The CARESTAR Foundation Board of Directors Appoints Three New Members
Berkeley, California – CARESTAR announced the appointment of three leaders in the California healthcare field to its board of directors. At its meeting on October 29, 2020, CARESTAR’s Board elected Sarah de Guia, chief executive officer of ChangeLab Solutions, Dr. Michael Rodriguez, professor and vice-chair in the Department of Family Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, and Jane Smith, EMS Commissioner and former chief executive officer of the San Francisco Paramedic Association.
“We are so pleased to welcome three experienced leaders to our board of directors,” said Tanir Ami, chief executive officer of the CARESTAR Foundation. “For us to truly achieve a more equitable, unified, and compassionate emergency response system in California, we will need diverse perspectives, deep expertise, and a group with shared values guiding our work now and into the future.”
“For us to truly achieve a more equitable, unified, and compassionate emergency response system in California, we will need diverse perspectives, deep expertise, and a group with shared values guiding our work now and into the future. Sarah, Michael, and Jane are not just leaders in their fields, but they have a true understanding of the importance of placing systemic inequities at the center of what we do.”
Sarah de Guia is the chief executive officer of ChangeLab Solutions, a national organization that advances equitable laws and policies to achieve better health for all. As CEO, Sarah oversees development and implementation of ChangeLab Solutions’ long-term goals, priorities, strategies, and budget. Before joining ChangeLab, Sarah served as executive director of the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network (CPEHN) working on expanding access to quality, affordable health care services for communities of color. Sarah’s accomplishments include the passage of more than a dozen legislative bills and administrative policies to further health equity and improve the quality of health care for immigrants, patients with limited English proficiency, and communities of color. Sarah currently chairs the advisory committee for the Office of Health Equity at the California Department of Public Health.
Dr. Michael Rodríguez is professor and vice-chair in the Department of Family Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, founding director of the UCLA Blum Center on Poverty and Health in Latin America, founding chair of the UCLA Global Health Minor, co-director of the UCLA Firearm Violence Prevention Center, and founding director of the Health Equity Network of the Americas, an international network with representatives from 26 countries. Dr. Rodríguez is published widely in the areas of research that include ethnic/racial and immigrant health equity, gun and domestic violence prevention, and primary care for immigrant populations. He received his bachelor of science in nutrition at the University of California, Berkeley; his medical degree from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA; his residency from UCSF’s Family Medicine Residency Program; and his Master of Public Health degree at the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health. Dr. Rodríguez was a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar at Stanford University and a professor of family medicine at UCSF.
Jane Smith is an expert in emergency medical services (EMS) with over 37 years of experience, working in all ranks including field paramedic at Allied Ambulance in Oakland; dispatch captain with San Francisco (SF) Department of Public Health Paramedic Division; and as SF Fire Department EMS Chief where her responsibilities included QI/QA, education and training, strategic planning, and budget management. She is a California paramedic; current EMS Authority Commissioner representing the California Rescue Paramedic Association (CRPA); Director with the California Paramedic Foundation (CAPF); and former chief executive officer of the SF Paramedic Association (SFPA). She has been a pod advisor for the Center for the Health Professions at UCSF; a faculty member for the American Heart Association; and a guest speaker for local and national conferences. Additionally, Jane has taught for 10 years as a tenured teacher with her regional community college. She has memberships with many professional associations and received awards for outstanding community service. Jane has an undergraduate degree in biology with a minor in chemistry from the University of San Francisco and a master’s degree in education from San Francisco State University.
About the CARESTAR Foundation
The CARESTAR Foundation was founded in 2017 as a result of the sale of CALSTAR (California Shock Trauma Air Rescue), an air ambulance company, and honors CALSTAR’S legacy and lifesaving work in the field of emergency and trauma transport and care. CARESTAR’s mission is to improve health outcomes for all Californians, by applying a racial equity lens to fund and advocate for improvements to our emergency response system. www.carestarfoundation.org.