1. Virginia Department of Health(VDH) Town Hall/Overview
Welcome to VEMS 2017
Virginia Department of Health(VDH) Town Hall/Overview

2. Presenter Bio
Kelly Parker: Kelly is currently the Director of Emergency Preparedness at the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association.  In this role she oversee the Hospital Preparedness Program and Virginias 6 healthcare coalitions.  Prior to this she worked at the Virginia Department of Health as the State Hospital Coordinator for the Hospital Preparedness Program. 

3. Presenter Bio
She serves as a national reviewer for Project Public Health Ready and has worked to increasing transparency and situational awareness between public health and healthcare at the local, state, and federal levels.  Kelly received a bachelor of science in Healthcare Administration and Policy from George Mason University.

4. Presenter Bio
Donna Ruth: Donna Ruth currently serves as the Local Health Emergency Coordinator for the Portsmouth Health District. Prior to her current position, she served as the District Epidemiologist for Hampton Health District. Donna has been with the VA Department of Health for over 30 years. The first 16 years she worked in the epidemiology program and the last 17 years in emergency preparedness and response.

5. Presenter Bio
In 1999, Donna received “hands on” orientation to disaster response and recovery for public health when she was asked to support health department response efforts for Hurricane Floyd in Franklin, VA. Post Hurricane Floyd, Donna was asked to develop a hurricane response plan for local health districts, but before the plan could be finalized, September 11, 2001 occurred and highlighted the public health mission to respond to biological incidents.

6. Presenter Bio
In her current position, Donna works with her local jurisdiction to develop and implement plans for responding to acts of bioterrorism, infectious disease outbreaks and other public health threats and emergencies. She is also responsible for the development and maintenance of a district plan for receiving and distributing the Strategic National Stockpile.

7. Presenter Bio
Cindy Shelton: Cindy Shelton has been involved with public health preparedness and response since 2003, working at the local, regional, and state levels.  She is currently the Assistant Director and State SNS Coordinator for the Office of Emergency Preparedness with the Virginia Department of Health. 

8. Presenter Bio
Aside from the SNS program, she is responsible for exercise development and execution, development of the agency emergency response plan and its annexes, and assisting in the Public Health Emergency Preparedness grant process as well as response efforts for VDH.  Other employment has been in the areas of grants administration, criminal justice planning, and human resources management. 

9. Presenter Bio
Cindy attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and received a B. S. in Psychology from Virginia Commonwealth University.  She also completed the Management Academy for Public Health through UNC-Chapel Hill and has received her certification as a Master Exercise Practitioner.