Grameen PrimaCare Staff

Pablo Farías

Chief Executive Officer

Pablo J. Farías is Chief Executive Officer of Grameen PrimaCare, bringing over 20 years of non-profit experience in global health, economic and social development. Dr. Farias is passionate about providing the poorest communities around the globe with basic services, and throughout his career, he has kept this as a polar focus. Dr. Farías joins Grameen PrimaCare from the Ford Foundation, where he most recently served as Vice-President for the Economic Opportunity and Assets Program, one of the Foundation’s three programmatic areas working in the United States and internationally to reduce poverty, expand economic opportunities for underserved communities and promote sustainable development. He also recently served as chair of the board of Living Cities, an innovative collaborative of foundations and financial institutions focused on improving the lives of low income people and the cities where they live.

Prior to his work with the Ford Foundation, Dr. Farías was the founding Director General of the College of the Southern Border (ECOSUR) in Chiapas, Mexico, a research institute focused on the challenges of poverty alleviation and sustainable development in the tropical rural areas of Southern Mexico, where he oversaw the development of institutional research, postgraduate education and outreach programs.

A native of Monterrey, Mexico, Dr. Farías began his career in social medicine and mental health, working in refugee camps along the Mexico-Guatemala border. He studied medicine at the University of Monterrey and trained in Psychiatry at the Cambridge Hospital, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and as a fellow in Medical Anthropology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Farías is also currently a visiting scientist in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, focusing on advancing a global mental health agenda. He currently serves on the boards of El Museo del Barrio, the Nalanda Institute for Contemplative Science and the Governor’s Climate and Forests Fund.

Diana Ramirez–Baron, MD, DTM&H

Family Medicine Doctor

Dr. Ramirez was born and raised in Colombia where she received her medical degree. She completed her residency training in Family Medicine at Montefiore Medical Center. During the past 10 years she has worked as a family physician and HIV specialist in the Bronx. For three years she ran a Hispanic women’s group aimed at addressing mental health issues, and she has also trained Bangladeshi women to become health promoters in The Bronx.

Dr. Ramirez focuses on building long term relationships with patients and their communities to improve their well-being. She has a strong interest in preventive medicine and treatment of chronic conditions with an integrative approach.

Greg Mann

Vice President - Implementation

Greg joins GPC after previously working for two very successful non-profit start ups; Harvard Eating Disorders Center and The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. Greg has also worked at The Foundation for Dance Promotion/Bill T. Jones Dance Company and the NYU Langone Medical Center.

Euny Lee

Associate Director, Research & Evaluation

Euny Lee, Associate Director of Research & Evaluation, works closely with the GPC Advisory Committee to design, implement and analyze results from research and evaluation projects for GPC to guide programmatic development, track progress, and measure impact. Her previous experience includes program development, evaluation and research in medical outcomes at NYU Medical Center’s Rusk Institute, pharmaceutical clinical trials at Medarex, continuing medical education programs at the Healthcare Consultancy Group, and health disparities and quality improvement at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. Euny holds a B.A. in Sociology from CUNY Hunter College and a M.S. in Health Services Management and Policy from The New School.

Shirley Lemus

Project Director

As a Project Director, Shirley is responsible for overseeing community activities and representing the needs of GA members. She spearheads research projects related to program development, local health events, and raising awareness of GPC in the community. In this capacity, Shirley is responsible for identifying and building community partnerships. She was previously a center manager for Grameen America, where she worked closely with members and managed a microfinance portfolio in Harlem. Originally from Guatemala, Shirley earned her BA from Universidad Francisco Marroquin.

Natasha Pirogovsky

Senior Director of Development

Natasha Pirogovsky leads Grameen PrimaCare’s Development efforts, focused on driving fundraising initiatives and forging new strategic partnerships. She brings nearly a decade of experience in philanthropy, business development, corporate social responsibility, and marketing strategy. Prior to joining Grameen PrimaCare, Natasha held various positions at East Meets West, the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, African Services Committee Ethiopia, and L’Oreal USA. Natasha obtained her Bachelors of Arts from the University of California at Berkeley in Political Economy. She is fluent in French and possesses strong proficiency in Spanish and Russian.

Noor Shams

Director of Development & Communications

As Director of Development & Communications, Noor focuses on raising awareness of Grameen PrimaCare programs to build partnerships and leverage support. Prior to joining Grameen PrimaCare, she spent several years with Grameen in Bangladesh and New York, and has held various research and communications roles at the UN headquarters. She received her undergraduate degree from Moscow University Touro and a masters from Columbia University. Originally from Bangladesh, Noor grew up living in six countries and speaks Bengali, Hindi, Russian and Arabic.

Judith Eichner

Women’s Health Fellow

As a Health Fellow, Judith will assist with the development of educational programming and research activities with a focus on women’s health/maternal health. Judith recently graduated with a Masters in Public Health, completing her thesis on maternal health. She has worked on research projects/initiatives such as Get Healthy Harlem and Project SHARE, both of which are a part of The Harlem Health Promotion Center. Judith holds a B.A. in Psychology and Anthropology from Washington University in St. Louis and an MPH from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.

Marrayam Khera

Project Associate

As a Project Associate, Marrayam assists with health and wellness curriculum development and field research, researching women and children’s health as well as potential field partners. She is also responsible for assisting with development activities by compiling research on funding opportunities and event planning. Marrayam previously worked with Resolve Network, where she conducted microfinance programmatic research and helped develop a fundraising strategy. Marrayam received her B.A. in Politics from Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, MA.

Renee Kinsella

Special Projects Manager

Renee joined Grameen PrimaCare earlier this year to lead Grameen PrimaCare’s efforts in finding a suitable space for our first Health & Wellness Center, Grameen Vida Sana. Previously Renee has worked as an Examining Attorney in the Mayor’s Office on the Police Commission to Combat Corruption. Renee received her law degree at Fordham University School of Law.

Katherine Baicker

Consultant & Lead Research Investigator

Katherine Baicker, PhD, is Professor of Health Economics in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard School of Public Health, and is currently engaged with GPC as a lead investigator conducting research on GPC’s programs. Professor Baicker’s research focuses primarily on the factors that drive the distribution, generosity, and effectiveness of public and private health insurance, with a particular focus on health insurance finance and the effect of reforms on the distribution and quality of care. She is currently one of the leaders of a research program investigating the many effects of expanding health insurance coverage in the context of a randomized Medicaid expansion in Oregon. She received her BA in economics from Yale and her PhD in economics from Harvard.