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Meet the Team
Donald J. Wilfong Jr., MD is Medical Director of the STAR Center. He is a practicing physician at The West Penn Allegheny Health System where he specializes in Internal Medicine. He is also Chief of the Department of Medicine as well as an assistant professor of Clinical Medicine at Temple University and Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bradenton Florida and Erie, PA. He is a summa cum laude graduate from the University of Pittsburgh and Hahnemann University School of Medicine. He completed his residency training program at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital where he has continued to practice for the past 28 years. He is a member of Alpha Omega Medical Honor Society, The American Medical Association and the Society for Simulation in Healthcare. He is a well known expert lecturer on Disease State Management and Preventative Care. drdon316@aol.com
Cindy Carlson, BA is Director of Administrative Operations at the STAR Center as well as Senior Administrative Manager in the Department of Medicine at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital. She has over 20 years experience in management and academic medical education. She is responsible for maintaining the accreditation of the Hospital's internal medicine residency program, five fellowship programs and a resident-faculty clinical practice, West Penn Medical Associates. Cindy Carlson is a member of the Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine (APDIM), Association of Hospitals in Medical Education (AHME), Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), and Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSIH). cindyc@wpahs.org
Donamarie N-Wilfong, RN, MSN, DNP, is Director of Clinical Operations at the STAR Center.  She is a graduate of Gwynedd Mercy College, University of Pittsburgh, Graduate School of Nursing and Waynesburg University.  She is a book reviewer for Jones & Bartlett Publishing Inc. and author of Nursing School Success: Tools for Constructing Your Future. She has taught nursing for 30 years at the diploma, associate and baccalaureate levels.  She is a guest speaker on incorporating simulation as a teaching and learning tool into nursing and allied health curriculum.  She is presently conducting Research on Mock Code Training Using Interdisciplinary Group Dynamics and The Effects of Intravenous and Patient Simulator Training Compared to the Traditional Approach of Teaching Nurses: A Research Project on Peripheral IV Catheter Insertion.  She is a member of the Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSIH) and the Sigma Theta Tau, National Nursing Honor Society. dwilfong@wpahs.org
Jewel L. McKinnon, BSN, RN, SANE is the Education Specialist at the STAR Center. She is a graduate of University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing and is currently enrolled at Duquesne University School of Nursing Masters porgram for Forensic Nursing and Nursing Education. She is also pursuing certification in Forensic Nursing and Legal Nurse Consulting at the University of Pittsburgh. Jewel also functions as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) through the Sexual Assault Response Team of Allegheny County (SARTAC).  She has over four years of simulation experience and actively works on healthcare simulation research, education and grants.  She is responsible for providing instruction in the STAR Center to Nurse Educators, Physician Educators, Staff Educators and participants; as well as scenario writing for various courses offered at STAR.  Jewel is a member of Chi Eta Phi Sorority, the Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSIH), and the International Association of Forensic Nurses (IAFN). jmckinno@wpahs.org
Lawrence O' Leary, BA is a Simulation Specialist at the STAR Center at WPAHS. He is a graduate of Point Park University and holds a bachelor's degree in Photography/Multi-Media. He has over 23 years of in-depth experience at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital, a tertiary care teaching institution, and is responsible for operating and maintaining the human simulators and equipment housed in the Simulation Center. He also works with physicians, nursing and ancillary staff in creating scenarios for their courses. Other duties include teaching participants how to use the simulators, preparing the simulators for courses and meeting with vendors. He is a member of the Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSIH).  loleary@wpahs.org
Joshua Franczyk, AT is a Simulation Specialist for the STAR Center. His duties consist of the daily operations of the center. Prior to his employment at STAR, Joshua was a Simulation Specialist at the WISER Institute. He has years of experience in simulation and has worked with numerous professional experts developing courses, conducting research and programming the simulators software to create medical emergencies. He received an Associate Degree from the Western School of Health and Business specialized in Anesthesia Technology. Upon graduation Joshua was the Clinical Coordinator at the Western School for the Anesthesia Technologist program. He was responsible for the student’s clinical education at hospitals throughout the Pittsburgh region.  jfranczy@wpahs.org
Benjamin J. Hosler is a Simulation Specialist for the STAR Center.  Prior to his employment at STAR, BJ was the Lead Systems Analyst for WISER and a consultant for SimMedical at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC).  At WISER BJ maintained all computer hardware and software that is vital to the daily operation of the medical simulation center.  This included the installation and testing of various highly technical simulators and other specialized equipment.  BJ has over ten years of experience in computer support.  This experience includes working for the University of Pittsburgh in the engineering computing labs, the Maryland Department of General Services as part of their IT team and again at the University of Pittsburgh in the Department of Anesthesia as part of the IT help desk where he was the Helpdesk Coordinator for a year and a half.  BJ is a CompTIA A+ Certified IT Technician, a member of IEEE and a member of Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSIH). bhosler@wpahs.org

Associate Staff Member:

Qingping (Ching-ping) Wan, MSPH, is a Research Analyst Intern at the STAR Center. She graduated with Distinction from Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Healthcare Policy and Management. She also completed her medical education in general medicine in China. Qingping actively assists STAR with on- going courses, projects and grants using her knowledge of the healthcare setting and expertise in critical analysis and quantitative techniques. She is responsible for designing and developing questionnaires and formulating analysis reports. She also assists in developing course curriculum and preparing for conference presentations.