Scientific Leadership Council Chair

Professor of Medicine
Director, University of Colorado Health, Pulmonary Vascular Disease Clinic

Bull is a professor of medicine, pulmonary sciences and critical care at University of Colorado in Aurora, where he is director of the comprehensive lung and breathing program and the Pulmonary Vascular Disease Center. He received his medical degree from the University of Colorado-Denver School of Medicine and completed his residency at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School. He completed a fellowship in pulmonary disease and critical care at the University of Colorado University Hospital. Bull divides his time between patient care, the catheterization laboratory, the medical intensive care unit and his laboratory research. His research focuses on developing better ways to diagnose and treat patients with pulmonary hypertension. He is involved with pulmonary arterial hypertension and pulmonary embolism clinical trials.

Accreditation and Registry Committee chair Director

Pulmonary Vascular Center
Mayo Clinic Florida

Charles Burger has been a member of the Mayo Clinic staff since 1991. He is past chair of the Department of Critical Care Medicine and Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Sleep Medicine. His specialty areas include pulmonary vascular disease, liver-lung disease and rare cystic lung disease.

Burger founded and served as medical lead for Mayo Clinic’s pulmonary vascular and lymphangioleiomyomatosis centers of excellence. The pulmonary vascular center is a Pulmonary Hypertension Association-accredited PH Care Center.

Burger has been recognized as Distinguished Mayo Clinician 2014; Distinguished Mayo Clinic Educator 2019; and Mayo Brothers Clinical Excellence 2022. The pulmonary hypertension center received the Department of Medicine’s Team Innovation Award 2024.

Burger has published 130 peer-reviewed manuscripts. He is former editor-in-chief of Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension, PHA’s quarterly peer-reviewed journal. He received his medical degree from

Wake Forest University School of Medicine and completed his internal medicine residency at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and a pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine fellowship at Mayo Clinic.

PH patient

Los Angeles

Allison Dsouza was diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension in 2015. At the time, her pressures were the highest her PH Care Center had seen at the time, and she was started on triple therapy, including subcutaneous medication. Since then, she has transitioned to a combination of inhaled and oral therapies. After repeat genetic testing, it was found that she has a gene associated with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasias and PAH.

Dsouza’s experience as a patient inspired her to pursue nursing. She graduated summa cum laude from UCLA with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2020. She worked on the adult lung transplant and advanced lung disease floor at UPMC Presbyterian and the pediatric cardiac ICU at UPMC Children’s Hospital. She now works in the pediatric cardiac ICU at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, where she works directly with the team that provided her care after her diagnosis.

Dsouza’s involvement with PHA began with the O2breathe fundraising walks, support groups and conferences. She is a moderator for the Generation Hope Facebook group and a PHA peer mentor.

SLC chair-elect

Medical director, PH Program
George Washington University
Washington, D.C.

Mardi Gomberg-Maitland is a professor of medicine at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and medical director of the PH program. She is an expert clinician and researcher in pulmonary heart disease and has participated in dozens of multicenter, multinational research trials to explore new therapies for PH. Her research focuses on understanding the epidemiology of PH and development of new therapeutics and biomarkers. As chair-elect of the Scientific Leadership Council, Gomberg-Maitland will provide medical and scientific guidance and support to PHA.

PH Patient

Dallas

Debra Hines-Bruce was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension in 2015. In 2016, I attended my first PHA International PH Conference and Scientific Sessions. The life-changing experience offered education, empowerment and a strong sense of community. Since then, she has become deeply committed to advocacy and support within the PH community.

Hines-Bruce leads PHA’s Dallas Support Group with her husband Gary, who also lives with PH. Together, they strive to create a welcoming, informative and encouraging space for individuals and families navigating this journey. Hines-Bruce also serves on PHA’s Support Group Leadership Advisory Board, where she collaborates with others to enhance the reach and effectiveness of support services for patients nationwide.

“We have a beautiful blended family that includes three daughters, one son, six wonderful grandchildren and one precious great-granddaughter,” Hines-Bruce says. “Our family is a constant source of joy, strength, and support, and we are grateful for the love and connection we share across generations.”

Living with PH has its challenges, but it has also given me purpose and a platform to uplift others on a similar path.

PHPN chair-elect

Pediatric PH coordinator
Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health
Indianapolis

Tisha Kivett is the pediatric PH coordinator at Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health. Kivett has been an active member of the PH Professional Network since 2016, most recently serving as chair of the 2023 PHPN Symposium Planning Committee. She also leads the Indianapolis Pediatric PH Support Group. As chair-elect of PHPN, Kivett will help PHA advocate for the PH community and improve quality patient care through education, networking and mentoring for patients and health care providers.

Parent of child with double lung transplant, support group leader

Clinical director, ENT Allergy Otolaryngology Associates
Fairfax, Virginia

Michelle Liu, MD, MPH, is a fellow of the American Association of Otolaryngic Allergy and currently serves as faculty. After a 21-year career in the Navy, she works as a private practice otolaryngologist in Fairfax, Virginia.
Liu and her husband Moses are the proud parents of three children: Ezra, Esther and Ezekiel. Esther Grace had a cardiac arrest at age 2. She was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension due to a spontaneous BMPR2 mutation. Two years later, she had a double lung transplant at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Together, Liu and Esther have traveled to national and international pediatric cardiology meetings to share their transplant experience.

Michelle has enjoyed being a support group leader for the pediatric pulmonary hypertension families in northern Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Maryland for the past 10 years. She loves representing PH families on the PHA Board of Trustees, having served since 2022.

Liu earned her medical degree at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, and a Master of Public Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

PHPN chair

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center

Magness has been a nurse at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital for her entire career as a nurse, joining the pediatric pulmonary hypertension team in 2015. Previously, most of her career was in critical care, specifically cardiac care. Magness is passionate about helping her patients achieve their highest potential through treatment. Her national involvement to improve the care of patients includes Pulmonary Hypertension Association and the Pediatric Pulmonary Hypertension Network. In addition, Magness is a medical co-director for Camp Joyful Hearts, a weeklong residential camp for children with heart defects, PH and heart transplants. Magness obtained her acute care PNP degree in 2012.

Parent of a child with PH

Mitzi McIver Barge is a retired certified medical assistant in adult cardiology. When her daughter was diagnosed in 2007, PHA became an invaluable resource to her family. Since then, McIver-LaBarge has been active in fundraising, support groups and helping parents at PHA conferences.

McIver-LaBarge’s experience with her daughter’s PH inspired her to help other parents navigate their PH journeys. She volunteers as a PHA peer mentor and manages the PHA Facebook group for parents of children with PH. “It’s important for parents to know they are not alone. I, along with others, are here to help.”

Public affairs and communications strategist

Arc Initiatives
Washington, D.C.

Mike was diagnosed with PH in 2016, but also lives with interstitial lung disease, sleep apnea, scoliosis and a stutter. Mike has been a strong advocate for himself and the broader PH community for close to a decade.

Through PHA, Mike has written multiple articles for Pathlight, participated in an advocacy training webinar and sat for a video interview at Conference to discuss advocacy and storytelling. Mike writes a semi-regular column for BioNews’ Pulmonary Hypertension News where he covers topics related to chronic illness, queer and disabled identities, advocacy and, of course, PH.

Mike still works full-time as a public affairs and communications strategist at Arc Initiatives. He has extensive experience helping federal and state-level elected representatives, public interest and advocacy organizations, and government officials craft their messages, develop narratives and enact public policy. Before joining Arc Initiatives, Mike served in the Obama administration as a communications director at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. There, he supervised public affairs strategies related to mental health, refugee services and healthcare for Native Americans and Alaska Natives.

He began his career in California state government as a gubernatorial press aide and spokesperson. Mike holds a master’s degree in media and public affairs from The George Washington University and dual bachelor’s degrees in cinema-television and international relations from the University of Southern California.

Mike currently lives in Washington, D.C., with his partner TJ.

Parent of child with PH, PH patient

Director, Assurance Services
Germantown, Wisconsin

Petry, her husband Mike and their two children, Collin and Taryn, live in Germantown, Wisconsin. In 2009, Taryn, then 5, was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension. Four years later, Petry was diagnosed with PH at age 44. She is involved in the PH community, participating in local support groups and attending the PHA fundraising walks.

Taryn has been on IV therapy for the past eight years and continues to practice Irish dancing despite her diagnosis. Petry continues to work full-time, thanks to a supportive employer and flexible work arrangement.

Petry is a technical director for CLA, a professional services firm, specializing in nonprofit audit and attest services. As part of the national assurance technical team, she assists teams with research into complex accounting and auditing questions and risk assessment of audit clients. She also conducts quality control reviews before issuance for nonprofit engagements. Petry has a BBA in accounting from Western Michigan University and has worked in public accounting since graduating and earning her CPA license.

Patient, PH advocate, support group leader

Lexington, North Carolina

Diane Ramirez was diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in 1987. After being diagnosed for a few years, her younger brother and sister were diagnosed with the same illness. Diane’s primary motivation to help the Pulmonary Hypertension Association with its mission comes from losing family members to PAH. She wants to help as many patients as possible.

Diane has been involved with advocacy and awareness since 2006. She has met with most of North Carolina’s delegation within the state and in Washington, D.C.

Diane has also served on the Board of Trustees for 10 years, the oversight committee for the Pulmonary Hypertension Care Centers and helped with the formation of the PHA Registry. She is a support group leader and serves on the support group leader advisory board.

Support group leader, patient, advocate, retired architect

Lexington, South Carolina

Like most patients, Doug Taylor’s journey with pulmonary hypertension began a few years before he was actually diagnosed. By early 2003 it was obvious that the problem was more serious than the asthma diagnosed by his primary care physician.

May 2003, Doug volunteered for an EKG to help out medical students and the results led his primary care physician to revise the diagnosis to suspected pulmonary arterial hypertension. The battery of tests that followed, including a right heart catheterization, confirmed idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension. He was told that he probably had less than 3 years to live.

Now a long-term survivor, Doug has been active with the Pulmonary Hypertension Association since 2007 when he took over as leader of the South Carolina PH support group, the Midlands SC Palmetto PHriends.

Doug sits on several of PHA’s Advisory Boards including the: Newly Diagnosed Advisory Board; Advocacy Advisory Board; PHA PHriends Advisory Board; and, Men Living with PH Advisory Board

He has been active with PHA’s International Conference and Scientific Sessions first as a panelist in 2008, then on the Conference Planning Committee (2010, 2012, 2014, 2016). Doug currently serves as Co-Chair of the Conference Committee for 2018, and has a seat on the Governance Committee.

According to Doug, the best thing about pulmonary hypertension is the people you meet along the way – other patients, caregivers, healthcare providers, PHA staff, and pharmaceutical reps. They all come together to make our community the special environment that it is.

He encourages himself and other PH patients with two messages:
Never give up HOPE, and
Celebrate each day!

Parent of child with PH

Cincinnati

Kelly Wiegele moderates two Pulmonary Hypertension Association social media support groups. She helps other families develop support systems to get through their PH journeys and find the best care possible.

Wiegele’s daughter Riley was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension at age 4. Her PAH later was found to be related to hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia. Riley has been on several treatments, including subcutaneous, IV and oral medications.

As a family, the Wiegeles strive to provide as much support to other families going through the PH journey, mostly through social media. The PH team at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital often refers the Wiegeles to other families looking for support. Additionally, Riley has raised money to buy dry suits for other children with PH, as well to buy toys and gift cards for the Cardiology Child Life Department at Cincinnati Children’s.

In her current role as a private contractor for Lockheed Martin, Wiegele works with $50 million-plus contracts. She previously worked in procurement at Lockheed Martin for 13 years. She has a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice and a Bachelor of Science in corrections from Eastern Kentucky University.

Attending cardiologist at Seattle Children’s Hospital

Professor of pediatrics of the University of Washington School of Medicine

Delphine Yung is attending cardiologist at Seattle Children’s Hospital and professor of pediatrics of the University of Washington School of Medicine. She cares for children in the Seattle Children’s Heart Center and has been involved in PHA for many years. Yung has served on the Scientific Leadership Council, the PHA Registry Publications and Presentations Committee, the Nominations and Governance Committee and the Education and Support Implementation Committee.

Yung received her MD from Stanford University. She completed an internship and junior residency in pediatrics at Children’s Hospital Boston, a senior residency in pediatrics at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford and a pediatric cardiology fellowship at Children’s Hospital of New York, Columbia University.

Immediate past chair

Department of Medicine, Intermountain Medical Center
Chair, Graduate Medical Education Committee, Intermountain Healthcare
Professor of medicine, University of Utah School of Medicine
Murray, Utah

Greg Elliott, MD is Professor of Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at Intermountain Medical Center. Dr. Elliott is a graduate of Brown University, and he earned his MD at the University of Maryland. Dr. Elliott completed his residency and Chief Residency in Medicine at the University of Maryland Hospital followed by pulmonary and critical care fellowship training at the University of Utah Affiliated Hospitals.

