Advanced Practice Provider Program
What is the APP Program?
McGovern Medical School’s Division of Critical Care Medicine has established an Advanced Practice Provider (APP) program that supports and provides intensive care to our critically ill patients.
Our Acute-Care Nurse Practitioners (NP) and Certified Physician Assistants (PA) comprise a dynamic APP team that functions under the leadership of its medical director, Pratik Doshi, MD. The APP team provides round-the-clock care to our heart and abdominal transplant programs as well as our cardiovascular medicine and surgery services with their shift-based presence in several intensive care units and acute care wards. These APPs perform all the duties of their physician counterparts, including patient evaluation and management, procedures, case presentations, communication and coordination of care among teams, admissions and discharges, billing, and education.
Drawing on their wide range of medical backgrounds and knowledge, we have brought together a unique and strong group of APPs from not just the state of Texas, but across the United States. In addition, our APPs provide preceptorship and mentorship to NP students from various other universities, including the University of Texas and Texas Women’s University in an effort to promote and educate tomorrow’s APPs. Locally, our APPs have been proactive in providing education and training to our ICU nursing staff and physician trainees.
Scroll down to “meet” our APP team below!
Texas Medical Center
Yewande Adesanya, MSN, CCRN, ACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – Texas Woman’s University – Houston, TX
- MSN -Texas Woman’s University – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- Critical Care Registered Nurse
- ANCC – Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Ellery Arellano, MSN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston, TX
- MSN – Texas Woman’s University – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Mark Everitt, MSN, ACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN-University Of Texas – Galveston, TX
- MSN-University Of Texas – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- ACNP – Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Samantha Garcia, MSN, DNP, FNP-BC, ACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – Texas Tech University Health Science Center – Lubbock, TX
- MSN – University of Texas at Tyler – Tyler, TX
- DNP – University of Texas at Arlington – Arlington, TX
Certifications:
- ANCC – Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
- ANCC – Family Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
- ENP – Emergency Nurse Practitioner Certification
Cassie Garcia, MSN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston, TX
- MSN – The University of Texas Health and Science Center at Houston – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner – Board Certified
Cathleen Gentry, MSN, AGACNP – BC
Education:
- BSN – Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi, TX
- MSN – Texas Woman’s University – Houston, TX
Certification:
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner – Board Certified
Allison Harse, MSN, CCRN, ACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN-Texas Women’s University, Houston, TX
- MSN-Texas Women’s University, Houston, TX
Certifications:
- ANCC – Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
- Critical Care Registered Nurse
Vanessa Marin, PA-C
Education:
- BS in Nutritional Sciences- The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
- Master of Physician Assistant Studies- University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX
Certifications:
- Texas Physician Assistant Board
- National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants
Minerva Montemayor, MSN, DNP, ACNP-BC, FNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – University of the City of Manila – Manilla, Philippines
- MSN – Texas A& M University – Corpus Christi, Texas
- DNP – DeVry University, Chamberlin College of Nursing
Certifications:
- ANCC – Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
- ANCC – Family Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Sherin Thomas, MBA, MSN, FNP-C
Education:
- BSN – University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston, TX
- MSN – Texas Women’s University – Houston, TX
- MBA – Texas Women’s University – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- AANP – Family Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Memorial Hermann – Southwest
Deandra’ Chambliss MSN, CCRN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston, TX
- MSN – University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston, TX
Certifications:
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
- CCRN – Critical Care Registered Nurse
Sylvia Akonnor, MSN, APRN, FNP-C, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – University of North Carolina – Greensboro, NC
- MSN – Texas Tech University of Health Science – Lubbock, TX
Certifications:
- AANP – Family Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Elias Cortez-Guadiano, MSN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston, TX
- MSN – The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Odochi Ariwodo, MSN, CCRN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – Brenau University – Gainesville, GA
- MSN – Grand Canyon University – Phoenix, AZ
Certifications:
- CCRN – Critical Care Registered Nurse
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Rocio Serpa, MSN, APRN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – National University of Colombia – Bogota, Colombia
- MSN – The University of Texas Health and Science Center – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Alese Henderson, MSN, APRN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – Texas Tech University – Lubbock, TX
- MSN – The University of Texas Health and Science Center – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- APRN – Advanced Practice Registered Nurse
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Barsha Ghimire, MSN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – University of Texas at Arlington – Arlington, TX
- MSN – The University of Texas Health and Science Center – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Shirin Ronald, MSN, CCRN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – American Sentinel University – Aurora, CO
- MSN – Texas Women’s University – Houston, TX
Certifications:
- CCRN – Critical Care Registered Nurse
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Memorial Hermann – Pearland
Rita Patel, MSN, CCRN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – Lamar University – Beaumont, TX
- MSN – The University of Texas at Arlington – Arlington, TX
Certifications:
- CCRN – Critical Care Registered Nurse
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Bincy Varughese, MSN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – Christian Medical College & Hospital – Ludhiana, Punjab, India
- MSN – Duke University School of Nursing – Durham, NC
Certifications:
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified
Arulkumar Gunasekaran MSN, CCRN, AGACNP-BC
Education:
- BSN – RVS College of Nursing – Coimbatore, India
- MSN – Walden University – Minneapolis, MN
Certifications:
- CCRN – Critical Care Registered Nurse
- ANCC – Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified