Interested in learning more?

Education and Certification:

OHSU's DNP/FNP Program 2022

Biography:

Vanessa is an FNP and Doctor of Nursing Practice from a small town in rural Illinois. Vanessa has lived in several places, including Chicago, San Francisco/Oakland, California, and Rhode Island, and currently lives in Eugene. She received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2005 and her doctorate in nursing practice from OHSU in Portland, OR in 2022.

Vanessa has worked as an RN in many settings, such as emergency, primary care, urgent care, HIV, gender-affirming care, maternal child health home visiting, and adolescent psych. Her primary focus has been on trauma-informed care.

Vanessa’s current focus is primary care. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, camping, and spending time with her partner and children. She has also attended a couple of schools of herbal studies in California and Oregon and enjoys working with plants, particularly those that are native and/or medicinal.

Education and Certification:

Undergrad: BA from University of California, Santa Cruz
Med School: MD from University of California, San Diego
Residence Training: Lincoln Medical Center, Bronx, New York City
Board Certified in Emergency Medicine

Biography:

I was born in Japan (my dad was in the Air Force) and growing up I lived in Alabama, Virginia, Southern California, and then Northern California where I went to Jr High and High school. All of my college education was in California as well. I attended Medical School at the University of California at San Diego and then did a residency in Emergency Medicine in the south Bronx, New York City.

I initially worked in California in a number of Emergency Departments in small Hospitals. In 2008 I moved to Eugene and took a job in the ED at Peace Harbor Hospital in Florence - where I still work, both in the ED seeing patients and also have roles as the Medical Director of the ED and Chief of staff of the hospital.

Over the years I have also worked at a clinic in China and taught at a medical school in the Philippines. I also spend time every year on short-term trips to India and the South Pacific to provide medical care and teaching.

I also volunteer at a number of free clinics in the Eugene area that provides care to homeless people on the street. And I am involved in numerous groups and committees that are aimed at providing access to health care for all.

In my free time, my partner and I enjoy bicycling, canoeing, backpacking, and skiing. I have two daughters in their 20’s (both were adopted from China as infants).

Education and Certification:

Masters in Social Work

Biography:

Kristi McKenzie grew up in Pleasant Hill, Oregon, and has lived in the United Kingdom, Alaska, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico prior to returning to Oregon in August of 2021.

Kristi obtained her Masters in Social Work from Western New Mexico University and has worked as a clinical mental health case manager, community mental health case manager, drug and alcohol counselor, inpatient child and family therapist, and outpatient mental health therapist.

Education and Certification:

CMA, NCCT Associates Degree at Pioneer Pacific College

Biography:

Alex is from Pleasant Hill, Oregon. She enrolled in Pioneer’s Pacific Medical Assisting program in 2019, which led to the completion of her Associate's Degree. After school, she did an internship at a local podiatrist clinic and worked at a COVID Clinic to assist with drive-thru testing.

At the clinic, she met clinic manager Bob Colabianchi who told her about Orchid and the Medical Assistant role. Alex was Orchid’s first medical assistant and has helped onboard and train new members of the team.

Her current focus is supporting the Patient Support Specialist role and helping the front office. When Alex is not working she enjoys bike riding, watching true-crime series, thrift store shopping, and spending time with her family in Eugene.

Education and Certification:

CMA, NCCT Associates Degree at Pioneer Pacific College

Biography:

Courtney was born and raised in Eugene, Oregon and briefly relocated to Beaverton, Oregon from 2011 to 2013. After, she relocated to Eugene.

After attending Lane County Community College, Courtney completed her Associates Degree in Medical Assisting at Pioneer Pacific in 2018. For the past 3 years, Courtney has worked as a medical assistant for 3 years in both family practice and internal medicine. As Fern Ridge’s new Medical Assistant, Courtney is most excited about supporting the community in the best way she can.

In Courtney spare time she enjoys spending time with her family and two young daughters. She enjoys hiking, dinner with friends, appreciating the outdoors, and running her small business on Etsy.

Biography:

Karina is originally from Eureka, CA but spent most of her life in Grant Pass OR., After graduating high school she went to Rogue Valley Phlebotomy School to complete her phlebotomy training. After her training she started an externship at Asante Three Rivers Medical Hospital, working primarily in the emergency room.

Karina started working as a Medical Assistant about a year ago and enjoys building relationships with patients. In her free time, she enjoys relaxing at home, spending time with her husband and dog, and taking trips to the Oregon coast.

Education and Certification:

Bachelor's Degree in Social Work from Boise State University

Biography:

Mandi was born in Philadelphia Pennsylvania and lived in Idaho from the time she was 9 years old. She completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work at Boise State University and in 2015, Mandi made her permanent residence in Springfield, Oregon.

