SACPR | Board of Directors
PRESIDENT | Dr. Megan Hays
Dr. Hays is a clinical psychologist and assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB) School of Medicine. She holds a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of South Florida. She also has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Romance Languages from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She completed an internship in clinical psychology at the UAB/Birmingham Veterans Affairs Medical Center Psychology Training Consortium. Her specialties include psychosocial difficulties during cardiopulmonary rehabilitation and helping patients cope following medical trauma.
She provides behavioral health services for the UAB Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation Program, including behavioral consults, individual psychotherapy, support groups, and classes on cognitive-behavioral strategies for stress and weight management. She is a member of AACVPR and currently serves as a member of the AACVPR Psychosocial and Nutrition Experts Group as well as the Annual Meeting Planning Committee.
mmcmurray@uabmc.edu
She provides behavioral health services for the UAB Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation Program, including behavioral consults, individual psychotherapy, support groups, and classes on cognitive-behavioral strategies for stress and weight management. She is a member of AACVPR and currently serves as a member of the AACVPR Psychosocial and Nutrition Experts Group as well as the Annual Meeting Planning Committee.
mmcmurray@uabmc.edu
PRESIDENT - ELECT | Sylvia Dunn
Sylvia Dunn is a Registered Nurse at Baptist Medical Center South in Montgomery, AL. She has been with Baptist Health since May of 2004. Sylvia has held several positions during this time. She received her associate degree at Troy University in Montgomery in 2005. She earned her CVRN certification in 2013 from the American Board of Cardiovascular Medicine. Prior to her nursing career, Sylvia was a zookeeper for 11 years.
Sylvia is a member of American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR). She is married and has three grown children and one granddaughter. She enjoys the outdoors, gardening and traveling. Cardiac Rehabilitation is her passion as she is a bypass survivor herself.
sddunn@baptistfirst.org
Sylvia is a member of American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR). She is married and has three grown children and one granddaughter. She enjoys the outdoors, gardening and traveling. Cardiac Rehabilitation is her passion as she is a bypass survivor herself.
sddunn@baptistfirst.org
PAST PRESIDENT | Samuel Sneed
Samuel Sneed is an Exercise Physiologist at Huntsville Hospital (HH) in Huntsville, AL and has been there since the Fall of 2019. Prior to working at HH, Sam worked at East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika, AL and Verde Valley Medical Center in Cottonwood, AZ for 3.5 years each. While at VVMC, he lead the charge in obtaining AACVPR program certification for the hospital and while at EAMC he assisted in and helped achieve program re-certification.
Sam earned his BS degree in Exercise Science at the University of West Alabama and his MS degree in Exercise Physiology at the University of Louisiana Monroe. Sam is a member of both the ACSM and AACVPR organizations.
samuel.sneed@hhsys.org
Sam earned his BS degree in Exercise Science at the University of West Alabama and his MS degree in Exercise Physiology at the University of Louisiana Monroe. Sam is a member of both the ACSM and AACVPR organizations.
samuel.sneed@hhsys.org
MEMBER - AT - LARGE | Jordan Howe, MS, BSN, RN, CCRP
Jordan is the Director of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation at North Mississippi Medical Center (NMMC) in Tupelo, MS, and has been working with this team the past four years. She holds a B.S. and M.S. in Exercise Science from the University of Mississippi, as well attaining an Accelerated BSN from the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
Prior to moving into the role of Director, she developed and served in the department's Liaison role, assisting patients with outpatient recruitment and insurance authorization. She maintains membership with the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR) and holds current Certified Cardiac Rehabilitation Professional (CCRP) certification.
jnbrown@nmhs.net
Prior to moving into the role of Director, she developed and served in the department's Liaison role, assisting patients with outpatient recruitment and insurance authorization. She maintains membership with the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR) and holds current Certified Cardiac Rehabilitation Professional (CCRP) certification.
jnbrown@nmhs.net
TREASURER | Lori Walters, BSN, RN
Lori is a Registered Nurse currently employed with Huntsville Hospital in the Cardiac Rehab Department since 2013. She graduated with a BSN from The University of North Alabama in 1998. Her background includes roles as a staff nurse for family practice and cardiac step down unit. She just celebrated her 20th anniversary with Huntsville Hospital.
She is a member of American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR). She is married and has a standard poodle. She enjoys living downtown Huntsville, hiking in the mountains and visiting New Orleans. She enjoys working in Cardiac Rehab and encouraging others to get moving.
lori.walters@hhsys.org
She is a member of American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR). She is married and has a standard poodle. She enjoys living downtown Huntsville, hiking in the mountains and visiting New Orleans. She enjoys working in Cardiac Rehab and encouraging others to get moving.
lori.walters@hhsys.org
STATE REP - ALABAMA | Kathe Briggs, MS, ACSM - CEP, FAACVPR
Kathe is a Past President of the Southern Association for Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation and currently serves on the SACPR Board as the Alabama State Representative. She is on the AACVPR Membership and Affiliate Relations Committee and has served on the AACVPR Leadership Committee. Kathe works for East Alabama Health as Director of Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Services at East Alabama Medical Center (EAMC) in Opelika Alabama. In this role, she manages multiple programs including inpatient and outpatient cardiac rehabilitation, heart failure telehealth services, and outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation.
Since coming to EAMC in mid-1999, Kathe has managed many different outpatient departments and physician practices, along with implementing tobacco cessation, pulmonary rehabilitation, medical nutrition therapy and diabetes disease management services, and achieved ongoing AACVPR program certification for the EAMC cardiac rehabilitation services since 2000. For 11 years she managed the hospital’s diabetes and clinical nutrition services and led a multidisciplinary hospital team that successfully achieved Advanced Inpatient Diabetes Certification by the Joint Commission. She also serves as a board member for the Alabama Wellness Alliance (formerly the Alabama Obesity Task Force) and co-wrote an Alabama Physical Activity and Nutrition Plan.
Since coming to EAMC in mid-1999, Kathe has managed many different outpatient departments and physician practices, along with implementing tobacco cessation, pulmonary rehabilitation, medical nutrition therapy and diabetes disease management services, and achieved ongoing AACVPR program certification for the EAMC cardiac rehabilitation services since 2000. For 11 years she managed the hospital’s diabetes and clinical nutrition services and led a multidisciplinary hospital team that successfully achieved Advanced Inpatient Diabetes Certification by the Joint Commission. She also serves as a board member for the Alabama Wellness Alliance (formerly the Alabama Obesity Task Force) and co-wrote an Alabama Physical Activity and Nutrition Plan.
STATE REP - MISSISSIPPI | Jeanne Carlson, MS, BSN
Jeanne is the Director of CardioPulmonary Rehabilitation and Outpatient Nutrition at the LiveWell Center at Forrest General Hospital in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. She has her BS degree in nursing and her master’s degree in exercise physiology, both from the University of Southern Mississippi. Her nursing background is in orthopaedics and cardiac/telemetry for 8 years at Forrest General Hospital, and then with Cardiopulmonary Rehab for 11 years before becoming Director in 2005 until the present. At LiveWell she works to promote secondary prevention, especially cardiovascular risk factors. She is frequently asked to speak at community and hospital events with regard to those risk factors and management of them.
She is a member of American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR), She is also serving as a board member, presently the Member at Large, for the regional organization Southern Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (SACPR). She is on the advisory board for Spirit of Women – a national organization that focuses on promoting women’s health.
Jeanne has previously served as President for SACPR.
jcarlson@forrestgeneral.com
She is a member of American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR), She is also serving as a board member, presently the Member at Large, for the regional organization Southern Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (SACPR). She is on the advisory board for Spirit of Women – a national organization that focuses on promoting women’s health.
Jeanne has previously served as President for SACPR.
jcarlson@forrestgeneral.com