Ashley is a board-certified Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner with over 10 years of experience in OB/GYN. She cares for women of all ages and believes in patient-centered care, empowering them to advocate for their well-being. She specializes in gynecological care, contraception and preconception counseling, STI screening management, and typical well-woman visits. She has a strong professional and personal interest in preconception care and the management of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS).

Brenda (She/Her) is a bilingual behavioral health therapist. Born in Peru and fluent in Spanish, Brenda works with individuals of all ages and families who speak Spanish and English. Brenda has a passion for helping individuals in need with a client-centered approach. Brenda is certified in CBT and TF-CBT, and is certified in providing LGBTQ mental health care. Brenda has experience treating ADHD, PTSD, eating disorders, insomnia, OCD, depression, anxiety, and trauma. Prior to joining CCI in 2020, Brenda graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in psychology and philosophy from Catholic University of America, then graduated with a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Maryland, Baltimore, specializing in Integrative Behavioral Health and Clinical Social Work. Brenda holds an LCSW-C licensure in Maryland.

Dr. Saema Ansari is a board-certified pediatrician with over 15 years of experience in caring for children. She has worked in practices in various states, including DC, Connecticut, and Maryland. She was previously working in New York, where she worked in the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. While she was in Connecticut, she served as an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Connecticut. Dr. Ansari graduated from Vassar College, where she earned a BS in Biopsychology. She received her medical degree from the State University of New York Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY. She did her pediatrics residency at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. Her areas of interest are medicine in populations with challenges to accessing care, lactation, and obesity. She is married with 3 kids and resides in Maryland. She enjoys meditating, traveling, and, most of all, spending time with family and friends.

A 1996 graduate from the Penn State University College of Medicine, Dr. Apgar has been practicing obstetrics and gynecology in Montgomery and Frederick counties since 2001. A native of central Pennsylvania, Dr. Apgar lives in Germantown with his wife and large family, which includes two yellow Labrador retrievers. His hobbies include baseball, golf, and traveling with his family.

Doctor of Medicine, American University of the Caribbean, Sint Maarten

Bachelor of Science in Biology and Biological Studies, Fairleigh Dickinson University, New Jersey

As a first-generation Cameroonian, Dr. Besong-Oben’s parents joked that she had three career choices: doctor, lawyer, or engineer. She chose medicine and is proud of her journey. She chose medicine to blend her love for science with her passion for helping others. Her career path focuses on underserved communities and women’s health. She believes everyone deserves quality care and sees community health as a way to make a difference.

Dr. Besong-Oben aims to be a compassionate, kind physician who ensures her patients feel safe, seen, and heard.

Dr. Sonya Bruton is the CEO and President of CCI Health Services (CCI), a licensed Clinical Psychologist, and the author of Finding Your Way in the Nonprofit Sector: Your Portable Mentor for Avoiding Pitfalls and Seizing Opportunities. She has provided mental health services throughout the continuum of cognitive and psychological conditions for all ages; however, her specialties include neuropsychological testing for learning and memory conditions as well as therapeutic services for victims of trauma or psychosocial maladaptation. Dr. Bruton earned a Doctor of Psychology degree and a master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology’s Washington, DC campus. She completed her Psychology internship as an integrated behavioral health clinician within the Dartmouth Family Medicine Residency Program in Concord, New Hampshire. She received her undergraduate degree from UNC-CH in Journalism and her master’s in Public Administration, with a concentration in nonprofit and association management, from North Carolina State University.

Dr. Escobar was born in El Salvador and raised in California. She has lived on the East Coast since attending Howard University College of Medicine in 1991. She enjoys full-spectrum family medicine from birth to the golden years.

As a family medicine physician, Dr. Fedorowicz sees patients of all ages, including prenatal and pediatric patients. She completed her residency training in Chicago, IL where she worked at both a student health clinic and a Federally Qualified Health Center. Dr. Fedorowicz is very interested in caring for whole families because she loves to learn more about the families she serves and to watch them grow. It’s especially fun for her to help care for a patient during their pregnancy and then take care of them and their baby after the delivery. In her free time, she loves to spend time exploring nature, hiking, and biking in the DC, Maryland, Virginia area with her husband and dog, Comet. She also loves a nice cup of coffee and trying new restaurants.

