and a pulmonary and critical care fellowship at Tulane University in New Orleans. Dr. Johnson is board certified in four different areas: emergency medicine, internal medicine, pulmonary medicine and critical care medicine. Dr. Johnson served eight years as chief medical officer for the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. In 2019, she became the chief medical officer for Nashville Area Indian Health Service. Dr. Johnson currently serves as the chief clinical consultant for the IHS Critical Care Response Team which serves to augment urgent lifesaving medical care to COVID-19 patients admitted to IHS or tribal hospital emergency departments or inpatient settings. She has supported several other major disaster responses, including Hurricane Katrina and the H1N1 pandemic. She drew upon those previous experiences in her establishment of the IHS Critical Care Response Team and will continue to draw upon her previous experiences as she works as a chief clinical consultant for IHS.
CDR Elizabeth Hosselkus, MD, works as an interventional and diagnostic radiologist for the Cherokee Nation in Tahlequah, OK. Dr. Hosselkus is a graduate of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and an officer in the US Public Health Service. She completed Diagnostic Radiology residency training at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, VA in 2015 and Vascular/Interventional Radiology fellowship at University of California San Diego in 2020. Her clinical practice interests include vascular and pelvic image-guided, minimally-invasive procedures. She is active in clinical teaching, creating rotations for medical students and residents. In her spare time CDR Hosselkus enjoys beekeeping, knitting, reading and gaming with her four children.
Rehabilitation Specialists - Molly Rutledge, CAPT, MA, MS
CAPT Rutledge received her Master of Arts degree in speech-language pathology (SLP) from the School of Health Professions at the University of Kansas and completed her clinical fellowship year in Ewa, Hawaii. She additionally holds a Master of Science degree in Health Education. CAPT Rutledge joined the Navajo Area IHS in 2010 and the Alaska Area in 2014. She was commissioned to the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) in 2012. CAPT Rutledge started two neonatal oral feeding and dental hygiene programs within the Alaska Area and was recognized with the USPHS Outstanding Service Medal for her efforts. Her interests include pediatric dysphagia and pediatric oral health promotion. CAPT Rutledge was the first IHS SLP to become nationally recognized as a board certified neonatal therapist. She received her diploma in Joint Professional Military Education from the United States Naval War College in 2020. CAPT Rutledge was selected as the IHS chief clinical consultant for rehabilitation specialists in December 2020.
Dr. Gwendolyn Grant began her career with the Indian Health Service at Northern Navajo Medical Center in Shiprock, New Mexico, in 1995. After completing a rheumatology fellowship at Yale University, she returned to the Southwest and established a rheumatology practice in Durango, Colorado, providing specialty care to patients throughout the Four Corners region. She has also provided rheumatology services at Northern Navajo Medical Center, Four Corners Regional Health Center, and the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation.
In 2020, Dr. Grant partnered with academic rheumatologists at the University of California, San Francisco, to launch the Rheumatology Access Expansion Initiative, which uses the Project ECHO model to provide education and specialty support to primary care providers across the Indian Health Service. More than 100 providers have participated in the program, helping expand access to high-quality rheumatology care for American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
Dr. John Isaac Young works as a general surgeon at Phoenix Indian Medical Center where he currently serves as the acting chief of surgery. His clinical interests include benign and malignant biliary and pancreatic disease, gastrointestinal cancer and thyroid cancer. Dr. Young is a graduate of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and an officer in the US Public Health Service. He completed residency training at the Oregon Health and Science University in 2016 and joined the surgery department at PIMC shortly thereafter. Dr. Young practices surgery and advanced endoscopy at PIMC as well as part time at Valleywise Health Medical Center where he collaborates with the surgery and gastroenterology department and trains residents and fellows in flexible endoscopy. He is the proud father of three and an amateur painter and naturalist.
Surgery, Chief Clinical Consultant (CCC) - Soo C. Han, CDR, MD, FACS
CDR Soo C. Han, MD, FACS, is currently the deputy chief of surgery at Phoenix Indian Medical Center (PIMC) in Phoenix, Arizona. She is a general surgeon by training, evaluating and treating a wide range of surgical conditions for American Indian and Alaska Native patients. CDR Han’s scope of practice includes skin and soft tissue disease, robotic/laparoscopic general surgery, colorectal surgery, acute care surgery, and screening and diagnostic endoscopies. CDR Han completed her surgical residency at Kendall Regional Medical Center (Miami, FL) and her medical education at the Uniformed Services University (USUHS).
