Dr. Griggs received her undergraduate degree from Mount Holyoke College and her MD from the Jacobs School of Medicine, University of Buffalo. She completed her Residency and Chief Residency in Internal Medicine and Fellowships in Hematology and Oncology and Health Services Research at the University of Rochester after which she joined faculty, serving as the Director of the Comprehensive Breast Cancer Program at the University of Rochester in the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center in Rochester, New York. In September 2006, she joined the faculty at Michigan Medicine where she is now a Professor in the Department of Hematology/Oncology and in the Department of Health Management and Policy.

Dr. Griggs’ federally funded research program has focused on disparities and equity in cancer care, including on disparities in chemotherapy dose selection according to race, body size, and area level deprivation. She also conducts research on patient-clinician communication and end-of-life. She has served as the Chair of the Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), was a member of the ASCO Health Disparities Committee, and has been the Chair or Co-Chair of several clinical practice guidelines. She has over 200 publications and for five years served as one of the Associate Editors for the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Dr. Griggs has been the Program Director for the Michigan Oncology Quality Consortium since 2016.

Dr. Mackler received her PharmD from Drake University and completed her Residency experience in Pharmacy Practice and Oncology at the University Hospital in Cincinnati, OH. She joined Michigan Medicine in 2002 as a Clinical Oncology Pharmacist. She founded the Oncology Specialty Residency at the University of Michigan in 2003 and was the program director until 2013. She has been involved in multiple oncology quality and safety endeavors including serving as the co-lead and founding developer of the NCCN Chemotherapy Order Templates since its inception in 2006, founding pharmacist in the Cancer Center Symptom Management and Supportive Care Program at the University of Michigan 2009 – 2012, founding director of the University of Michigan Oral Chemotherapy Program in 2012 and thereafter MOQC’s Oral Oncolytic Program in 2013, and Course Director of the Michigan Society of Hematology Oncology (MSHO) Annual Pharmacist’s Meeting since inception in 2013. HOPA representative for the National Quality Forum since 2017, and Task Force Chair for the HOPA Quality Oversight Task Force since 2018.

Dr. Mackler’s research and practice interests focus on oncology symptom management, quality of care, chemotherapy safety, medication adherence and patient reported outcomes.

Dr. Uppal received his medical degree from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi, India. He graduated from his residency program at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and went on to complete his fellowship training in gynecologic oncology at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin. He joined the faculty of the University of Michigan as an Assistant Professor in 2014. Dr. Uppal’s areas of expertise include minimally invasive surgeries with a focus on sentinel lymph node dissection, robotic surgery as well as single-port laparoscopic surgery to improve surgical outcomes.

Dr. Uppal’s research program focuses on patient-centered, evidence-based care. In particular, he has published numerous high-quality publications on quality of care in gynecologic cancers. Most recently, his research has focused on reducing surgical site infections and readmissions after complex oncologic procedures for women with ovarian.

Keli (pronouns: she/her) started her career as a social worker in the Emergency Department. She became a social work supervisor and interim manager before transitioning to become a call center manager, and now the Program Manager of Michigan Oncology Quality Consortium (MOQC), a statewide collaborative for improving oncology care for patients and caregivers. She continues to maintain her social work license and uses that background in everything she does.

Keli joined MOQC when she got to a point in her career where the thing she cared most about was working with people she could trust towards shared goals with a collective vision, to help people in some meaningful way. She is passionate about quality improvement in oncology care and about centering equity and inclusion in health care. Her favorite part of her work is connecting with people, whether it’s mentoring the coordinating center team, meeting with patient/caregiver advisors, or interdisciplinary teams at oncology practices. She loves hearing about what MOQC is doing that benefits people, and about what can still be done to improve.

In her spare time, Keli loves being outside, spending time with family, and eating delicious food.

Vanessa (pronouns: she/her) has a film degree from the University of Michigan. She also had over six years of experience working with gynecologic oncology at Michigan Medicine before her move to MOQC. She plans to use her strong connection with and passion for quality improvement that she developed in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology to continue improving patient care in the realm of gynecologic oncology.