Dr. Bethlehem A. Kassaye, DO, serves as a dedicated Family Medicine Physician at CCI Health Services in Silver Spring, MD. With a robust educational foundation from Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine and a comprehensive residency at Duke/Southern Regional AHEC, she is well-equipped to provide preventive and holistic care. Dr. Kassaye cherishes the meaningful relationships she builds with her patients, ensuring personalized care that fosters trust and promotes overall well-being. Fluent in English, Amharic, and Medical Spanish, she excels in connecting with all communities.

Doctor of Medicine, St. George’s University School of Medicine, Grenada

Master of Public Health, St. George’s University, Grenada

Bachelor of Science in Biology, Towson University, Maryland

Olumuyiwa Onibatedo, MD, combines a passion for science with a drive to help others. His work as a patient companion at Johns Hopkins University inspired him to pursue medicine after watching physicians care for patients during vulnerable times. This same commitment drew him to the holistic field of community health, motivating him to pursue a master’s in public health. Proud of his residency match, he credits it with teaching him resilience, leadership, and commitment, affirming his path.

Empathy, teamwork, and lifelong learning guide Dr. Onibatedo. He embraces challenges to grow personally and intellectually while staying committed to community impact.

Dr. Immirne Ouwinga  is a family medicine specialist with a focus on HIV care, serving the Greenbelt area of Prince George’s County. She has been practicing medicine since 2008. After completing her family medicine residency at Cook County-Loyola University in Chicago, she went on to pursue a Maternal Child Health fellowship. Her fellowship allowed her to work with a high-risk population, including but not limited to teenage pregnancy, drug users, people with HIV, persons with limited housing, and more. Dr. Ouwinga has participated in multiple medical missions to Haiti and Peru, delivering babies and caring for patients with limited resources. Dr. Ouwinga is passionate about providing the best care to all her patients. She has a holistic approach when caring for her patients with an interest in mental health, helping patients with past and present trauma with a unique body, mind, and sex positive approach. A native New Yorker, she speaks Spanish and Haitian Creole. Most also call her Dr. O.

Doctor of Medicine, All Saints University School of Medicine

Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology, University of Maryland, College Park

Drawn by science, problem-solving, and connection, Dr. Shah discovered that becoming a physician is the ideal path for her career. Intrigued by the body and mind, she aims to make a difference in her patients’ lives. She sees medicine as a way to build relationships, provide reassurance, and help patients navigate complex challenges. Moments spent helping patients understand diagnoses or manage conditions remind her why she chose this rewarding path. Dr. Shah became interested in community health after witnessing how social and environmental factors affect outcomes. Patients face barriers like language, transportation, and finances, which are challenges she wants to help address.

By bridging standard care and nutrition, Dr. Shah aims to advocate for patients, improve access to preventive care, and guide individuals and families towards better health outcomes.

From Takoma Park, Maryland, Dr. Simson is a pediatrician with over a decade of experience. He is particularly passionate about health prevention and lifestyle management. He completed his medical degree at George Washington University Medical School in Washington, DC, and his pediatric residency at the University of Virginia (UVA). At UVA, Dr. Simson also served as Chief Resident. In addition to his work at CCI Health Services, he also supervises pediatric residents from Children’s National Medical Center as part of their outpatient pediatric training. Dr. Simson has two children, ages 6 and 9, as well as a dog and a cat. In his free time, he enjoys staying active with activities such as hiking, playing soccer, and traveling.

Doctor of Medicine, All Saints University School of Medicine, Dominica, Dominica

Inspired by parents in medicine who valued prevention and health education, Dr. Solomon always wanted to help people. Seeing her parents’ impact made her want to follow a path that lets her support others and make a difference. She saw how surroundings, culture, and access to resources shape health. Growing up in Nigeria and now living in Maryland, she experienced firsthand how differences in care turn small health issues into lifelong challenges. This is what drew her to community medicine.

Dr. Solomon is inspired every day by knowing she can guide patients through health challenges and help them thrive. She aims to build strong relationships, provide hands-on care, and passionately advocate for her community.

Dr. Nneoma Ugorji grew up in Nigeria and attended medical school at the University of Nigeria in Enugu/Nsukka. She completed her family practice internship at the Ahmadu Bello University Hospital in Kaduna, Nigeria. Dr. Ugorji then moved to the United States, where she completed an internal medicine internship at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee. Following her internal medicine internship, Dr. Ugorji completed her pediatric residency at the Martin Luther King, Jr. /Charles R. Drew University Program in Los Angeles, California (now merged with UCLA).

