Families Fighting Flu

Jon S. Abramson, M.D.

Dr. Jon S. Abramson received his undergraduate training at Boston University and his medical degree from Wake Forest University School of Medicine (WFUSM), where he also completed a residency in pediatrics. He completed his fellowship in pediatric infectious diseases at the University of Minnesota.

In 1981, Dr Abramson joined the faculty at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and then in 1996 became the Weston M. Kelsey Professor and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at WFUSM as well as the Physician-in-chief of Brenner Children’s Hospital in 1996. Since 2002 he has also served as the elected Chair of the Wake Forest University Physicians, the group responsible for oversight of the clinical practice organization. Currently, Dr. Abramson serves as member of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Task Force on Immunizations, the AAP Committee on Federal Government Affairs and is Chair of the AAP Task Force on Pediatric Devices. He is a member of the Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs (AMSPDC) Executive Board and a member of the National Vaccine Advisory Group Finance Committee. Additionally, he serves as a consultant to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on issues related to influenza seasonal and pandemic planning.

Matthew J. Cory, M.D.

Dr. Matthew Cory received his undergraduate training from the University of South Florida and his medical degree from the University of South Florida College of Medicine. He completed his internship and residency training in general pediatrics at the Medical College of Virginia.

Dr. Cory is pediatrician and medical director at Lakeside Pediatrics in Lakeland, FL. He received Board Certification by the American Board of Pediatrics, and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Cory maintains active medical staff status at the Lakeland Regional Medical Center, and has served as chairperson of the Department of Pediatrics and as a Board member and chairperson of the hospital Board of Directors. He has previously served as a medical examiner for the Child Protection Team. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Central Florida Physicians Alliance, and has served previously as President and Treasurer of that organization.

Dr. Cory has been a medical advisor for Families Fighting Flu since October 2011.

Andrew C. Eisenberg, M.D.

Dr. Andrew C. Eisenberg is a practicing physician in Sarasota, Florida. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Brown University as well as medical and master of health care administration degrees from Tulane University. Dr. Eisenberg is an associate professor at Texas A&M School of Rural Public Health and is a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians.

Dr. Eisenberg has been a medical advisor for Families Fighting Flu since October 2007.

Scott Gorenstein, M.D., FACEP

Dr. Scott Gorenstein received his undergraduate training from Washington University and his medical degree from New York Medical College. He completed his residency in Emergency Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York.

Dr. Gorenstein is the clinical director of the hyperbaric unit at Winthrop University Hospital in Mineola, New York. He is a board certified Emergency Medicine Physician with additional board certification in Undersea and Hyperbaric Medicine. He has been involved in the field of Hyperbaric Medicine and wound care since his completion of residency in 2000. Dr. Gorenstein has a particular interest in the use of hyperbaric oxygen in patients with side effects from radiation.

Click here to read about Dr. Gorenstein’s young son who survived a serious case of H1N1 influenza in 2009.

Dr. Gorenstein has been a medical advisor for Families Fighting Flu since April 2010.

Susan A. Fisher-Owens, M.D., MPH

Dr. Susan Fisher-Owens received her undergraduate training from Dartmouth College, her masters of public health from Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene & Public Health and her medical degree from George Washington University School of Medicine. She completed her residency in pediatrics (primary care) at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC.

Dr. Fisher-Owens is the Health Sciences Assistant Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco and a general pediatrician, working for and teaching medical students and residents to serve children from birth (in the nursery) to graduation, through well and sick visits. At San Francisco General Hospital, her focus is on providing quality primary care services to children at risk, including improving immunization uptake and oral health. At the General, she co-leads the immunization practices and also ties her research and clinical interests together by running a clinic-wide intervention to train practitioners to provide fluoride varnish for their patients at-risk for or with dental caries.

Dr. Fisher-Owens has been a medical advisor for Families Fighting Flu since May 2011.

Adrienne Randolph, M.D., M.Sc.

Dr. Adrienne G. Randolph received her medical degree from Stanford University School of Medicine and a Master in Science (M.Sc.) in medical informatics from the University of Utah. She completed an internship at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and pediatric residency and pediatric critical care fellowship at the University of California School of Medicine in San Francisco.

Dr Randolph is the Founding Chair of the Pediatric Acute Lung Injury and Sepsis Investigator’s (PALISI) Network, a consortium of clinical researchers across 75 pediatric ICUs in the US and Canada. She is also the Director of the RSV and Asthma Research Study Center at Children’s Hospital Boston.

Dr. Randolph’s main area of research is on the immune response of children with life threatening infections caused by influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, and Staphylococcus aureus. She focuses on genetic factors that underlie disease susceptibility and outcome, including short and longer term outcomes. She is an international expert in the diagnosis and management of acute lung injury and sepsis in children, and designs and conducts clinical trials of interventions to improve outcomes of children with acute respiratory failure.

Click here to read an article written by Dr. Randolph talking about if children should receive the H1N1 vaccine.

Dr. Randolph has been a medical advisor for Families Fighting Flu since October 2009.

Dawn Tomac, BSN, RN, CIC

Dawn Tomac received her undergraduate degree with a major in nursing from South Dakota State University.

Dawn is the Director of Quality and Safety Initiatives at Avera Health in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. At Avera Health she provides resources and assistance for Infection Prevention for the hospital system and develops and assists with patient safety initiatives. Dawn also coordinates disaster preparedness for the hospital system, completes on site review of Infection Prevention programs, provides resources and assistance to safety officers, provides education for facilities, and is part of the Joint Commission Accreditation Coordination for the system.

Dawn is a member of a number of professional organizations, including the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiologists of America. She’s frequently called on to make presentations to the healthcare community about prevention of infectious diseases.

Dawn has been a medical advisor for Families Fighting Flu since October 2011.