Dr. Janet Stifter, PhD, RN, CPHQ, NE-BC, serves as the Vice President of Hospital Operations for Perioperative and Interventional Services and Professional Nursing Practice at Rush University Medical Center (RUMC) in Chicago. She earned her PhD and Bachelor’s Degrees in Nursing from the University of Illinois Chicago and her Master’s Degree in Nursing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her doctoral research focused on the impact of nursing staffing, particularly relational nurse continuity, on the incidence of hospital-acquired safety events.

Dio Sumagaysay, RN, MS is the Vice President of Perioperative & Multi-Specialty Procedural Services for Oregon Health & Science University Hospital, Portland, Oregon. In his role, he collaborates with CNO’s and COO’s of system hospitals (OHSU Hillsboro Medical Center and Adventist Health Portland) in the delivery of surgical care and nursing practice, development and prioritization of the strategic plan, building relationships with key leaders and providers to advance the strategic goals of OHSU Health Systems.

Brian Dawson, MSN, RN, CNOR, CSSM is the President and CEO of BD Perioperative and Healthcare Consulting, LLC. He was the first Afro-American Male Nurse Corps Officer to Command a Naval Hospital, and earned his BS in Nursing from American University in Washington, DC. Upon graduation, he was commissioned as an Ensign in the US Navy Nurse Corps in 1983. Brian went on to serve in various positions, including SPD Manager, OR Department Head, and Director of Surgical Services at multiple facilities. In 1997, Brian graduated with honors from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, with an MS in Nursing Administration/Leadership. He then served as the COO of Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune, Marine Corps Base Jacksonville, NC, and as the CEO of the Navy’s largest overseas Medical Treatment Facility, U.S. Naval Hospital in Okinawa, Japan.

Rami Karjian is the Head of OR Business at LeanTaaS. He began his journey in healthcare with McKinsey & Co, working together with health systems to improve patient flow across different areas of their hospitals. After a few years in the US, he moved to Asia to lead the Firm’s Service Operations practice in the region.

After over a decade with McKinsey based in the US and Asia, working with clients across the globe, Rami wanted the challenge and learning of directly taking on a scaled operating role. He joined Flextronics, as President of their Global Services division (the leading high-tech repair and logistics company globally). In that role, he led a business of 15,000 employees with operations in 25 sites across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. In addition to driving a transformation of that $1B+ revenue business he also incubated and spun-out a supply-chain SaaS company.