Dr. Ugorji has over 25 years of experience in pediatrics and previously worked at Federally Qualified Health Center Total HealthCare in Baltimore. She provided care in California, Tennessee, and Virginia. Along with providing care to patients at CCI Health Services, Dr. Ugorji is also a faculty member at the Longitudinal Ambulatory Clerkship Department at Children’s National Hospital. She is also part of the clerkship faculty at Johns Hopkins University Medical School, where she teaches, trains, and supervises medical students. She has a particular interest in allergy and immunology.

Dr. Ugorji is married, has five children, and two grandchildren. She enjoys yoga, reading, writing, exercising, Pilates, sewing and spending time with her family

Beth joined the CCI team in March 2024 and is excited to bring her passion for primary care to the organization and her patients. She completed her degree as a nurse practitioner in 2020 at Eastern Kentucky University.

Kimberly Willett is a family nurse practitioner who obtained her master’s degree at Georgetown University in 2020. Following graduation, she pursued a nurse practitioner residency program focused on community health in Connecticut, where she was selected to participate in an additional year of training, enhancing her education on the integration of infectious diseases/HIV into primary care. Throughout her time in Connecticut, Kimberly also initiated a refugee health program to enhance access to medical care for newcomers to the United States.

Leena Daniel is a board-certified Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner with a Doctorate of Nursing Practice from the University of Cincinnati, Ohio. She has also been practicing as an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) since 2014. She has been a caring and compassionate nurse for the past 32 years, providing exceptional maternal and newborn care in both hospital and community settings. Her passion is to provide compassionate and quality care to women of all ages.

Lois Wessel, FNP, DNP, focuses on immigrant and refugee health. She is an Associate Professor at the Schools of Nursing and Medicine at Georgetown University. She is bilingual (English-Spanish) and is involved with numerous community and environmental health programs, including the Mid-Atlantic Center for Children’s Health and the Environment, Migrant Clinicians Network, and the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments. She was a Duke Johnson & Johnson Nurse Leadership Fellow and is a member of the editorial board for the Journal for Nurse Practitioners.

Monica has been working as a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner for 5 years and in the women’s health/neonatal field for the last 14 years. She is dedicated to community service and strives to provide high-quality gynecological care to women in the community. At CCI, she provides IUD and Nexplanon insertions, endometrial biopsies, colposcopies, and incision and drainage of Bartholin Cysts as well as screenings and care throughout a woman’s lifetime.

Sharmin Ali, MCMSc, PA-C, is a dedicated Physician Assistant at CCI Health Services. With over a decade of experience, she holds a Master of Clinical Medical Science from Barry University and an MBBS degree from Dinajpur Medical College, Bangladesh. Sharmin excels in providing comprehensive patient care through best practices and data-driven solutions. She enjoys the relationships she builds with her patients, emphasizing health promotion and disease prevention in all populations. With excellent interpersonal and communication skills, Sharmin is committed to delivering high-quality, personalized care as part of an interdisciplinary team.

Tiara Pitts, FNP-BC, currently practices as an OB/GYN nurse practitioner at CCI Health Services. With the majority of her career spent serving women from underserved groups, Tiara is dedicated to providing evidence-based care to her patients. A graduate of Shenandoah University’s nursing program and Walden University, where she received her Master’s of Science in nursing, Tiara has been in the women’s health field for over 11 years. Eight years as a registered nurse on a high-risk labor and delivery unit is where she first noticed the gaps in healthcare and challenges that women of color faced. It was at that time that she decided to further her education to help close the gap in healthcare for women who looked like her. Tiara specializes mainly in providing prenatal care through CCI’s CenteringPregnancy program to ensure every expecting parent receives the care they deserve to have a healthy pregnancy and an uncomplicated delivery.

Dr. Tyris Ford is a doctorally prepared, board-certified Nurse Practitioner specializing in Family Medicine, HIV care, and LGBTQ health. With over 8 years of clinical experience, he has worked in a variety of healthcare settings. Dr. Ford believes in treating the whole person’s mind, body, and spirit. He is compassionate and aims to empower his patients to live healthily, addressing healthcare needs holistically.

Whitley has over 13 years of experience in the medical field, with a primary focus on women’s health. She has worked in a variety of settings, including fertility and OB clinics, OB/postpartum/newborn home care, and inpatient Labor and Delivery units. She has a passion for family planning and reproductive health. Whitley was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, but relocated to Maryland in 2017. In her free time, she enjoys gardening, traveling, being on the water, and spending time with her dog Coco.