Meet the FMEC Board
Dr. Vnenchak is a family physician who lives and practices in Lancaster, PA, where she is the Residency Program Director at the Lancaster General Health Family Medicine Residency Program. "I chose to become a Family Physician because I love the opportunity to develop ongoing relationships with patients and families. I provide maternity care because I enjoy working with women during pregnancy, delivery and afterwards with their babies. I believe that each of our life stories, born from our life experiences, shape who we are as individuals. These experiences affect our health and how we respond to events in life. I believe that individuals are in charge of their own health. I see my role as an advisor to assist patients in making their own healthcare and lifestyle choices. I enjoy teaching in family medicine. I am inspired by the next generation of family physicians who are dedicated to partnering with patients and communities to make them healthy.” Dr. Vnenchak has been on the FMEC Executive Committee since 2020, serving as Secretary-Treasurer, President-Elect and now President, and she will be Immediate Past President from 2026-2028. You can reach Dr. Vnenchak at [email protected].
Dr. Bass currently works as an Assistant Professor and Program Director in the department of family medicine at Cooper University and Regional Clinical Leader for the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region for the Reproductive Health Access Project. She earned a master’s degree in Stem Cell and Developmental Biology from Wesleyan University, Connecticut. She earned her medical degree from Jefferson Medical College (now Sidney Kimmel Medical College) at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia. She completed her family and community medicine residency at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia. She completed her fellowship in the Leadership Training Academy through Physicians for Reproductive Health learning to be a physician advocate for Reproductive Rights and Justice. She is a certified trainer through Providers Clinical Support System and the Health Federation of Philadelphia to run training required to prescribe medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder as well as through the IMPACT program of ACOG to run training on management of early pregnancy loss. She is dedicated to providing compassionate care to stigmatized populations and to improving the overall wellness of her patients and communities. Dr. Bass has been on the FMEC Board since October 2022.
Dr. Emeche is a graduate of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, OH and traveled south for residency at Lancaster General Hospital in PA. There, she developed an interest in caring for people frequently hospitalized and later integrated a biopsychosocial lens to providing holistic health care while in fellowship. During her Healthcare Hot-spotting and Super-Utilizer aka population health fellowship, she studied and successfully implemented data to both identify opportunities for health care improvement and innovation and to track programmatic progress (and pivot accordingly). After fellowship, she took on the role of Associate Medical Director at the Medstar Franklin Square Family Health Center where she led their Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH) initiatives. There, she also established the resident PDSA/quality improvement projects, group visits to reduce pediatric obesity rates, and the interdisciplinary team caring for medically complex, high-risk patients. Her work centered around primary care redesign, population health, process improvement, care of the complex patient, cross sector partnership, and women's health/obstetrics. She recently left full-time medicine to create a company that designs healthy neighborhoods through real estate and economic development. She uses her population health skillset to create healthy mixed-use and mixed-income neighborhoods where "people and business thrive". Dr. Emeche joined the FMEC Board in 2022.
Britt Gayle MD/MPH, AAHIVS is a physician at OnTime Medical Group in Maryland and is part time faculty at MedStar Franklin Square Family Medicine Residency Program. He was previously employed at MedStar Family Medicine Residency Program as a full time residency faculty physician, faculty for Georgetown University School of Medicine’s medical student Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship, Clinical Assistant Professor, and Director of HIV services. Dr. Gayle was also an Assistant Professor at University of Maryland’s Institute of Human Virology as part of a community based research team primarily focused on the integration of opioid use disorder and viral hepatitis care, and co-developed a curriculum focusing on evidence based Opioid Use Disorder care for first year Family Medicine and Internal Medicine residents. Dr. Gayle is also the former Medical Director of Carroll County Detention Center. Dr. Gayle first became engaged in FMEC activities as a resident physician and has since presented at multiple Annual Meetings, helped resident physicians prepare their presentations, served as a proposal/abstract reviewer and poster judge, and has also served as a member of the host committee. Dr. Gayle joined the FMEC Board in 2023. 
Dr. George serves as the Associate Dean of Clinical Education at the Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine. He received his medical degree from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in Philadelphia, Pa., and completed his residency in family medicine at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. Dr. George was an Andlinger fellow in health policy with the Center for Public Health in Vienna, Austria where he worked on primary care workforce and academic development. In addition to his interests in academic medicine, Dr. George also teaches graduate coursework on the history of medicine. He is currently conducting research on the history of family medicine as a discipline in the United States. He was awarded the FMEC Emerging Leaders award, the Bristol-Myers Squibb award for excellence in graduate medical education. His areas of interest include advancement of community and population health as well as health policy and economics. He resides in Gettysburg, PA.
Dr. Gingrich’s introduction to FMEC was at its very first formative conference in Lancaster, Pa. in 1992, and he has attended most of the meetings since that time! He retired in 2020 after 35 years on faculty at Penn State, teaching, advising, and in community practice in his hometown of Hershey. He has served on the boards of the AAFP, the AAFP Foundation, the Center for the History of Family Medicine, the Pennsylvania Medical Society, and as president and board chair of the Pennsylvania Academy of Family Physicians. In addition to FMEC, he currently serves on the boards of a local CCRC, his church, and the Southcentral Pennsylvania AHEC. He is still engaged with Penn State on the Admissions committee, in working with affiliated pre-medical students interested in primary care, and in teaching a course for medical students on the history of medicine. He is active in community and church service, writing, promoting the relevance and importance of family medicine, and enjoying the friendships of inspiring people.
Martha is a Professor at the UVM Larner College of Medicine and serves as Director of Medical Student Programs in Family Medicine. She has presented regionally and nationally on topics from novel approaches to curricula, care of challenged populations and more recently on AI in Medical Education. She remains steadfastly committed to rural primary care and increasing the family medicine workforce. She has been an active member of FMEC for many years, bringing many students to the Annual Meeting where she has seen their passion for Family Medicine grow. It is her greatest sense of pride when her students comment that attendance at FMEC was a pivotal moment in their career development. She has served as a reviewer on the Planning Committee since 2010 and has served on the Host Committee and joined the Board of Trustees in 2022. As a health educator, Physician Assistant and Registered Nurse, she appreciates the opportunity to work with such a collaborative and motivated organization. Her clinical site is in Student Health where she provides comprehensive health care to students and enjoys working with students to optimize their physical and mental health and self-confidence.
Dr. Weaver-Agostoni is the Director of the ACGME-accredited and Osteopathically Recognized Family Medicine Residency Program. She currently serves as President of the Pennsylvania Osteopathic Family Physician Society (POFPS), is Co-Chair of the UPMC GME Accreditation, Review and Quality Committee, and is an Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh. Prior to her appointment as director, Dr. Weaver-Agostoni served as the director of the Osteopathic Family Medicine Residency Program and director of Pre-Doctoral Education. She joined the faculty after having completed a two-year faculty development fellowship with the University of Pittsburgh Department of Family and Community Medicine, UPMC St. Margaret’s Hospital. During that time, she also earned her Master of Public Health from the University of Pittsburgh. Originally from Indiana, Pennsylvania, she graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1998 and earned her Doctor of Osteopathy from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Erie, Pennsylvania in 2002. She completed her Family Medicine Residency at the Western Pennsylvania Hospital in 2005. For many years Dr. Weaver-Agostoni, along with a few other FMEC volunteers, has helped plan the osteopathic content at the FMEC Annual Meetings by reviewing sessions and making recommendations. If you would like to help make content at the Annual Meeting stronger by reviewing sessions and mentoring authors, complete the volunteer sign-up form here: https://www.fmec.net/get-involved-volunteer.
Jessica P. Cerdeña, MD, PhD envisions a future of whole-person, community-oriented primary care for all people. She is currently a family medicine resident at Middlesex Health in Connecticut and received her medical degree and doctorate in medical anthropology from Yale University. Her scholarship centers on racism in medicine, migrant health, and social genetics. As an educator, advocate, scholar, and family physician, Jes will continue to dedicate her personal and professional life to pursuing health justice for her patients and community. She is honored to serve on the FMEC Board of Trustees. Many residents are unaware that they can play important roles with the FMEC to gain experience and add to their CVs – reviewing session proposals, serving on Host Committees, joining our Quality Improvement projects, and even joining the Board like Jessica. If you would like to talk about how you can be more involved with the FMEC, complete the volunteer sign-up form here: https://www.fmec.net/get-involved-volunteer.
Senya Huda is a Long Island native who attends the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. Since the beginning of her journey in the medical field, she has held the belief that a doctor who addresses all facets of a patient's health is essential to personalized medical care. This led her to appreciate the unique role of family medicine practitioners, who focus on holistically treating the whole individual, and to expose her classmates to the field through hands-on skills workshops and physician panels. She also greatly values mentorship and has created an annual mentorship program between medical and undergraduate students on her campus. Through her position on the Board, Senya looks forward to sharing her enthusiasm for the field and continuing to foster an environment where students can engage with mentors and peers who share a passion for family medicine.
Dr. Sarah Inés Ramírez graduated from Ross University School of Medicine in 2011 and completed her Family Medicine Internship and Residency at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center in 2014. She then completed a fellowship in Women’s Health/Obstetrics at the University of Illinois in Peoria, IL in 2015. As a surgically trained Family Physician, Dr. Ramirez’s scope of practice includes high risk obstetrical care and C-sections. She then joined Penn State Health Hershey Medical Center in 2016, and as an academic Family Physician, her scope of work includes medical education and curriculum development. Since joining the Department of Family and Community Medicine at Penn State, Dr. Ramirez has built a local, regional, and national reputation in the areas of health equity for underserved populations and has secured grants for work focused on culturally responsive health care curriculum and empathy formation in learners. She has published on a medical student interpreter training program as a strategy to developing humanism and developed curriculum for medical students and physician assistant students at the Penn State College of Medicine with focus on Culturally Responsive Health Care. She has also developed curriculum for health professions college students in Pennsylvania. She has been a guest speaker locally and nationally on topics of health equity for minority populations.
Dr. Bode Adebambo is a Professor of Family Medicine at Case Western Reserve University and serves in inner city Cleveland as an advocate for health equity. Her career reflects a commitment to addressing the needs of communities disproportionately impacted by structural inequities, with a particular focus on urban and immigrant populations. Through the integration of narrative learning and spiral learning theory, Dr. Adebambo highlights systemic inequities within healthcare environments. She fosters dialogue around bias and microaggressions, while promoting allyship and a collaborative culture across the healthcare workforce. |
