Consultation

Mrs. Earley serves as the AVP where she has dedicated the past 10 years to advancing risk management practices and improving patient safety. She leads five regional managers, staff, the CME program, and the data analytics team. Mallory uses diverse data points and metrics to strategically direct risk efforts. She advises customers on MPL matters, writes industry-relevant articles, develops educational courses, and frequently presents at various conferences and professional associations.

Ms. Armenta is the CME administrator for the Risk Management department of ProAssurance MPL division. She joined ProAssurance in 2021 through the NORCAL acquisition, where she served 14 years in various capacities including CME Manager. Ms. Armenta has 40 years of experience in the insurance industry educating clients or training operations staff. Ms. Armenta earned her BA from San Francisco State University and has the designation of Certified Healthcare CPD Professional.

Bradley E. Byrne Jr., JD, is the Southeast Regional Risk Manager advising physicians, healthcare providers, and administrators on risk management and liability. In private practice, he focused on employment litigation, business development, and professional athlete representation. He is a member of the Alabama Bar, Birmingham Bar, American Society for Health Care Risk Management, and Alabama Society for Healthcare Risk Management.

Joanne Simmons, BSN, RN, has over 30 years of nursing experience including roles as a pediatric clinical supervisor, home health specialist, and case management leader. She holds Lean Healthcare Certification from Belmont University and a Patient Safety Certificate from Johns Hopkins. Joanne is Treasurer of ALASHRM and an active ASHRM member. For the past nine years, she has served as a Senior Risk Consultant at ProAssurance, leading the content development team.

Kelly Riedl is a Certified Professional in Health Care Risk Management and licensed Physician Assistant. She graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and from Nova Southeastern with a Master of Medical Science in Physician Assistant Studies. She gained over a decade of clinical experience in the clinic, hospital, and ASC settings prior to becoming a healthcare risk manager. She enjoys providing education and training to practices to improve patient safety.

Prior to joining ProAssurance, Wendy helped manage the risk department for a large multi-specialty provider practice in Washington, D.C. She oversaw organizational insurance, patient safety, and claims. Wendy’s clinical experience includes critical care, radiology, and post-anesthesia care. She enjoys advising physicians and clinical staff in risk reduction and patient safety strategies. Wendy recently graduated with an MSN in Healthcare Quality and Safety.

Ms. Crum has been the Manager, Regional Risk Management for ProAssurance in the Northeast Region since 2023. Prior to joining ProAssurance in 2006, she started as a risk manager and in 2017 was promoted to manager of the risk department for a 600-bed teaching hospital in Pennsylvania. Michele’s nursing career focused on women’s and children’s health. She has Master of Science degrees in Nursing and Management, is certified in Healthcare Risk Management, and is an ASHRM Fellow.

Gerryann began her career as an RN in pediatric oncology. She has over 20 years’ clinical management experience in acute care, LTC, homecare, and ambulatory care. Prior to joining PRA, Gerryann was the regional director of risk management with oversight of patient safety/clinical risk, claims, and colleague safety/WC. She has a Graduate Certificate in Health and Hospital Law from Seton Hall Law School, a BS in English and Business from SUNY Plattsburgh, and an AAS in Nursing from Maria College.

Ms. Elliott is a Senior Risk Management Consultant supporting clinical risk management services and educational programs aimed at mitigating risks for insureds and providing advice to internal and external customers. She has over 40 years’ experience in clinical and administrative nursing and is a Certified Case Manager. Awards for her dedication to patient care include the Daisy Award for Extraordinary Nurses. She is a member of the American Society for Health Care Risk Management (ASHRM).

Mrs. Hunyady is the Midwest Regional Risk Manager advising physicians and practices on healthcare risk management and professional liability issues. Prior to this, she was a member of the ProAssurance Claims team managing medical malpractice claims and appeals. In private practice, she was a litigator defending physicians, practices, and hospitals in medical malpractice lawsuits. Mrs. Hunyady is a member of the Michigan Bar Association and American Society for Health Care Risk Management.

Brenda is a Senior Risk Management Consultant with myriad experience in clinical, quality, and risk management, as well as leadership roles in the United States Air Force (USAF) and civilian healthcare organizations. Brenda served as the Chief Nurse Executive at the USAF European Command’s healthcare facility and for the Air Force Headquarters, Washington, D.C., facility. She currently conducts risk assessments for physician practices and hospitals and advises on mitigation strategies.

Laurette Côté is a Senior Risk Management Consultant for ProAssurance. She obtained a master’s degree in Business Administration from Upper Iowa University and has diverse experience as a director of hospital and clinic operations. She is responsible for developing, implementing, and managing online educational courses for physicians and staff. Laurette advises on liability issues and authors’ articles, and speaks at seminars for physicians, staff, and practice administration.

Ms. Ryan began her professional career in medical liability defense litigation, was then a staff attorney at the California Medical Association; and prior to its acquisition, was a Risk Manager at NORCAL. In addition to providing risk reduction services at ProAssurance, she teaches Legal Issues for New Dentists at the University of MN School of Dentistry. Mary-Lynn obtained her JD from Pepperdine, and she is licensed to practice law in California. She has a Graduate Certificate in Health Ethics.

In private practice, Jen practiced defense litigation focusing on medical professional liability. For more than a decade, she served as Associate General Counsel and Risk Manager for an FQHC, involved in all aspects of legal, regulatory, operational, and risk management. Jen is licensed to practice law in Texas, California, and Pennsylvania. She maintains her CPHRM and is a member of the Texas State and Austin Bar Associations, ASHRM, and the South Texas Society for Healthcare Risk Management.

Prior to joining ProAssurance, Tracy was Director of Risk Management/Accreditation for multiple hospitals, clinics, ASCs, and freestanding ERs. Tracy has over 20 years of leadership experience in healthcare risk management/patient safety, claims, operations, and regulatory compliance. Tracy's nursing career included med-surg/trauma, pre-op and oncology. She has a BSN from the University of Texas-Tyler, an MHA from Seton Hall University, and a JD from Oklahoma City University School of Law.

Prior to joining ProAssurance, Lesley led the Travis County Medical Society's legislative advocacy, public health, and practice management efforts as Director of Advocacy. As AVP of Risk Management at TMLT, she oversaw practice review, CME, and physician consultation services. Lesley is on the board of the Austin Child Guidance Center and is an Advocacy Ambassador for Komen Center for Public Policy. She has a BA in Biology and an MS in Community Health, both from Texas A&M.

Katie has over 25 years of experience in healthcare risk management, including managing the professional liability program at a large urban hospital for the University of California, and working as a Risk Manager at John Muir Hospital and NORCAL before joining ProAssurance. She has extensive experience working with physicians, administrators, and other healthcare professionals to reduce liability risk and improve patient safety. Katie has a JD from University of San Francisco School of Law.

At ProAssurance, Stacy Stauffer, JD, advises physicians and healthcare providers on risk management and liability issues. Stacy earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona and a juris doctorate degree from the Creighton University School of Law. She practiced law as a city attorney for over 22 years in both civil and prosecutorial roles. Stacy is a member of the State Bar of Arizona (retired) and the American Society of Health Care Risk Management.

Anne Marie has worked in healthcare risk management with leadership roles overseeing patient safety, quality, and risk across ambulatory, acute, and post-acute care for over 30 years. For 13+ years, she has been a senior risk management consultant for medical practices, clinics, and hospitals. She holds a BA in Psychology from Holy Cross and an MHA from UNH.

Before ProAssurance, Ms. Deming was a litigator at Hall Matson focusing on medical malpractice defense. She joined ProAssurance as a Risk Management Consultant then became the Service Center Director for 10 years. She is now a Sr. Risk Management Consultant on the Data & Technology team. Applying systems knowledge, she builds risk management system applications, workflows, and analyzes and produces quarterly and annual reports. Jenice is a member of the Michigan and Wisconsin Bar Associations.

Kethra Keeling has worked various desks within the Risk Management department for 12 years. She has supported the VP, CME team, and consultants, along with internal and external customers. Her growth in knowledge and skills has taken her from administrative support to data analysis. For the past three years, Kethra has been building and maintaining survey assessment modules and reporting tools. Her current focus is administering and improving the process of the Annual Baseline Self-Assessment.

Kiersten Pines is a Risk Management Data Analyst at ProAssurance. She works with the Risk Management Data & Technology team to collect, clean, and analyze data from a variety of sources for use in educational materials and to aid in data-driven decision-making. Kiersten has three years of experience in data analytics, specializing in statistical analysis and visualization. She earned her BS in Data Science at Northern Michigan University.

Ms. Grubbs is the Supervisor of Risk Management Operations and Administration at ProAssurance. She has been in the Risk Management department for over 20 years. Dawn oversees the Operations and Administration team, which provides direct online seminar assistance, hospital assessment report completion, various administration reports, and resources and customer service to internal and external customers nationwide.

Diane began her career as a patent administrator supporting attorneys at RCA. She later transitioned to work as a court reporter before finding her long-term professional home in the risk management field. For over 35 years, she has brought a wealth of experience to her role. At ProAssurance, Diane is an advocate for insureds, assisting with website navigation, processing CME completions, and supporting the Data Analytics team.

Prior to joining ProAssurance, Gina was admin assistant to the Director of Hepatology at UAB, where she was employed for 13 years. Gina has over 20 years of customer service and admin experience and has moved up in every position she has held. Prior to working in Hepatology, Gina worked at Student Health where she trained new employees and helped students with their documents and qualifications for enrollment. She is very interested in the insurance career change and the opportunities it brings.