The Leadership of THSA

Phil came to Houston in 1991 as a post-doctoral fellow to study protein metabolism at the Children’s Nutrition Research Center. At Texas Children’s Hospital he developed a rapid amino acid assay used to perform protein clamps and measure insulin sensitivity in children with diabetes.

Phil kickstarted his informatics career in the neonatal ICU writing interfaces to capture data electronically from monitoring systems around the concept that quality is driven by data. He co-founded a startup, RosettaMed as a developer for patient data capture applications with interfaces to electronic health records. He led the sale of the company to Kryptiq Corporation before joining Baylor College of Medicine to lead their clinical information systems implementation (Epic, iSite PACS). Phil joined Greater Houston Healthconnect (an HIE)  in May 2012 and served as a pioneer for interoperability in Houston and the Southeast Texas region. Phil introduced and integrated diagnostic image sharing with the goal of reducing duplicate tests and reducing patient exposure to unnecessary radiation. As CEO of C3HIE he continued to expand HIE services across Texas through collaboration with community partners and a focus on value and delivery through account management. Since January 2025 Phil is CEO of Texas Health Services Authority, a statutory organization to promote and enable interoperability across Texas.

Phil has a major focus on usability after many years working with physicians – if it isn’t easy they won’t use it – and on patient engagement. He believes that consumers will drive the future of healthcare.

In his spare time, Phil is a sailor (on Galveston Bay), Vice Chair of Close to Home, the Homeless CoC in San Antonio; Chair of the Homeless Management and Information System and Data in San Antonio; on the eHealth Advisory Committee for Texas; Deans Advisory Committee UTSA School of Health, Community and Policy; and Co-Chair for the Civitas national conference. All of these efforts tie together the factors that affect our health – policy, environment, community and medicine.

Katherine Lusk, MHSM, RHIA, FAHIMA, is the Vice President Strategic Partnerships for the Texas Health Services Authority with a focus on cross-industry facilitation of trusted data exchange that supports innovation and data mobility. She has long championed interoperability serving in multiple roles including Past President AHIMA, DirectTrust Board, eHealth Exchange Workgroup, ONC Patient Identity Workgroup, Epic’s Care Everywhere Governing Council, ONC / AHIMA Project US@ Companion Guide,  e-Health Advisory Committee, and the THSA state-wide multidisciplinary vendor agnostic Interoperability collaborative.  She is a strong believer in the power of informatics to bridge healthcare delivery gaps.

Shannon Calhoun of Goliad is the Director of Growth at Aledade. Calhoun served as Vice President, Network Development National Rural Accountable Care Consortium and Vice President, Business Development for Caravan Health. Calhoun served 20 plus years as CEO of Southeast Texas Health System, a network owned by 13 independent hospitals. She previously volunteered as the logistics officer for the Goliad County Emergency Response Clinic, and is a past member of the Goliad County Chamber of Finance Committee, Goliad Community Network, Goliad Rotary Club, and the Pecan Valley Area Health Education Center. Calhoun received a Bachelor of Science in Agronomy from Texas A&M College Station

Kenneth James of Volente is the vice president of operations at Superior HealthPlan. He currently serves on Superior HealthPlan’s Performance Improvement Team, Healthcare Effectiveness Data & Information Set, and Clinical and Diabetes Steering Committees. Additionally, he volunteers with the Grandview Hills PTA. He is a former coach for Elgin Little League, and has volunteered with the Cajun Navy. James received a Bachelor of Science in computer information systems from Tarleton State University.

Victoria Ai Linh Bryant, Pharm.D. of Houston is the founder of Ambassadors Caregivers, LLC. She is a member of the American Pharmacists Association, University of Houston College of Education Dean’s Advisory Council, and The Altus Foundation. She also serves as the president for the World Chamber of Commerce of Texas. Bryant received a Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Houston.

Salil Deshpande, M.D. of Houston is the chief medical officer for UnitedHealthcare’s Community Plan of Texas. He is a member of the American Medical Association, American College of Physicians, Texas Medical Association, and the Harris County Medical Society, and is a Diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine. Deshpande received a Bachelor of Arts in biological sciences from the University of Southern California, Doctor of Medicine from Baylor College of Medicine, and a Masters of Business Administration in finance and health care management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Kourtney Kouns of Seymour is the regulatory and quality program coordinator for application services at United Regional Health Care System. She has over 18 years of experience as a critical care nurse, nursing informatics coordinator, director of nursing, and clinical informatics analyst for various applications such as Meditech, Allscripts, Cerner, and Epic. She is an administrative council member for First Methodist Church of Seymour and former member of the Health Information Management Systems Society and the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. She is a certified agile scrum master, earned a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Certification, and holds many Epic Systems application certifications. Kouns received a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and a Master of Science in Healthcare Informatics from the University of Colorado Denver College of Nursing.

Jerome Lisk, M.D. of Tyler is the director of Movement Disorders at the Neurological Institute at Christus Trinity Mother Frances Hospital. He is also a clinical assistant professor at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler. He is a member of The American Academy of Neurology, The International Parkinson’s and Movement Disorder Society, and the Texas Neurological Society. He previously served on the American Heart Association’s African American Task Force – Western States Affiliate the Board of Directors, and as expert review panel of the Medical Board of California. Lisk received a Bachelor of Arts in biology from Hampton University and a Doctor of Medicine from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Cynthia Stinson, Ph.D. of Lumberton is a registered nurse, associate professor, and Chair of the JoAnne Gay Dishman School of Nursing at Lamar University. She is a member of the Texas Nurses Association, American Nurses Association, and Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society. In addition, she is a member and medical educator with Gift of Life. Stinson received a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Lamar University, Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing from Texas Woman’s University – Houston.

Wes Tidwell of Round Rock is the president of Ascension Seton Medical Center Austin. He is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, member of the Texas Hospital Association, and board member of the Quality Texas Foundation. Previously, he served as a board member of the Round Rock Chamber of Commerce and the Round Rock Independent School District Partners in Education Foundation. Tidwell received a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Science at Texas A&M University and Master of Business Administration and Master of Healthcare Administration from the University of Houston.

Calvin Green of Elgin is the Deputy Executive Commissioner of Performance for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. Green received a Bachelor of Science in political science and history from Texas A&M University – Commerce and a Masters of Public Administration from the University of North Texas.

Jeffrey Hoogheem of Austin is the Director of Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Section at the Texas Department of State Health Services. He serves as the Incident Commander in the Texas State Medical Operations Center (SMOC) and is responsible for coordinating all Public Health and Medical preparedness and response activities in Texas. He is a retired Blackhawk Helicopter Pilot, who served 21 years in the U.S. Army. Hoogheem received an Associate of Science in professional aeronautics from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University and a Bachelor of Science in aeronautics from Liberty University.