Our Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Community Healthcare Clinics rely on a deeply committed Board of Directors and Executive Team, as well as an experienced and highly talented team of medical professionals, physicians, clinicians, practitioners, social workers, case managers, and administrators who work day in and day out to improve health outcomes in our communities.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
Frank Quiles, Chair
John Ruiz, Vice Chair
Yancy Rincon, MBA, Treasurer
Joseph Ayala
Alma Candelas
Stanley Cox
Luz Santos
EXECUTIVE TEAM:
David C. Collymore, MD, Chief Medical Officer
Dr. David C. Collymore is the Chief Medical Officer of La Casa de Salud (LCDS) and Acacia Network, a premier nonprofit organization that offers primary and specialty healthcare services, substance use and mental health services, housing, day care, and economic development to communities throughout New York City. He is a native New Yorker, born in the South Bronx and raised in Jamaica, Queens. Dr. Collymore is a proud alumnus of Howard University and a product of Howard’s B.S. – M.D. Accelerated Medical Program.
He was awarded a National Health Service Corps Scholarship and a W.K. Kellogg Community Medicine Fellowship while in medical school, and in May of 2000, at the age of 23, Dr. Collymore earned his medical degree. Dr. Collymore also earned a Masters Degree in Business Administration with a Focus in Health Care from George Washington University.
Dr. Collymore has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors including commendations from the New York State Senate and the Comptroller of New York City, serving as the keynote speaker for the National Health Services Corp, being named one of America’s Top Pediatricians, and being named as a Top 40 Under Forty Achiever by The Network Journal. He is also a member of the Clinical Committee of the Community Health Care Association of New York State, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Clinical Affairs Committee of the Affinity Health Plan.
Lauren Mendenhall, Executive Director
Lauren Mendenhall is an experienced and dynamic healthcare professional with over 16 years of experience in the healthcare industry. She presently serves as La Casa de Salud’s Executive Director, responsible for overseeing all programmatic and operational aspects of LCDS.
Prior to this role, she served as Acacia Network’s Vice President of Primary Care and Quality Improvement, responsible for leading and managing the overall operations and staff of our Federally Qualified Health Care (FQHC) clinics, in addition to establishing and overseeing Acacia’s quality improvement and informatics infrastructure and leading the Network’s efforts to transform its framework in order to thrive in a value-based care environment.
Prior to her role at Acacia Network, Lauren worked at Ryan Health for 13 years, a FQHC in NYC where she rose through the ranks to ultimately lead the agency’s QI Program. There she built a data-driven QI culture, led DSRIP and managed care efforts to maximize reimbursement, and developed sustainable, system level changes to improve patient outcomes and reduce costs. She also has nearly a decade of extensive experience in strategy, planning and development and project management. Lauren earned her BA from the University of California Santa Barbara, and attended New York University for Project Management and Not-For-Profit Business and Management.