| The Bronx Veterans Medical Research Foundation Board of Directors |
||
|---|---|---|
| Meenakshi Zaidi, M.D. | Statutory VA Director | Chief of Staff, JJP VAMC |
| Dawn M. Schaal, M.S. | Statutory VA Director | Medical Center Director, VA HVHCS | Sheldon Brown, M.D. | Statutory VA Director | ACOS Research, VA JJP VAMC and HVHCS |
| Norbert Brau, M.D. | Statutory VA Director | ACOS Education, JJP VAMC |
| Gregory Elder, M.D., Ph.D. | Non-Statutory Director | Medical Center Director, JJP VAMC |
| Mary Sano, Ph.D. | Statutory Non-Federal Director | Public Member |
| Candace Grant, M.D. | Statutory Non-Federal Director | Public Member |
| Whitney Gruhin, MPH | Statutory Non-Federal Director | Vice Chair of Administration in the Department of Medicine, MSSM |
| Iris Cook, Ph.D. | Honorary Board Member | Public Member |
Click here to view the BVMRF’s Organizational Chart
Meenakshi Zaidi, M.D.
Director
Dr. Meenakshi Zaidi is the Chief of Staff of the James J. Peters VA Medical Center. She is board certified in Internal Medicine, Fellow of the American College of Physicians, and has been an Attending Physician at the VA since 2008.
She has served as Patient Care Center Director for Primary Care, Geriatrics and Preventive Medicine since 2017 and remains Assistant Professor of Medicine at Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York since 2012.
Dr. Zaidi has been a champion for providing excellence in care, improving patients experience and reducing admissions for congestive heart failure, COPD and diabetes. For this she was awarded Physician of the year award in 2016, winner of Most Innovative award in VISN2 QIDC 2018 and Most Improved Patients Experience Award by VHA 2020.
Dawn M. Schaal, M.S.
Director
Ms. Dawn M. Schaal is the Medical Center Director of the VA Hudson Valley Health Care System (VA HVHCS).
She comes to this role from her position as the Interim Director of VA HVHCS, which she began on October 27, 2019. Prior to that, Ms. Schaal was the Associate Director from November 29, 2015. Ms. Schaal started with the VA in 1997 as a staff occupational therapist and has served in progressive positions since, including Ambulatory Care Line Business Manager, Staff Assistant to the Director, and Chief of Health Administration Service in 2013. She served in this role until January 2015, when the VA Under Secretary for Health appointed her to Interim Associate Director for a 120-day period. Ms. Schaal has also served as the Interim Group Practice Manager. Through her leadership, the medical center’s scheduling process was recognized as a program with strong integrity by the Inspector General, the Joint Commission, and former VA Deputy Secretary Sloan Gibson.
Ms. Schaal earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Binghamton University, a Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy from Tufts University. She completed the VISN 3 Bridges to the Future program and has earned a VA-sponsored Healthcare Data Analytics certificate from Nebraska Methodist College. She completed the Northeast Healthcare Leadership Program and VA’s Healthcare Leadership Development Program. In early 2015, Ms. Schaal received the Federal Executive Board Distinguished Service Award.
Mary Sano, Ph.D.
Director
Dr. Mary Sano is a Professor of Psychiatry and the Director of the Alzheimer's Disease Research at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. She also served as the Associate Chief of Staff of Research and Development at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center. Dr. Sano is a neuropsychologist by training and has been involved in designing and conducting clinical trials for Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and mild cognitive impairment of aging. In 1989 she received the Florence and Herbert Irving Clinical Research Career Award to develop methodologies for the assessment of therapeutic agents in Alzheimer's disease. She directed the first ADCS multicenter trial of vitamin E and Selegiline, treatments that delayed the clinical progression of Alzheimer's disease and in 1998 she received the Veris Award for this study. In this study minority participation was more than double that of any other clinical trial for this disease. Her research interests are in clinical trial design and the impact of pharmacological treatments on the functional abilities of individuals with cognitive impairment.
She has also developed tools to assess the economic impact of subtle cognitive changes in elderly subjects. Other areas of interest include the role of depression in cognitive impairment and dementia, women's attitudes about the prevention of memory loss, and measuring quality of life in diseases of aging. She is also the recipient of the Alzheimer Association grant to study Resveritrol, one of the active ingredients in red wine. Dr. Sano has also conducted work characterizing the cognitive impact of head injury, Sickle Cell disease, and mitochondrial disorders.
Gregory Elder, M.D., Ph.D.
Director
Dr. Gregory Elder is the Practice Chief of the Neurology Service at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center in the Bronx, NY, and a Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, NY. His research interests are in blast-related traumatic brain injury.
Whitney Gruhin, MPH
Director
Whitney Gruhin is the Vice Chair of Administration in the Department of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai where she oversees one of the health system’s largest departments. In this role, she leads the administrative, financial, clinical, research, and academic operations, while supporting a large cross functional team over multiple sites. Ms. Gruhin plays a critical role in shaping departmental strategy and ensuring fiscal accountability through data driven decision making and collaborative leadership.
Since joining Mount Sinai in 2013, Ms. Gruhin has held a series of progressively senior leadership roles. She has successfully led the development of a centralized clinical practice in Psychiatry, significantly expanding patient access and operational efficiencies. She also directs the department’s expansive research grant portfolio and has implemented systems to improve pre and post award grant management, resulting in the ability to handle a greater volume of submissions. Additionally, Ms. Gruhin develops business plans to support faculty recruitment, program development, and space acquisitions.
Ms. Gruhin is known for building high performing teams and enhancing the administrative infrastructure required to support clinical growth and research excellence. She is also responsible for budget planning, revenue cycle operations, human resources, strategic planning, program management, and space allocations. Her leadership reflects a balance of strategic foresight and operational execution, grounded in a strong commitment to faculty and staff development, while also aligning with institutional policy.
Ms. Gruhin holds a Master of Public Health from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, with a concentration in Healthcare Administration, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Emory University.
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