Vanessa’s favorite part of working at MOQC is facilitating for MOQC’s Patient and Caregiver Council. She finds that the connection piece of working with such a variety of people brings her joy. She uses her creative side to enhance MOQC’s media presence. She is a member of the Marketing and Website Committee and the Maximize Value Committee.

When Vanessa isn’t working at MOQC, she practices and teaches yoga, knits, and cuddles with her two cats.

Heather (pronouns: she/her) has been a Registered Nurse for over 30 years, with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Madonna University and a Post Bachelor Certificate in Cancer Information Management from Ferris State University. The majority of her clinical experience was in the operating room, in various roles, including Nurse Educator. She was also involved in quality improvement as a Clinical Data Abstractor for the Michigan Arthroplasty Registry Collaborative Quality Initiative (MARCQI) and the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative (MSQC).

Heather joined MOQC to continue her work with quality initiatives to improve outcomes in patient care. She’s a member of MOQC’s Centering Equity Committee and has been an intrinsic part of the team focused around the creation of MOQC’s new database, MOQCLink. Her favorite part of working with the MOQC team is the shared goal of improving the quality of cancer care in Michigan, with patients and their families as the primary main focus. Improving patient care has always been very important to Heather.

In her spare time, Heather enjoys the company of family and friends, as well as running marathons and half marathons. She loves nature and the outdoors so she often goes hiking. In the winter months, she cross country skis and snowshoes.

Jenn has been a registered nurse for 25 years, with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Northern Illinois University. Her early clinical focus was in emergency medicine and cardiology. She found a passion for oncology working as an outpatient infusion nurse since 2017, and she earned her OCN in 2020. Jenn continues to work in outpatient infusion and recently started classes to earn her CTR.

Jenn is excited to be part of MOQC because she believes in our mission. She feels that MOQC provides a unique opportunity to identify areas for change and improvement, giving providers the ability to incorporate these findings into day-to-day practice to enhance the experience and outcome for patients. As an infusion nurse, Jenn feels very strongly about improving patient care and experience throughout the cancer journey and is excited to continue to work towards that goal with MOQC.

In her off time, Jenn enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, playing disc golf, gardening, and raising monarch butterflies in the summer.

Dave (pronouns: he/his) graduated from California State Polytechnic University with a degree in Business Administration. After a successful twenty-year career in the publishing industry as a National Accounts Manager and Director of Sales, he decided to take his career in a new direction and joined the University of Michigan. Prior to becoming MOQC’s Administrative Specialist, he was the Administrative Assistant Senior to the Medical Director and Clinical Team at the University’s Health Service.

Dave joined MOQC because it was a great opportunity to take on more responsibilities as an Administrative Specialist and to help the MOQC team continue to make a positive impact in improving patient healthcare. In addition to taking care of the many administration responsibilities at MOQC, Dave is also a member of the MOQC Culture Committee. He prides himself on making sure the behind-the-scenes world of quality improvement is taken care of, so that his MOQC peers can focus on what they do best to make MOQC the best that it can be.

In his off-MOQC hours, Dave enjoys watching and playing sports, traveling, spending time with his wife and stepchildren, VW buses, his Jeep, making people smile and laugh, and hanging out at the beach on a warm and sunny day.

Ashley (pronouns: she/her) started her career as a Registered Dietitian at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, working with patients in oncology, surgery, and intensive care services. Ashley continued her work in clinical nutrition, research and quality improvement with the Lurie Children’s and Northwestern University Cystic Fibrosis Center, where she also received certification as a Health Coach. After nearly five years in that role, she moved into a leadership position working as Clinical Nutrition Manager for the Lurie Children’s Department of Clinical Nutrition. In 2018, Ashley and her family relocated to Ann Arbor where she became a Clinical Nutrition Services Manager at Michigan Medicine.

Ashley was excited to join MOQC to advance quality initiatives that will make a positive impact on patient- and family-centered care. She leads MOQC’s Maximize Value Committee, and is a member of the PROs Task Force, and the Marketing & Website Committee. She also facilitates the POQC Patient and Caregiver Resources Workgroup. Her favorite part of working with MOQC is working with a team that truly embodies its’ core values of trust, integrity, compassion, collaboration and growth mindset.

