Staff

J. Lauri Scharf
Director of Technology Services
Lauri joined VITL in August 2007, after serving as vice president of information services at the Vermont Association for Hospitals and Health Systems in Montpelier. At VAHHS, he managed data collection and electronic information dissemination, including the hospital discharge data set, hospital quality data, and several web-based tools. Lauri has also held positions as a data analyst for the Vermont Department of Health, and a research analyst for the Center for Survey Research at the University of Massachusetts in Boston. He earned a master of science degree from Tufts University, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Vermont.

Regi Wahl
Project Manager, Senior Consultant
Regi has over 20 years of technical project management experience in information technology, software development, and engineering consulting.  Prior to joining VITL in April 2010, she was with Fletcher Allen Health Care for almost 10 years where she served as an applications analyst, management engineer, and senior project manager.  Regi is certified by the Project Management Institute as a project management professional (PMP).  She earned her BS and MS in industrial engineering and management from Oklahoma State University.

Jennifer Moran
Solutions Engineer
Jennifer joined VITL in August 2010, after working for six years at Epic in Wisconsin as a technical services representative and a reporting support engineer. At Epic, she managed reporting initiatives for laboratory, radiology, cardiology, and surgery applications. She also served as team leader of the laboratory technical services area. Her work involved assisting clients with server upgrades, development requests, and troubleshooting, as well as being the primary contact for several state public health labs. Jennifer received her M.S. in Biology from the University of Notre Dame and her undergraduate degree from Ithaca College.

Kenan Nurkanovic
Project Manager
Kenan joined VITL in June 2011 after serving as the chief technology officer at the Thomas Chittenden Health Center in Williston, Vt. for four years. Kenan was responsible for implementing and supporting the physician practice’s electronic health records and practice management systems. He also designed and implemented interfaces and maintained network equipment. Previously he worked for Comcast Corporation as a project and design coordinator. Kenan trained as an electronics technician at Elektro Tehnicka Skola Doboj in Bosnia. 

Jody Laferriere
Project Manager
Jody joined VITL in June 2011, after working as an EHR implementation specialist at the Northestern Medical Center in St. Albans, Vt. In that position, she was the primary leader for data conversion. Prior to that, Jody was the implementation project manager for Mousetrap Pediatrics in St. Albans. During that engagement, Jody coordinated project plans, timelines, and resource management related to the implementation of the practice’s EHR. Jody earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Vermont.

Kristina Choquette

Project Manager

Kristina joined VITL in January 2012, having previously worked for eight years at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH. Kristina’s most recent position at DHMC was the manager of ambulatory clinical systems and she served as a leader in the implementation of the hospital’s electronic health records system.  Prior to her employment at DHMC, Kristina worked for Verizon Communications as a project manager. Kristina earned both her BA and MBA degrees from Dowling College in Oakdale, NY. 

 

Susan Zimmerman
Project Manager

Susan joined VITL in January 2012, after a long career with IBM's Microelectronics Division in Essex Junction, Vt. In her most recent position at IBM, Susan was the release manager and lead project manager in fulfillment and logistics systems. She has also been an SAP project manager and system configurator, as well as a business analyst. Susan is a certified project management professional (PMP) and is president of the Project Management Institute's Champlain Valley Chapter. Susan earned her BS degree from the University of Vermont.

 

Priscilla Phelps
Implementation Specialist
Priscilla joined VITL in April, 2010 after being the practice manager at Bennington Family Practice in Bennington, VT for five years. Priscilla has over 15 years of health care administration experience in both the private and federal sectors.  This experience is complemented by a successful EHR implementation, including practice management software, end user hardware and server selections; software training and coordination responsibilities, and facilitation coaching in Dartmouth College Clinical Microsystems methodology for process improvement. In addition, she worked for a number of years as a financial controller for companies in Vermont and Alaska. Priscilla earned her BS in management from Castleton State College and began MBA studies at the University of Alaska, Anchorage.

Donna Ransmeier
Implementation Specialist
Donna comes to VITL from Northern Counties Health Care, where she previously worked for more than seven years as a behavioral health provider and chronic care coordinator. While at Northern Counties, Donna gained extensive experience as an EHR end user, assisted in implementation of the Vermont Blueprint for Health/Medical Home model, and was an integral part of the team that helped several clinics receive Level 3 NCQA recognition in 2010. Donna has a BA in environmental studies from Lyndon State College, a BS in community counseling psych from Springfield College in Springfield, Mass., and a MS in clinical counseling psych from Springfield College.

Betsey Walton
Implementation Specialist
Betsey joined VITL after working as the practice manager at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center Primary Care, and the office manager at Bennington Associates in Internal Medicine. At the latter organization, Betsey implemented computerized billing and scheduling, and was responsible for the computer network. Betsey has a BS in business administration from the Boston University School of Management.

Jennifer Morgan
Implementation Specialist
Jennifer joined VITL in May 2011 after serving for four years as the office manager for an ob-gyn practice in Burlington, Vt. In addition to being responsible for running a busy medical office with 10-15 staff members, she organized and managed the practice’s transition from paper to electronic medical records. Previously, Jennifer worked for Fletcher Allen Health Care as a lead clinical office assistant. Jennifer is a graduate of Champlain College in Burlington with a degree in public relations and media communications.

Norma J. Lang
Project Coordinator
Norma graduated from St. Michael’s College in 2004 with a degree in management and leadership. Her work experience includes office management for health care related nonprofits/grants and analyst work in hospital quality management.

Michelle LaJoice
Outreach Specialist
Michelle previously worked as the business development manager at Phase Forward Incorporated, where she developed and managed all aspects of sales cycle and account management for early phase clinical automation software. She has also worked as an independent consultant in sales management and as a community relations manager. She earned her BS in business administration from Champlain College.

Emily Goyette
Office Manager
Emily has 25 years of experience in accounting and business management, most recently serving as the payroll manager for the Montpelier School District. She has also worked as an accountant at Stone Environmental in Montpelier and as a bookkeeper at The Artisan’s Hand in Montpelier. Emily is a graduate of Middlebury College, and received education in accounting at Community College of Vermont.

Heidi Banks
Executive Assistant
Prior to joining VITL, Heidi worked as an office assistant for the Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems. Her other work experience includes office management in corporate and academic settings in Massachusetts. Heidi received her BS in psychology from Atlantic Union College, South Lancaster, Mass.