STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3481

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    GOV. MSG. NOS. 683, 684, 685, 686, 687

 

 

 

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2014

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Higher Education, to which was referred Governor's Message Nos. 683, 684, 685, 686, and 687, submitting for study and consideration the nominations of: 

 

Hawaii Medical Education Council

 

G.M. No. 683

VICKI MCMANUS,

for a term to expire 6-30-2017;

 

G.M. No. 684

KENNETH ROBBINS,

for a term to expire 6-30-2017;

 

G.M. No. 685

SHARON VITOUSEK,

for a term to expire 6-30-2017;

 

G.M. No. 686

ALLEN HIXON,

for a term to expire 6-30-2017; and

 

G.M. No. 687

WILLIAM DUBBS,

for a term to expire 6-30-2015,

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     Your Committee has reviewed the personal histories, resumes, and statements submitted by the nominees and finds Vicki McManus, Kenneth Robbins, Sharon Vitousek, Allen Hixon, and William Dubbs to possess the requisite qualifications to be nominated to the Hawaii Medical Education Council.

 


VICKI MCMANUS

 

     Your Committee did not receive testimony on the nomination of Vicki McManus.

 

     Your Committee finds that Ms. McManus received a Bachelor's degree in Food Science and Nutrition from San Francisco State University.

 

     Ms. McManus is currently the Manager of Millberry Creek, LLC, a real estate management company that manages long-term and vacation rental properties.  She is also a Partner in Palm Records, Inc., which provides business and technical support to other small businesses in the record industry.  She is also a Trustee of the DeDomenico Trust, managing the Trust's real estate holdings.

 

     As a resident of the Island of Hawaii, Ms. McManus has first-hand experience with the shortage of physicians in rural areas.  Ms. McManus is a strong proponent of physician training and residency programs on the neighbor islands.

 

     Ms. McManus' business and entrepreneurial background will continue to provide the Hawaii Medical Education Council with a perspective that is different and unique from most other Council members in the health care field.

 

KENNETH ROBBINS

 

     Your Committee did not receive testimony on the nomination of Kenneth Robbins.

 

     Your Committee finds that Dr. Robbins received a Bachelor's degree in Biology from Stanford University.  He received his Medical Doctor degree from the University of California at San Diego School of Medicine.

 

     Dr. Robbins is currently the Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Hawaii Pacific Health.  Prior to his administrative career, Dr. Robbins was a full-time practicing pediatrician at Straub Clinic and Hospital.  He previously held a full-time position on the Pediatric Faculty at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine and continues to teach pediatric residents as an Associate Clinical Professor of Pediatrics.

 

     In his position with Hawaii Pacific Health, Dr. Robbins is directly responsible for overseeing the recruitment of physicians for Hawaii Pacific Health's hospitals and medical groups.  He has been active in physician recruitment activities in Hawaii for the last ten years. 

 

     Dr. Robbins' experience and knowledge relating to physician recruitment and medical education and residency, as well as his clinical and management experience, make him an ideal member of the Hawaii Medical Education Council.

 

SHARON VITOUSEK

 

     Your Committee did not receive testimony on the nomination of Sharon Vitousek.

 

     Your Committee finds that Dr. Vitousek received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Williams College.  She received her Medical Doctor degree from the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine.

 

     Dr. Vitousek is the North Hawaii Outcomes Project Director for the Earl and Doris Bakken Foundation.  Prior to this, Dr. Vitousek served as the Medical Director of Hawaii Health Information Corporation and as a physician in private practice.  Dr. Vitousek has also served as a faculty member at the John A. Burns School of Medicine and as an Attending Physician at The Queen's Medical Center.

 

     Dr. Vitousek is a founding board member of the North Hawaii Community Hospital, helping to obtain millions of dollars in grant monies to establish the hospital.  She is also a founding board member of North Hawaii Women and Children's Services (now known as Hawaii Learning Resource), whose mission is to increase access for local students and professionals to recent advancements in identifying, assessing, and effectively supporting local students with learning differences.

 

     Dr. Vitousek has been a community leader on the Island of Hawaii in the areas of access to medical care and addressing the physician and health provider shortage.  She is a strong proponent of providing training and residency programs on the neighbor islands.  Her knowledge in the area of graduate medical education in rural areas continues to make her a valuable asset to the Hawaii Medical Education Council.

 

ALLEN HIXON

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of the nomination of Allen Hixon from three individuals.

 

     Your Committee finds that Dr. Hixon received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology/Anthropology from Middlebury College.  He received his Master of Arts degree in International Training from the School of International Service at American University.  Dr. Hixon went on to receive his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Connecticut.

 

     Dr. Hixon has had a long career as a medical doctor since earning his Doctor of Medicine in 1994.  He is currently the Chair of the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine.  He also serves as an Associate Professor.  He previously served as the Residency Director of the Family Medicine Residency Program at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine.

 

     Dr. Hixon has been awarded a number of grants relating to health care and community medicine and has worked with the Legislature to provide funding to develop a statewide health care rural training network and to support the residency program at the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine to help address the severe shortage of primary care health providers in the State.

 

     Dr. Hixon's experience and involvement in medical education from the perspective of a health care provider and as the former Residency Director of the Family Medicine Residency Program at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine will make him an asset to the Hawaii Medical Education Council.

 

WILLIAM DUBBS

 

     Your Committee did not receive testimony on the nomination of William Dubbs.

 

     Your Committee finds that Dr. Dubbs received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Phillips University.  He went on to receive his Master of Science degree from Oklahoma State University.  He received his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Nebraska.

 

     Dr. Dubbs began his medical career as an Intern with the Naval Hospital in San Diego, California.  He went on to serve as a General Surgery Resident and Cardiothoracic Surgery Resident at the Naval Hospital in San Diego.  He also served as a Fellow in Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of California, San Diego.

 

     Dr. Dubbs also served as a surgeon in private practice in San Diego and Oklahoma.  He was also the Medical Director of the Cherokee National Indian Clinic and Director of the Cookson Hills Rural Health Clinic, both in Oklahoma.

 

     Dr. Dubbs is currently the Chief of Staff at the Veterans Affairs Pacific Island Health Care System.

 

     Dr. Dubbs' varied experience as a doctor with the Navy, in private practice, with Indian and rural health care, as well as with veterans, provide him with a unique perspective in helping the Hawaii Medical Education Council fulfill its mission.

 

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committee on Higher Education that are attached to this report, your Committee, after full consideration of the background, experience, and qualifications of the nominees, has found the nominees to be qualified for the positions to which nominated and recommends that the Senate advise and consent to the nominations.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Higher Education,

 

 

 

____________________________

BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair