
About the Authors
Meet the educators, clinicians, and contributors behind the EHR Learning Portal.
The "Improving EHR Use for Better Outcomes" curriculum is supported by a team of experienced educators, clinicians, and healthcare leaders. These individuals contribute their expertise to ensure the modules reflect real-world clinical practice, high-quality documentation standards, and meaningful educational outcomes.
Below are the contributors involved in the development and guidance of this learning initiative.
Project Leadership
Nadia Juzych, DSc MS
EHR Project Director
Dr. Juzych is the Director of Research Programs and leads the Quality Improvement, Research, Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, and Undergraduate Medical Education programs for the Southeast Michigan Center for Medical Education, developing courses, programs, and presentations.
She is the lead organizer for the SEMCME – BCBSM EHR Educational Program and the Michigan Summit on Quality Improvement & Patient Safety/Research Forum, an annual gathering of Michigan medical professionals that showcases quality improvement and research projects completed by Michigan medical residents and fellows.
Dr. Juzych serves as an Associate Editor for the Michigan Medical Education and Health Bulletin. She formerly served as the Executive Director of the Michigan Antimicrobial Resistance Reduction coalition (MARR), responsible for organizing statewide educational efforts and research programs for physicians and the public to reduce antimicrobial resistance.
Previously, she served on the faculty of the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University in the Department of Health Policy and Management and as a member of the faculty of the Risk Sciences and Public Policy Institute, participating as an instructor of environmental health, risk sciences, and toxicology courses.
Her research includes work for the US EPA, the CDC, HRSA, AFMIC, DOD, and other federal, state and local agencies as well as the PEW Charitable Trusts and other private foundations.
Dr. Juzych received her doctorate in environmental health from Boston University School of Public Health, MS in environmental and occupational health from California State University Northridge and her BS in microbiology from the University of California Los Angeles.
Michael Geheb, MD, FACP, FCCM
EHR Project Co-Director
Dr. Geheb serves as the Executive Director of the Southeast Michigan Center for Medical Education and oversees the programming, budgeting, and strategic direction of the organization. He serves as an Associate Editor for the Michigan Medical Education and Health Bulletin.
Dr. Geheb has had executive responsibility for three Academic Health Systems, seven hospitals (including a children's hospital), five physician group practices and three medical schools. He has had a long-standing interest in medical education and its training requirements and is experienced in developing clinical and academic programs, including recruitment of physician and administrative leadership, and leading financial and operational integration strategies for health systems including academic health centers.
Dr. Geheb received his undergraduate degree from Wayne State University School of Medicine and his Medical Doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania. He has served on the board of the American Board of Internal Medicine and its Executive Committee (ABIM), was a member of the Internal Medicine review committee of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medication (ACGME), a board and executive committee member of the University Health System Consortium (UHC; now Vizient Health), and Region 5 Health Policy Board of the American Hospital Association.
Veronica Haque, BIS
EHR Project Staff
Veronica Haque is a program manager for the Southeast Michigan Center for Medical Education (SEMCME). Veronica first joined SEMCME in 2022 as an administrative assistant and has been promoted to program manager over time.
She oversees and assists on several program committees that organize educational events in the medical field and performs miscellaneous administrative work. Mrs. Haque helps create and send out campaigns for programs, collect registration, run programs, and track attendance for events.
She also organizes committee meetings and follows up with action items that are to be completed by her and the committee. Veronica graduated from Oakland University with a Bachelor in Integrative Studies. A majority of her coursework focused on organization and administration within the healthcare industry. Her previous experience includes two summer internships at an assisted living/memory care center and a homecare nursing agency working under the administration and human resource directors.
Leland Babitch, MD, MBA
Chair of the Project Steering Committee
Dr. Babitch, is the President and CEO of IMPROve Health, a healthcare quality improvement organization with nation-wide activity. With more than twenty-five years of experience in healthcare, Dr. Babitch brings a demonstrated expertise in quality improvement, electronic health record technology, health information exchange, population health, and hospital/medical group governance.
Prior to joining iMPROve Health, Dr. Babitch served as an Executive Medical Director with The Advisory Board Company, a division of Optum. Additionally, he has served as a Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Information Officer at the Detroit Medical Center. There, his guidance and leadership contributed to the health system's success in reaching Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Stage 6, realizing more than $32 million in Meaningful Use incentives, as well as a $16 million Beacon award.
Dr. Babitch has also worked as a Medical Director for United Healthcare. At the Wayne State University School of Medicine and the Detroit Medical Center, Dr. Babitch served in many roles including as the Director of Ambulatory and Information Services for Children's Hospital of Michigan, as well as the Chief Compliance Officer for University Pediatricians. He continues to practice clinically and teach as an Assistant Professor at the Central Michigan University School of Medicine in the Department of Pediatrics.
Dr. Babitch holds a Doctor of Medicine degree from Wayne State University School of Medicine, a Master of Business Administration from Michigan State University, and a Bachelor of Arts in genetics and developmental biology from Northwestern University. He is a Certified Medical Practice Executive, and a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Dr. Babitch is board certified in Pediatrics as well as Medical Informatics.
Nelia Afonso, MBBS, MD, MRCP
Chair of the UME Committee
Dr. Afonso received her M.B.B.S. and M.D. degrees from the University of Mumbai in India and received her M.R.C.P. degree from the Royal College of Physicians in the United Kingdom.
She is a professor in the Department of Foundational Medical Studies at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine (OUWB) and a founding faculty member of the institution. In June 2024, she was awarded the distinguished title of Dean's Distinguished Professor in recognition of her achievements in teaching, scholarship, and service. Dr. Afonso is widely regarded for her contributions to medical education, particularly in curriculum development and innovation, including her work on the Art and Practice of Medicine course. Her scholarly efforts span medical education, clinical skills, women's health, and vaccine hesitancy, and she has served as principal investigator on externally funded research such as the Merck-supported project “Promoting Vaccine Confidence in Medical and Dental Students.” In addition to her academic accomplishments, Dr. Afonso has demonstrated a strong commitment to community engagement and professional service, including leadership roles with organizations like the Southeast Michigan Center for Medical Education. Her career reflects a sustained dedication to advancing medical education, fostering student development, and improving community health outcomes.
Nikhil Goyal, MD
Chair of the GME Committee (resigned after 2nd year)
Dr. Goyal is board certified in Emergency Medicine, Internal Medicine and Clinical Informatics. He received his medical degree from Maulana Azad Medical College in India and completed his residency in Emergency Medicine and Internal Medicine at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan. Dr. Goyal has served in several GME leadership positions within Henry Ford Health and with national organizations such as the ACGME and the National Resident Matching Program. He has received multiple awards including the Distinguished Section Editor award from the Western Journal of Emergency Medicine (2019), “Top Docs” Emergency Medicine Listing, Hour Magazine (2012-2025), and Roger F. Smith, MD Outstanding Resident Award (Henry Ford Health System, 2006). Dr. Goyal’s academic interests include medical education research, teaching evidence-based medicine and using technology to improve healthcare.
Arthur L. Riba, MD, FACC
Chair of the CME Committee
Dr. Riba completed an Internal Medicine Residency at the University of Pennsylvania and a Cardiology Fellowship at Yale. He came to Dearborn Hospital and Medical Center in 1993, where he served as Medical Director of the Coronary Care Unit and Cardiovascular Quality Management, Medical Director of Quality, Patient Safety and Experience for the Oakwood Legacy System and other leadership positions in the Department of Cardiology and the Cardiology Fellowship Program. He also served as Clinical Professor of Medicine through Wayne State University and is presently Clinical Professor of Medicine at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, where he serves on a number of curriculum committees.
Dr. Riba served as site director for many multicenter clinical research trials and has won many awards for teaching and been recognized for his leadership roles in Quality Improvement. He graduated from the Patient Safety Executive Development Program at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and the Patient Safety Certificate Program at Johns Hopkins. From 2016 to 2017, he was Medical Director for the Beaumont Health Clinical Documentation Improvement Program.
In 2017, he left Beaumont to pursue a two-year Advanced Fellowship in Patient Safety at the VA National Center for Patient Safety in Ann Arbor. After serving as Chief of Medicine and Associate Chief of Staff at the Bath NY VAMC, he returned to Beaumont to take on the role of Graduate Medical Education Director of Quality Improvement and Patient Safety, a position he presently holds for Corewell Health East. He has served as Chair of the Quality Committee of the Michigan ACC, an active member of a number of National ACC QI initiatives and is presently Chair of the Quality Committee of Southeast Michigan Center for Medical Education. He also co-chairs the BCBSM/SEMCME EHR CME Subcommittee. His major interests are educating, training and engaging residents in QI and Patient Safety and experiential learning and supporting health care providers to optimize their documentation for quality performance.
Contributing Authors
Michael Barnes, MD
Internal Medicine Physician • Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak
Cathy Barrett
President and Chief Executive Officer • Optysuite
Kim Bruley
Clinical Coding Manager • Corewell Health East
Barbara Cadovich
Associate Vice President of Quality and Patient Safety • Wayne Health
Ted Daniel, MD, FAAP
Chief Medical Information Officer, Southeast Region • Ascension Michigan
Robert Flora, MD, MBA, MPH
Chief Academic Officer and Designated Institutional Official • McLaren Health Care
Sherry Sheinfeld Gorin
Research Professor and Director, New York Physicians Against Cancer • University of Michigan and NYPAC
Justin Jevicks, DO
Chief Resident, Internal Medicine • Trinity Health Ann Arbor
John R. Joseph, MD
Emergency Medicine Physician • Henry Ford Health
Mark Juzych, MD, MHSA
Professor and David Barsky Chair • Wayne State University School of Medicine
Arati Kelekar, MD
Rheumatologist • Henry Ford and Corewell Health Systems
Heidi Kromrei, PhD
Designated Institutional Official and Director of Medical Education • Trinity Health Oakland Hospital
Jeanette Lyons
Director of Clinical Documentation Integrity and Coding Quality • Corewell Health East
Erin Miller, MD
Medical Director, Kado Family Clinical Skills Center • Wayne State University School of Medicine
Sonal Patel, MAT
Undergraduate Medical Education Curriculum Consultant • Henry Ford Health
Senthil Kumar Rajasekaran, MD, MMHPE
Senior Associate Dean for Curricular Affairs and Undergraduate Medical Education • Wayne State University School of Medicine
Abdulghani Sankari, MD, PhD
Director of Medical Education and ACGME Designated Institutional Official • Ascension-Providence Hospital
Christopher Steffes, MD
Associate Dean of Clinical Medical Education • Wayne State University School of Medicine
Anupam Sule, MD
Medical Director of Outcomes and Informatics • St. Joseph Mercy Oakland