Officers
President
Don S. Lee, MD, MPH, FACP, SFHM
Milwaukee
Doctor Lee is a board-certified internist and practices as an internal medicine hospitalist and physician advisor for Ascension Columbia St. Mary’s in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He has served in several part-time leadership roles including Ascension Medical Group Wisconsin Medical Director for Quality and Safety, Hospital Based Care as well as President of the Columbia St. Mary’s Physician Network. He also served as Preceptor of the Clinical Apprenticeship Course while on faculty as a Clinical Assistant Professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin.
Born in Madison and raised in La Crosse, Doctor Lee graduated from Harvard College with a degree in government and economics. He received a medical degree from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. He completed residency in internal medicine at Aurora Sinai Medical Center in Milwaukee followed by an MPH in Health Care Management at the Harvard School of Public Health.
Doctor Lee serves on the Wisconsin Medical Society (Society) Board of Directors, the WisMedPAC Board of Directors, and the AMA Delegation for the Society. He served as Wisconsin Medical Society RFS past Vice Chair, YPS past Chair, Council on Health Care Quality and Population Health past member, Nominating Committee past member, Council on Legislation past member, and past Co-Chair of District 1. He also served as Medical Society of Milwaukee County past Board member, past Membership Committee Chair, and past Finance Committee member. Doctor Lee also serves as the American College of Physicians Wisconsin Chapter Hospitalist Committee Chair and Society of Hospital Medicine Wisconsin Chapter Treasurer.
In the community, Doctor Lee volunteers at a medical student-run free clinic in Milwaukee and serves as the past president and Board member of the Harvard Club of Wisconsin. He also serves as the Treasurer of the Reede Scholars, an alumni organization of the Commonwealth Fund Harvard University Fellowship in Minority Health Policy.
Immediate Past President
Wendy L. Molaska, MD, FAAFP
Fitchburg
Doctor Molaska is a board certified family medicine physician and Fellow of the American Academy of Family Medicine. She received her medical degree from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH) and completed her residency through the University of Minnesota North Memorial Hospital and Broadway Clinic. She then served four years with the National Health Service Corps. in Fort Morgan, Colorado before returning to Wisconsin. She has also been involved with multiple medical missions around the world. Most recently she opened and now owns her own Direct Primary Care business, Dedicated Family Care, where she continues to practice family medicine.
Dr. Molaska first became involved with the Wisconsin Medical Society as a student member to the Board of Directors while attending the UWSMPH. Upon returning to Wisconsin she represented Grant County at the House of Delegates. She has now been serving on the Board of Directors since 2012 and was elected President, serving from 2022-2023. She has also been involved with the Constitution and Bylaws committee, the Membership committee, has served on Reference Committees at the House of Delegates and was previously also on the Ethics Council. Dr. Molaska is excited to join the newly formed Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion task force within the Society.
Given her lifelong love of reading, Dr. Molaska has been involved with the Reach Out and Read (ROR) early pediatric literacy program, which is based in primary care clinics. Since her residency, Dr. Molaska has been instrumental in introducing ROR to multiple primary care clinics and now serves as Co-Chair for the advisory council of the Wisconsin Affiliate of Reach Out and Read. In addition, Dr. Molaska serves on the Advisory Council for the Wisconsin Council on Immunization Practices, and represents the Wisconsin Medical Society on that Council.
President-Elect
Cynthia Hart, MD, FAAFP
Ashland
Doctor Hart is a board certified family medicine physician in Ashland, Wisconsin. She received her medical degree from Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, completed residency at St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center and has been in practice for more than 20 years.
Since moving to Wisconsin from Ohio in 2001, Dr. Hart started as the Secretary and then the President of the Ashland Bayfield Iron County Medical Society. She has had the privilege of being the District 8 Director for the past nine years. Dr. Hart has served as an alternate delegate to the HOD and has served on Reference Committees. She has also served on the Nominating Committee, the Membership and Executive Committees and most recently was elected to the PAC Board.
