Leadership
Jerris R. Hedges, MD, MS, MMM, Professor of Medicine and Surgery at the University of Hawaii – John A. Burns – School of Medicine since 2008, serves as the contact MPI for Ola HAWAII. He will step down as dean of the medical school March 1, 2023, after 15 years of service. Dr. Hedges previously served as the contact MPI for the University of Hawaii RCMI Clinical Translational Research Center (RMATRIX – U54MD007584). He also oversaw the RCMI Clinical Research Infrastructure Initiative (RCRII – P20RR11091). Formerly, as Vice Dean of the Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) School of Medicine, he contributed to the development of that institution’s initial first-round successful CTSA. As a physician specializing in emergency medicine, Dr. Hedges has a strong background in clinical medicine, having served as Chair of the Department of Emergency medicine at OHSU for 7 years. He has been the lead site-investigator on several multi-center NIH-funded grants, and prior to relocating to Hawaii, he served as the Portland PI for the NHLBI Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium (U01HL77873). His long history of innovative clinical and translational research, mentorship and leadership in emergency medicine led to his election to the National Academy of Medicine in 2000.
Noreen Mokuau, MSW, DSW, Professor Emerita and former Dean of the Thompson School of Social Work and Public Health, has served as MPI of NIMHD RMATRIX (U54MD007584) from 2014-2019 and of Ola HAWAII since 2017. She is nationally recognized for her work with underrepresented minority populations, with a focus on social justice, health equity, and cultural competence, with special attention to Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and Asian populations. As the inaugural co-chair of the Barbara Cox Anthony Endowment in Aging and former co-principal investigator of Hā Kūpuna – (National Resource Center for Native Hawaiian Elders), much of her research has emphasized Native Hawaiian elders. A current book project uses storytelling as a qualitative method with Native Hawaiian elders in order to identify ancestral practices for health and social justice.
Program Director
Dominic Chow, MD, PhD, MPH is a Professor in the Department of Medicine and Clinical Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM). He is the Medical Director of the Clint Spencer Immunology Clinic, and a Co-Investigator at the Hawaii Center For AIDS. He is an attending physician at the Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children and the Queen Emma Clinics where he participates in the medical training of pediatric and internal medicine residents. He completed medical school at the State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn and a Combined Internal Medicine and Pediatric Residency at the Yale Medical School Affiliated Bridgeport Hospital, where he was Chief Resident. He subsequently studied Preventive Medicine at the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health where he earned his Master of Public Health in International Health. Dr. Chow’s research and academic interests include the complications of HIV and antiretroviral therapy on the autonomic nervous system, cardiovascular system, glucose, and liver metabolism. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and General Pediatrics and certified in HIV Medicine through the American Academy of HIV Medicine.
Program Administrator
Susan Ordinado, BA, serves as the Ola HAWAII Program Administrator. She is responsible for the day-to-day operations, core support, and fiscal management. Ms. Ordinado served as the Project Coordinator for the Clinical Center for Research Excellence (CCRE), called the Pacific Center for Early Human Development, from 2005 to 2008. She served as the Project Coordinator for the RTRN Research Coordinating Center from 2008 to 2011, the Program Administrator for the G12 RCMI from 2011 to 2022 and the Program Administrator for the Precision Nutrition COBRE from 2022 to 2023.
Health Policy
Aimee Malia Grace, MD, MPH, FAAP, Health Policy Advisor, directs strategic health initiatives and federal relations for the University of Hawaiʻi (UH) System. At UH, Dr. Grace leads the UHealthy Hawaiʻi Initiative to improve health and health care in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific as well as the federal appropriations process and other federal legislative activities for the university. Dr. Grace is also Principal Investigator for the UH Rural Health Research and Policy Center and the Hawaiʻi State Department of Health-UH Contact Tracing Training Program (which also serves a training mechanism for Community Health Workers) as well as co-Principal Investigator for the UH Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity. She is a pediatrician by background and previously worked as health policy advisor for U.S. Senator Brian Schatz in Washington, D.C. for three years, where she led legislative and appropriations efforts on telehealth, Native Hawaiian Health, tobacco to 21, Medicaid buy-in, public health preparedness, and more. Dr. Grace was educated and trained at Stanford University for her human biology degree; the University of Hawaiʻi John A. Burns School of Medicine for her medical degree; Stanford Children’s Hospital for her pediatrics residency; Harvard School of Public Health for her Master of Public Health degree; and Children’s National Health System for her General Academic Pediatrics fellowship. She currently serves on the Executive Committee of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Council on Injury, Violence, and Poison Prevention. Dr. Grace lives in Honolulu with her husband, daughter, and cat.
Evaluation
Angela Sy, DrPH is the Evaluator of Ola Hawaii. She is an Associate Professor with the John a Burns School of Medicine, Department of Tropical Medicine, Medical Microbiology, and Pharmacology, and also serves as the Director of the Evaluation Core of the Pacific Center for Innovations, Knowledge, and Opportunities. As the Ola Evaluator, Dr Sy will work with the Ola Core leadership to plan a tracking and evaluation system for Ola. Dr Sy will also lead data collection for evaluation tracking to monitoring progress and to document program outcomes. She will also participate in RCMI evaluation workgroups to work toward common metrics for evaluation.
Technical Support
Grace Matsuura, MS, MPH, Navigator, is responsible for Ola HAWAII’s infrastructure projects, such as developing and maintaining REDCap pilot project and seminar applications, request for core services, and other administrative databases. Grace also provides training in REDCap and PMCID submissions.
Bradley Jones, PhD, Senior Technical Specialist is responsible for general IT services for Ola HAWAII. Along with Ms. Matsuura, Dr. Jones will be responsible for developing and maintaining an informational web-site for Ola HAWAII. In addition, he provides back-end programming for the on-line research and pilot project application process developed in RedCap.