Biographical Summary of Executive Leadership Team

Lee Francis, MD, MPH, CEO/President
Dr. Francis joined Erie's staff in 1991. Before training in Primary Care
Internal Medicine at Cook County Hospital in Chicago, he attended the
University of Illinois College of Medicine. Prior to assuming his present
position, Dr. Francis spent ten years dividing his time between Cook
County Hospital, and Erie, where the internal medicine practice includes
women’s health, AIDS and geriatrics in a primarily Latino population.

David R. Buchanan, M.D., M.S., Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Buchanan joined Erie in February 2008 as the Chief Medical Officer and a general internist. Prior to this, he was the Section Head for Social Medicine at John Stroger Hospital of Cook County (formerly Cook County Hospital) for five years. He also previously served as the Medical Director for two homeless shelters from 2001 to 2008. Dr. Buchanan completed a residency program in Primary Care Internal Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco in 1999, after completing an undergraduate degree in Economics at MIT and a medical degree at the University of Chicago. He also completed a Master of Science in Clinical Research at Rush University in 2007.  His past work includes the development and evaluation of curriculum regarding the clinical care of people experiencing homelessness.  His work as an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Northwestern University focuses on the health and economic impact of housing homeless individuals, and on quality improvement in the primary care setting. 

Zizi Atia, Chief Financial Officer/Controller
Ms. Atia is a health care senior level financial professional who brings over 30 years of experience in hospitals, managed care and physician practices. Zizi's particular strengths are in healthcare reimbursement, decision support, managed care and revenue cycle management, in addition to her excellent leadership ability and analytical problem solving skills. She has completed courses towards her MBA at Governor State University in Park Forest, Illinois and has an outstanding track record of restoring financial viability of community based hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals and corporate practices.

Luz Jimenez, RN, Vice President, Clinical Operations
Ms. Jimenez joined Erie Family Health Center in 2000.  With a strong commitment to clinical quality and 24 years of clinical experience, Ms. Jimenez served as the Director of Health Center Operations at Erie West Town from 2001-2007. Her superb clinical and management skills recently lead to the successful implementation of an Electronic Health Records System at Erie’s largest site. Ms. Jimenez has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Degree from North Park University.

Iliana A. Mora, MUPP, Vice President, Development and
Community Relations
Ms. Mora has a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Development
and Economics from The George Washington University and a Master of Urban Planning and Policy from the University of Illinois. Prior to Erie, Ms. Mora conducted Latino-focused research at the University of Illinois’ Great Cities Institute and Center for Urban Economic Development. Previous to that, she managed Fortune 500 International accounts for the Midwest Region at the Chubb Group.

Ghassan Souri , DDS, Vice President, Oral Health Services
Dr . Souri, DDS joined Erie in 2005 as the Vice President, Oral Health Services to open Erie’s first oral health clinic located at Erie Helping Hands Health Center in Albany Park.  Dr. Souri was previously the Dental Director at the Infant Welfare Society.   Dr. Souri received his degree in dentistry from the Damascus University School of Dentistry in Syria and took postgraduate studies at Loyola University School of Dentistry.  He also completed a pediatric dentistry residency at Mott Children’s Health Center/Hurley Medical Center in Flint, Michigan. In 1999, Dr. Souri became a Diplomate of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry.