ASPHP Executive Officers
PRESIDENT, ASPHP
Neal Wiggermann, Ph.D.
Neal Wiggermann is a research scientist in R&D at Baxter. For ten years he has managed a biomechanics laboratory with research focused on ergonomics and SPHM in healthcare. He has published over two dozen peer reviewed articles and is a senior editor of the journal Ergonomics in Design. In 2019 he received the Bernice Owen Award for research in SPHM, and in 2022 he joined the board of ASPHP. Neal received his PhD from the department of Industrial and Operations Engineering at the University of Michigan.
VICE PRESIDENT, ASPHP
Jay Hamilton
Jay is a registered nurse with an emergency room, intensive care unit, and trauma experience. As a part of the industry, he has more than five years of dedicated safe patient handling and mobility experience. This experience includes product education (lifts, friction-reducing devices, air-assist devices), program creation, research-creation, direct management, and presenting responsibilities.
He currently holds a masters in healthcare leadership, an active registered nurse license, and is certified as a professional in patient safety, wound specialist, and safe patient handling associate.
He has been a member of the ASPHP for the past three years and is an active participant on the Education Committee.
PAST PRESIDENT, ASPHP
Susan Gallagher, PhD, MSN, MA, RN, CBN, HCRM, CSPHP
Susan Gallagher, is a trained wound ostomy continence nurse, certified bariatric nurse, health care risk manager and certified safe patient handling professional. She has certificates in Six Sigma-Health Care and Six Sigma LEAN. Susan holds a masters degree in nursing, a masters degree in religion and social ethics, and a PhD in policy ethics. She is a recognized expert in safety and outcomes with emphasis on bariatrics, skin/wound care, safe patient handling and mobility, and loss control. She lectures internationally and has authored over 200 articles, books or book chapters. Her professional objective is to assist organizations capture quality and sustainability through customer sensitive initiatives, supported by quantitative performance improvement outcomes.
SECRETARY / TREASURER, ASPHP
Rhonda Turner, MSN- LD, CSPHA
Rhonda has been in healthcare for 36 years in various roles. She acquired her BSN in 2014 and her MSN-Leadership in 2018. She currently works as a RN Operations Support Specialist. Her primary role includes supporting onboarding, education, quality metrics, strategic initiatives, through partnering with leadership and the bedside staff. In addition, she leads a large healthcare system for fall prevention, SPHM, and early mobility by identifying methods to increase awareness and how a focused program can positively impact patient outcomes while reducing injuries to the patients and frontline staff. Rhonda is a national and international speaker since 2015, a published author, has been a board member of ASPHP since 2019 moving into her second term. She is also in progress of acquiring her DNP. Her mantra is “Empowering others to lead the future”.
ASPHP Board Members
Timothy Buchanan, MSN, RN, NPD-BC, CSPHP
Tim Buchanan is a Master’s Level prepared Registered Nurse with over 30 years of patient care experience and is a retired USAF critical care and flight/CCAT nurse and former paramedic. Tim moved from his previous roles as a Safe Patient Handling and Mobility Facility Coordinator and Adjunct Nurse Faculty into his current role as a Patient Safety Officer for the Veterans Affairs Health Care System where he is works to promote Patient Safety and still oversees the SPHM program for all of FL and southern GA. Tim has a passion for education and has served as an adjunct nurse clinical faculty for the past ten years, has presented at numerous SPHM conferences, and recently served as collaborating author for SPHM chapters in a Nursing Fundamentals text. Tim collaborates with a diverse multidisciplinary team of patient safety and SPHM professionals to deliver care to over three million veterans. Tim maintains an interest in clinical excellence and emergency evacuation and continues to consult as a SPHM and Patient Safety professional.
Edward Hall, MS, CSP, CSPHP
Edward “Ed” Hall to Keck Medicine of USC where he serve as the senior executive administrator for Integrated Risk Management. A nationally-recognized leader with over 25 years of diverse risk and insurance management experience, Ed brings tremendous knowledge and skill to the position. Ed is responsible for designing and executing the Integrated Risk Management department’s business strategy, and will evaluate and monitor our medical enterprise’s operational risk. Ed has oversite of the identification of risk management trends across various entities, and is directly responsible for the data management required to build an integrated picture of organizational-wide risk. Ed provides subject matter expertise support across Keck Medicine to establish safety best practices, and align Risk Management and Risk Financing strategies with the organization’s mission, values, and goals.
Prior to joining Keck Medicine, Ed served as an officer and executive director for strategic risk management at Stanford University Medical Center. There, he leveraged evidence-based solutions for a variety of patient and employee safety initiatives. His experience included various oversite functions for the Medical Center’s risk finance, clinical risk, claims, safety, and workers’ compensation program covering over 190 locations in multiple states. Also, Ed co-founded Stanford Medical Center’s risk management for profit division known as The Risk Authority, and served as the chairman for the Medical Center’s Executive Safety Committee, resulting in over $20 million in savings on workers’ compensation efforts. Ed holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Risk and Safety Management and a Master of Science degree in Loss Prevention and Safety from Eastern Kentucky University. Ed was a founding member and Past President of ASPHP.
Nicole Hopewell, PT, MS, CSPHP
Nicole Hopewell is a Safe Patient Handling and Mobility Clinical Consultant with Baxter. She is a licensed physical therapist, certified Safe Patient Handling Professional and Caritas Coach®. In a career that spans over 3 decades, she has experience in healthcare leadership, education, and direct patient care in a variety of clinical settings, including acute care, outpatient rehab and women’s health. She has spoken nationally on topics related to healthcare safety and safe mobility. In addition, Nicole has established a reputation for collaboration and partnership to drive change and improve patient and caregiver safety. Nicole completed her Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy from New York University and her Master of Science in Health Services Administration from Regis University. She resides in Boulder County, Colorado.
Tricia Jaworski, OTR/L, CSPHP
An Occupational Therapist by background, Tricia has worked at Advocate Health for over 25 years. Advocate Health is the 3rd largest not-for-profit integrated healthcare system in the United States. Tricia currently is the Midwest System Safe Patient Handling & Mobility (SPHM) Program Manager overseeing programs in IL and WI. Tricia is certified as an Occupational Therapist through NBCOT and is a Certified Safe Patient Handling Professional (CSPHP). Tricia serves on the Alumni Association Board for the School of Health Professions at Concordia University Wisconsin. Tricia is currently serving her second term on the ASPHP board of Directors. As a member of ASPHP, Tricia is active on the education committee and co-chairs the marketing committee. Tricia is a co-chair of the IL, MN, and WI SPHM Network, offering SPHM educational opportunities, conferences, networking, and support for those involved in SPHM across the states of IL, MN, and WI.
Nancy McGann, PT, CSPHP, CPPS
Nancy McGann has worked as a physical therapist and ergonomic consultant in industry and healthcare for 33 years. For the past 15 years, she has worked for SCL Health (now Intermountain Healthcare / Peaks Region) in ergonomics and SPHM. She is currently the Regional Manager of Caregiver Safety in the Quality and Safety Department which includes eight hospitals and hundreds of ambulatory centers. Prior to her current role, she was the System Manager for Ergonomics and SPHM for 5 years. She has spoken extensively in the areas of ergonomics and SPHM on state and national levels and has several peer reviewed publications. Prior to working for SCL Health based in Colorado, she worked for a critical access hospital in Idaho, and for Braintree Rehab and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. She is passionate about patient safety through safe mobility and has certifications in both patient handling and patient safety. Her passion is to prevent harm by creating an environment that promotes safe mobilization throughout the continuum of care.
Loretta J. Miller PT, DPT, CEAS, CSPHP
Lori has been a licensed physical therapist for 29 years and was a Neurologic Certified Specialist for 20 years. She is the Safe Patient Handling Coordinator at Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo, NY. In March 2022, she published an article in the International Journal of Safe Patient Handling and Mobility entitled, “Transforming Safety at the Bedside with Safe Patient Handling Practice.” Recently, she became certified as a Safe Patient Handling Professional and has been a Certified Ergonomic Assessment Specialist for 6 years. She was a presenter at the NYS Safe Patient Handling Conference in 2017 and 2018. In 2018, she received the Safe Patient Handling Award of Excellence from the NYS Zero Lift Task Force. Loretta has developed a network of Safety Champions at ECMC and is an integral leader in workplace safety initiatives including reducing workplace violence through trauma informed care.
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Mark Van Leuven
I am graduate of SUNY Upstate Medical Center at Syracuse, ’95. I have worked in acute care for most of my career with the most recent experience being the past 15 years. During that time, I was heavily involved in early mobility in the ICU and in safe patient handling, serving as a co-chair of a program that I helped to develop at Samaritan Hospital in Troy, NY. Since 2018, I have served as a safe patient handling consultant with Craigmile Health Solutions, primarily throughout New York State. We provide education, training, policy development, on site facility risk assessments, and general support to safe patient handling programs throughout the state. Coming from a background where I was taught to lift with good body mechanics, I am tremendously dedicated to the movement of safe patient handling and the amazing benefits it provides. I have had my CSHPC certification since 2018.
