Meet Our Team

ETH Board of Directors
Empower Through Health is proud to have a dedicated and diverse Board of Directors committed to advancing the organization's mission of improving healthcare access and outcomes in underserved communities around the world. The Board is comprised of individuals with extensive experience in healthcare, public health, international development, and business, bringing a wealth of knowledge and expertise to guide the organization's strategic direction.

Board Secretary
Scott Blackwell, MD
Scott first became involved with ETH in 2018, when he spent a year working as Field Director to open and operate Mpunde Health Center. Inspired by his time in Uganda, he has worked ever since to fulfill the mission of ETH and fight for global equity and justice. Scott continued his involvement throughout his medical school training and became ETH's Executive Director in 2022. Since then, he has pushed the organization to new heights by Directing the 2023 GHEF with a record number of students. Scott is a Psychiatry resident at the University of Alabama where he aims to pursue an academic career in global mental health. He was born in Nashville, TN and enjoys creating music, playing pool, and backpacking in his free time.

Director
George Hoganson, MD
George is passionate about improving the health of individuals and populations, both locally and internationally, by working to ensure each person and community has the opportunity to reach their full potential. He has led collaborative, multidisciplinary and multi-institutional research projects across a variety of settings and disciplines, including pediatrics, infectious disease, global health, emergency medicine, aging, neurology and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as provided strategic direction, governance and organizational development to non-profit organizations. He is currently a clinical fellow in the Department of Pediatrics at Washington University in St. Louis and committed to working to help ETH serve others through collaboration, innovation and service.

Director
Maria Kim, MD
For the last fifteen years, Maria has served as a pediatrician, researcher, and public health advocate in Malawi. As Co-Founding Director of Tingathe, a program aimed at improving the lives of families affected by HIV, she significantly impacted healthcare in Malawi, with her efforts extending to over 120 facilities. Her leadership led to the emergence of groundbreaking studies in areas like adolescent depression and healthcare worker burnout. She also played a crucial role as the Research and Implementation Director for a USAID funded program, which improved HIV care policies and practices across nine Sub-Saharan African countries. Now, with her further training in psychiatry, she aspires to pioneer innovative interventions and enhance access to essential mental health services worldwide.

Co-Founder, Executive Director, & Board Chairperson
Yang Jae Lee, MD
Jae was the first medical student to gain acceptance to the McDonnell Scholars Academy at Washington University in St. Louis. Jae has lived in 11 places on three continents, and this exposure has motivated him to solve problems in global health inequity. He connected to the Busoga region of Uganda through a malaria research project he undertook in 2015. Jae has since contributed to Ugandan healthcare initiatives by creating a business plan for a maternal hospital, publishing award-winning medical journalism through the Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting, and devising or collaborating on original ground-breaking research in emergency medicine, gynecology, infectious diseases, immunization, and gastroenterology. Jae believes unequivocally that all lives are equally valuable.

Board Treasurer
Roshan Sivakumar
Roshan Sivakumar is a graduate (2021) of Washington University in St. Louis, where he studied Microbiology and the university's ETH Chapter. While he plans to pursue an M.D. following his two gap years, Roshan has a strong passion for global health and intends to remain closely involved with ETH even after he leaves Uganda and enters medical school. Outside of work and school, Roshan enjoys hiking, playing guitar, and cooking.

Vice-Chairperson, Co-Founder & Director
Ibrahim Ssekalo, MPH
Ibrahim Ssekalo is a Global Health specialist. He has implemented and overseen various health interventions both as ETH-U's Executive Director, and as a Manager for McNeil Medical Center. He is currently completing his PhD in Maternal and Child Health at the University of Bern, Switzerland. Ibrahim obtained his bachelor’s degree in Community Health from Uganda Christian University. He also holds a Master’s degree in International Public Health from Uppsala University, Sweden. Ibrahim possesses strong analytical skills for creating programming for subjects such as reproductive and adolescent health, diarrhea prevention, HIV/AIDS mainstreaming and gender-based violence. Ibrahim loves to read, play chess, and travel.

Director
Peter Waiswa, MBChB, MPH, PhD
Hailing from the Busoga Region of eastern Uganda, Dr. Peter Waiswa is a renowned Ugandan medical doctor and researcher who has made significant contributions to the field of maternal-newborn-child health and health systems. He is an associate professor at Makerere University College of Health Sciences, and has led several innovative initiatives that aim to improve newborn health and development in low- and middle-income countries , using evidence-based approaches and community engagement. He has also served as an advisor for various global organizations such as the World Health Organization, UNICEF, Save the Children and others on maternal-newborn-child health issues.
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Director
Merlin Wilcox, BM BCh
Dr. Merlin Willcox is a Clinical Researcher at the University of Oxford and a General Practitioner in Oxford, UK. His research centers on improving global health, particularly in primary health care for disadvantaged populations and traditional medicine. Dr. Willcox has pioneered several clinical trials involving herbal medicines in various countries and co-founded the Research Initiative on Traditional Antimalarial Methods (RITAM). Currently, he is working on two projects: HURAPRIM, focusing on Human Resources for Primary Care in Africa, and MUTHI, a multidisciplinary initiative for traditional health. In his spare time, Dr. Willcox devotes his efforts to a local health center for the homeless in Oxford.
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