President

Dexter Shurney, MD, MBA, MPH, FACLM, DipABLM

Dexter Shurney, MD, MBA, MPH, FACLM  is the Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of Clinical Affairs for Zipongo, a San Francisco-based based digital health and wellness company. Dr. Shurney is the former Chief Medical Director / Executive Director for Global Health Benefits and Corporate Wellness for Cummins, Inc. Prior to Cummins, he was the Chief Medical Director of the Employee Health Plan for Vanderbilt University and Medical Center. During his tenure at Vanderbilt he also held joint faculty appointments as Assistant Clinical Professor, Division of Internal Medicine and Public Health, and Adjunct Faculty, Owens Graduate School of Management.

Other positions that Dr. Shurney has held include Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer for Healthways, Senior Health Policy Strategist in the Division of Government Affairs for the biotechnology company Amgen Inc., Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of medical affairs for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, and Editor of the Journal of Managed Care Physicians.

Dr. Shurney serves on numerous boards including: the Global Business Group on Health, and the National Association of Managed Care Physicians. He was also the most recent Chair of the Business Strategies Committee for Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)/National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP). Shurney is co-author of the book “Integrating Wellness into Your Disease Management Programs.” 

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President Elect

Catherine Collings, MD, FACC, MS, DipABLM

Dr. Cate Collings is a board-certified practicing cardiologist in Silicon Valley. She received her BS at the University of California and her MS in Exercise Physiology followed by an MD degree at the University of Wisconsin. Returning to California, her residency and cardiology fellowship training were completed at Stanford University Medical Center.

Dr. Collings established and provides ongoing medical directorship to the El Camino Hospital Cardiopulmonary Wellness Center targeting lifestyle measures to improve the health of cardiac patients. In addition to her clinical work, she is developing a Women’s Heart Center to focus on women specific cardiovascular disease management and on the unique application of lifestyle competencies to women and their family’s heart health.

Dr. Collings joined the ACLM Board in 2015 to bridge to the cardiology community and promote lifestyle intervention on equal footing with other cardiovascular interventions. She is passionate about the importance of physician-patient partnerships to co-navigate the abundance of health information and mobile health technologies so that patients achieve meaningful health outcomes. She loves spare time-particularly active travel vacations, culinary explorations, and family time.

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Past President

George E. Guthrie MD, MPH, CDE, FACLM, FAAFP, DipABLM

Dr. George Guthrie received his MD degree from Loma Linda University in 1981. After completing his Family Practice Residency at Hinsdale Hospital near Chicago he joined a multi-specialty medical group on the island of Guam. The high incidence of Type 2 Diabetes in his patients led to a growing interest in the effective lifestyle treatment of the disease.

A return to clinical practice took Dr. Guthrie to the foothills of the California Sierra Nevada Mountains where he continued to apply his community lifestyle medicine focus from a traditional allopathic medical clinic. He and his wife, Dena, successfully piloted and ran annual seven, week-long, community based programs designed to lower the risk of heart disease using lifestyle principles.

In the last few years Dr. Guthrie has had the privilege of being involved in the development several lifestyle change programs including the Coronary Health Improvement Project (CHIP), The Wellspring Diabetes Program, and the CREATION Health program. This has led to the opportunity to speak on lifestyle medicine around the United States and other English speaking countries for a variety of audiences. In 2008 he had the opportunity to be host on a healthy living series for TV entitled, Your Life and Health.

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Secretary

Michelle Tollefson, MD

Dr. Michelle Tollefson is an obstetrician-gynecologist and an associate professor in the Health Professions department and teaches in the Integrative Therapies program at MSU Denver, Colorado. She received her medical degree from Creighton University School of Medicine and has been in practice between 20 years. Dr. Michelle Tollefson has focused on advancing lifestyle medicine in her clinical practice through patient education. She is also founding co-chair of the Women’s Health Member Interest Group which unites practitioners from diverse backgrounds in order to advance women’s health through healthy lifestyle practices.

Dr. Tollefson is a graduate of Creighton University where she received her Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Medicine degrees.  She then completed an obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Missouri in Kansas City, and received her board certification in this medical specialty. Dr. Tollefson was a private practice obstetrician and gynecologist, until leaving to work with Poudre Valley Health System as a medical director and Director of Women’s Wellness Education.

Additionally, Dr. Tollefson has dedicated the last eight years to the creation and instruction of a lifestyle medicine and wellness coaching curriculum for pre-professional students at MSU Denver. As founding co-chair of the Pre-Professional Lifestyle Medicine Education Member Interest Group, along with others, she has advocated for lifestyle medicine as the foundation of all health education.

She is a certified Wellcoach, guest faculty for Harvard, and author of online continuing medical education for the Harvard Institute of Lifestyle Medicine.  She is passionate about women’s healthcare, lifestyle medicine, and teaching people to lead healthier and happier lives.

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Treasurer

Koushik R. Reddy, MD

Dr. Reddy, MD is Director of Interventional Cardiology in Tampa, FL. graduating from Gandhi Medical College Bhopal in 2006 and has been in practice for 12 years. He completed a residency at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center.

After being involved with cardiovascular care and advanced cardiac interventions for years, I established a cardiology-based lifestyle clinic called Cardiology HEAL – Healthy Eating And Living. In addition, Dr. Reddy established a lifestyle medicine and whole foods plant-based nutrition related discussions into the core curriculum of our cardiology fellowship. Recently, he founded the Tampa Bay Chapter of PBNM – Plant Based Nutrition Movement. This is community based nonprofit organization that is working on taking the power of plant-based nutrition and lifestyle medicine to the grassroots level.

Dr. Reddy is passionate and deeply committed to the idea of health promotion and disease prevention, using lifestyle and nutrition related tools. Majority of our current healthcare expenditure is geared towards chronic diseases that are lifestyle related. The onus is on all of us to change the current paradigm. The status quo is not sustainable at a personal, societal and planetary scales.

Dr. Reddy is currently founder and co-chair of the ACLM working group for the Veteran Health Administration and Armed Forces.

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Young Director 

Paiyuam (Pi) Asnaashari, DO, DipABLM

Paiyuam (Pi) Asnaashari, received his medical degree from Western University of Health Sciences and is currently a resident physician at UC Davis Family Medicine Program. He will be pursuing a sports medicine fellowship after his residency. He has been volunteering for the ACLM’s Professionals in Training (PiT) committee since medical school and has helped grow Lifestyle Medicine Interest Groups (LMIG’s) across various medical school campuses and create various online Lifestyle Medicine content to stimulate student / trainee interest. As the Young Director, Paiyuam is immensely interested in continuing to garner student / trainee interest in Lifestyle Medicine across many medical schools, grow LMIG’s and create educational content to display importance of Lifestyle Medicine. He is keen on developing and improving behavioral change skills to help his future patients use diet and physical activity as a primary form treatment for preventing and treating chronic disease.  

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Director 

Melissa Mondala, MD, MHA, MS

Dr. Mondala is a Family Medicine physician completing her medical school training at Chicago Medical School. During 2019, Dr. Mondala has served as Preventive Medicine Junior Faculty at Loma Linda University Health completing her Lifestyle Medicine fellowship. At Loma Linda University, she empowers patients to make positive lifestyle changes and develop disease-specific lifestyle recommendations and prescriptions.

Dr. Mondala served as President and Secretary for the American College of Lifestyle Medicine Professionals in Training (PiT) Division. I carried out PiT’s mission to expand PiT nationally and globally through Lifestyle Medicine Interest Groups (LMIGs). She has accelerated the lifestyle medicine movement within academic institutions, social media, community fairs, and podcasts.

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Director

Theresa Stone, MD, FACP

Dr. Stone, MD is a practicing Internist in Washington, DC. Dr. Stone graduated from Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1993 and has been in practice for 26 years. She completed a residency at Washington Hospital. She currently practices at Medstar Health at Lafayette Centre and is affiliated with MedStar Washington Hospital Center.

Dr. Stone was invited by Medstar Health Leadership to head a taskforce to bring wellness initiatives to our large 10 hospital system. She has had the opportunity to work with colleagues on multiple wellness initiatives for the health system. These initiatives include; Georgetown School of Medicine Mind Body Medicine Elective Facilitator, “Mindfulness Mondays “ relaxation technique introduction for several Georgetown University Hospital Nursing Units , Physician Wellbeing Taskforce, “Wellness Wagon” designed to promote healthy lifestyle interventions and build connectedness for Medstar Health Associates in several of multi-specialty outpatient ambulatory outpatient centers. She looks forward to sharing experiences with many of the dynamic energetic compassionate members of ACLM who are interested in designing workplace wellness initiatives at their institutions.

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Director of Allied Health

Kelly Freeman, RN

Kelly Freeman has a strong interest in preventing, halting, and reversing chronic diseases. A former lieutenant in the United States Navy, she worked as a medical/surgical nurse, charge nurse, and case manager while on active duty. She is an advanced practice nurse with prescriptive authority. Kelly is board certified as an adult and geriatric primary care nurse practitioner. She is also board certified in wound healing, incontinence, and ostomy care. Kelly serves as the lead nurse for the American College of Lifestyle Medicine's RN/NP Working Group. She is a chronic disease advisory group member for the Indiana Public Health Association and is a steering committee member for the Indiana Cardiovascular and Diabetes Initiative. She currently teaches Nursing Intensive and has taught Interactive Processes, Data Analysis, and Health Assessment. She is also clinical faculty and the clinical placement coordinator for adult/geriatric NP students.

Knowing the importance of getting nurses involved, Kelly Freeman founded the ACLM RN/APRN Interest Group. It seemed logical and necessary that nurses would share this same interest in health promotion through therapeutic lifestyle techniques as physicians.  There are five regional RN/APRN interest groups and many talented nurses and advanced practice nurses working towards incorporating lifestyle medicine content into nursing curriculum and published in nursing journals.

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Director

Craig McDougall, MD

Dr. Craig McDougall is an internist in Beaverton, Oregon and is affiliated with OHSU Hospital. He received his medical degree from The Ohio State University College of Medicine and has been in practice 10 years.

As a physician, Dr. McDougall's greatest rewards come from the relationships he builds with his patients and helping them live better lives. He places a strong emphasis on prevention and treating problems with lifestyle changes, and reserves prescribing medications and surgeries as a last resort.  Before joining OHSU’s faculty, Dr. McDougall worked as a primary care physician and was the physician-lead of a lifestyle medicine consult clinic at Kaiser Permanente. Most recently, he was at ZOOM+Care helping develop an adult primary care practice emphasizing food and movement as medicine.

The last two years, Dr. McDougall has been working at Oregon Health and Science University as the medical director of a primary care clinic. This involves planning innovative practice models, expansion of primary care clinics, and primary care integration across a large health care system.

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Director

Amanda McKinney, MD, FACLM, FACOG, CPE, DipABLM

Dr. Amanda McKinney is board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery, and Lifestyle Medicine. She is also a Certified Physician Executive through the American Association of Physician Leadership and serves as the Founder and Executive Director of the Institute for Human and Planetary Health at Doane University. Through the Institute she develops and delivers Continuing Medical Education in Lifestyle Medicine as well as Planetary Health on edX, Harvard and MIT’s massive open online course provider. The mission of Institute for Human and Planetary Health is to present the evidence that the dietary pattern that best preserves both human and planetary health is based on minimally processed, whole plant foods grown using sustainable and restorative agricultural practices and seeks to provide educational opportunities for those who want to restore human and planetary health, create resilient, healthy communities and help transform current policy that favors high cost medical care, industrial agricultural and food production systems over people and the environment.

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Director

Salvatore Lacagnina, DO, DipABLM

Dr. Salvatore Lacagnina is the System Medical Director of Wellness and Employee Health for Lee Health. In this role, his mission is to motivate, educate and empower people to improve their health and wellness. Dr. Sal, as he likes to be called, is one of Lee Health’s champions responsible for developing a comprehensive health, wellness and preventive care program for more than 13,000 employees and family members. He is the Medical Director for the LH Employee Health clinics and the Medical Director for the Wellness Centers in Cape Coral and Ft. Myers. From 1994-2010 he practiced Internal Medicine with the Lee Physician Group and served as its Medical Director until 2010 before taking on his role as System Medical Director of Wellness and Employee Health. His emphasis is on the prevention and reversal of cardio metabolic diseases, diabetes, weight management, cancer risk factor reduction and overall lifestyle medicine. Dr. Sal earned his Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine from the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine and he is Board Certified in Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine and in the process of completing the ACLM certification program.. Dr. Sal writes a weekly column about health and wellness in The News-Press and a monthly column for the Cape Coral Chamber of Commerce Trends publication. He also speaks publically throughout the community.

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Director

Pankaj Vij , MD, FACP

I have a passion for nutrition and fitness and am interested in slowing down the aging process and optimizing human performance. I believe in improving health span, not just life span by promoting a nutrient dense plant rich diet, regular physical activity, meditation and sleep. I have a strong interest in Mind-Body medicine, stress management and mindfulness and wrote the book Turbo Metabolism: 8 Weeks to a New You: Preventing and Reversing Diabetes, Obesity, Heart Disease, and Other Metabolic Diseases by Treating the Causes.

I am Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Obesity Medicine. I have been practicing in the San Francisco Bay area since 2002. I have helped hundreds of people achieve and maintain their goal weight, reduce stress and improve their overall health. I know that the keys to improved health, vitality and longevity are within our reach and I have helped lots of my patients with these goals without taking more prescription drugs.

I attended medical school at the elite All-India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India. I completed a residency in Internal Medicine at William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI.

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Director

Ted Barnett, MD, FACLM, DipABLM

Having practiced in the Rochester, NY area since 2006, Dr. Barnett is the founder, executive medical director and CEO of Rochester Lifestyle Medicine (RLM). With a BS in Intensive Biology from Yale University, he earned his MD from Tufts University School of Medicine, followed by a Flexible Internship with Framingham Union Hospital and a Diagnostic Radiology Residency at Tufts. Board Certified in Diagnostic Imaging, as well as Vascular and Interventional Radiology, he refers to himself as the high-tech doctor with low tech solutions. Dr. Barnett teaches a 6-week plant-based nutrition course which is accredited for 12 professional CMEs, in addition to patient education training offered by he and his RLM team.

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Director

MIchelle McMacken, MD

Michelle McMacken, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at NYU School of Medicine. An honors graduate of Yale University and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Dr. McMacken practices internal medicine in the Adult Primary Care Center at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue, where she also directs the hospital's Weight Management Program and the Plant-Based Lifestyle Medicine Program. Through a 2014 NYU Merrin Fellowship grant, Dr. McMacken studied evidence-based nutrition and developed a nutrition curriculum for her internal medicine faculty colleagues. She has received the faculty ‘Teacher of the Year’ award three times for her work with physician trainees and has presented on nutrition at the American College of Physicians, the American Diabetes Association, and other national academic conferences. She has also been featured in several documentary films and popular nutrition-related websites and podcasts. Dr. McMacken is a council member for the True Health Initiative, a coalition of health experts from around the world committed to educating on evidence-based, proven principles of lifestyle as medicine. She is proud to serve on the board of ACLM, the organization that catalyzed her passion for lifestyle medicine.

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