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Alleen Wilson
Alleen Wilson is a risk control professional with 25 years of experience. Her areas of responsibility include conducting SPHM risk assessments and managing risk control services for a portfolio of accounts. She markets risk control services, provides technical advice and account information to underwriting and business development for risk assessment and analysis, and coordinates the provision of risk control services on assigned accounts.
Alleen earned a Certified Authority on Workers’ Compensation (CAWC), is a registered Loss Control Consultant in the State of Texas and an approved Field Safety Representative in the State of Arkansas. Alleen is a member of the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) and American Society for Health Care Risk Management (ASHRM).
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Bob Williamson
Bob is a Medical Science Liaison, Safe Patient Handling and Mobility at Baxter, Inc. He has extensive experience and knowledge of occupational health, patient safety, enterprise risk management, high reliability and performance improvement. He has served in progressive leadership roles with Ascension Health and HCA Healthcare. In these roles, he has developed and led system-based initiatives that reduced caregiver injuries associated with manually lifting and moving of patients. Additionally, he has facilitated the deployment and adoption of patient fall and pressure injury reduction initiatives associated with immobility. Bob is a founding Board member and the past President of the Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals. He was the recipient of the Safe Patient Handling and Mobility Advocacy Award in 2017.
Outgoing Board Member
Margaret Arnold, PT, CEES, CSPHP
Margaret Arnold has over 20 years’ experience as a PT, and is owner of Inspire Outcomes LLC, a safe patient handling / early mobility consulting company. Certified in Ergonomic Evaluation and a Safe Patient Handling Professional, Margaret managed a SPHM program for over eight years, where WMSDs were reduced by 95%. She has taught SPHM to university DPT programs and national rehabilitation hospitals, integrating evidence-based practice with SPHM for rehabilitation. She has spoken extensively at national and international conferences on SPHM and early mobility. Margaret developed the earlymobility.com website, has done a TED talk on SPHM and early mobility, and has published in this area. Margaret is currently working on rehabilitation outcomes research for patients with stroke with SPHM.
Kirsten Berdahl, PT, MEd, CSPHA
Kirsten Berdahl has been a Physical Therapist in Arizona for over 30 years. After 11 years of full-time work in a variety of healthcare settings, she became full-time faculty in the then new Physical Therapist Assistant Program at GateWay Community College. After more than 2 decades of teaching she developed a strong passion for integrating Safe Patient Handling and Mobility Education into the curriculum of GateWay’s many nursing and allied health programs. With a vacant classroom and a little grant money she developed the SaPHE (Safe Patient Handling Education) program. After two years the program was expanded to include a new, fully-equipped, 2000 sq. ft. lab at GateWay’s 18th St. facility where she worked as full-time manager. In July of 2020 she received her Certification in Safe Patient Handling (CSPHA). Ms. Berdahl is now semi-retired but continues to teach and develop SPHM programs. Prior to be elected to the board she was a member of the Curriculum Task force (ASPHP) and contributed to the Education Committee’s White Paper on SPHM in Higher Ed.
Lynda Enos, RN, BSN, MS, COHN-S. CPE
Lynda Enos is a certified occupational health nurse and certified professional ergonomist with over 30 years of work and consulting experience in industrial and health care ergonomics.
Work experience includes consultation in safe patient handling and mobility.
(SPHM) and ergonomics for over 40 hospital systems, clinics, assisted living facilities, and home health services. She developed, facilitated, and evaluated SPHM programs for up to 6 years per facility.
Lynda is the SPHM clinical consultant for a Level 1 trauma hospital in Oregon where she assists to manage a comprehensive SPH program and provide clinical problem solving at the bedside to help staff address patient mobility challenges.
She has been a contributing author for several ergonomics, safe patient handling and mobility and workplace violence guidelines and standards including the American Nurses Association (ANA) Interprofessional Safe Patient Handling and Mobility Standards 2013 and 2021.
Lynda was also an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) representative member of the committee that developed ISO standard
10535:2021 Hoists for the transfer of disabled persons – Requirements and test methods.
She is recipient of the 2017 Advocacy Award for Safe Patient Handling awarded by the Tampa VA Research and Education Foundation and the Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals.
