Laurence C. Bauer, M.S.W., M.Ed. served as Chief Executive Officer of the Family Medicine Education Consortium, Inc. from 1994 to October 2021. The FMEC is a not-for-profit corporation designed to promote collaboration among the academic Family Medicine and primary care communities in the northeast region of the US. 

Mr. Bauer also served as Director of Network Development: Center for Innovation in Family and Community Health, Dayton, OH from January 2006 to 2021. He is an Associate Clinical Professor in the Wright State University School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine in Dayton Ohio. 

Previously he served The Ohio State University School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine for four years as Director of Organization and Faculty Development. He served as Director of Faculty Development and Behavioral Science in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the Pennsylvania State University School of Medicine in Hershey, PA for thirteen years. 

Presently he is an active consultant committed to the creation of a primary care driven system in the U.S. He lives in Hershey PA and enjoys the company of his wife and spending time with his children and grandchildren. He enjoys pickleball, basketball and gardening.

John W. Beasley MD graduated from the University of Minnesota medical school. Following a rotating internship he served two years as a physician in the Peace Corps in Micronesia and then returned to the US and did mainly family planning in Louisiana.  Two years of a Family Medicine residency at the University of Wisconsin rounded out his education.  He stayed on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin, serving in various teaching, research, and leadership roles while caring for his continuity practice in Verona, Wisconsin. Working in partnership with James Damos, MD, he created the Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO) course. For most of his career, this included maternity care and hospital care.  He is now retired.

Family physician Dr. James Damos has dedicated his entire professional life to enhancing healthcare services in rural communities. Jim’s career has spanned rural, urban, private, and academic primary care practice. In the past, he has served as program director of the University of Wisconsin Family Medicine residency program in Madison and program director of the state’s first Rural Family Physician Training Program affiliated with the University of Wisconsin and the Sisters of St. Marys in Baraboo, Wisconsin which Dr. Damos helped to create. While on faculty at the University of Wisconsin in 1991, Jim was a co-concept originator, along with John Beasley, MD, of the Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO) provider and instructor courses. Jim traveled the U.S. teaching these courses from 1991-2013 when he retired. The ALSO course, owned and operated by the American Academy of Family Physicians since 1993, trains pregnancy care teams to effectively manage obstetric emergencies. The impact of the ALSO course is genuinely remarkable. Thousands of physicians and nurses from over 60 countries have now received training in ALSO. Jim has received his share of international, national, statewide, and local recognition for his contributions to rural health and maternity care access. In retirement, Dr. Damos authored a book on his career entitled Hey Doc, Memoirs of a Rural Family Physician, published by WiDo, E.L. Marker publications, out of Salt Lake City, Utah, in July 2019.

Joe McWilliams is a healthcare advisor, strategist, thought leader, entrepreneur, and advocate with a proven track record of driving innovation and transformation in the healthcare industry. With a diverse background that bridges science, technology, policy, and business, Joe has co-founded a consulting firm, directed a startup spun out of MIT from investment to acquisition and worked at leading firms including Accenture and Philips Healthcare in Boston, MA. He also independently advises startups, investors, nonprofits, and healthcare organizations.

Drawing on an academic foundation in molecular biology, political science, and economics, Joe is an expert in digital health and AI, with a particular focus on improving rural health, primary care, and addressing social determinants of health. Growing up in rural Wisconsin, he witnessed firsthand the challenges facing underserved communities, inspiring his lifelong mission to drive interdisciplinary collaboration across science, technology, business, and public policy to advance equitable healthcare innovation.

Beyond his professional endeavors, Joe is an avid reader and enjoys running, swimming, and exploring the arts, food, and music.

Michael Tuggy, MD is a Clinical Professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine, and a rural family physician and former medical director for Confluence Health in the mountain valley in Winthrop, Washington.  He served for 7 years on active duty in the US Army including service in Iraq and Kuwait during the first Gulf War. After his military service he became the director of Swedish Family Medicine Residency in Seattle and pursued leadership positions within the education sector of family medicine in the US. While the president of Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors, he joined other leaders in family medicine to develop the strategic plan for family medicine nationally. As part of that strategic initiative, he joined the Primary Care Innovators Network and Converging Health which is focused on transformative payment and practice models of primary care to achieve better health care at lower cost.