Navigating Information-Sharing and HIPAA in HVIPs: Considerations for effective implementation of community violence intervention
An effective hospital-based violence intervention program (HVIP) must work in concert with health system and community stakeholders to care for survivors of violence.
Join us for this webinar introducing a new brief designed to support HVIPs as they engage hospital leadership, legal counsel, community partners, and other key stakeholders. The brief serves as a practical tool to facilitate meaningful information-sharing and promote thoughtful, coordinated, and patient-centered care for people recovering from violent injury. We hope this brief becomes a trusted, shareable resource—offering concrete guidance and real-world support as HVIPs continue their critical, transformative work. Please scroll down to read more about the speakers for this event.
This work was funded by the Kaiser Permanente Center for Gun Violence Research and Education and The Stoneleigh Foundation and created in partnership with the Milken Institute School of Public Health at The George Washington University.
Speakers include:
Ruth Abaya, MD, MPH, is a Senior Clinical Advisor at the Kaiser Permanente Center for Gun Violence Research and Education and Senior Director of Health Systems and CVI Integration at the Health Alliance for Violence Intervention (HAVI). She is an attending physician in the Emergency Department at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), a Practice-Based Scholar at CHOP’s Center for Violence Prevention, and an associate professor of pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Previously, Dr. Abaya led the injury prevention program at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, where she oversaw the development of citywide program coalitions, including an HVIP coalition and a Cure Violence/Violence Interruption coalition. As a Stoneleigh Foundation Fellow, her work focuses on bringing health systems and public health departments into the work of developing the CVI ecosystem.
Lara Cartwright-Smith, JD, MPH, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health. In addition to teaching health policy courses and directing the MPH program in health policy, Professor Cartwright-Smith maintains a research portfolio focusing on translation of technical policy and legal issues into meaningful tools for diverse audiences. Her recent work has focused on health information policy, particularly breaking down real and perceived barriers to sharing health information to support care coordination, patient engagement, equity, and public health.
Liza Chowdhury, PhD, is the Executive Director of Reimagining Justice Inc. and the Paterson Healing Collective (PHC), a nationally recognized hospital-based violence intervention program (HVIP) in partnership with St. Joseph’s University Medical Center. A respected leader in community violence intervention (CVI), Dr. Chowdhury has built PHC into a model of public safety and community healing that provides trauma-informed crisis response, case management, and advocacy for survivors of gun violence, domestic violence, and sexual assault. Under her leadership, PHC has expanded county-wide services, developed a multidisciplinary crisis response team, and created youth empowerment initiatives that address the root causes of violence.
Joe Kim is Associate Director of Communities of Practice at the Health Alliance for Violence Intervention (HAVI). He joined the HAVI with more than 10 years of experience working in youth development and violence intervention, including his previous role as community health director at RYSE Center, a community-based youth services organization in Richmond, California. Joe played an integral role in the development of a hospital-based violence intervention program that serves youth in West Contra Costa County. Joe is passionate about partnering with communities to create innovative, healing-centered approaches to violence intervention.
Sherah Liverpool is Associate Director in the Communities of Practice Division at the Health Alliance for Violence Intervention (HAVI). Sherah plays a critical role in developing and sustaining comprehensive technical assistance for HAVI clients as part of a broader national and international capacity-building framework. She brings deep experience within the U.S. healthcare system, particularly in supporting hospital-based violence intervention programs (HVIPs), and in designing training initiatives grounded in health equity. Sherah collaborates closely with a wide range of stakeholders across the violence intervention ecosystem, providing strategic guidance to strengthen and scale emerging programs.
Kenneth Morris, Jr., MHA, MA, serves as the Vice President of External Affairs at St. Joseph’s Health, responsible for overseeing external relations across the system’s campuses in Paterson, Wayne, and Totowa, New Jersey. In this role, he manages Government Affairs, Community Outreach and Engagement, the System’s Regional Health Coalition, the Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Program, and WIC, as well as a portfolio of the System’s real estate holdings. Over his 45-year career at St. Joseph’s Health, Ken has developed programs to enhance healthcare access for underprivileged residents in Passaic County. Notably, he spearheaded creating the first supportive affordable housing development in New Jersey, addressing social determinants of health. Ken’s strong leadership has played a pivotal role in revitalizing the area surrounding the medical center. Collaborating with local developers, he has facilitated the creation of jobs, housing, and economic opportunities, contributing to restoring the South Paterson Business district.