Board of Directors

		Joel A. Stettner, M.D., is CEP’s Chairman of the Board. Dr. Stettner, a Diplomate of the American Board of Emergency Medicine and a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians, has been a Partner since 1978. He served on the CEP Board of Directors in the early 1980s and was the group’s Managing Partner from 1981 – 1998 and President of MedAmerica from 1981 - 1997. He is a Past President of the California Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians (Cal/ACEP), has held a number of committee positions with national ACEP, and has been a member of the Alameda County EMS Council and Chairman of the County Medical Review Panel. Dr. Stettner earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Doctorate of Medicine from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. He completed a rotating internship and a residency in Internal Medicine at Kaiser Foundation Hospital in Oakland. Currently, Dr. Stettner practices at the Alameda Hospital Emergency Care Center. He also serves on the MedAmerica Retirement and Benefits Committee and is a founding faculty member of the CEP Medical Directors Academy. In 2005, Dr. Stettner received CEP's Stewardship Award.   JoelStettner@cep.com
		Charles Deng, M.D., a Senior Partner and joined CEP in 1994. He is the Assistant Medical Director of the Emergency Department at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills, California. Dr. Deng received his medical degree from the University of Southern California. He completed an internship and residency in Emergency Medicine at the University of Southern California Medical Center. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Emergency Medicine and Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians. CharlesDeng@cep.com
		Wesley Fields, M.D., joined CEP in 1983 and has been practicing at Saddleback Memorial Medical Center for more than 20 years. A current member of the CEP Board of Directors, he is also a former Chairman of the Board. Dr. Fields is a Past President of CAL/ACEP, and the current Chairman of the Emergency Medicine Political Action Committee (EMPAC). He is also a member of the Clinical Faculty in Emergency Medicine at the University of California, Irvine. Dr. Fields has been published in a number of peer-reviewed journals, and serves as a reviewer for the Annals of Emergency Medicine. Dr. Fields is a Diplomate of the American Board of Emergency Medicine and a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians. He graduated from the College of Creative Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara and earned his medical degree from the University of Southern California. He completed his residency in Emergency Medicine at Harbor General Hospital/UCLA. Dr. Fields was most recently a recipient of the Ken Maddy Professional Advocacy Award from CAL/ACEP. WesFields@cep.com
		Howard Friedman, M.D., joined CEP in 1982 and is a staff physician at Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center. In addition to being a current member of the Board of Directors, Dr. Friedman is the former Chairman of the Credentials and Partner Affairs Committee (CPAC). He served in that role from 2001 - 2005 and was an active CPAC member since 1998. Dr. Friedman has also served as a member of the CEP Compliance Committee since 2000. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Zoology from the University of California, Santa Barbara, studied Physiology at the University of Southern California (USC), and earned his medical degree from the USC School of Medicine. Dr. Friedman completed a residency in Emergency Medicine at the Los Angeles County/USC Medical Center, where he was Chief Resident. Dr. Friedman is board certified in Emergency Medicine and a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Medicine. HowardFriedman@cep.com
		Theo Koury, M.D., has been a CEP Partner since 1997. In addition to serving on the Board, he is the Assistant Medical Director and Physician’s Assistant Program Director at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, California. Dr. Koury also previously acted as Chairman of CEP’s New Partner Committee. He attended the University of Southern California, where he obtained his bachelor’s degree in Biology, and earned his medical degree at the Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia. Dr. Koury completed his residency in emergency medicine at the Eastern Virginia Graduate School of Medicine in Norfolk, Virginia. He is a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians. TheoKoury@cep.com
		Edward Pillar, D.O., joined CEP in 1992. In addition to serving as a member of the Board of Directors, Dr. Pillar is the Medical Director at Inland Valley Medical Center. His work has been published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine, he coauthored the MedAmerica Phone Triage Guidelines, and he currently gives workshops, as well as resident lectures. Dr. Pillar received a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of California, Irvine, his PA-C certification and licensure from the University of Southern California (USC) School of Medicine, and his Doctor of Osteopathy from the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific. He completed his residency in Emergency Medicine at Loma Linda University Medical Center. Dr. Pillar is board certified in Emergency Medicine, a member the California Medical Association, the Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons of California, and a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians. He was previously Chairman of the CEP Checks and Balances Committee and a member of the CEP Contract Performance Improvement Committee. EdwardPillar@cep.com
		Jaime Rivas, M.D., joined CEP in 1996 and is a Full Partner. He is the Medical Director at both Palomar Medical Center in Escondido, CA and Pomerado Hospital in Poway, CA. Dr. Rivas also served as the start-up Medical Director at Pioneers Memorial Hospital in Brawley, CA, and received CEP’s San Diego Regional Physician of the Year award in 2000. He earned a Baccalaureate in Physiology at the University of California, San Diego and attended medical school at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), where he graduated with the honor of Excellence in Emergency Medicine. He also completed his Emergency Medicine residency at UIC. Dr. Rivas is a member of the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), CAL/ACEP, and a member of the Compensation Committee. In addition to being a current Board member, Dr. Rivas is also former Chairman of the Board Subcommittee on Ownership, where he helped develop equal ownership for all Partners. JaimeRivas@cep.com
		Barbara Victor, M.D., joined the CEP Partnership in 1999 and has held medical directorships in the emergency departments of Garden Grove Hospital and California Hospital. She completed her nursing degree at Harbor College, and practiced as a nurse for five years in the Emergency Department at Harbor UCLA Medical Center. She then went on to pursue her bachelor of arts in Biology at California State University, Long Beach. After much encouragement from her colleagues, Dr. Victor applied to medical school and attended Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts. She completed her residency in emergency medicine at Loma Linda University. Dr. Victor is board certified in emergency medicine. She serves on the Medical Executive Committee, Emergency Department Task Force, Patient Safety Committee, and Quality Improvement/Utilization Management Committee at Garden Grove Hospital. Dr. Victor participates in the CEP New Partnership and Compensation Committees, as well as RN/MD relations. She has also appeared on television as a representative speaker for the US government regarding nuclear, biological and chemical terrorism. BarbaraVictor@cep.com
		Ellis Weeker, M.D., F.A.C.E.P., is a founding Partner of CEP and has served on the Board of Directors since the beginning. He is the Regional Director of the CEP South and East Bay/Northern California region and a staff physician in the Emergency Department at Good Samaritan Hospital. Dr. Weeker is also a member of the Santa Clara County Medical Association. He received a Bachelor of Science from Tulane University and his medical degree from Louisiana State University Medical School in New Orleans. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at Kaiser Foundation and Highland General Hospitals in Oakland. He is a Diplomat of the American Board of Emergency Medicine and a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians. Dr. Weeker was also a recipient of CEP's 2005 Stewardship Award. EllisWeeker@cep.com