During non-MOQC time, Ashley loves exploring the world through her toddler’s eyes, cooking, reading and spending time with her family, including her goldendoodle Jack.

Kayla (pronouns: she/her) recently graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a Bachelor of Social Work and is currently pursuing her Master of Social Work from University of Michigan. She will be focusing her studies on the policy and political social work sphere. She has worked extensively with individuals experiencing substance use disorder at Home of New Vision and Dawn Farm. Through her time with these organizations, she has worked as a peer recovery coach and detox counselor assisting others in their recovery journeys.

Kayla has also spent previous internship experiences working with Michigan Department of Health and Human Services on their Opioid Policy and Planning team devising plans for the recent opioid settlement funding. She most recently worked with the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office on the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion and Deflection (LEADD) program in which individuals with frequent police interaction based on mental health, substance use, and chronic poverty are diverted to social and community-based programs.

Kayla chose to intern with MOQC to dip her toes into the healthcare side of social work. She is passionate about health equity and feels that MOQC's values and beliefs attest to their enthusiasm for the quality of care that healthcare professionals provide for every patient and caregiver.

Deana has been a registered nurse for over 30 years with a Bachelor in Nursing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Master in Healthcare Administration from the University of Phoenix. Most of her clinical experience has been related to oncology care, including bedside care, case management, bone marrow program manager, and research nurse. She has also been involved in projects to improve care in electronic medical record implementation and primary care redesign. Deana is thrilled to join MOQC to continue in oncology and to help improve care for patients.

In her spare time, Deana enjoys being outdoors with her husband Brian and their Golden Retriever Jax, doing all kinds of activities including camping and hiking. Her favorite activity is snowmobiling. She also enjoys reading and cooking/baking.

Karen has a BBA in Human Resources from Eastern Michigan University. She has worked in an administrative capacity for the University of Michigan for the last nine years.

Karen is excited to be part of the MOQC Team. The department’s reputation for fostering collaboration to improve patient care aligns with her professional goals. Joining MOQC is an opportunity for her to support and work alongside dedicated team members, united in the goal of enhancing health care outcomes. She looks forward to not only facing the challenges of today, but also setting new standards of care for the future.

In her spare time, Karen enjoys spending time with her family and friends and spending time outside.

Hana (pronouns: she/her) is a Master of Social Work (MSW) student at the University of Michigan, with a strong foundation in legislative research and social welfare. She earned her bachelor’s degree in social work from Seton Hall University, where she developed a deep understanding of healthcare, criminal justice, and education policies during her internship at the 38th Legislative District of New Jersey. Hana also gained hands-on experience in mental health and social welfare assessments, as well as group session facilitation, through her work at Newark Community Solutions, an alternative-to-incarceration program.

Passionate about improving the quality of care for vulnerable populations, Hana is ecstatic to work with the Michigan Oncology Quality Consortium (MOQC), where she hopes to contribute meaningfully to healthcare improvement. In addition to her role at MOQC, she works as a medical assistant for ER Radiology at Michigan Medicine. Although new to the healthcare field, Hana is eager to make a positive impact on both patient care and caregiver services.

Kleo (pronouns: she/her) was employed at Ascension St. John’s Van Elslander Cancer Center as a Clinical Data Analyst abstracting data for patients diagnosed with lymphoma. Prior to that, she was a Research Assistant at Wayne State University for 18 years investigating prostate cancer and fetal paternal alcohol syndrome in the Departments of Pathology and Gynecology.

She was already abstracting the hematology and oncology data for the practice she worked for prior to joining MOQC, and she thought it would be really amazing to do that for multiple practices across the state. The concept of working at a collaborative entity was new and exciting, so she joined MOQC. Kleo leads MOQC’s Culture Committee and is a member of the Generate Trusted Data Committee. She loves knowing that what she does is helping practices do something better for patients diagnosed with cancer and their families. She thrives when she is communicating with practice administrators, nurses, physicians, and staff, or problem solving with her MOQC team.

In her off-MOQC hours, Kleo is a soccer mom. She also loves good food (and being a critic about it), and spending quality family time in Greece.

Cindy (pronouns: she/her) had 10 years of experience working with oncology in cancer center, pharmacy & specialty pharmacy at Michigan Medicine before joining MOQC full time. She also has 15 years of experience as a lead data abstractor with the MOQC team.

Cindy joined MOQC to use and grow her data analytics & data abstraction knowledge. She wanted to help grow the abstraction team to better serve MOQC practices. She strives to collect, analyze, and demonstrate data that can serve to better the quality of patient care. She serves on MOQC’s Marketing and Website Committee and the Generate Trusted Data Committee. Her favorite part of being a MOQC-ite is working with her co-workers and knowing that the data is ultimately helping provide better cancer care to all patients. Working together with the MOQC team, providers, and practices provides confidence that everyone is doing their part to help the future of cancer care.

During non-MOQC time, Cindy enjoys hiking, running, kayaking, mountain biking, traveling, and playing with her Rhodesian Ridgeback, Tucker.

Dilhara (pronouns: she/her) was a Project Manager at the MSHIELD collaborative quality initiative leading the Community-Clinical Partnerships program. Before that, Dilhara worked at the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services where she led the evaluation and strategic planning efforts for the Cancer Prevention and Control Section. She has experience coordinating projects and fostering partnerships across sectors. She is a champion for embedding equity in every facet of work.

Dilhara was drawn to MOQC because of the shared values and commitment to improving care for patients and their families. She worked with MOQC in her previous role and knew she was joining a great team that cared deeply about their work.

Outside of MOQC, Dilhara is a community advocate, tennis coach, and auntie. You will find her trying a new recipe or planning her next travel adventure.

Beth (pronouns: she/her) has focused her professional efforts on improving the health and wellness of various communities through disease prevention and early intervention approaches across diverse settings. Leveraging her exercise physiology and public health background, Beth served southeastern Michigan communities through cross-generational wellness programming and environmental stewardship projects. Yearning to expand her career, Beth joined corporate America, developing and integrating workplace wellness programming with organizations across the United States before returning to the non-profit arena at the American Cancer Society of Michigan where she spent her time engaging local health care centers in quality improvement efforts related to cancer prevention and early intervention.

Beth was drawn to MOQC because it focuses on quality healthcare for those in the throes of cancer’s chronic and often life-stealing grasp. More specifically, she was drawn to the emphasis on patient-centeredness and serving the community which serves and harbors cancer patients. MOQC meets Beth’s public health drive with a methodical quality improvement approach. At MOQC, Beth focuses her efforts on the research projects like the MiGHT project, and she is a member of the Centering Equity Workgroup and Equity Task Force.

In Beth’s spare time, she enjoys laughing with her son and husband, time in the pottery studio, and reading.

Heather (pronouns: she/her) became a RHIT (Registered Health Information Technician) in 2013 and worked in a Medical Records department for 15 years. She became a CTR (Certified Tumor Registrar) in 2019 and worked in a Tumor Registry Department for 5 years before coming to MOQC.

Heather’s family has been affected by cancer, as have most families, and that led her to MOQC. Though she does not have direct contact with patients, behind the scenes she is proud to be measuring and working to improve the quality of care that will affect outcomes for cancer patients across the state. She also chose to join MOQC because she immediately felt at home with all of the MOQC team members. She is a member of MOQC’s Maximize Value Committee, and her favorite part of working for the MOQC team are the team members. From the top to the bottom, everyone is compassionate, caring, and willing to pitch in to help a team member. She loves that MOQC is truly a family!

In her spare time, Heather enjoys spending time with family and friends. She also enjoys reading, camping, and traveling.

Natalia (pronouns: she/her) joined MOQC in 2022. Prior to MOQC, Natalia served a Program Manager for Partners for Children at the C. S. Mott Children’s Hospital, a community-based pediatric palliative care program for children with chronic complex conditions. In addition to running the program, she led the design and implementation of the NICU-based initiative for babies born with medical complexities, Little Victors League. Throughout her career, she managed numerous programs, grants, and contracts with a focus on healthcare research, international development, higher education, and social enterprises.

