Clinical Informaticist with 3+ years of specialized experience developing and implementing OMOP Common Data Model solutions within the VA Healthcare system's Corporate Data Warehouse. Expert in healthcare interoperability standards, clinical terminologies, and ETL processes for transforming complex EHR and claims data into research-ready datasets. Successfully supported observational research initiatives through data mapping, cleaning, and structuring while ensuring regulatory compliance. Combines technical skills (SQL, Python, R) with clinical background to develop high-quality healthcare data solutions across multiple disease domains. M.S. in Prevention Science with proven ability to translate complex healthcare data into actionable insights for clinical research applications.
Experience
Provide specialized healthcare data expertise across Veterans Health Administration research and quality initiatives, focusing on implementing clinical data standards, transforming complex healthcare data into research-ready formats, and ensuring interoperability across healthcare information systems.
- Implemented and maintained OMOP Common Data Model standards for observational research, ensuring data quality and regulatory compliance across multiple disease domains including oncology
- Developed standardized ETL processes for transforming VA Corporate Data Warehouse (CDW) clinical data into research-ready datasets compliant with healthcare interoperability standards
- Created and maintained clinical concept sets and phenotype definitions through cohort definition interfaces
- Managed clinical terminology mapping processes using standard ontologies (ICD-10, CPT, HCPCS, LOINC, RxNorm, SNOMED)
- Incorporated semi-structured behavioral health and social determinants of health data from EHRs into structured research databases
- Established and executed frameworks for assessing clinical validity of healthcare data throughout the analytics pipeline
- Developed and maintained data dictionaries, entity relationship diagrams (ERDs), and documentation for healthcare data models
- Leveraged SQL, Python and R for healthcare data transformation, cleaning, and structuring
- Applied Natural Language Processing techniques to extract meaningful data from unstructured clinical notes
- Led business development initiatives resulting in $1.2M in new project funding through technical proposals and prototype demonstrations
Consulted for the Department of Defense Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness (USD P&R) - Defense Suicide Prevention Office (DSPO), where I developed comprehensive annual reports incorporating health surveillance data, prepared responses to White House and congressional inquiries on military healthcare initiatives, monitored relevant legislative developments, and maintained databases of key stakeholders involved in mental health policy.
- Orchestrated development of comprehensive annual reports incorporating complex healthcare surveillance data, ensuring standardized reporting of mental health metrics across military branches
- Transformed raw mental health data into actionable policy recommendations and visual analytics for executive leadership, including the White House and Congressional stakeholders
- Monitored and analyzed legislative trends in military healthcare, mental health services, and veteran transition programs, producing data-driven briefs aligned with federal healthcare priorities
- Supported revision of DoD Instruction 6490.16, ensuring alignment with current clinical best practices, standardized health data collection methods, and evidence-based prevention strategies
- Maintained structured databases of stakeholder information to facilitate coordinated healthcare initiatives across government agencies
- Created data visualizations, infographics, and reports that effectively communicated complex healthcare metrics to diverse audiences
- Tracked implementation of standardized assessment tools and protocols across military healthcare settings
- Drafted responses to Congressional inquiries and prepared materials for testimonies related to military mental health initiatives
- Met requirements for Top Secret security clearance eligibility through successful background investigation and credit check
Led clinical data integration initiatives while managing crisis mental health services, implementing healthcare data standards, and developing interoperable reporting systems across multiple healthcare entities.
- Designed and implemented interoperable Electronic Health Record (EHR) system that standardized clinical documentation and reporting across crisis services
- Built integrated reporting solution that harmonized data between State Measures and Outcomes Tracking System (MOTS), County reporting requirements, and Coordinated Care Organization specifications
- Developed standardized data collection protocols for behavioral health assessments, improving data quality and compliance with healthcare reporting standards
- Maintained clinical data dictionary and documentation standards for crisis assessment tools including Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (CSSR-S)
- Implemented structured data capture methods for qualitative aftercare information, transforming unstructured clinical feedback into actionable improvement metrics
- Created automated monthly, quarterly and annual clinical data reporting pipelines that reduced manual processing by 65% and improved data integrity
- Established and monitored clinical data quality metrics for crisis intervention services
- Collaborated with University of Oregon research labs to develop evidence-based data collection methodologies for crisis intervention outcomes
- Managed mental health crisis response program for children and adolescents, overseeing staff training, scheduling, and quality assurance
- Ensured compliance with Oregon Administrative Rules, HIPAA regulations, and RFP requirements across all program operations
Provided clinical services while ensuring data integrity and standardized documentation within electronic health record systems across multiple healthcare settings and service providers.
- Utilized CareLogic electronic health record system to maintain comprehensive treatment records according to healthcare documentation standards
- Implemented standardized data collection protocols for crisis assessments, ensuring consistent capture of critical health metrics
- Managed protected health information in compliance with HIPAA regulations and security protocols
- Collected and documented program statistics and outcome metrics to support quality improvement initiatives
- Facilitated data sharing between healthcare providers while maintaining privacy requirements during care transitions
- Documented clinical assessments using standardized classification systems as a Qualified Mental Health Professional (QMHP)
- Coordinated with multiple healthcare entities to ensure continuity of care documentation across treatment settings
- Created standardized documentation for cross-agency crisis interventions, improving data consistency between organizations
- Collaborated with crisis workers from Sacred Heart University District and White Bird's CAHOOTS for coordinated interventions
- Completed specialized training including Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), Verbal and Physical Intervention (VPI), and Basic Life Support
Conducted healthcare research data management across multiple research projects, focusing on standardized data collection, validation, and analysis methodologies.
- Implemented standardized data collection protocols for research databases, ensuring consistent capture of health-related variables
- Developed and maintained research data dictionaries and metadata documentation for healthcare studies
- Created ETL processes for transforming raw research data into analysis-ready formats using STATA, SPSS, R, and Python
- Conducted quality assurance procedures for research data, implementing validation checks and data cleaning protocols
- Developed standardized coding systems and achieved inter-rater reliability score of .8+ for qualitative data
- Administered cognitive and health assessment instruments according to standardized protocols
- Maintained secure research databases in compliance with IRB and data privacy requirements
- Orchestrated participant recruitment initiatives while adhering to ethical guidelines and privacy laws
- Conducted mixed-methods research including classroom observations and survey data collection through direct and telephonic interactions
Projects
Improving how chaplains across the VA deliver their services to patients by standardizing their documentation to align with clinicians.
As part of a $10 million contract with the Veterans Health Administration, conducted data analysis and other evaluation work for reports to congress.
As part of a $115 million contract with the Veterans Health Administration's Office of Research and Development, this project involved using health systems data as well as clinican interviews Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) to find opportunities to improve the implementation of oncology trials across the VA.
As part of a $73 million contract with the Veterans Health Administration's National Center for Patient Safety, this effort was to develop an enterprise-level dashboard, providing leadership with critical insights on their progress toward becoming a High Reliability Organization (HRO).
As part of a $4.2 million contract with the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (USD(P&R)), Defense Suicide Prevention Office (DSPO), under the Defense Suicide Prevention Program Support Services, facilitated the development of a platform to help DoD officials and military branches standardize terminology across doctrines and policies.
Contributed to the development of Lane County's comprehensive mental health and addiction services plan.
Education
Publications
Greck, Beth D, Aimee Pehrson, and Hayden Spence. 2024. "The Impact of a Metformin Recall on Patient Hemoglobin A." Federal Practitioner 279:3–06.
Harzand, Arash, Alaaeddin Alrohaibani, Muhammed Y Idris, Hayden Spence, Cate G Parrish, Pratik K Rout, Rene Nazar, et al. 2023.
Volunteer
Engaging actively in the development of OHDSI's open-source software tools and developing customized OHDSI tooling codebase.
- Enhancing knowledge and use of Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Large Language Models (LLMs) as well as various statistical programming languages
- Developing and customizing OHDSI tooling codebase to support research objectives
- Applying diverse software skills to implement clinical data capture tools, develop tracking tools, conduct reproducible statistical analyses, and phenotyping
Advised the Board of Commissioners and Health & Human Services Department on matters relating to mental health, developmental disabilities, and alcohol and other drug abuse in Lane County.
- Reviewed major policies of the community mental health program and making recommendations to the Director
- Assisted in identifying needs and priorities