2024 Annual WHCMAA Alumni Conference

Keynote speakers include:

• David Fajgenbaum, MD, MBA, MSc, WG'15, Co-Founder of Every Cure & Castleman Disease Collaborative Network, Assoc Professor of Medicine at UPenn, bestselling author of 'Chasing My Cure: A Doctor's Race to Turn Hope Into Action' and recipient of the WHCMAA Alumni Achievement Award (Friday, 8:15 - 9:00am)
• Jason Karlawish, MD, MBA, MRCP, FNMCP, Co-Director of the Penn Memory Center and Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Professor of Medicine at UPenn, and author of “The Problem of Alzheimer’s: How Science, Culture, and Politics Turned a Rare Disease into a Crisis and What We Can Do About It" (Friday, 12:30 - 1:30pm)

Scheduled Panels include (times subject to change):

Additional speakers announced soon!

Thursday, November 14th

Career Panel: Challenges and Opportunities in Turbulent Healthcare and Life Sciences Job Markets (4:00-5:00pm) 

• Molly Robb, Managing Director, LifeSci Search
• Jim Wiederhold, President, Wiederhold & Associates
• Jessica Katz, Head of MBA Alumni Career Management, The Wharton School
• Michael Rovinsky, WG ‘86, President, Integrity Consulting Group; VP, Strategic Planning, Array Advisors (Moderator)

Alumni Panel: Stepping Through the Stages of Your Career (4:00-5:00pm)

• Beverly Ginsburg Cooper, WG’80, Managing Director, Huron Consulting Group
• Rami Elghandour, WG’08, CEO, Arcellx
• Renzo Luzzatti, WG’90, President, US-Rx Care
• Vikas Goyal, WG’10, Venture Partner, Longwood Fund
• John Winkelman, WG’80, Retired (Moderator)

A networking reception (including hors d'oeuvres) and then dinner will follow the Career and Alumni Panels.

Friday, November 15th

Breakfast (7:30am-8:15am)

Opening Keynote (8:15am-9:00am): David Fajgenbaum, MD, MBA, MSc, WG'15

Artificial Intelligence: Applications and Implications for Healthcare and Life Sciences (9:00am-10:00am)

• Carolyn Magill, WG’04, CEO, Aetion
• Nathan Silberman, VP of Machine Learning and Engineering, Artera
• Cécile Brosset Dubois, CEO & Co-founder, Sonio
• Katie Ellias, WG'06, Managing Director, T1D Fund (Moderator)

Break (10am-10:30am)

Innovations in Women’s Health (10:30-11:30am)

• Delphine O’Rourke, JD, Lead Partner, FemTech Fund III
• Marina Tarasova, WG’10, Co-Founder & COO, Paloma Health
• Z. Colette Edwards, WG'84, MD'85, Founder and CMO, pausitive health
• Alisha Lalani, Head of Growth, Mae
• Kathryn Tong, WG’07, CCO, Mom’s Meals (Moderator)

Innovative Approaches to addressing Labor Challenges in Healthcare and Life Sciences (10:30-11:30am)

• Kaveh Safavi, MD, JD, Senior Managing Director, Accenture
• Julia Puchtler, CFO, University of Pennsylvania Health System
• Geoffrey M. Roche, MPA, Director, Workforce Development, North America, Siemens Healthineers
• Bryan Bushick, MED’88, WG’89, Managing Director, Healthcare Alliance & Chief Healthcare Innovation Officer, Amplifire (Moderator)

Lunch (11:30am-12:30pm)

Afternoon Keynote (12:30-1:30pm): Jason Karlawish, MD, MBA, MRCP, FNMCP

Innovations in Care of the Aging and Elderly (1:30pm-2:30pm)

• Khai Nguyen, MD, National Medical Director for the Community Health Accreditation Partner (CHAP), Clinical Services Chief of Geriatric Medicine at UCSD Health
• James Walesa, CEO, Clearday
• Lily Huang, W’14, CFO, Curana Health
• John Whitman, WG’78, Faculty at Wharton’s MBA Health Care Management Program & Executive Director - The TRECS Institute (Moderator)

Addressing Cybersecurity in Healthcare (1:30pm-2:30pm)

• Keith Busby, Acting Chief Information Security Officer, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
• Seth Carmody, PhD, VP of Regulatory Strategy, MedCrypt
• Steve Long, Cyber Security Advisor, U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Region 3
• Brian McElyea, PhD, VP, Cyber Operations, RELI Group, Inc. (Moderator)

Fireside Chat: Policy & Politics: Post-election Implications (2:45-3:45pm)

• John Barkett, WG’09, Managing Director, Berkeley Research Group
• Rena Conti, PhD, Associate Professor and Dean's Scholar, Boston University Questrom School of Business
• Melissa Schulman, Senior Vice President of Government and Public Affairs, CVS Health

A pre-conference dinner will be held Thursday, November 14, 2024 at 7:00pm at Hilton Penn's Landing (Discovery Room AB, featuring waterfront views). We warmly invite you to join numerous speakers, WHCMAA Board Members, sponsors, and fellow attendees for dinner and an opportunity to network with good friends and new contacts (and to visit with June!…;)

During dinner, we will be presenting Dr. David Fajgenbaum with the distinguished Alumni Achievement Award. Dr Fajgenbaum was recently selected by the National Academy of Medicine as a member of the 2024 class of Emerging Leaders in Health and Medicine Scholars. We will also be presenting this year’s WHCMAA Outstanding Service Award to Michael Rovinsky, WG'86, current Chair of the Board's Career Development Committee, long-time supporter of the Alumni Association, and Co-Chair of this year’s Alumni Conference.

The dinner this year will be plated with your selection of entree, including:

• Traditional Caesar Salad with Garlic Croutons
• Your choice of:
  • Oven Roasted Chicken
  • Pan-Roasted Atlantic Salmon
  • Red Wine Braised Beef Short Rib
  • Vegetarian/Vegan options upon request
• And for a sweet ending, Apple Tart with Caramel Sauce

Red and white wine will be served along with soft drinks, coffee, and assorted teas.

Of note, the all-inclusive price of $120 is actually below cost to increase access and encourage participation.