Who We Are
Our team brings decades of medical, legal, and communication experience to our mission.
Robert E. Oshel, Ph.D.
Advisory Board Member
Robert E. Oshel, Ph.D. is an expert in medical malpractice and medical discipline. Before retirement, he was Associate Director for Research and Disputes at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ National Practitioner Data Bank. He was responsible for statistical analysis of the Data Bank’s report information on malpractice payments and licensure, clinical privileges, and other disciplinary actions. He established the Data Bank’s Public Use data file. Robert is active in various patient safety efforts: advising Public Citizen and Consumers Union (Consumer Reports). He frequently consults with newspapers and broadcast outlets concerning stories on medical malpractice and medical discipline issues. He is the author/co-author of many journal articles and a book chapter on these issues.
Lars Aanning
Lars Aanning is a graduate of the University of Nebraska Medical School where he did his residency in surgery (1981). He was a general surgeon for nearly 30 years. Now, as a patient advocate, he comes to us from Yankton, South Dakota, (population 15,000). Yankton was the first capital of the Dakota Territory. By going through medical charts, Lars has helped harmed patients discover what went wrong – and he has helped families find out why their loved ones died. His hobbies are the history of medicine and WW II – and his grandchildren.
Brian Eisen
Advisory Board Member
Brian Eisen is a Cleveland attorney specializing in medical negligence and wrongful death. He graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Harvard College and cum laude from Harvard Law School. Before entering private practice, he clerked for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and served as a trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice.
Since 1996, Mr. Eisen has represented patients and families harmed by medical errors, building an extensive record in litigation, trials, and appeals. A committed patient-safety advocate, he seeks settlement terms that improve hospital procedures and protocols to protect future patients. He also lectures frequently on medical negligence and trial practice.
Chris Gabbard
Advisory Board Member
Chris Gabbard, Ph.D. earned his Ph.D. at Stanford University and is now a Professor of English at the University of North Florida, where he teaches courses in British literature and disability studies.
He is the author of A Life Beyond Reason: A Disabled Boy and His Father’s Enlightenment (Beacon Press 2020), a memoir about raising his son born with Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), a serious birth complication affecting full-term infants. His work also includes numerous scholarly articles and book chapters at the intersection of eighteenth-century studies and disability studies. He currently is working on a monograph, Care Ethics in Literature. He sits on the Board of Directors of the DLC Nurse & Learn, the only daycare facility in Jacksonville, Florida, for children with significant impairments and/or complex medical needs.
Marge Benham Hutchins
Marge Benham-Hutchins, Ph.D., MSN, RN, is a tenured associate professor in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Arizona, focusing on health informatics and health systems.
Her research examines healthcare communication and its relationship to patient outcomes, including patients’ access to medical information during hospitalization. She is also a celiac-disease advocate, a lifetime member of the Society for Participatory Medicine, and co-editor of the Journal of Participatory Medicine.
Karla Dick
Advisory Board Member
Karla Dick graduated from Tarleton State University in 1993 and earned her medical degree from the University of North Texas Health Science Center in 1997. Board-certified in family medicine, she practices at Family Healthcare Associates in Mansfield, Texas.
Karla became a patient-safety advocate after MD Anderson failed to evaluate and document her twin sister’s breast nodule for 18 months. The nodule proved cancerous, but the facility did not acknowledge an error or respond to Karla’s recommendations. The experience inspired her commitment to raising awareness of preventable medical errors and encouraging greater physician and consumer involvement.
Arthur Wernick
Advisory Board Member
Arthur Wernick, PharmD, earned his Bachelor of Science degree from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and his Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Creighton University. With experience in retail and hospital pharmacy, clinical research and private practice, his exposure to multiple disciplines provides him with a broad understanding of medication utilization. Focused areas of expertise are in medication therapy management and providing research and expert opinion for law firms in cases of medical malpractice that involve medications. Arthur examines the circumstances of medication errors and provides assessments of their significance both from a legal standpoint and their impact to the patient. An unbiased analysis is a key component in determining an opinion. He has been a guest on several podcasts speaking about medication therapy management, Alzheimer’s Disease, COVID-19 and COVID-19 Long Haulers Syndrome. Being a patient advocate has been the consistent theme throughout Arthur’s career.
Emily Paterson
Emily Paterson has an MA in Communication Studies along with teaching experience in that field. Emily became a patient advocate following her own child’s preventable adverse event. She speaks to provider and patient groups, as well as families newly harmed by medical errors. On a state level, she is involved with groups concerned with healthcare accessibility. Emily was active with a group that voted in a nurses’ Union, not a small accomplishment in North Carolina. To improve patient safety, she looks forward to pulling back the curtain on more hospital problem issues that can be improved. Emily enjoys time with family, gardening, hiking, tennis, mountain biking, traveling, and loves cats.
Bob Aller
Co-Founder and Board Member
Bob Aller, a Hospital Watchdog co-founder, has produced and directed documentaries on subjects including autism, adverse medication reactions, scientific methodology, and prostate cancer. Graduating from the UCLA film school decades ago, Bob later taught filmmaking at the USC School of Cinematic Arts and the Art Center College of Design. His films have received awards, including an Academy Award nomination for a film on autism. Bob encountered medical errors occurring to a family member.
Suzan Addison Shinazy
Co-Founder and Board Member
Suzan Addison Shinazy, RN, a Hospital Watchdog co-founder, has been a tireless advocate for patient safety since her mother died of medical errors in 2003. For over a decade Suzan worked on medical harm issues with the Consumers Union Safe Patient Project. She is a Board member of Health Watch USA and credits both organizations for mentoring her on the critical need for safer patient care. Suzan, also known to rescue stray pets, makes her home in Bakersfield, California.