Natalia’s focus is on initiatives that yield high positive impact on people’s lives, especially during their most trying and vulnerable times. She brings a patient-centered mindset, creativity, strong communication, and an emphasis on collaboration to MOQC. In addition to her regional project manager responsibilities with Metro East and Central Michigan Group, she leads the Palliative Care and End-of-Life Task Force and serves as the Chair of the MOQC Culture Committee. Natalia manages the Oncology Stewardship initiative and the work related to financial navigation with POQC.

Natalia loves learning from her team members; all MOQC-ites have unique skillsets, backgrounds, ideas, and stories to tell. In her spare time, Natalia enjoys spending time with her family, traveling the world, hiking, cooking, reading, and learning by experiencing new things.

Deborah (pronouns: she/her) worked as a Data Abstractor for Michigan Bariatric Surgery Collaborative (MBSC) for over 15 years. She also worked in volunteer management at the Detroit Medical Center (DMC), United Way of Southeastern Michigan and Boy Scouts of America.

She joined MOQC because she wanted to continue to do her part to improve patient outcomes and quality of care. Her career goals have always centered around working to improve the lives of others. One take away from her years at the Boy Scouts of America was to leave a place better than she found it, and it is her hope that her contributions at MOQC will make oncology care better for all. Deborah is a member of MOQC’s Centering Equity Committee and is one of the co-Equity Champions for MOQC. The support she has received from all of her team members has been amazing and her favorite part of working for MOQC!

During non-MOQC time, Deborah enjoy spending time with family and friends, travelling, gardening, and fishing.

Eric started his career as an IT Auditor, working with companies in different industries to create secure and reliable information. After 3 years in that field, he returned to school at Michigan State University to pursue a master’s degree in Data Science and Analytics. Since completing that degree, he has been working as a Data Engineer with a focus on enabling access to and understanding of data.

Through his family’s experiences with cancer, Eric has seen how difficult the treatment process can be for patients and families. He is excited to contribute to improving the quality of care and the experience for those being affected by cancer. Additionally, he’s excited to work with a team of compassionate people to learn as much as he can.

Eric loves hiking, camping, or spending time outside however he can. He is a fan of trying and failing to learn musical instruments and also enjoys reading while his cat, Frankie, bites his book.

Shayna (pronouns: she/her) joined MOQC in 2019. Prior to coming to MOQC, she was a research coordinator in infectious diseases where she studied drug-resistant organisms and C. diff. She has always had an interest in healthcare, which led her to get a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology.

She is excited to be part of MOQC because it is a team that works to make a positive difference in the lives of patients and providers. Cancer has touched nearly everyone in some way, and she loves being able to help make a difference. Shayna leads the MOQC Excellence in Quality Certification initiative as well as the patient-reported outcomes Initiative, and she is part of MOQC’s Centering Equity Committee. Her favorite part of working for MOQC is collaborating with the team and feeling like they’re working toward positive change.

In off-MOQC hours, Shayna loves spending time with her family, baking, traveling, reading, and trying new restaurants.

Shawn (pronouns: she/her) worked in breast imaging for over 16 years in Toledo, OH. During that time, she performed breast imaging procedures such as mammography, breast ultrasound, and various types of breast biopsies. She also has a background in computed tomography (CT).

With her background in breast imaging and helping in the diagnosing of breast cancer, joining MOQC allowed her to continue to pursue her passion of improving care and treatment outcomes for cancer patients. Shawn is a member of MOQC’s Marketing and Website Committee where she is able to collaborate creatively to enhance the digital presence of MOQC. She looks forward to driving growth and building connections within the MOQC community. When it comes to what she loves most about MOQC, it’s hard for her to choose! Overall though, she loves the collaboration with other team members and practices as they work toward a common goal of improving healthcare related outcomes for patients and caregivers.

In her off-MOQC hours, Shawn loves reading, going for walks, exploring northern Michigan, and spending time with family at our lake cottage.