Sarah Peyre, EdD

Associate Dean for Innovative Education 
Institute for Innovative Education
University of Rochester Medical Center 

Sarah E. Peyre, EdD is the Associate Dean for Innovative Education and a Professor of Surgery, Nursing, Medical Humanities and Bioethics at the University of Rochester. In addition to her faculty appointments, Peyre's primary role is as Executive Director of the Institute for Innovative Education (IIE), where she leads advances in health professions education through simulation, adaptive technology, team science and novel approaches to information and education delivery. The IIE is a centralized matrix of services that includes the Miner Library and the Center for Experiential Learning, and is supported by IT and educational specialists with expertise in instructional design, simulation and program development. The IIE supports the educational mission of the School of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Nursing, Eastman Institute of Oral Health, Strong Hospital and the Faculty Practice Group. Working extensively in the field of simulation, Peyre's career has evolved to focus on high-performing healthcare teams and the educational innovations that support collaborative care models. Her work in interprofessional education includes curriculum development on disparities in healthcare, leadership and technology. Her Macy Faculty Scholars Project is focused on identifying and teaching best practices in the patient and family-centered use of the electronic medical record (EMR).  Building on the traditions of the University of Rochester, she is interested in nourishing humanism alongside technology as educational programs are created that promote effective communication within high performing teams. Before joining the URMC faculty in 2011, she directed Education and Research for the STRATUS Center for Medical Simulation at the Brigham and Women's Hospital and was assistant professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of California at Berkeley, and her Master in Science of Medical Education and Doctorate in Educational Psychology from the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California.

Katy Stevenson, MPP

National Chair, Group on Institutional Planning, AAMC
Program Administrator, Strategy, Planning and Development
University of Rochester Medical Center

Katy Stevenson, M.P.P, joined the Strategic Planning Department at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) in 2010.  As Program Administrator for Strategy, Planning and Development, she focuses on institution-wide strategic efforts that impact all mission areas. She serves as an internal consultant and project manager for priority initiatives, including developing and implementing strategic plans, conducting data analysis and research and drafting communications. Before joining URMC, Ms. Stevenson worked for the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ district office as director of their medical education department.  She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Hobart and William Smith Colleges, and her Master of Public Policy, Health Policy from the University at Albany – State University of New York.  Ms. Stevenson is a Certified Lean Practitioner and holds a certification in Financial Management.

Parie Garg, PhD

Partner, Health & Life Sciences, Oliver Wyman

Parie Garg, a Partner with Oliver Wyman’s Health and Life Sciences practice, specializes in playing at the seams between health plans and provider organizations. She is a recognized as the Medicaid expert and leverages her passion for serving the underprivileged populations, while developing Medicaid focused strategies for health plans and provider organizations alike. Her work has included: developing and redesigning a Medicaid health plan’s growth strategy; developing and launching a survey for a large philanthropic organization to understand the healthcare information needs of vulnerable consumers; and determining the optional operation model for a state department to interface with Managed Care Organizations. 

Prior to joining Oliver Wyman, Parie was a scientist in the Physiological Chemistry department at Genentech, Inc. She has a PhD in Genetics and Biochemistry from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and a BS in Biology from Illinois Wesleyan University. She has published several blog posts and papers on Medicaid, in addition to peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals.

Meshie Knight

Program Officer, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Meshie Knight joined the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in 2015 as a program associate working to improve the value of the nation’s health care and public health systems. Knight views her role as an opportunity to use her background and education and a passion that’s rooted in her deep personal experiences to shape a health system that is efficient, equitable, and committed to improving the health and well-being of all. Previously, Knight served as a program and development associate for the Universal Health Care Foundation (UHCF) where her work included grant management, program development, and supporting policy initiatives designed to transform health care in Connecticut. As consultant with the Connecticut Choosing Wisely Collaborative, Knight helped establish a multi-stakeholder collective to promote shared decision-making between patients and providers. She earlier served as a communications assistant with the Center for Children’s Advocacy, a non-profit law and policy organization. There, she advocated for systemic changes in the education, juvenile justice, health and child welfare systems on behalf of vulnerable children in Connecticut. Knight earned a BA from Howard University and an MA from Trinity College. She is a 2012 graduate of the Connecticut Health Foundation’s Health Leadership Fellows Program. A native of the island of Jamaica, Meshie now resides in Plainsboro, N.J. She describes herself as an experimental cook who loves to travel, try new foods, and enjoy the outdoors: running, biking, hiking. She organized Black Girls Run! Hartford, a local chapter of a national organization that encourages and inspires African-American women to lead healthy lifestyles. She calls it her “passion on purpose." 

Chris Schrader

Senior Principal, Oliver Wyman

Chris Schrader is a Senior Principal in the New York office of Oliver Wyman and is a member of the Health Services and Digital, Technology, and Analytics (DTA) teams. He has 15 years of experience across healthcare, technology, consumer packaged goods, education, government, manufacturing, non-profit, professional services, and entertainment. Currently, Chris focuses on growth strategy and disruptive business innovation for healthcare organizations and helps lead the development of OW’s annual Health Innovation Journal.

Mr. Schrader holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BSE from Princeton University in Operations Research and Financial Engineering and has expertise in strategic planning, growth strategy, disruptive innovation, business design, customer segmentation and profitability improvement.

Alan Schwartz, PhD

Founder and Principal, Institute for Practice and Provider Performance Improvement

Alan Schwartz is a cognitive psychologist with expertise in medical decision making, organizational behavior, and measurement with over a decade of experience evaluating and training health care providers to improve quality. His research in medical decision making and evidence-based medicine has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, the National Board of Medical Examiners, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. He is currently Editor-in-Chief of the journals Medical Decision Making and Medical Decision Making Policy & Practice.

Saul J. Weiner, MD

Founder and Principal, Institute for Practice and Provider Performance Improvement

Saul Weiner is a board certified internist and pediatrician with practice, leadership, and research experience in a variety of health care settings. He has served as a residency program director, academic division head, clinic director, medical education dean, and health services investigator. He has served as a principal or co-investigator of studies of health systems improvement, health surveys, medical decision making and provider communication funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Veterans Administration. Over the last 10 years he has focused on developing and refining methods for assessing health care quality based on direct observation to enhance value based care. A particular focus has been on helping practices and providers prevent costly "contextual errors" that occur when clinicians and health care teams overlook barriers patients' face that undermine otherwise appropriate care plans.