Advisory Committee

David A. Ellington, MD
Carl A. Armstrong, MD
Beth A. Bortz
Daniel Carey, MD
Krista J. Crawford-Mathis
Leslie C. Ellwood, MD
Kurtis S. Elward, MD
Richard M. Hamrick, III, MD, MBA
Chalmers M. Nunn, Jr., MD
Deborah L. Trainer, PhD
Delegate Shannon R. Valentine

David A. Ellington, MD, Chair
Lexington
Dr. Ellington is a family physician who has practiced in Lexington since 1984. Prior to that time he spent 9 years in the US Army Medical Corps in various assignments in Europe and the United States. His last duty assignment was as Chairman of the Department of Family Practice and Director of the Family Practice Residency training program at Ft. Rod, California. Dr. Ellington is a graduate of the Virginia Military Institute and the Medical College of Virginia. He completed his residency in Family Practice at Fort Rod. He is board certified by the American Board of Family Physicians and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Practice. Dr. Ellington is the immediate past president of the Medical Society of Virginia, a past president of the Virginia Academy of Family Physicians and served as a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians’Commission on Healthcare Services and is now a Board member for the AMerican Academy of Family Physicians. In 1992, Dr. Ellington helped found the Rockbridge Area Free Clinic and has been its Medical Director since that time. His professional passion is increasing access to care for all citizens of Virginia.

Carl A. Armstrong, MD
Richmond
Dr. Armstrong is the State Epidemiologist/Director for the Office of Epidemiology at the Virginia Department of Health. In this role, Dr. Armstrong is responsible for statewide disease surveillance. He is formerly the Vice President and Senior Medical Advisor of the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association, where he provided leadership for clinical quality improvement, patient safety, and emergency preparedness. He is an associate clinical professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Community Health at VCU/MCV. Dr. Armstrong received his undergraduate degree from Kenyon College and his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

Beth A. Bortz
Richmond
Beth A. Bortz is the Executive Director of the Medical Society of Virginia Foundation. She joined the MSV Foundation in 2002, having previously served as the Deputy Director of the Virginia Health Care Foundation and as a Legislative Analyst for the Virginia General Assembly’s Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission. Since coming to the MSV Foundation, Beth has focused on promoting community involvement by Virginia physicians, medical students, and alliance members. Current Foundation programs include: DOC RxRelief, the TO GOAL cardiovascular disease initiative, Get Smart Virginia: Know When Antibiotics Work, the Virginia Health Improvement Initiative, the Chronic Disease Treatment Improvement Initiative, and GetSmart Virginia: Know When Antibiotics Work. She also serves on the board of directors of three statewide coalitions -- Rx Partnership, the Virginia Consortium of Health Philanthropy, and the Healthy Communities Loan Fund. She recently received the honor of being named one of Richmond’s “Top 40 Under 40” by Style Weekly magazine. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, where she received her B.A. in Economics and Government and a Master in Public Policy. Her area of focus was health care economics.

Daniel Carey, MD
Lynchburg
Dr. Carey is a renowned cardiologist who led a team to develop one of the best acute MI angioplasty programs in the country. He practices general and interventional cardiology and is the medical director of the cardiac cathertization lab at Centra. He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, the American College of Cardiology, and the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions. He received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School, completed his residency at the University of California, San Francisco, and received his Fellowship in General and Interventional Cardiology from Emery University School of Medicine. Dr. Carey became involved with the MSV Foundation because “it is a group dedicated to furthering the best aspirations of medicine.”  He is currently serving as the President of the MSV Foundation and as President-elect of MSV.

Krista J. Crawford-Mathis
Roanoke
Mrs. Crawford-Mathis serves as the Co-Chair of the MSV Foundation Development Committee and is the First Vice President of the Medical Society of Virginia Alliance. Her contagious enthusiasm is complemented by her background as a human resource executive. Mrs. Crawford-Mathis considers her greatest professional accomplishment to be starting a human resource department for a small production plant of 150 men—skills that she now uses to expand her commitment to local, regional and global community health outreach. She is graduated from the University of Arkansas and received her MBA from Radford University.

Leslie C. Ellwood, MD
McLean
Dr. Ellwood has played an integral role in the Foundation’s Program Committee and was recognized as the Tar Wars Virginia Volunteer of the Year for the 2003-2004 school year. A pediatrician in the Fairfax area, Dr. Ellwood is a longstanding member of the Medical Society of Virginia, past President of the Virginia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and past President of the Medical Society of Northern Virginia. Dr. Ellwood leads the Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group’s quality improvement efforts in northern Virginia and served as their Chief of Pediatrics for nine years. He is a faculty member of George Washington University, INOVA Fairfax Hospital—University of Virginia Pediatrics Residency and the Georgetown University College of Medicine. He is highly regarded as a physician leader in the arenas of public health, health education, child advocacy, and quality improvement. Dr. Ellwood earned his doctor of medicine from the University of Florida College of Medicine.

