Dr. Andre Cipta serves as the Program Director of the Kaiser Permanente Palliative Medicine Fellowship, Founding Director of the Kaiser Permanente Palliative Medicine Mid-Career Fellowship, Palliative Medicine Clerkship Director at the Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine, and Associate Medical Director of the Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Hospice Agency. He is board-certified in Family Medicine and Hospice and Palliative Medicine. He is a recipient of the 2022 American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine Leadership Scholar Award and holds the rank of Assistant Clinical Professor at the Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine.

His interest in serving those in need led him to study Social Welfare at the University of California at Berkeley, spend a year at the Master’s Seminary, and complete a Palliative Medicine Fellowship at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). As a palliative medicine physician, he finds profound meaning in supporting those living with advanced illness. He is passionate about training future generations of clinicians to further optimize the care of the seriously ill.

Dr. Cipta has a particular interest in innovation. As Fellowship Director, he created an innovative mid-career fellowship track in collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania through the ACGME Advancing Innovation in Residency Education (AIRE) program. He expanded the program from two to four fellowship positions (two traditional, two mid-career), which is embedded in a unique, longitudinal curriculum spanning across palliative care settings. He created the Palliative Extubation Simulation-Based Formative Activity for both graduate and undergraduate medical learners, and co-created a novel wellness curriculum entitled “iRISE (Initiative for Resiliency Self-care and Empathy) which was awarded an innovations grant and presented at numerous national conferences.

His research interests lie primarily in exploring the role of spirituality in optimizing whole-person, patient-centered care, which led him to train at Loma Linda University Medical Center and Glendale Adventist Medical Center for medical school and residency, respectively. He was awarded the Christian Academic Physicians and Scientists Faith and Medicine Research Fellowship Award and most recently published on the topic of spiritual distress in serious illness in the BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care.

Dr. Cipta serves as a deacon at Immanuel Bible Church in Los Angeles, CA.

Nicholas is President and Professor of INMED, the Institute for International Medicine. He is also part-time faculty at the Research Medical Center Family Medicine Residency. Over a two-year period, Dr. Comninellis served inner-city citizens at Shanghai Charity Hospital. Over another two years, he led a healthcare ministry in the war-besieged nation of Angola in southern Africa. Dr. Comninellis next served for six years in the Kansas City public hospital before launching INMED in 2003. Dr. Comninellis is a classical guitarist and faculty advisor for Cru at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Hobart Lee, MD FAAFP, is an associate professor of family medicine in the School of Medicine at the Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, California. He is a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians and the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine. Dr. Lee received his B.A.S. degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his MD from the Perelman School of Medicine. Dr. Lee has published on the subject of work-life balance and has taught on whole person care at Loma Linda University for 16 years. In addition, he has spoken on work-life balance at national conferences and previously at Remedy West.

Janet is a Clinical Instructor of Medicine and Pediatrics at UCLA. She serves as the faculty advisor for the CMDA student group at UCLA.

Bob Mason, MDiv has been equipping healthcare professionals and students to provide spiritual care to their patients for 30 years.  Bob serves with Cru and is on special assignment with Medical Strategic Network.  He holds an adjunct faculty appointment at Loma Linda University School of Medicine and is also the Director of Spiritual Care Training for the family medicine residency at Loma Linda University Health.  Bob resides with his wife in Southern California.  They have two adult children and three grandchildren.  Bob enjoys fitness, travel, and hiking.

From 1996 until 2019, they served at Kudjip Nazarene Hospital in the highlands of Papua New Guinea. While Bill’s roles have been primarily clinical and administrative, Marsha held multiple positions supporting the mission in addition to maintaining home and family.  The couple currently live in Oroville (Northern California), are active in their local church and continue to participate with the ministries of In His IMAGE (IHI) and Church of the Nazarene international missions. 

William (Bill) McCoy attended medical school at University of California San Diego, then completed a Family Practice Residency at Oral Roberts University in Tulisa, Oklahoma.  Bill remained at ORU School of Medicine as faculty for two additional years.  Bill and Marsha, who met at Point Loma Nazarene University, and their three children served as missionaries with the Church of the Nazarene at the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial Hospital in Swaziland from 1985 until 1993.  

Rebecca has been a nurse for over 30 years, and in the hospital setting, worked in the PICU/CVICU as part of the ECMO Team and Transport Team, as well as an Educator, Charge Nurse, and Manager. She transitioned to full-time professor in 2010 while also practicing as a faith community nurse. She was leader for the overall curriculum, and co-author of the culture and strategies sections of Christian Global Health in Perspective, a 12-week course available for people as they prepare for missions. She trains with and leads teams of students to serve cross-culturally where they learn to integrate their faith with their discipline.

Rebekah Ann Naylor, graduate of Baylor University and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, completed a general surgery residency at Parkland Hospital, Dallas.

Rebekah was appointed by the Southern Baptist Convention’s International Mission Board as a missionary to Bangalore Baptist Hospital, India, in 1973.  Her missionary career included clinical practice, administrative responsibility, and teaching.  In the 1990’s she organized training programs in allied health disciplines, set up accredited residency training programs for doctors, initiated a chaplaincy training program, and established the Rebekah Ann Naylor School of Nursing.  Throughout, Rebekah was involved in church development ministry.  After 36 years of field service, she became the Director of Global Health Strategies for the IMB, retiring in 2023.

Dr. John Tannous is a graduate of the University of Arizona College of Medicine. After completing his pediatric residency, John started the American dream of private practice in suburban Phoenix. However, God had other plans and led John, his wife, and two young sons to Kunming, China in 2001. Over the next 20 years, the Tannous family served the poor, orphaned, and marginalized in southwest China. They also added two daughters, the youngest of whom was adopted. Dr. Tannous spent two “sabbatical” years working in inner-city Chicago. After navigating the initial COVID pandemic in China, Dr. Tannous returned to the US with his family in 2021. He now works in a Los Angeles FQHC serving a primarily Asian community.

Throughout the years, Jesus has faithfully opened doors and provided unique opportunities to serve and witness God at work, changing lives.

Karen Tannous was raised in Taiwan and learned Mandarin at an early age.  After returning to the US for college, Karen met her husband, John, at the Urbana missions conference.  God led them to southwest China where they served in medical missions and raised their 4 children.  Karen now teaches English to Middle Eastern refugees in southern California.

Dr. Warren Yamashita is a double board-certified Family Medicine and Addiction Medicine physician at Harbor Community Health Centers, dedicated to high-quality, whole-person primary care. He serves as Chair and Co-founder of the Addiction Medicine Section of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations.

Before joining Harbor Community Health Centers as the Director of Addiction Medicine, Dr. Yamashita served as Addiction Medicine Director and Chief Medical Officer at Hurtt Family Health Center.

A published author in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, Dr. Yamashita’s research centers on substance use disorder treatment among Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities, a population historically underrepresented in substance use treatment. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Asian American Drug Abuse Program.

He completed his Addiction Medicine Fellowship at Stanford University, where he continues to serve as Adjunct Clinical Associate Faculty. He also holds an Adjunct Clinical Faculty appointment at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, mentoring family medicine students.

Outside of medicine, Dr. Yamashita enjoys hiking, exploring Los Angeles restaurants, and spending time with family and friends.