A.J. Bahou is a healthcare attorney and chair of Bradley's Artificial Intelligence Practice, where he advises healthcare companies, physician practices, boards, and executive teams on the legal, regulatory, and commercial risks of deploying AI across the enterprise. His practice spans AI governance and policy design, vendor and licensing agreements, IP strategy, M&A diligence, and litigation risk, helping clients move from AI experimentation to defensible, audit-ready deployment.

A rare combination of practicing attorney and trained engineer, A.J. is both a transactional lawyer and a trial lawyer, having represented plaintiffs and defendants in federal courts across the country, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court. His engineering background covers AI/ML, computer hardware and software, medical devices, and cybersecurity systems, letting him engage directly with CTOs, data science teams, and AI model developers on the technology behind the legal questions. He regularly counsels clients on data privacy, cybersecurity, and the evolving patchwork of federal, state, and international AI regulation, with particular depth in healthcare and life sciences, including software as a medical device.

A.J. chairs the Artificial Intelligence Task Force for the Tennessee Bar Association and leads the AI Cohort for the Nashville Healthcare Council's Leadership Healthcare Program. He holds a B.S. in Engineering from Tennessee Tech, a Master's in Electrical and Computer Engineering, summa cum laude, from Johns Hopkins, and a J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of New Hampshire.

John Claybrook is Vice President, Legal Department, for Surgery Partners, Inc. where he assists the Company’s 150+ ambulatory surgery centers and 20+ surgical hospitals with real estate-related matters. Prior to joining Surgery Partners, John was in private practice as a partner at Waller Lansden in Nashville (now Holland & Knight) for 35 years. His practice focused primarily on commercial real estate and healthcare transactions. John has spoken at numerous conferences on healthcare real estate trends, regulatory compliance issues and the future of healthcare service delivery. He served on the staff of Senate Majority Leader Howard H. Baker, Jr. in Washington D.C. from 1982-1985.

Emily Evans is Hedgeye's sector head for health policy, where she serves as a translator and guide for investors navigating the health care industry. Her work focuses on the areas where politics, policy, and regulation exert outsized influence, including managed care, biopharma, supply chain management, and services. Her approach is data-centric, drawing on analysis of macro trends in employment, insurance coverage, and inflation to inform her views.

Before joining Hedgeye, Emily was an Investment Limited Partner in charge of municipal bond underwriting at J.C. Bradford & Co., where she financed brick-and-mortar health care providers including nursing facilities, continuing care retirement communities, and acute care hospitals. She remains an active supporter of the health care startup community through a collaboration with Nashville-based venture capital firm Jumpstart Health Investors.

Emily was elected three times to the Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County Council, where she served on the Budget and Finance, Public Works, and Public Safety Committees and was named “Best Council Member” three times by the Nashville Scene. She has written and spoken extensively on tax policy, infrastructure spending, land use, and indigent health care.

Emily is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College, where she majored in Art History and Economics. She is a member of the Mid-South Alternative Asset Association and Women Investing in Nashville (WIN).

Mike Freiburg leads the capital raising initiatives at Montecito Medical, as well as strategic capital decisions for MontecitoPLUS. Mike also works as a family office advisor to the owners of Montecito.

Mike has spent almost 20 years in financial services where he worked for large institutions such as Truist and J.P. Morgan. In his previous roles, Mike advised high net worth families, family offices, foundations, and endowments on complex financial situations.

He remains active in the Nashville community where he serves on the board of trustees for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and volunteers for other non-profits.

Scott Fowler, MD, JD, FACOG, is president and CEO of Holston Medical Group, a physician-led, multi-specialty medical group operating within Optum Health's physician enterprise. He leads strategic, clinical, and operational direction for one of the region's largest integrated physician organizations, advancing a model that aligns physicians, data, and technology to expand access and improve outcomes across the communities Holston serves.

A rare combination of practicing physician, attorney, and operating executive, Dr. Fowler has spent two decades leading complex multi-specialty organizations through clinical integration, value-based care transformation, and technology-enabled care delivery. Under his leadership, Holston Medical Group has grown to more than 1,150 team members and 240 physicians and advanced practice providers across 72 clinical locations in Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia, delivering more than 30 medical specialties.

Dr. Fowler also serves as president of Emergent Accountable Care Organization, a national ACO supporting more than 800 independent physicians and nearly 50,000 Medicare beneficiaries, and as president and CEO of OnePartner, LLC, a healthcare technology company operating a nationally interoperable health information exchange. He sits on the AMGA Value-Based Advisory Board and the Cigna Advisory Board. Dr. Fowler earned his MD from the Medical College of Georgia and his JD from the University of Georgia School of Law, and is board certified by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Troy Freeman is Vice President of Real Estate for Banner Health, one of the nation’s largest nonprofit health systems and the largest private employer in Arizona. He leads enterprise-wide real estate strategy across a $10 billion portfolio—spanning hospitals, medical office buildings, life sciences facilities, and data center assets—that supports more than 56,000 employees and $17 billion in annual revenue. As a voting member of Banner’s Capital Allocation Review Team, he helps govern strategic investment decisions across mergers and acquisitions, technology transformation, clinical growth, and real estate.

During his tenure at Banner Health, Freeman has led more than $1 billion in healthcare facility development and designed portfolio optimization strategies that generated over $400 million in monetization proceeds. He previously served as Senior Vice President within Wells Fargo’s Corporate Properties Group, directing strategy for more than 40 million square feet across 24 states, and spent 13 years at JLL, ultimately as Senior Vice President and National Director within its Corporate Solutions business.

With more than 20 years of experience and over $4 billion in transactions, Freeman has advised executive leadership teams and boards on complex real estate and capital allocation decisions. He serves on the advisory boards of Montecito Medical, Placer.ai, and ReVista Medical, and holds a Master of Science in Real Estate and Construction Management from the University of Denver and an MBA from California Lutheran University.

Amy Goad is a managing director in consulting with deep expertise in healthcare transformation, stakeholder management, and client delivery. She is known for bridging business and technical teams to help healthcare organizations execute complex initiatives with clarity, efficiency, and measurable impact. Her leadership and strong client service capabilities have positioned her as a trusted advisor in guiding organizations through operational and strategic change.

In recent engagements, Amy has led initiatives to design healthcare analytics operating models, implement healthcare data governance, operationalize project management offices (PMOs), and optimize project delivery processes. She has also held leadership roles in PMO definition and development, systems implementation, change management, strategic sourcing, and operational readiness projects. With extensive experience in process improvement, data and analytics, technology optimization, and strategic sourcing, Amy brings a practical and results-driven approach to healthcare consulting. She was recognized by Consulting Magazine as a 2023 Rising Star for Excellence in Client Service in Healthcare & Well-Being and earned her Bachelor of Business Administration in Entrepreneurship and Marketing from the University of Oklahoma.

James is a second-generation wealth management advisor. He began his investment career in 2004 working for a private money management firm in Richmond, VA. While there, James worked in research and portfolio management. He joined Raymond James in 2007, coupling lessons learned in Virginia with his dad’s teachings to develop his practice. James teamed with Brock in 2013, joining Pinnacle Financial Partners. As a Financial Planner, James leads the team with managing all planning efforts. He is a professional in advising clients on all of their long-term planning and current lifestyle needs. This includes coordinating with clients , Agents, Business Managers, CPAs as well as their estate planning attorneys and other teams when needed. He has decades of experience advising high net worth individuals and families. James holds the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® (CFP®) certification as well as Private Wealth Advisor(PWA) credentials.

Dr. Edmund Jackson is the CEO of UnityAI, an AI-native company defining autonomous healthcare operations. UnityAI focuses on the autonomous scheduling of patients and staff across a diverse range of outpatient clinics. With a career defined by scaling complex technologies in high-stakes environments, Dr. Jackson is a leading voice at the intersection of AI, healthcare, and operations.

Before launching UnityAI, Edmund served as Chief Data Officer for HCA Healthcare. During his tenure, he led the development of multiple AI products that delivered massive-scale value—most notably, clinical algorithms that saved thousands of lives and revolutionized patient safety practices.

Driven by the belief that AI-driven operational efficiency is the cornerstone of a sustainable American healthcare system, Dr. Jackson leverages his background in technology, finance, and biotech to build high-impact teams that bridge the gap between big ideas and better realities.

Dr. Mitesh Kothari attended the University of Maryland at College Park from 1987-1991 where he studied Finance. Following graduation, he attended the University of Maryland School of Medicine and graduated with his medical degree in 1995. Dr. Kothari then trained in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Maryland Medical System. After completing his training, he started a solo medical practice in his hometown of Hagerstown, MD. He eventually grew his small practice, which started with only 2 employees, to become one of the largest practices in the country, employing 100 people and 26 medical providers in one location. He was instrumental in the startup of several other Maryland practices during his career. He enjoyed both the clinical and business side of his profession.

He retired from clinical medicine in 2024 and enjoys consulting with organizations on practice efficiencies, growth, and medical real estate. Dr. Kothari has enjoyed giving back to his community and has served on over 20 local non-profit boards, chairing many of them along the way.

Elmer Polite is President of Lifepoint Health’s Eastern Division and the Duke-Lifepoint Joint Venture, where he leads operations for acute care hospitals across Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Previously, he served as Chief Financial Officer for the division, overseeing financial operations for 26 hospital campuses.

Elmer brings a unique blend of operational and financial expertise. His experience spans strategic planning, revenue cycle optimization, budgeting, physician practice expansion, capital management, and mergers and acquisitions. He is known for driving operational improvements that enhance care delivery and long-term sustainability.

Before joining Lifepoint, Elmer held senior leadership roles at Prisma Health, HCA, and Community Health Systems. In these roles, he managed multi-hospital markets and led large-scale financial and operational initiatives. He is a member of the Healthcare Financial Management Association and the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Matt Schappell is a Principal at Frist Cressey Ventures focusing on investment origination, execution, and post-close value creation across the Firm’s healthcare partnerships.

He serves on boards of portfolio companies including Monogram Health, CodaMetrix, Blackbird Health, Thrive Mobile, and Psych Hub, reflecting his role in guiding strategic growth and operational impact. In 2025, he was recognized as a Rising Star by the NVCA for his contributions to the venture capital community.

Prior to Frist Cressey Ventures, Mr. Schappell worked in investment banking in the Healthcare Technology Group at Ziegler in Chicago, advising on healthcare transactions. Earlier, he held a business development role at a subsidiary behavioral health hospital of Universal Health Services (UHS). Matt Schappell received a B.A. in Business and Economics, with a concentration in Applied Health Sciences, from Wheaton College (IL).

Rachel Uzlik is a transformational healthcare executive and founder of Aetos Health, a fractional executive consulting firm that accelerates growth and operational excellence for physician groups and health systems. She specializes in ASC optimization, practice transformation, and post-merger integration, helping organizations scale efficiently while preserving physician independence.

Previously, Rachel served as COO of Revo Health and VP of Clinic Services at Twin Cities Orthopedics, where she led large-scale operational transformations across multi-site healthcare systems. Her leadership has delivered over $10M in savings and unified $500M+ in healthcare operations, establishing her as a catalyst for sustainable growth and physician empowerment.