 
|
|
Executive Director
We are currently seeking a new executive director.
Click here to learn more.
Board of Directors
The FMHI board of directors supplies the vision and oversees
the foundations programs and finances. The directors were selected
for their experience in the areas of health, community outreach
or fundraising. Most have direct personal experience with depression.
Barbara J. Hatcher, Ph.D., MPH, RN
President
 Dr. Barbara J. Hatcher is Director of the Center for Learning & Global Public Health at the American Public Health Association (APHA) and Secretary General , the World Federation of Public Health Associations ,whose Secretariat is housed at APHA. Dr. Hatcher is a nurse with extensive experience in nursing and public health. Dr. Hatcher has served in key positions in public health and has served on a variety of public and nonprofit boards. She has directed or co-directed several key federal and foundation grants and received more than twenty million dollars to support innovative infant mortality reduction efforts in the District of Columbia.
Dr. Hatcher has published in areas of maternal and child health and nursing and public health workforce. She is Editor -in-Chief of the peer-reviewed Journal of Chi Eta Phi Nursing Sorority (JOCEPS) and services on the editorial board of MEDICC Review, a peer-reviewed journal published in cooperation with Cuba. Most recently Dr. Hatcher served as the lead author of a commissioned white paper, Wisdom at Work: the Importance of the Older & Experienced Nurses in the Workplace. The results of this study have been widely quoted and discussed. The interview of Dr. Hatcher about the findings of this study was among the top 10 nursing stories for 2006 on WebMD. As a member of an interdisciplinary research group, also recently published the article, Determinants of Inadequate Prenatal Care Utilization by African American Women
Dr. Hatcher received her B.S. from the University of Connecticut, master's of public health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and doctoral degree in nursing from George Mason University. Her current interests include global public health with emphasis on global health governance and human resources for health.
Back to Top
Ralph Wittenberg, M.D.
Co-founder and Medical Director
 Dr. Wittenberg is a recognized authority on postpartum depression. He is a psychotherapist and a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the George Washington University School of Medicine. He served as the Chair of the Public Information Committee of the Washington Psychiatric Society and as a consultant to the Joint Commission on Public Affairs to the American Psychiatric Association, of which he is a Distinguished Life Fellow. He is also a Senior Psychoanalytic Fellow of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis and Dynamic Psychiatry and a member of the Marce Society, an international organization dedicated to perinatal depression. He has organized a number of community mental health projects, including a program for the early identification of children at risk in the Washington, D.C., public schools.
Through his work with the FMHF, he has helped to build a consortium of hospitals, clinics and other groups concerned about pregnant women’s mental health. This consortium helped develop programs of universal depression screening in primary care settings, professional and lay education, case management and provided resources for therapy.
Wittenberg received his B.A. from Wayne State University in 1956 and his medical degree from the Wayne State University School of Medicine in 1960.
Back to Top
Suzanna Kang
Secretary
 Suzanna Kang has worked as pro bono counsel
to the Family Mental Health Foundation, a predecessor organization
to the FMHI, and later served as a director on the Board of the
FMHF. She brings with her over 15 years experience in government
and law.
Suzanna currently practices corporate law, specializing
in mergers, acquisitions and corporate governance areas, at the
law firm of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP. Before practicing
law, she worked as a legislative and policy aide on Capitol Hill
and at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative for nearly six
years.
Suzanna graduated from the University of Virginia with a
Bachelor’s degree in Government and a law degree from Georgetown
University Law Center.
Back to Top
Mary Bernhard
Tresurer
 Mary Bernhard's biography is coming soon.
Back to Top
James Dee, M.D., DPh
Director
 Dr. James Dee is board certified in adult psychiatry and has been in private practice in the Mount Vernon, Va., area for 17 years. He is the chairman of the Psychiatric Department at Mount Vernon Hospital. He is a past president of the Washington Psychiatric Society.
Listed as one of the area's oustanding physician specialists by the Washington Consumer’s Checkbook and a 'Top Doctor' by Washingtonian Magazine, Dr. Dee also currently serves as President of Allied Behavioral Services.
