What are the top healthcare leaders doing to stay safe and resilient?

Join us for real-world insights, examples, and straight talk from  Tamra Durfee, Drex DeFord, Ann Wright, and Ross Youngdale as they break down exactly how they defend their organizations.

Part panel discussion and part Q&A, this event offers you insight on:

  • Key strategies to strengthen your organization’s cybersecurity posture
  • Benchmarks to measure how your program stacks up
  • Practical steps to ensure your cyber program is future proof
  • Answers to your specific scenarios

About the panelists

Tamra Durfee (Moderator)
vCISO
Fortified Health Security

Tamra is an accomplished CISO with more than 25 years in information security, compliance, regulatory risk, strategy, innovation, and technology transformation. For the past 8 years, she’s specialized in healthcare cybersecurity and building risk-based medical device information security programs.

 

Drex DeFord
President, This Week Health 229 Cyber and Risk
Founder, Drexio Solutions Network; Retired AF-Vet

Drex is a “Recovering-CIO” with an extensive healthcare executive background, including CIO roles at Steward Healthcare, Seattle Children’s Health System and Research Institute, and Scripps Health in San Diego.  Prior to that, he spent 20 years in the US Air Force, where he served as a regional CIO, medical center CIO, and Chief Technology Officer for the USAF Health System’s World-Wide Operations in Washington DC.     

More recently, he spent several years as an independent consultant working with health systems, payers, associations, vendors, and investors on healthcare’s toughest problems. Many of his clients were cybersecurity industry-leading product and service companies; in 2021, he took the role of Chief Healthcare Strategist at CrowdStrike.   

In 2024, he joined This Week Health as President for Cybersecurity and Risk, where he hosts “UnHack-the-News”, “UnHack-the-Podcast”, and a twice-weekly show called the “2-Minute-Drill”. You’ll most likely find him on the road now, hosting events in cities across the US and helping transform healthcare – one connection at a time.  

 

 

Ann Wright, MSN, RN
Director of IT and Informatics
OrthoNebraska

With 25 years in healthcare, Ann leads IT and Informatics at OrthoNebraska, the state’s premier orthopedic hospital. A former nurse with nearly 20 years in informatics leadership, she excels in EMR implementation, project management, and cybersecurity. Ann earned her nursing diploma at Bryan College and advanced degrees from Creighton University and Nebraska Wesleyan University. 

 

 

Ross Youngdale
System Director of Technical and Security Services
Phoebe Health

With over 32 years of IT experience, including 25 years in healthcare, Ross Youngdale leads technical and security services at Phoebe Health. A former US Marine Corps Sergeant and a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Ross has a deep understanding of healthcare IT systems. He holds an MBA in Healthcare Administration and is dedicated to advancing cybersecurity in healthcare.