Team
Arnold Milstein, MD, MPH
Dr. Milstein is a Professor of Medicine at Stanford and directs the Stanford Clinical Excellence Research Center. The Center is a collaboration of the Schools of Medicine, Engineering and Business to design and test new health care delivery models that both lower per capita health care spending and improve clinical outcomes.
His career and ongoing research is focused on acceleration of clinical service innovations that improve the societal value of health care.
He serves as the Medical Director of the Pacific Business Group on Health (PBGH), the largest regional health care improvement coalition in the U.S. He also guides employer-sponsored clinically-based innovation development for Mercer Health and Benefits and chairs the Steering Committee that directs the largest U.S. physician pay-for-performance program, operated by the Integrated Healthcare Association. Previously he co-founded the Leapfrog Group and Consumer-Purchaser Disclosure Project, and served as a Congressionally-appointed MedPAC Commissioner.
Citing his nationally distinguished innovation in health care cost reduction and quality gains, he was selected for the highest annual award of the National Business Group on Health (NBGH) and of the American College of Medical Quality. Elected to the Institute of Medicine (IOM) of the National Academy of Sciences, he chaired the planning committee of its examination of best methods to lower per capita health care spending and improve clinical outcomes.
He was educated at Harvard (BA‑Economics), Tufts (MD) and (UC‑Berkeley (MPH‑Health Services Evaluation and Planning).
Bob Rebitzer, MBA
Mr. Rebitzer is a consultant to the Clinical Excellence Research Center. Formerly, he was a partner at Accenture where he helped found the firm's strategy practice for the health care industry. His clients included health plans, integrated delivery systems, pharmaceutical companies and state agencies. He also served as a vice president at United Health Care and as an advisor to the California Health Care Foundation. He has an MBA from the Anderson School of Management at UCLA and a BS from the Honors Biology Program at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
Terry Platchek, MD
Terry Platchek, MD, is a Clinical Instructor of Pediatric Hospital Medicine at Stanford University and is the Fellowship Director of the Clinical Excellence Research Center. He completed his BS degree in Biology and Political Science at Georgetown University and received his MD degree from the University of Michigan. After completing his residency in the combined Internal Medicine and Pediatrics program at the University of Michigan, he served as Chief Resident in Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases before accepting a position at Stanford where he also serves as the Physician Lead for Performance Improvement at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. Together with clinical medicine, his career and research focuses on using continuous quality improvement and Lean Thinking to improve quality, safety, efficiency, appropriateness and service in healthcare delivery. He is specifically interested in the education and engagement of physicians in improving healthcare delivery systems and the use of structured abstracts for problem solving.
Freya Spielberg, MD, MPH
Freya Spielberg, MD, MPH directs mentorship for the Stanford Clinical Excellence Research Center's fellowship program. In addition to supporting CERC fellows, she advises ministries of health and the US government in implementation and evaluation of integrated health systems. Dr. Spielberg is a Senior Health Scientist in the Center for Advancement of Health IT at RTI International (2008-present), a practicing Family Medicine Physician, and a Rainer Arnhold trained social entrepreneur. She is a principal investigator of multiple domestic and international projects sponsored by NIH and other funders, with over 20 years experience developing and evaluating alternative health care strategies, point of care tests, and health IT applications. Her research targets reduction in health disparities, patient centered care, and improvement of health care outcomes and affordability. Her current research focus is the design and evaluation of a new IT enabled health system which equips patients and community health workers with decision support tools and point of care testing to improve health behaviors, early detection of disease, and necessary referrals. Previously (1998-2007), Dr. Spielberg served as a faculty member in the Family Medicine department and the Center for AIDS Research at the University of Washington School of Medicine. While there she developed web based curriculum for medical students in patient-centered care and brief behavioral counseling approaches, supervised residents, and launched a major research initiative in global health. Dr. Spielberg graduated from Cornell University Medical College, completed an MPH and Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars fellowship at the University of Washington, and a Rainer Arnhold Fellowship in Social Enterprise with the Mulago Foundation. She received her bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia with an emphasis on Chemical Engineering and Biochemistry.
Donna Zulman, MD, MS
Donna Zulman, MD, MS, is an Instructor in the Division of General Medical Disciplines at Stanford University and directs the CERC Innovation Network. She completed her BA in human biology at Stanford University, and received her MD from the University of California, Los Angeles. After completing a residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Michigan, she received a Masters in Health and Health Care Research through the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program at the University of Michigan and the Ann Arbor VA. Her research focuses on improving quality of care for patients with chronic conditions, especially those who are older or have multiple medical problems. She is interested in optimizing health-related technology to personalize care and improve outcomes for complex patients. In addition to her position at Stanford, Dr. Zulman is a physician investigator at the Center for Health Care Evaluation at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System.