Dr. Dee received a B.S. in zoology from the University of California at Los Angeles in 1973, a doctorate in pharmacy (magna cum laude) from the University of the Pacific in 1976, and a medical degree from the Universidad Autonoma de CD Juarez in Chihuahua, Mexico, in 1983. He was a resident in psychiatry at the National Institute of Mental Health (St. Elizabeth’s Hospital) in Washington, D.C., from 1984 to 1987.
Back to Top
Marilyn Jerome, M.D.
Director
Dr. Jerome has practiced obstetrics and gynecology in Washington, D.C. since 1982. Upon completion of her residency at George Washington University Hospital she joined Foxhall OB/GYN Associates. Dr. Jerome is a Clinical Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at George Washington University and has enjoyed teaching medical students, residents and physician assistants throughout her career.
Dr. Jerome was born in Cleveland, Ohio and received her undergraduate degree from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. She received her medical degree from the University of Cincinnati and moved to Washington, D.C for her residency training.
For the first seventeen years of her practice, Dr. Jerome managed and delivered thousands of obstetrical patients. Her practice in the last eight years has focused on gynecology, and she is especially interested in the hormonal changes that women experience throughout the various phases of their lives.
Dr Jerome is married and has two sons. She is involved in two organizations as a board member. The Children of God Relief Fund is an organization that funds three programs in Kenya for HIV infected orphans. The Jesuit Refugee Service administers and advocates for refugees around the world. In her free time, Dr. Jerome enjoys travel, gardening and cooking.
Back to Top
Harry A. Jessell
Director
 Harry Jessell is a freelance writer and editor
and television industry expert. For more than 25 years, he worked
at Broadcasting & Cable, the leading business magazine for the
TV and radio industries. He was editor in chief from 1997 to 2004.
Jessell has appeared on TV and radio, lectured at universities and
moderated numerous panels at TV industry conferences. In 1999, he
was profiled in (and appeared on the cover of) MIN Magazine
as editor of one of "The Year’s Top 12 Magazines."
Jessell is a volunteer for the Friends of the Blind of Morris County,
N.J. He is a 1976 graduate of Duquesne University in Pittsburgh,
PA.
Back to Top
Susanne Ollmann
Director
 Susanne Ollmann is a consultant in international business relations, and a professional photographer specializing in portraits and wedding and event photography. Having experienced up close the impact of PPD on a close family member, she is dedicated to helping other women with PPD get the treatment they need. Ms. Ollmann served as Asst. Vice President, PhRMA, where she worked with the U.S. research-based pharmaceutical industry to implement government affairs strategies to positively impact reimbursement, regulatory, intellectual property policies, and healthcare system reform in Europe.
She communicated industry concerns directly to U.S. and foreign government officials, and succeeded in eliminating policies in numerous markets that had been detrimental to industry and patients. Recipient of the Robert Bosch Foundation fellowship, she conducted research in international trade at the German Ministry of Economics and the German Association of Research-Based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers.
Ms. Ollmann was also awarded fellowships at the European Commission, where she published on EU legislative decision-making, and at the German Parliament, where she researched the political and economic impact of the move of the seat of government to Berlin. At CSIS, she conducted research on foreign policy for Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski. As a Syndicated Analyst with the Corporate Advisory Board, she contributed to a study on reducing turnover in Fortune 500 companies. She holds a Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) from Georgetown University and a BA in English and German from Mount Holyoke College. She is fluent in German, speaks some Japanese, and is an avid traveler and mountain trekker.
Back to Top
Oscar E. Padilla
Director
 Oscar Padilla is the Director of Interactive Services at Vertis, developing and executing their interactive new media strategy, overseeing its daily operations, and interacting with other cross-functional Vertis teams to ensure alignment of the company's new media vision and capabilities.
Before working with Veritas', Oscar launched the multicultural division at Mindshare Interactive Campaigns. There he led business strategy, creative, and technology teams to planning and executing integrated online programs for marquee clients. Prior to Mindshare, Oscar was Director of Business Development at Bridgeline Software, an Internet consulting where he helped secure key strategic accounts including the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Harpo Inc. Previously, he led new business development efforts for Blackboard Inc., a leading e-learning software company where he managed a West Coast Sales territory overseeing over 150 accounts in 12 states.
Oscar is a native of Caracas, Venezuela, and a graduate from the University of Maryland where he earned a B.S. in Business Administration. Oscar resides in Washington, DC, with his wife Megan and is an avid mountain biker.
Back to Top
|
|
|
