Office of Clinical Affairs

Clinical Affairs Senior Associate Dean

Anne Fuhlbrigge, MD, MS, is in the CU Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care and serves as the School of Medicine Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs and as Chief Medical Officer for CU Medicine​. Dr. Fuhlbrigge received her MD and Internal Medicine training from Washington University School of Medicine/ Barnes Hospital and her Pulmonary and Critical Care fellowship at BWH/BIDMC combined program with a master’s degree in clinical Epidemiology from Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Fuhlbrigge joined the faculty at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in 2016. She most recently held positions at Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Channing Division of Network Medicine and is the former Vice Chair for Ambulatory Specialty Services and Integrated Clinical Services at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. 

Clinical Affairs Associate Deans

Quality & Safety Education Associate Dean, Quality and Safety Education

Jeffrey J. Glasheen, MD, MHM, is the Director for the Institute for Healthcare Quality, Safety and Efficiency, the Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs—Quality and Safety Education and a Professor of Medicine with Tenure at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. 
Dr. Glasheen was an Alpha Omega Alpha graduate of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and completed his residency training, including a chief residency year, at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. As the director of the University of Colorado Hospital Medicine Group from 2003-2015, he oversaw the growth of the program from 2 to 70+ members. He was the founder of the first Hospitalist Training Program and Advanced Practice Fellowship in Hospital Medicine in the country, both housed at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. A passionate educator, Dr. Glasheen has won numerous teaching awards including the Society of Hospital Medicine’s Excellence in Teaching and the University of Colorado School of Medicine Clinical Teacher of the Year. Dr. Glasheen also served as the Chief Quality Officer (CQO) for the University of Colorado Hospital from 2015-2020 and as the CQO for UCHealth from 2017-2020.

Clinical Outreach and Digital Health Associate Dean, Clinical Outreach

Karen Chacko, MD, is Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, where she has worked since 2000. She graduated from the University of California San Diego School of Medicine and then completed her residency, including a chief resident year, at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Internal Medicine. 
In the first half of her career, Dr. Chacko was highly involved in residency education, specifically as the Program Director for the Primary Care Internal Medicine Residency Program. She is a Fellow in the American College of Physicians and is actively involved with the American Telemedicine Association and Society of General Internal Medicine. She currently serves as the Associate Dean for Clinical Outreach and Medical Director for Digital Health for the school of medicine both roles allow her to engage with the community and help develop innovative care solutions for patients and providers.

Child Healthcare  Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs Medical Director-Child Health, CU Medicine

Shikha Sundaram, MD, is Professor of Pediatrics, the Hewitt-Andrews Chair in Pediatric Liver Disease, Director of the Pediatric Liver Center and the Associate Dean for Child Health at Children’s Hospital Colorado and the University of Colorado School of Medicine, where she has worked since 2006.
 Dr. Sundaram received her undergraduate degree from Transylvania University and her medical degree from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine, where she grew up. She completed her internship, residency, fellowship in Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition and Advanced Transplant Hepatology Fellowship at Lurie Children’s Hospital, Northwestern University. She also earned her Master’s in Clinical Investigation at Northwestern University Graduate School. She has had progressive leadership experience within Child Health practice with a focus on collaboration and care across disciplines, hospital settings, and programs. She currently serves as the Associate Dean for Child Health.  Dr. Sundaram’s experience and expertise have positioned her to serve as a key liaison to facilitate knowledge exchange and collaboration across the University of Colorado School of Medicine and Children’s Hospital Colorado, the state, and the region.

Adult Healthcare Assistant Dean for Clinical Affairs Medical Director, Primary Care/UCH HOPD Clinics

Dr. Pete Smith is an Associate Professor of Family Medicine at the University of Colorado. Dr. Smith graduated from Georgetown School of Medicine in 1994 and completed his residency at the University of Colorado; he has been a member of this faculty ever since.
Dr. Smith has developed innovative clinical programs and high-functioning teams through a variety of leadership positions (Chief Resident, Medical Director, Assistant Residency Director, Director of Quality and Safety, Vice Chair for Quality and Safety, Associate Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs). His scholarly work has focused on developing and evaluating clinical programs derived directly from primary care practice. Related former roles include founding board member, author, and Senior Editor with the Family Physician Inquiries Network (FPIN), Assistant Director of CaReNet and founding Director of BIGHORN practice-based research networks, lead investigator in the evaluation of CU’s Primary Care Redesign (PCR) care model, and Co-Investigator in NIDDK-funded PATHWEIGH obesity study. He currently serves as Medical Director for Primary Care for CU Medicine and as Assistant Dean for Clinical Affairs for Adult Hospital Based Ambulatory Practice for the School of Medicine, overseeing a cohort of more than 100 medical directors in across all specialties. 

Adult Healthcare

Christina Finlayson, MD, is a Professor in the University of Colorado School of Medicine, Department of Surgery.  She obtained her medical degree at the University of Utah School of Medicine and completed her general surgery residency at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.  Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania provided the fellowship training that allowed her to specialize in Surgical Oncology.  
She was appointed to the faculty in 1996, providing general, trauma, and oncologic surgical care and was the director of the University of Colorado Hospital Diane O’Connor Thompson Breast Center, establishing the first multidisciplinary breast cancer program.  She was appointed Medical Director of CU Medicine and became an Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs in 2009, where she continues to serve.  Her areas of focus are quality performance in value-based contracting and support of the Health First Colorado (Medicaid) patient population.

Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs; Senior Medical Director-Community Practice, CU Medicine

Dr. Scott Laker graduated from the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine in 2003. He completed his PM&R Residency at the University of Colorado’s Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and completed fellowship training in Sports Medicine and Pain Medicine at the University of Colorado. He treats a large spectrum of non-surgical sports and spine conditions including sports-related concussion, sports injuries, spinal stenosis, scoliosis, herniated discs, and radiculopathy. He is also trained in the use of spinal injections, peripheral joint injection therapy, and EMG. He has cared for athletes at all levels of participation from adolescents to adults and from amateurs to professionals.
Dr. Laker served as the PM&R Residency Program Director from 2018 to 2024.  He previously served as the Medical Director for the UCHealth Lone Tree Medical Center and Highlands Ranch Hospital’s Medical Office Building.  He is the president-elect of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.  Dr. Laker was named the Associate Dean of Clinical Affairs at University of Colorado School of Medicine in 2022. 

Patient Access Director of Access 

Paul Rohrer, MHSA, is the Director of Access for the University of Colorado School of Medicine.  Paul completed his Master of Health Services Administration at the University of Kansas Medical Center and his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Marketing) at Drake University. 
Paul joined the Clinical Affairs team in October 2022 and focuses on opportunities to improve access to care and operational efficiency while balancing provider well-being.  Previously, Paul was the Health System Director, Office of Access Management at The University of Kansas Health system and was the Director of Business Development at UnityPoint Clinic.  Paul serves on the benchmarking committee for the Patient Access Collaborative, has previously presented at the Group Practice Improvement Network and Epic's UGM, and is a Past President of the HIMSS Iowa Chapter.

Clinical Quality Project Manager

Meredith Funke holds a Master of Health Administration degree from the University of Iowa. She currently works as the Clinical Quality Project Manager, partnering with the Clinical Affairs Deans to drive impactful projects across both the child and adult health spaces. She has been with the SOM since 2019, applying her knowledge from years of working in clinic operations at UCHealth.