Her passion has always been to help others and has held roles in Case Management and Advocacy positions to assist with mental health, developmental services, substance abuse, recovery, and trauma work.

At Orchid, she hopes to provide hope and support to those that are in need of assistance. When Mandi is not working at Orchid she enjoys spending time with her family,painting, crafting, being outdoors with her dogs, taking pictures, and playing video games.

Education and Certification:

BS in Biology/Pre-Med, University of Pittsburgh. ASCP-BB certified

Biography:

Robert (Bob) grew up in Pittsburgh, PA, and moved to Eugene, OR in April of 2020. He worked in transfusion medicine, managing 7 different hospitals, and various non-profits for over 20yrs before following his heart and moving to the West Coast. Bob hopes to bring his love for non-profits and 20yrs of management experience to the team and help bring about change in rural healthcare to his new community. He loves the idea of initiating programs directed towards the developmental need of each community. Bob understands that key factors to that growth are community involvement and leadership support since starting his own non-profit in March of 2017.

When Bob is away from work, he focuses on his love for his family and the outdoors by hiking, camping, kayaking, floating the river, and enjoying all the sites Oregon has to offer. He also loves to fill up his time by tapping into his artistic side; drawing, painting and taking pictures of all the beautiful landscapes. Bob loves to spend time with his dogs and works on growing and expanding his own non-profit, KBs Chemo Care Kits.

Biography:

A graduate of the University of Oregon Business School, Orion has served as a consultant for several local businesses, was named the 2013 Oregon Student Impact Entrepreneur of the Year by Portland State University, and was awarded as a Freeman Fellow while working on a healthcare project in Cambodia. His passion for improving the healthcare system stems from his experiences growing up in a rural Alaska, and the opportunity for large-scale positive impact.

Specialty:

MD, pediatrician, and supervising physicians

Clinical Interests:

general pediatric, developmental and behavioral pediatric, and children’s kidney Health

Languages:

English

Education and Certification:

Bachelor of Science from Stanford University, MD from Penn State & residency at OHSU at pediatrics

Biography:

Dr. Marty Grasmeder grew up in Philadelphia and moved out to the west coast with his family while entering college. Upon his move, he was accepted into Stanford University where he got his degree in Biology, followed by earning his MD from Penn State University.

After his university, Dr. Grasmeder held a residency in pediatrics at OHSU. Dr. Grasmeder did his fellowship in children's kidneys at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

Later in his career, Dr. Grasmeder decided to expand his calling and took a role as a Pediatrician in Sika, Alaska. His service extended to local indigenous tribes and he was the only pediatrician on an island town of 8,500. His career grew and flourished while in Alaska, however, his heart was in the Northwest.

After nearly 20 years serving rural populations in Alaska, Dr. Grasmeder returned to the west coast as Multnomah County’s Medical Director. His impact at the county lasted for nearly 7 years until he semi-retired.

Now he is returning to his roots in rural healthcare to help expand care for everyone and to improve the social fabric and network to help people thrive in their communities while creating healthy communities.

When Dr. Grasmeder is not working; he enjoys spending his time fishing, learning about European history, spending time with his family and children, riding bikes, and woodworking.

Biography:

Jennifer is a native Oregonian who grew up in a community much like Estacada. After working for over 20 years in large healthcare systems, she is excited to have joined Orchid Health where she can bring her experience to have a direct impact to the community in a more personal way. Her passion is for enhancing the patient experience through improving processes, eliminating obstacles to care, and building quality healthcare teams.

When she's not working, Jennifer enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, dancing, and loves basketball. Jennifer and her daughter often give back to the community by volunteering serving meals and other community service projects.

Biography:

Before joining Orchid he has worked in many various roles within Community Health Clinics and also more recently an insurance organization. Hobbies include, bowling, hiking and generally being outdoors. He has a love for dogs.

Biography:

Eric is a creative leader, committed to helping ambitious, purpose-driven leaders and organizations build better futures. He was in the audience at PSU’s social impact conference in 2013 when Orion and his co-founder pitched the idea that became Orchid, and is thrilled to join the Orchid family in 2022!

A graduate of M.I.T. and Stanford, Eric worked for over twenty years as a design and innovation consultant helping to envision and launch new products, services, and consumer experiences. He led multi-disciplinary teams whose work was recognized with numerous national and international awards for research, strategy, and design of commercial, medical, and consumer products.

Most recently Eric worked at Cambia Health Solutions as part of an innovation team that launched transparency tools and bill payment services to help consumers navigate our increasingly complex healthcare system.

Eric is an active board member, bringing his expertise in brand and experience innovation to support social impact organizations in the areas of sustainability and education. Outside of work, Eric enjoys playing music with friends, rehabbing his aging body to play ultimate, and trying to be useful to his now adult children.