Community Child Health Team

Innovation

Help Me Grow National Center

• Kimberly Martini-Carvell, MA

Easy Breathing

• Jessica Hollenbach, PhD, is Co-Director of the Asthma Center at Connecticut Children’s and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. Dr. Hollenbach received her doctorate in biomedical science from the University of Connecticut and is a certified asthma educator. She is a junior investigator, working within a biopsychosocial framework to improve pediatric asthma outcomes. She employs community-based participatory, clinical, translational, and implementation science methods to address pediatric asthma disparities where children live, work, and play. She is the creator of an efficacious program, Easy Breathing for Schools, a school-based asthma program for school nurses. Easy Breathing for Schools has improved school absentee rates and proper inhaler technique among inner-city students with asthma.

Care Coordination Collaborative Model

• Allison Matthews-Wilson, LCSW, serves as the director for care integration with the Center for Care Coordination. In her role as director, she oversees efforts to integrate clinical support teams (Case Management, Care Coordination and Social Work) while creating a seamless system of support for Connecticut Children’s patients and partners.  Allison is part of the OCCH leadership team that supports community-based program evaluation, development and dissemination. She has more than 20 years of behavioral health and clinical experience, as well as practice in clinical program development and systems change. She has been published for her research on care coordination in a pediatric emergency setting and is a nationally certified trainer of the Protective Factors Framework.

Childhood Prosperity Lab

• Jacquelyn M. Rose, MPH, is a manager in the Office for Community Child Health and leads two programs, Childhood Prosperity Lab and North Hartford Ascend Pipeline. She supports Childhood Prosperity Lab by building relationships with and offering assistance to individuals and organizations creating and implementing innovative strategies to foster the healthy development of children and strengthen families. Jacquelyn is responsible for leading and executing strategic planning and implementation of the North Hartford Ascend Pipeline, a place-based initiative that integrates achievement-oriented schools with vital, evidence-based community-oriented services and programs to support the health, development, well-being, and academic achievement and attainment of children living in the North Hartford Promise Zone. Prior to joining Connecticut Children’s, Jacquelyn served as director of outreach and community programs for the police department in Cambridge, Massachusetts where she was responsible for planning, implementing, and evaluating community-oriented programs and initiatives. Jacquelyn holds a master’s degree in public health from Boston University and a bachelor’s degree in public health from Southern Connecticut State University.

Co-Management

• Karen Rubin, MD, has a special interest in youth with chronic conditions that persist into adulthood; her efforts in this area include improving the transition from pediatric to adult care. She has spearheaded an innovative care model for Type 1 diabetes and is leading an initiative aimed at improving access to pediatric specialists by enhancing the collaboration between primary care and specialty providers
• Ilana Waynik, MD, is a pediatric hospitalist at Connecticut Children’s and an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. She has advanced quality improvement training and is a Lean Black Belt. Dr. Waynik is the Director of Clinical Effectiveness at Connecticut Children’s, under which sit the Clinical Pathways Program and the CLASP (Connecticut Children’s Leaders in Advanced Solutions in Pediatrics) Co-Management program. These programs enable the reliable delivery of evidence-based medicine and improve the value of care pediatric patients receive in primary care, ambulatory, and acute care settings across the state of Connecticut and other nearby regions. She has published and presented research focused on effects of clinical pathways on management of patients with bronchiolitis, infant fever, and venous access procedures. She has also run workshops on the topic of clinical pathway development at a number of national academic meetings. She is a steering committee member of a new national clinical pathways program group, “Pathways 4 Kids”.  Dr. Waynik is also a Quality and Patient Safety Officer at her home institution, both leading and mentoring others in QI work. She is a coach for the Organizational Excellence course at her institution and has served as a coach for several AAP Value in Inpatient Pediatrics initiatives (recently renamed Pediatric and Critical Care Quality Network).

Connecticut Children’s Center for Global Health

• Adam Silverman, MD, is an emergency medicine and critical care physician at Connecticut Children’s and the Director of Connecticut Children’s Center for Global Health. 

Start Childhood Off Right

• Nancy Trout, MD, MPH, joined Connecticut Children’s Primary Care in 2017, after working for 22 years in the Pediatric Ambulatory and Primary Care Center at St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center. She completed her certificate in global health and her masters degree in public health at the University of Massachusetts with a focus on health disparities and early childhood obesity prevention
• Stacy Chandna, is the director of the Human Research Protection Program at Connecticut Children’s. She earned her Master’s degree in nutrition from Columbia University’s Institute of Human Nutrition and has experience leading nutrition education and cooking skills workshops in New York City communities that are at-risk for developing obesity.

North Hartford Ascend Pipeline

• Jacquelyn M. Rose, MPH

Connecticut Children’s Center for Care Coordination

• Allison Matthews-Wilson, LCSW

Connecticut Children’s Healthy Homes Program

• Chris Corcoran, is the manager of Connecticut Children’s Healthy Homes Program. Chris is responsible for ensuring the continuing success of Healthy Homes by securing resources for operations from state and federal funding sources; overseeing the referral process from clinical partners at Connecticut Children’s who identify housing-related health and safety issues as a concern for patients; guaranteeing delivery of planned project outcomes; and identifying innovative opportunities to collaborate and make homes safe and healthy for Connecticut children and their families. Chris has served on the National Center for Healthy Housing’s National Safe and Healthy Housing Coalition, and was appointed to the Lead Poisoning Prevention Work Group that crafted legislation to support Connecticut’s efforts to reduce childhood lead poisoning.

Connecticut Newborn Screening Network

• Debra Ellis, BSN, As a Registered Nurse and educator with over 25 years of experience in clinical settings, Debra has focused her career on improving the patient/family experience. Debra obtained her BSN from Quinnipiac University and is currently pursuing a MSN with a focus on public health. She has a proven success record of developing sustainable initiatives through interagency collaboration, education, and advocacy efforts. She is experienced in program development, project management, creation and dissemination of multi-platform educational materials, and grant writing and management. She is a two-time Nightingale award nominee, recipient of the 2018 Nightingale Award for Excellence in Nursing, and the 2021 national GRACE Award for cultivating family engagement in newborn screening. She is also a member of a national work group to develop long-term follow-up metrics for newborn screening programs. In her current role as the Program Manager for the Connecticut Newborn Screening Network, she oversees referrals to the Network for out-of-range newborn screens and helps to design and implement projects to support providers and families as they navigate the newborn screening system. She leads the coordination, creation, and dissemination of educational materials to physicians and hospitals statewide, and has played a formative role in the creation of Connecticut’s Newborn Screening Family Advisory Group. She is passionate about improving the experience for families as they navigate the newborn screen system.

Hartford Youth HIV Identification and Linkage Consortium

• Nilda Fernandez-Betancourt, MSW, works as a Community Health Specialist at the University of Connecticut/Connecticut Children’s Pediatric & Youth HIV Program in Hartford.  She has adopted a multifaceted approach to her practice specializing in both macro and micro social work with youth.  She provides supervision for prevention projects, coordinates the Hartford Youth Health Identification and Linkage Consortium (HYHIL) and the Health Interactive Project (HIP) as well as provides medical case management services to infants, children, youth and women living with HIV. Mrs. Fernandez has extensive knowledge in group facilitation, community organization, program development and policy practice.  Mrs. Fernandez serves as a field instructor for the Uconn School of Social Work Field Education Program.
• Danielle Warren-Dias, MS, is program director of the Connecticut Children’s/UConn Health Youth and Family Community Health Program. Danielle has worked in the public health arena for over 28 years. She advocates for equal access to education, social services and health care for economically disadvantaged populations on the local, state and national stage.

Person-Centered Medical Home

• Catherine Wiley, MD

Injury Prevention Center

• Kevin Borrup, DrPH, JD, MPA, is a leader in injury prevention science, holding positions with both the American Public Health Association and the Society for the Advancement of Violence and Injury Research. Dr. Borrup is accomplished in conducting research, implementing programs, and in advocating for policies that keep children safe and injury free. He has a special interest in efforts to reduce violence and promote the health and wellness of children, families, and communities.

Children’s Center on Family Violence

• Nina Livingston, MD, FAAP, is a child abuse pediatrician and directs the Division of Child Abuse Pediatrics at Connecticut Children’s. She is an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. Dr. Livingston collaborates across disciplines on many regional initiatives and teaches regionally and nationally on evaluation of suspected maltreatment. She also co-directs the Children’s Center on Family Violence, a program of Connecticut Children’s Office for Community Child Health that is formed in collaboration with the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence and aims to reduce the impact of family violence on children.
• Meghan Scanlon, currently serves as the CEO of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence (CCADV), which is the state’s leading voice for victims of domestic violence and those organizations that serve them. Prior to her time at CCADV, Scanlon was the Executive Director of Women & Family Life Center, a regional nonprofit serving women and families in crisis. Additionally, Meghan has worked in several roles throughout the Connecticut nonprofit world and served as an aide to Senator Chris Murphy and Congresswoman Jahana Hayes. She is a graduate of the University of Connecticut and lives in Guilford with her husband Sean and sons Jack and Declan.

Educating Practices

• David Krol, MD, MPH, FAAP, a pediatrician, serves as Medical Director of Connecticut Children’s Care Network and oversees the Educating Practices program. The program brings the newest developments in pediatric primary care to Connecticut’s child health providers through the process of academic detailing and works to advance sustainable improvements in primary and preventive health and mental health care practices for all Connecticut children. Dr. Krol brings over 20 years of experience and leadership in clinical practice, policy, research, education, administration, and advocacy. Dr. Krol came to Connecticut Children’s from Rutgers University where he was the Medical Director for the New Jersey Healthy Kids Initiative.

Resident Education in Advocacy and Community Health

• Jonah Mandell, DO, MA, is an urgent care physician at Connecticut Children’s. He is an associate program director for the pediatric residency at UCONN/Connecticut Children’s. His role in medical education includes overseeing the REACH (Resident education in Advocacy and Community Health) program and the Community Longitudinal Experience (CLE) program which connects residents with different community groups in the Hartford area.

• Luis Rivera, MSW, serves as the Community Relations Manager for Connecticut Children’s. Luis is responsible for leading Connecticut Children’s Community Health Needs Assessment and Community Benefit Report. Rivera also represents Connecticut Children’s in the community. Luis is a NHTSA certified Child Passenger Safety Instructor and Special Needs Transportation Instructor. Luis has a master’s degree in social work in public policy from the University of Connecticut and has worked at Connecticut Children’s for the last 14 years. Luis is currently pursuing his PhD at Liberty University.