Donald J. Wilfong Jr., MD, is Medical Director of the STAR Center as well as a practicing internist and assistant professor of Clinical Medicine at Temple University and Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bradenton, Florida and Erie Pennsylvania. He is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and Hahnemann University School of Medicine. He completed his residency training at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital where he has continued to practice for the past 25 years. He is a member of Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society and the Society for Simulation in Healthcare. He is an expert lecturer on Disease State Management and Preventative Care.

Donamarie Wilfong, MSN, RN, is Director of Clinical Operations at the STAR Center. She is a graduate of Gwynedd Mercy College and The University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Nursing. She is presently persuing a doctoral degree in nursing practice at Waynesburg University. She is a book reviewer for Jones & Bartlett Publishing Inc. and author of Nursing School Success: Tools for Constructing Your Future. She has taught nursing for 30 years at the diploma, associate and baccalaureate levels and currently is conducting research on the effects of simulation on self confidence and critical thinking skills in diploma-level nursing students. She is a member of the Society for Simulation in Healthcare and the Sigma Theta Tau, National Nursing Honor Society.

Cindy Carlson is Director of Administrative Operations at the STAR Center as well as Senior Administrative Manager in the Department of Medicine at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital. She has over 20 years experience in management and academic medical education. She is responsible for maintaining the accreditation of the Hospital’s internal medicine residency program, five fellowship programs and a resident-faculty clinical practice, West Penn Medical Associates. Cindy Carlson is a member of the Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine (APDIM), Association of Hospitals in Medical Education (AHME), Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), and Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSIH)

JaneMarie DiDomenico, BSN, RN, brings seven years of critical care experience to the STAR Center. She also has several years of teaching experience as an adjunct faculty member at Community College of Allegheny County. She earned an associate’s degree in nursing from Community College of Allegheny County, a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Waynesburg University and is presently completing her master’s degree in nursing with an emphasis on Simulation in Nursing Education. She is involved in a research study evaluating the effectiveness of simulation as a teaching tool in Nursing Orientation.

Lawrence O’Leary is the Star Center’s Simulation Specialist. He is a graduate of Point Park University and holds a bachelor’s degree in Photography/ Multi-Media. He has over 22 years of in-depth experience at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital, a tertiary care teaching institution, and is responsible for operating and maintaining the human simulators and equipment housed in the Simulation Center.