Executive Team

Christopher G. Dawes

President and Chief Executive Officer
Mr. Dawes joined Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford in 1991 and became its President and Chief Executive Officer in 1999. Mr. Dawes previously served as Chief Operating Officer of the hospital from 1995 to 1997, and Chief Operating Officer for pediatric and obstetric services for UCSF Stanford Health Care (1997 to 2000). Prior to joining Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, Mr. Dawes held senior management positions at SHC (1987 to 1991); Pacific Presbyterian Medical Center, San Francisco (1981 to 1987); and Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, San Jose (1980 to 1981).  He serves as a board member of the National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions, the California Children’s Hospital Association, and the Santa Clara Family Health Plan.  Mr. Dawes earned a Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration from San Diego State University in 1974 and an MBA from the McLaren School of Business at the University of San Francisco in 1984.

James Dunn, MD, PhD

Chief of the Division of Pediatric Surgery and Surgeon-in-Chief for Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital
Dr. Dunn is a renowned surgeon and scientist who will lead the Division of Pediatric Surgery in developing programs of excellence.  His expertise in applying engineering solutions to clinical challenges facing our pediatric patients has the promise to transform the way we treat children with complex intestinal disorders.

Dunn has a well-established research program that develops both cell-based and engineering solutions for short gut syndrome — a crippling disorder that occurs primarily in preterm infants, but has lifelong consequences for those affected.

Dunn graduated from Harvard Medical School with a concomitant PhD in bioengineering from Massachusetts  Institute of Technology. He began his career at UCLA where he quickly rose to the rank of Professor and Chief of the Division of Pediatric Surgery.

Dana Haering

Chief Financial Officer
Haering joined the organization in 2011 as the Controller, became the Interim Chief Financial Officer in 2013 and was named the Chief Financial Officer in October of 2014. Haering spent more than 20 years in the public accounting industry, serving mainly healthcare clients, including academic medical centers, community hospitals, health plans, medical group foundations and independent practice associations. Prior to joining the organization, Haering was a Senior Manager at KPMG, LLP, in the healthcare practice. Haering holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley, and is a Certified Public Accountant in California. She is also a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Kelly M. Johnson, PhD, RN

Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer
Johnson has more than 22 years of chief nursing officer experience. She most recently served as the Dori Biester Chair in Pediatric Nursing and senior vice president and chief nursing officer at Children’s Hospital of Colorado. Johnson began her career in health care as an RN, advanced practice nurse, and manager. She holds a BSN from the University of Northern Colorado, MSN from the University of California San Francisco with specialization in Neuroscience and Family Health (FNP), and a PhD from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, College of Nursing in Health Outcomes. From 1993-2008, Johnson served as Vice President for Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer at Craig Hospital, which is a world-renowned, premier center for specialty rehabilitation and research for people with spinal cord and traumatic brain injury.

Ed Kopetsky

Chief Information Officer
Mr. Kopetsky is an experienced healthcare executive with expertise in integrated  delivery systems, information technology planning and implementation, operations process and cost improvement, and consulting. Prior to joining the hospital in 2009, Ed was a  Partner at IBM Global Business Services and Executive Vice President with Healthlink, a consulting firm specialized in healthcare IT and process improvement (Healthlink was acquired by IBM in 2005). Ed previously served as Senior Vice President and CIO at Centura Health, and Sharp HealthCare. He has contributed nationally and locally to numerous professional organizations, including serving as Board Chair   for the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives and the Microsoft Healthcare Users Group.

Mary Leonard, MD

Chair of the Stanford University School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
A graduate of the Stanford University School of Medicine, Dr. Leonard returned to Stanford Medicine in 2014 after spending 25 years at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania. At Stanford, her multi-disciplinary research program is focused on the impact of chronic diseases on bone metabolism and nutrition across the life span. Dr. Leonard directs the innovative and trans-disciplinary child and maternal health research and training initiatives of the Stanford Child Health Research Institute.

Dr. Leonard is a distinguished investigator, an expert clinician, and a respected mentor who embodies the academic and integrated mission of Stanford Medicine. A member of the Precision Health Committee, she is committed to Stanford Medicine’s vision of proactive and personalized health care and has been at the forefront of efforts to integrate Precision Health approaches and skills into our training programs.

Les Lifter

Chief Marketing Officer
Les Lifter joined Stanford Children’s Health and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital in June 2015 as Chief Marketing Officer. Prior to joining Stanford Children’s Health, Les served as Senior Vice President of Marketing with University of Phoenix where he led all marketing strategies and initiatives for the university and its colleges.  A professional with more than 25 years in marketing and brand management, Les has held leadership positions with such recognized national brands as Unilever, Lennar Homes, AutoZone, and Hasbro. Les earned his M.B.A. in marketing and international business from NYU’s Leonard N. Stern School of Business and his bachelor’s degree from Emory University in business administration with an emphasis in marketing.

Dennis Lund, MD

Chief Medical Officer
Pediatric surgeon Dennis Lund, MD, is the organization’s chief medical officer. He also serves as associate dean for maternal and child health at the School of Medicine. Lund has spent three decades as a leader in pediatric medicine, most recently as Executive Vice President of Phoenix Children’s Medical Group and surgeon-in-chief at Phoenix Children’s Hospital. He served as a professor of surgery and surgeon-in-chief at the University of Wisconsin Children’s Hospital, where he was appointed chair of the university’s Division of General Surgery in 2001 and was the driving force behind the creation of the American Family Children’s Hospital, which opened in 2007 and is affiliated with the University of Wisconsin. Lund graduated from Harvard Medical School and began his career as a pediatric trauma and transplant surgeon at Boston Children’s Hospital, where he developed the level-1 trauma program, built a large pediatric surgical practice and started an intestinal transplant program.

Kim Roberts

Chief Strategy Officer
Kim Roberts joined Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford in 2010 as VP of Network Development and Management. PCHA is a not-for profit medical foundation, the community practice component of the Stanford Children’s Health Physician Network. Prior to joining Packard, Ms. Roberts spent 13 years with the Santa Clara Valley Health and Hospital System (SCVHHS), first as CFO and then CEO. SCVHHS is the $1.5 billion healthcare system for the County of Santa Clara that included a teaching hospital, extensive clinic system medical group, licensed health plan, public health department, mental health department, department of alcohol and drug services, children’s shelter and custody health services, and community outreach services. Prior senior management positions include: Associate Director, Hospital and Clinics and Chief Financial Officer for the University of California, San Diego Medical Center; Assistant Director of Finance, University of California, San Diego Medical Center; and Assistant Administrator, Director of Planning and Marketing, Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside, California. Ms. Roberts holds a Bachelor of Sciences in Biological Sciences from the University of California, Irvine, and a Masters in Healthcare Administration from Duke University.

Cameron D’Alpe

Chief Administrative Officer of Physician Practices and CEO of Packard Children’s Health Alliance
Cameron D'Alpe joined Stanford Children’s Health in 2013 as vice president of ambulatory care. In this role, she spearheaded the development of ambulatory services and the Faculty Practice Office, including transitioning to a practice and site management leadership model and fully embracing Packard Quality Management System (PQMS), both of which have transformed the physician, staff and patient experience and increased the quality of the services we provide. Ms. D'Aple has a passion for patient experience and is always looking to provide services that exceed patient and family expectations. Ms. D'Aple has led the growth and development of our joint venture with California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC).

Christy Sandborg, MD

Vice President of Medical Affairs
Dr. Sandborg is the Professor of Pediatrics, Associate Chair of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, and became the Vice President of Medical Affairs at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford in 2012. Prior to joining Stanford, Dr. Sandborg was Medical Director, Day Health Unit (Short stay observation/infusion center) Children’s Hospital of Orange County, Director, Pediatric Rheumatology and Rehabilitation and Associate Adjunct Professor Pediatrics and Medicine, University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine, Children’s Hospital of Orange County. Dr. Sandborg received her B.S. and her M.D. from University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Sandborg has been an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors of Lucile Salter Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford since her appointment as Chief of Staff in 2008. She is a member of the Credentials & Policies/Procedures Committee, and Quality, Service and Safety Committee.

Greg Souza

Chief Human Resources Officer
Greg Souza joined the Stanford community in 2007 as the Vice President of Human Resources for Stanford Children’s Health and prior to that was the Vice President of Human Resources for Oakland Children’s Hospital. Mr. Souza began his career in Human Resources in the Kaiser Permanente Health Plan in 1976 and held multiple facility based and regional positions in Human Resources, including the Director of Human Resources operations for the Kaiser California Division ending in 2001. He led a Human Resources staff of more than 400 full-time equivalents and an annual operating budget of more than $25 million. During his human resources leadership tenure Mr. Souza developed skills in employee and labor relations, organization development, compensation and benefits, recognition, HRIS, talent acquisition and strategic human resources planning. He has presented at both local and national human resources conferences and has taught the human resources national certification program on multiple occasions.

Greg holds a master’s degree in organization development and human resources from the University of San Francisco and is a certified as a Senior Professional in human resources.