During his fellowship Dr. Elliott began to focus his research efforts on understanding and treating pulmonary hypertension. He was invited to serve as a principal investigator for the first registry of patients diagnosed with primary pulmonary hypertension, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (1983-1987). Dr. Elliott established the first Pulmonary Hypertension Center in the Intermountain West to provide advanced care for patients with pulmonary hypertension and to advance understanding of pulmonary hypertension. Dr. Elliott’s center was among the first in the United States to treat pulmonary hypertension with Flolan and to care for patients after heart and lung transplantation or pulmonary thromboendarterectomy. Dr. Elliott’s center also was a major contributor to the REVEAL registry (2006-2009); and to the discovery of gene mutations which cause heritable forms of pulmonary hypertension.

Dr. Elliott has served the Pulmonary Hypertension Association (PHA) since 1994 when he organized the collection of DNA samples in a “research room” at the first national meeting of the PHA. He subsequently served as chair of the PHA’s Scientific Leadership Council. In this role he organized the first Scientific Program to be held at a PHA international meeting. He also served on the PHA Board of Trustees where he advocated for earlier diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension in an era of effective treatments. Dr. Elliott attended every national/international meeting of the Pulmonary Hypertension Association; and, most recently, he chaired the Research Portfolio Working Group whose charge was to outline future research portfolio options for the PHA Board of Trustees.

Professor of medicine (emeritus), Mayo Clinic
Rochester, Minnesota

Dr. Mike McGoon is a retired consultant in the Division of Cardiovascular Diseases and Professor Emeritus of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic. He did medical school and residency at Johns Hopkins and has been on staff at Mayo since 1983. He has cared for patients with PH since 1982 and started Mayo’s PH Clinic in 1996.

Dr. McGoon has a long history with the Pulmonary Hypertension Association. He served as Chair of the Scientific Leadership Council from 2002-2004, Chair of the Board of Trustees from 2006-2008, and Chair of the PHCC Oversight Committee from 2013-2016. Dr. McGoon has seats on both the Development and Strategic Planning Committees.

He lives in Rochester, MN with his wife Bonnie. His three daughters live in Phoenix (plus 2 grandchildren), Minneapolis (plus 3 grandchildren) and Eugene, OR and his son lives in Rochester.

Professor emeritus, College of Education at Northern Illinois University
Holiday Island, Arkansas

Ed Simpson has been a part of PHA since its inception. He is a co-founder of the United Patients Association for Pulmonary Hypertension (later to become the Pulmonary Hypertension Association).
Ed was co-chair and the designer/planner of the first two International PH Conferences in 1994 and 1996, both held in Stone Mountain, Georgia. Ed also was the grant writer and chair of the first Pulmonary Hypertension Association Leadership Conference held in Chicago, Illinois in June 1997. He served as vice president of PHA from 1996 to 1997 and as president in 1999. Ed has also served on the Board of Directors for the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) in Fairfield, Connecticut, from 1994 to 1999.

Ed taught in public schools for 10 years before joining the teaching faculty at Northern Illinois University. He is now professor emeritus.

Pediatric nursing instructor (retired)
PHA co-founder
Holiday Island, Arkansas

Judy Simpson is the founding President of United Patients Association for Pulmonary Hypertension (later to become the Pulmonary Hypertension Association) and along with her husband Ed, has been a part of PHA from the beginning. Judy was one of the original “kitchen table” founders of PHA with her sister and fellow emeritus Board member, Pat Paton who has had PH since 1987.

Judy was a Treatment Investigation New Drug Advisory Committee member for Burroughs Wellcome Company as patient advocate and testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the need for research for rare disorders. She was a member of the National Institutes of Health, Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Advisory Council as a patient advocate from 1996-2000. She represented PHA serving as a founding member and Chair of the American Thoracic Society Public Advisory Roundtable. Judy relates that, “PHA has set a new paradigm in the way a patient organization collaborates with physicians, researchers, pharmaceuticals, home health agencies, government, and medical societies, making us a model many support groups now are following.”

Judy lives in Holiday Island, Arkansas, with her husband Ed. Judy was a nurse for 53 years and taught pediatric nursing at Kishwaukee Community College in Malta, Illinois; she is now retired.