Oregon Medical Case Management Group

Dena Rossi, RN, BSN, CCM
President

Dena has an Associate Degree in Arts & Sciences & Nursing from Clark College and graduated with her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from Chamberlain College of Nursing in March 2011, with President’s Honors. She has been a Certified Case Manager for over 13 years and has worked as a Case Manager for 21 years. Her areas of clinical expertise are orthopedics & rehabilitation for severely injured clients. She provided direct patient care in the hospital and home health settings for 13 years. Dena has been a member of OMCMG since 1989 & on the Board for about 10 years. Dena has been married for over 30 years. Her husband is retired and they have 3 dogs for entertainment and relaxation.

Carrie Thomas, RN, MSN, CCM
President Elect

Carrie has been a certified nurse case manager since 2007. She has a bachelor degree in nursing from Oregon Health Sciences University and a master degree in nursing from the University of Utah. She practiced as a nurse midwife in Kentucky, Alaska and Washington for 10 years prior to moving into case management first with a Medicaid managed care company and then a commercial health plan. Currently she is located within a large internal medicine clinic participating in an extensive primary care renewal project. She is excited and challenged to be in a position which allows for direct, timely and personalized case management services to patients and providers. She lives in Vancouver with her preteen daughter, and spends her limited free time cross stitching and following auto racing.

Christie Siddall, BSN, CCM
Secretary

After 19 years of working for Kaiser Sunnyside Medical Center, Christie has recently taken medical retirement.    Her professional duties have included being one of the very first Certified Case Managers at Kaiser, developing a Virtual Pre-Admit Clinic for surgical patients.   She developed the following Kaiser Case Management Programs: Solid Organ Transplant program; Out of Area Case Management program; and the Peri-Operative Beta Blocker Protocol program led by a Physician. She has also preformed hospital discharge planning and utilization review.  She also worked at VNA Hospice. She currently volunteers her time assisting with the management of school children as needed either in the classroom or while the School RN administers vision screening and the Swine Flu Vaccine.

Rika Bering
Treasurer

Rika Bering has over fifteen years experience in medical marketing. Her focus has included device marketing, small clinic business development and program marketing for hospital systems. She has been an OMCMG board member since 2010 and is currently working part-time with Providence ElderPlace. Rika is also heavily involved with Healthcare Communicators of Oregon (HCO), a non-profit association focused on marketing and communications in the medical industry. She is also a board member of the Clackamas County Area Agency on Aging and is on the steering committee for Oregon Health Dialogue. In her spare time, Rika enjoys cooking with her boyfriend, photography and going on long trail-runs with her Labrador, Cassie.

Lisa Cunningham
Immediate Past President, 2010 - 2011

Lisa is a lifelong Oregonian with over 25 years of experience in marketing and insurance. She is the Community Liaison representing Progressive Rehabilitation Associates; a recognized leader in outpatient,  accredited interdisciplinary pain management & acquired brain injury rehabilitation.  Lisa has been actively involved with OMCMG; holding several board positions since 2008.  She was awarded the OMCMG "Excellence in Advocacy for Case Management" in 2008. In addition to her commitment to OMCMG, Lisa is active in a number of professional organizations with a focus on support of the Pain Society of Oregon, Brain Injury Alliance of Oregon, Professionals in Workers Compensation, Hire Oregon Vets, and the Governor's Occupational Safety and Health (GOSH) conferences.

Mary Ellen Pierce, RN, MSN
Member at Large - Past President, 2007 - 2008

Mary Ellen obtained her MSN in 2009,  after over 30 years as a practicing nurse. Her nursing experience includes hospital, nursing home, rehabilitation, teaching, consulting, professional writing, and case/care management. Currently she is the owner of Care Management Associates, Inc, which provides RN assessment, consultation, advocacy and health care management of clients in both private and long term care settings. Mary Ellen has served as OMCMG President, Vice President, Secretary and Member-at-Large.

Katheryn Kyllonen
Membership Chair

As Community Liaison for Kindred Healthcare, I draw upon a 26-year career of Skilled Nursing Facility experience in my day to day interactions. I have worked with many communities along the I-5 corridor in both Oregon and Southwest Washington, providing me the opportunity to meet with Case Managers in a variety of settings, from hospitals to HMO/Managed Care providers. In my current role I provide training and mentoring to our facility Admission Coordinators to ensure smooth transition from hospital to our skilled nursing centers. I am also a vital link between our communities and our clinicians, both nursing and rehabilitation. This allows me to communicate to the community what types of services we have to offer and likewise be able to relay information back to the center what types of programs or services the community needs. I appreciate the opportunity for membership into the group and feel that my experience and knowledge lend itself to the mission of the OMCMA and its board members.

Tammy Peterson
Programs & Education Chair

Tammy holds a BS in Business Administration and has been involved in medical marketing for the past 7 years. Currently she is in charge of Marketing and New Business Development for Pain Management Consultants. Tammy has been a founding committee member of the Portland Pain Society, the first new chapter of the Pain Society of Oregon.  Tammy has 3 children, 2 dogs and enjoys working in her vegetable garden.

Leslie Conner
Member at Large

Leslie grew up in the Portland area. She attended Oregon State University and received a Bachelor of Science in Sociology and Public Health. Leslie has worked in skilled nursing facilities as  Admissions and Case Management coordinator for   for over 10 years. Leslie is currently the Business Office Manager and HMO case manager for Avamere Hillsboro Rehabilitation. She has been a member of OMCMG since 1999 and a board member since 2004. Leslie lives in the Portland area with her husband and two sons and enjoys gardening and relaxing in her time off.

Margaret Horn
Member at Large

Membership Chair, 2012: Margaret has been working in the field of healthcare administration for 30 years. She is currently the director of Network Care Management for Avamere Health Services which also includes Signature Home Health and Hospice. She oversees the Avamere hospital liaison program which ensures smooth transition from hospital to skilled nursing facilities, home health or hospice throughout Oregon and Washington. Margaret has worked in acute care, home health and long term care.  She served on the Board of Directors of OMCMG in the past as the Conference Chair and Director of Education.  Additionally, Margaret is the Program Director of the Willamette Valley Care Managers Group in Eugene, Oregon.  She is passionate about education and networking in order to stay abreast of current clinical and financial issues that impact healthcare delivery. She is excited to be a part of this ever-changing market.

Donna Olson, RN, BSN
Member at Large

Donna has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, now with more than 40 years in the nursing field. She has worked for Kaiser Health Plan for at least 26 years, 22 years of which has been dedicated roles in Occupational Medicine, with the last 10 years specifically as an OH case manager. This position has many arms in facilitating care & communication on behalf of the injured worker, as well as administrative duties. Prior experience involved medical and surgical positions in the hospital, as well as clinics and family practice.

Bonnie Robb, RN-BC, BSN, CCM, CNLCP
Member at Large

Bonnie is a board certified Nursing Case Management and Nurse Life Care Planner. She has been a member of CMSA for 20 years and is a Certified Case Manager. She is currently self-employed and provides medical case management, disability management and life care planning services. Additionally, Bonnie has 35 years experience as a Registered Nurse.

Lois Tenita, BSN, CCM
Member at Large

Lois received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Walla Walla University where she graduated with an honorable Cum Laude. Lois is a registered Certified Case Manager (CCM) and specializes in Catastrophic Case Management and Critical Care Trauma Nursing. She has held numerous nursing positions ranging from extensive case Management experiences in Hospice and extensive care coordination in Home Health Care. Her experience also includes Home Health administration as Clinical Coordinator for Home Health Care including facilitation as Liaison for standardization of policies and procedure in the home based community setting. Additionally, her background includes Nurse delegation in Washington State and Oregon State as well as an Educator for a variety of medical professionals on “Pain Management and Symptom Management”, “Preventative Care”, “Mental Health Education” and “End of Life Care”