Susan Salsbury, BS, OTR/L CDMS, CSPHP
Susan Lennon Salsbury BS, OTR/L, CDMS, CSPHP is a 1980 graduate of The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Science in Allied Medical Professions. She is a licensed Occupational Therapist, a Certified Disability Management Specialist and a Certified Safe Patient Handling Professional.
She has over 40 years’ experience in clinical and employer-based environments and has developed and implemented occupational rehabilitation programs in both settings. Susan has presented programs locally, statewide, and nationally on Transitional Work, Ergonomics, and Safe Patient Handling to health professional groups.
Susan is published in peer-reviewed publications, including the American Journal of Safe Patient Handling and Movement, The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing and Critical Care Nurse Q. She was a contributing author to the ANA Safe Patient Handling and Mobility Interprofessional National Standards Across the Care Continuum second edition 2021.
She is a member of the American Occupational Therapy Association, the Ohio Occupational Therapy Association, and the Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals. She is a Board member for the Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals, co-chairing the Education Committee. She was awarded the Advocacy Award for Safe Patient Handling at the 2018 National Safe Patient Handling Conference.
Yeu-Li Yeung, MS, OT/L, CPE, CSPHP
Yeu-Li Yeung has almost 20 years of experience in healthcare ergonomics. As the Patient Care Ergonomics Coordinator at Duke University & Duke Health, she has implemented the SPHM program at Duke University Hospital and expanded the program to ambulatory clinics and other areas.
Her responsibilities include conducting assessments, identifying solutions, as well as developing and providing training for SPHM and other areas in the health system to enhance safety and quality for both patients and employees. Yeu-Li teaches SPHM at the School of Nursing and the Occupational Therapy Doctorate Program at Duke University. She has presented on SPHM and other healthcare ergonomic topics at national conferences and has published in peer-reviewed journals on SPHM topics. Yeu-Li is an occupational therapist, a certified professional ergonomist, and a certified safe patient handling professional.
Association Advisor
Kent W. Wilson, CIE, CSPHP
Kent Wilson has been involved with safety and health promotion for over 30 years. He has performed ergonomic and safety evaluations for over a hundred healthcare facilities around the world and assisted them with the writing and implementation of their Safe Patient Handling policies and programs. He is a Certified Industrial Ergonomist (CIE) and a Certified Safe Patient Handling Professional (CSPHP). Mr. Wilson takes an active role in the development of regulatory standards and has been a member of several American National Standards Institute (ANSI) committees. He has testified before the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) in ergonomics for the development of national standards and helped write the position statement for the American Industrial Hygiene Association on patient handling to Congress. He co-authored the whitepaper for the American Nurses Association (ANA) and the Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals (ASPHP) titled, “Advancing the Science and Technology of Progressive Mobility”. Mr. Wilson is a past Chair of the Ergonomics Standing Committee for the National Safety Council and a founding member and Past President of the Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals. Mr. Wilson is also a frequent invited speaker for national conferences on Patient Handling management and the Bariatric patient. He is the recipient of the 2019 Safe Patient Handling Advocacy Award from the ASPHP and participates on multiple committees for this association related to certification.
Association Advisor
Guy Fragala, Ph.D., PE, CSP, CSPHP
Dr. Fragala is a thought leader for the integration of patient and caregiver safety related technologies into the process of healthcare delivery. He has many years of experience as a well-respected healthcare professional and faculty member working in major academic medical institutions and important American industries. Most of his professional career was spent at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. He has actively assisted some of the largest providers of medical equipment in the world, such as Stryker, Hill Rom, Arjo, Joerns and Midmark. with effectively bringing their technology solutions to market and establishing these solutions as industry standards. He is recognized as a founder of the Safe Patient Handling and Mobility movement in the United States. He has been sought out as an advisor for government agencies, professional organizations, accreditation bodies and large healthcare operations. He has lectured throughout the world and is considered an international expert in the application of ergonomics to the healthcare setting. Currently he helps and supports professional organizations, medical technology providers and healthcare facilities with their development and operational efforts. He has been a recipient of the National Advocacy Award for Improved Caregiver Safety and was presented the Bernice Owen Safe Patient Handling and Mobility Research Award. He has authored over 100 publications and his book entitled, Ergonomics: How to Contain On-the-Job Injuries in Healthcare, published by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, has influenced much of the work today related to healthcare ergonomics and safe patient handling and mobility programs.