Kurtis S. Elward, MD
Charlottesville
Dr. Elward has built his family medical care practice around “serving my patients in ways that are meaningful to them.” In addition to his private practice, Dr. Elward is the Assistance Professor of Research in Family Medicine at the University of Virginia; Medical Director of Quality Improvement for Southern Health Services of Virginia; and serves on the National Asthma Education Program Coordinating Committee and the Medical Director of MSVF's TO GOAL cardiovascular improvement program. He is a member of the Technical Expert Advisory Panel for Children’s Asthma Performance Measures at the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations; and a member of the Commission on Clinical Policies and Research at the American Academy of Family Physicians. He is also a volunteer physician at the Charlottesville Free Clinic; the Medical Director of Pregnancy Centers of Virginia; and President of the Klilnk Lenkahasyon Fondasyon, an organization dedicated to supporting development of health care services in rural Haiti. Dr. Elward completed his undergraduate work at the University of Illinois, where he also received his medical degree. He completed a fellowship in health services research as well as an MPH at the University of Washington.

Richard M. Hamrick, III, MD, MBA
Richmond
Dr. Hamrick practices with Pulmonary Associates of Richmond, Inc., a 21 physician practice specializing in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine. He is the immediate past-President of MSV, Chairman of the MSV Insurance Agency Board of Directors and serves as Chief of the Medical Staff of Henrico Doctor’s Hospital, as well as medical director of Respiratory Therapy. He attended medical school at the Medical College of Virginia, completed an internship at Bowman Gray School of Medicine, completed his residency at West Virginia University Medical Center and a Pulmonary fellowship at Georgetown University Medical Center. In 1999, Dr. Hamrick received his MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Business. Dr. Hamrick is a founding member of VIPC&S and a chairman of the Richmond Academy of Medicine.

Chalmers M. Nunn, Jr., MD
Lynchburg
Since September of 1999, Dr. Nunn has been Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Centra Health in Lynchburg, Virginia. His primary responsibilities are for quality improvement and clinical effectiveness for the system as well as medical staff development and management. He also serves on the board of directors for the Lynchburg Chamber of Commerce, VHA Central Atlantic and is the 2006/07 President for the American College of Physician Executives. Dr. Nunn is a native of Virginia, attended Duke University and spent nine years at Duke University Medical Center where he attended medical school and completed an internal medicine residency training program and gastroenterology fellowship. He is a board-certified internist and gastroenterologist. He also is a certified physician executive with a master’s in medical management from Carnegie Mellon University. Dr. Nunn practiced internal medicine and gastroenterology in a large multi-specialty clinic in Rocky Mount, NC from 1985 to 1993. He served in a leadership position and helped grow the practice from 12 to 45 physicians. From 1994 to 1999 Dr. Nunn was Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer at Nash Health Care Systems in Rocky Mount, NC. Dr. Nunn has been heavily involved in his community as he is past chairman of the local school board and coaches youth sports.

Deborah L. Trainer, PhD
Richmond
Dr. Trainer uses her experience as a former cancer research scientist to propel her passion of helping others to help themselves through education. Her considerable expertise in the sciences has led to the development of a curriculum of parent-volunteer led hands-on science laboratories and fairs for several Henrico County elementary schools—a model that has since been replicated in other schools and other states. She is very active on several Boards of Directors and community organizations, and serves on the Board of Directors the Science Museum of Virginia Foundation and on the Gifted Advisory Council for Henrico County Public Schools. Dr. Trainer graduated with honors from the University of Delaware and earned her doctorate in tumor biology at Hahnemann University in Philadelphia. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Richmond Academy of Medicine Alliance and is the President of the Medical Society of Virginia Alliance.

Delegate Shannon R. Valentine
Lynchburg
Delegate Valentine was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates on January 10, 2006. She serves on the Transportation Committee, the Science and Technology Committee and the Sub-Committee to study fuel-efficient vehicles and transportation funding. In April 2007, Valentine was appointed by Governor Kaine to serve on the Virginia Interagency Coordinating Council. She was also named as the 2007 Nicki Bazaco Individual Distinction Award winner by the Medical Society of Virginia Alliance, awarded to the individual who best promotes health education and quality of care through legislation. Valentine has been named as a Top 20 Delegate two years in a row by the Virginia League of Conservation Voters. She is a graduate of the University of Virginia, and recently completed the school's Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership.