Commissioner Dr. Arkoosh is a parent of three, physician, health policy expert, and community leader who, on January 28, 2015, was chosen unanimously by the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas to fill a vacancy on the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. She was elected to a full four-year term in November 2015 and was elected unanimously as Commission Chair on November 17, 2016. Arkoosh was re-elected to the Board in November 2019, and again unanimously elected by her two colleagues to serve as Chair in January 2020.

Arkoosh is a longtime resident of Montgomery County who has been engaged in public health policy development across all levels of government. She is a nationally-recognized public health policy expert. Until recently, she was Professor of Clinical Anesthesiology and Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania. She sought the Democratic nomination in 2014 for the 13th Congressional District seat.

Born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, Arkoosh has a degree in Economics from Northwestern University, and attended medical school at the University of Nebraska College of Medicine. She moved to Philadelphia in 1986 where she performed her residency at Jefferson Medical College in Anesthesiology with a special focus on Obstetrics and began working with patients and families from every walk of life, ultimately caring for thousands of women during labor and delivery. Frustrated by watching the families she cared for fall through the cracks time and time again – Arkoosh earned a Master of Public Health with a focus in Health Policy from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in 2007 so that she could increase her impact outside of the exam room.

Her strong educational background propelled her into national prominence, and has given her a unique blend of public health, leadership, and medical expertise. Upon obtaining her Master of Public Health, she became deeply engaged in the national effort to achieve comprehensive health care reform. She led the National Physicians Alliance, a national non-profit organization of physicians, who, putting their patients before profits, joined a broad-based nation-wide coalition for reform. During this time, she developed policy and legislative strategy, and promoted public engagement in Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, and throughout the country. Arkoosh briefly served as Chair of the Montgomery County Board of Public Health during 2012-2013.

While much of her career has been in medicine and public health, Arkoosh has significant leadership experience managing complex organizations during times of fiscal challenge. Arkoosh served for five years as Chair of Anesthesiology at the Drexel University College of Medicine where she successfully drew upon her undergraduate training in economics to restore her department to fiscal solvency following the Allegheny University bankruptcy. During this challenging time, she also served one year as Interim Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and was actively involved in the financial oversight of the medical school clinical practice plan.

Arkoosh lives in Springfield Township of Montgomery County with her husband, Jeff Harbison, and their three children.

Dr. Diez Roux is Dean and Distinguished University Professor of Epidemiology in the Dornsife School of Public Health at Drexel University. Before joining Drexel she served on the faculties of Columbia University and the University of Michigan where she was Chair of the Department of Epidemiology. Diez Roux is internationally known for her research on the social determinants of population health, the study of how neighborhoods affect health, and urban health. Her work on neighborhood health effects has been highly influential in the policy debate on population health and its determinants. She has led large NIH and foundation funded research and training programs in the United States and in collaboration with various institutions in Latin America and is currently Principal Investigator of the Wellcome Trust funded SALURBAL (Salud Urbana en América Latina) study. Diez Roux has served on numerous editorial boards, review panels and advisory committees including most recently the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) of the Environmental Protection Agency (as Chair), the Board of Scientific Counselors (BSC) of the National Center for Health Statistics, the Committee on Health and Wellbeing in the Changing Urban Environment of the International Council for Science (ISCUS), and CDCs Community Preventive Services Taskforce. She has received the Wade Hampton Frost Award for her contributions to public health from the American Public Health Association and the Award for Outstanding Contributions to Epidemiology from the American College of Epidemiology. She is an elected member of the American Epidemiological Society and the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research. She was elected to the National Academy of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in 2009. Diez Roux has been an active mentor of doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty.

After receiving her medical degree from Jefferson Medical College, Dr. Long completed pediatric residency and fellowship training in Infectious Diseases at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, and one year in research as a National Institutes of Health trainee at Temple University. She took her first job in 1975, as Chief of Infectious Diseases at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, where she has spent her career.

Long has served as Chair of the first Subspecialty Board of Pediatric Infectious Diseases of the American Board of Pediatrics, Chair of the Board of Directors of the American Board of Pediatrics, President of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society, and President of the Medical Staff at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children.

She is the founding and current Chief Editor of the textbook Principles and Practice of Pediatric Infectious Disease (in its 6th edition) and an Associate Editor of The Journal of Pediatrics. She also was an Associate Editor for 5 editions of the Red Book Report of the Committee on Infectious Diseases of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She has chaired the program committee for annual meetings of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.

Long has been honored repeatedly with medical student Golden Apples, housestaff teaching awards, the all-university Great Teacher’s Award at Temple University, the Distinguished Service Award as well as the Distinguished Physician Award of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society, an award for Lifetime Contribution to Infectious Diseases Education by the Section on Infectious Diseases of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Clinical Teaching Award from the Infectious Diseases Society of America (a primarily internist subspecialist society). In 2015, she received the Drexel University Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching and in 2019 was awarded the Drexel University College of Medicine Dean’s Heritage Medal and Phyllis Marciano, MD, Woman in Medicine Award. She has been named repeatedly as Top Doctor in Philadelphia and in America. To date, Long has mentored 16 fellows in pediatric infectious diseases, as well as more than 1000 residents and students in pediatrics. The Philadelphia Mural Arts Program included Long’s portrait, among storied St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children dignitaries Drs. W.E. Nelson and A. M. DiGeorge, on an edifice near the hospital in recognition of service to north Philadelphia’s children and contribution to the broad field of Pediatrics.

Despite national leadership and teaching roles, Long has prioritized an intensive schedule of clinical consultative care, to live the mission of bringing the best possible medical decisions to underprivileged children. She maintains that her most cherished moments are at the bedside of a child -- with a parent, medical student, resident and fellow -- all learning together.

Research and Policy: Long’s principal areas of investigation are vaccine preventable diseases and management of common infectious diseases in children. She sits on national committees that make vaccine policy for U.S. children and advises on vaccine licensure and recommendations for use. She has made more than 400 contributions to the medical literature, has given an average of over 30 lectures nationally/internationally annually for more than the past 3 decades, and has performed >85 honorary lectureships and visiting professorships.

Dr. Spector is a Professor of Pediatrics and serves in dual roles at the Drexel University College of Medicine (DUCOM): as Executive Director of the Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine® (ELAM) program, a parttime year long, national leadership fellowship program for women in academic medicine, dentistry, public health, and pharmacy, and as Associate Dean of Faculty Development. Known for her leadership abilities and her facilitation skills, Spector is sought after as a speaker and a visiting professor. Her contributions to graduate medical education and academic medicine are in leadership skills development, professional development, gender equity, mentoring and sponsorship, and curriculum development and implementation. She is a founding member of Time’s Up Healthcare and a member of PROWD (Promoting and Respecting Our Women Doctors). In addition to her roles at DUCOM, she has been the educational leader of the I-PASS Handoff Study Group and serves as the Chair of the I-PASS Executive Council and is a co-founder of the I-PASS Safety Institute.

Spector was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha and is member of the American Pediatric Society She has received numerous awards for teaching, mentoring and innovation, including the Robert S. Holm Award for her extraordinary contribution in pediatric program director leadership and mentorship from the Association of Pediatric Program Directors, the Elias Abrutyn Mentoring Award from Drexel University College of Medicine, the Miller Sarkin Mentoring Award from the Academic Pediatric Association, the Elizabeth Bingham Award from the Association for Women in Science, Philadelphia chapter, the Women in Medicine Summit She for She Award, the American Medical Association Inspiration Award, and the Association of American Medical Colleges GWIMS Leadership Award for an Individual. The I-PASS Study group that she leads was a HBS/HMS health acceleration challenge finalist and received the Cox Award, and the I-PASS Handoff Program received the John M. Eisenberg National Patient Safety and Quality Award, Joint Commission and National Quality Forum.

In the past year she has been invited to join a number of leadership efforts at organizations including the Society of Hospital Medicine, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Association of American Medical Colleges, the American College of Physicians, and WomenLift Health.

Dr. Bernstein is Professor and Vice Chair for Faculty Development and Wellbeing, Departments of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science and Obstetrics and Gynecology and Women’s Health at the Montefiore Medical Center /Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She is also a Senior Scholar in the Department of Education and Organizational Development for the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). She was previously Vice Chair for Education and Director of Residency Training in Psychiatry at NYU. From 2001-2011, Bernstein also served as the Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education and the Designated Institutional Official for ACGME accredited training programs at NYU. Bernstein is a Past-President of the American Psychiatric Association and served the Association as Vice-President, Treasurer and Trustee-at-Large and as the chair of multiple committees. She has served as a spokesperson for the American Psychiatric Association on many occasions and received the 1997 exemplary psychiatrist award from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI). She is the recipient of the APA/NIMH Vestermark Award in Psychiatric Education and the APA Alexandra Symonds Award for contributions to the advancement of women in leadership and in women’s health. In 2018, Bernstein received a special Presidential commendation from the APA for her work in educating the public about mental illness through her role on Sirius/XM Doctor Radio. In 2019, she received the John Gienapp Award for notable contributions to Graduate Medical Education from the ACGME and the Distinguished Service Award from the American College of Psychiatrists.

Bernstein completed medical school at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. Following an internship in internal medicine at St. Luke’s/Roosevelt Medical Center in New York, she completed her psychiatric residency training at Columbia University and the New York State Psychiatric Institute. Bernstein is active in many national psychiatric associations in addition to the APA - these include the American College of Psychiatrists where she is currently the Treasurer of the Board of Regents, the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, among others. In 2003, Bernstein was selected as a Fellow in ELAM (Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine) a national program, designed to promote leadership for women in medicine. In 2005, Bernstein completed the Physician Leadership Development Program at NYU as well as the Graduate Medical Education Leadership Program of the ACGME. From 2010-2016, Bernstein served on the Board of Directors of the ACGME where she co-chaired the ACGME Task Force on Physician Well Being. She is also a member of the Action Collaborative on Clinician Wellbeing and Resilience of the National Academy of Medicine.

Bernstein has written numerous articles and chapters on psychiatric education and has served as a peer reviewer for both the American Journal of Psychiatry and Academic Psychiatry. She has served on the editorial boards of Academic Psychiatry, the Journal of Psychiatric Services and Focus, has presented at more than 80 conferences and meetings and has been the recipient of a number of visiting professorships. For more than ten years, Bernstein hosted a weekly call-in show for consumers on Sirius Radio’s Doctor Radio Channel sponsored by the NYU Langone Medical Center.

Dr. Gadegbeku is Assistant Dean of Community Health within the Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. In this administrative role, Gadegbeku works to establish local partnerships to promote urban health equity in collaboration with the University. She is involved in education through curricular support and training in diversity, inclusion and anti-racism. She engages students and faculty in health equity–related scholarship and service and collaborates on community stakeholders’ events. Gadegbeku is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family, Community & Preventive Medicine. She is also Chief of the Division of Community Health and Associate Program Director of the Drexel/Tower Health Family Medicine Residency.

Gadegbeku received her bachelor’s degree in Biology at Brown University, obtained her medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine, and completed her Family Medicine Residency training at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. After residency, she was recruited as faculty in the Montgomery Family Practice Residency Program, then later appointed faculty at the Drexel University College of Medicine in 2009. Her academic interests include urban and underserved community medicine, adolescent medicine, women’s health and global health. Gadegbeku has a passion for underserved, marginalized, vulnerable, and at-risk populations with a focus in harm reduction. She has implemented longitudinal curricula for Community Health, Refugee Health, Addiction Medicine, and trauma-informed care and has implemented multiple community outreach programs at various sites in Philadelphia. She is a Community Preceptor and Clinical Faculty Advisor overseeing all the College of Medicine’s Health Outreach Projects (H.O.P.) programs. She primarily cares for patients at the Drexel-Tower Health Family Medicine at Broad Street office, where she is the Medical Director and specializes in primary care for all ages.

Dr. Rita Guevara is Assistant Dean of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. In this role, she reports to Dr. Leon McCrea and collaborates on all efforts of the office, including recruitment, enrollment, community building and stakeholder events. Guevara focuses on specific projects involving the pipeline mentorship program, educational grant preparation and quality improvement of programming. In addition, she represents and promotes awareness of the Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in collaborating with members of the College and University communities. An alumna of the College of Medicine, Guevara is an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics and serves as Director of Health Equity at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children. She is also a certified, proficient bilingual provider in Spanish and has advocated for certification of fellow providers in the clinic to ensure they all provide the highest quality of patient care in families’ preferred languages. She works to ensure quality care for culturally and linguistically diverse families and provides education on language access and culturally effective care for medical trainees and faculty. She has given lectures and workshops at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, Drexel University College of Medicine, and the greater Tower Health network on topics of interpreter utilization, effective communication with diverse patient populations, cultural humility, and culturally effective pediatric care.

Dr. McCrea is Senior Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. He leads efforts to develop policies and processes to bolster diversity, equity and inclusion at the College of Medicine, and collaborates with the Office of Faculty to implement best practices for the recruitment, retention and promotion of faculty from historically underrepresented groups in medicine.

McCrea also works with Admissions, Educational Affairs, Student Affairs and Alumni Engagement on best practices for diversity, equity and inclusion in medicine and biomedical sciences; and serves as a resource for affiliate sites for education and training in bias and anti-racism. McCrea is also an associate professor in the Department of Family, Community & Preventive Medicine, and program director of the Drexel/Tower Health Family Medicine Residency. McCrea is also the program director for the Drexel Pathway to Medical School, a post-baccalaureate pipeline program focused on students historically underrepresented and financially disenfranchised.

After his Human Biology degree at Brown University, McCrea earned Doctorate in Medicine and Master’s in Public Health from the University of Pittsburgh. He then trained in Family Medicine at Crozer-Keystone Health System. Upon completion of his residency, he was recruited to join the faculty at Crozer-Keystone Family Medicine Residency Program where he subsequently became the Associate Program Director. McCrea’s academic interests include curriculum development, mentorship, and competency-based evaluation. He also worked collaboratively with the Department of Psychiatry at the College of Medicine to establish an institutional wellness curriculum. His clinical interests include women’s health, adolescent medicine, contraception, men’s health and office-based procedures. He was asked to serve on the membership committee of the Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors and subsequently served on the Diversity and Health Equity Task Force. He now currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors. McCrea, currently serves on the board of directors for the Family Medicine Educational Consortium, and was recently elected to the position of President-Elect. He is a national speaker and educator in leadership and currently serves as distinguished faculty in the American Academy of Family Physicians Chief Resident Leadership Development Program.