Dr. Hart has enjoyed working in a small community and has been involved in school activities including chaperoning grade school students in Ski School, hiking to the Sea Caves and even spending three days on Stockton Island (Apostle Island) for Island School in association with outdoor education associated with Northland College. Dr. Hart has also volunteered teaching art and German in the grade school. She attended the DNR’s Hunter’s Safety to learn about rifles and hunting. She has been involved in Community Theatre, the Chequamegon Area Choir, Our Lady of the Lake Choir and annual community concerts. Dr. Hart has served on the Board for the Washburn Cultural Center. She has also been the physician for a Boy Scout Camp and has volunteered with Book-Across-the Bay ski race across the frozen Chequamegon Bay to benefit the Washburn Library.
Chief Executive Officer
Michael Flesher
Middleton
Mr. Flesher was named Chief Executive Officer of the Wisconsin Medical Society (Society) and the Holdings Corporation in March 2022 by the Wisconsin Medical Society Board of Directors. As CEO, Mike is responsible for overseeing all facets of the organization and is focused on the Society mission to improve the health of the people of Wisconsin by supporting and strengthening physicians’ ability to practice high-quality patient care in a changing environment. His priorities include fostering members’ professional development, safeguarding physician health and wellness, encouraging health-system innovation and collaboration and advocating for members at the state and federal levels with regulatory agencies, private/public payers and other health related organizations. In this role, Mike serves as the primary liaison to the Society and the Society Holdings Board of Directors, maintains effective relationships with state and national organizations, and administers implementation of Board policies, positions, and initiatives.
As a proven leader in the global health care arena for more than twenty-five years, Mr. Flesher has a keen understanding of the complexity of the health care system and how best to develop and promote strong health policies and medical alliances. Prior to joining the Society, he was the CEO of the Iowa Medical Society (IMS) and at Pfizer Medical for fourteen years. While at IMS and Pfizer he focused on building enduring partnerships and collaborations with country, state and national medical societies to foster advocacy, research and education, all while maintaining an unwavering commitment to strengthening physician-patient relationships.
Mr. Flesher began his work in health care at the American Medical Association (AMA), where he served as field representative in Federation Relations and then later headed up the Residents and Fellow’s Division. Before the AMA, he held positions at the Organization for Economic Cooperation in Paris France, the Small Business Administration in Washington D.C. and the Xerox Corporation in the Midwest. He began his career working on several political campaigns in WI, MN and IA.
Mike is married, has two daughters, and enjoys exploring everything that the great state of Wisconsin has to offer.
Board Chair
Jerry L. Halverson, MD, DFAPA
Oconomowoc
A board-certified psychiatrist with added certification in psychosomatic medicine, Dr. Halverson is Chief Medical Officer for Rogers Behavioral Health based in Oconomowoc. He has been a member of the Society’s Board of Directors since 2010, has chaired the Society’s Council on Legislation and served as Society president from 2015 to 2016. He also has served as a delegate to the Society’s House of Delegates and as an AMA Delegate for the American Psychiatric Association. Doctor Halverson held leadership positions in the Wisconsin Psychiatric Association, including serving as president. He also serves on the American Psychiatric Association’s Council on Health System Financing as well as the Physician Member of the City of Madison and Dane County combined Board of Health. He has been honored for his leadership and advocacy by the Wisconsin Alumni Association with a “Forward Under 40” award and also received an Early Career Leadership Award from the American Medical Association Foundation and the Kenneth M. Viste, Jr., MD, Young Physician Leadership Award from the Wisconsin Medical Society Foundation. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH), Dr. Halverson is a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at the UWSMPH and the Medical College of Wisconsin. He is past president of the Dane County Medical Society and currently holds dual membership in both the Dane County and Waukesha County Medical Societies.
Board Vice Chair
Paul Larson, MD, FACR
Oshkosh
Dr. Larson is Vice Chair of the Wisconsin Medical Society Board of Directors and Council on Legislation. He is a graduate of Northwestern University and the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. He completed his residency in Diagnostic Radiology at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester, Massachusetts and a fellowship in Angiography and Interventional Radiology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Dr. Larson was in private practice with Radiology Associates of the Fox Valley for over 30 years. He is a former member of the American College of Radiology Board of Chancellors and former Vice President of the American College of Radiology (ACR). In 2021, he received the Gold Medal of the ACR. He is a former President of the Wisconsin Radiological Society (WRS) and long-time member of the WRS Board. In 2018, he received the Flaherty Award for lifetime achievement from the WRS. Dr. Larson completed eight years on the Board of Trustees of the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists in 2022, including two terms as President.
Treasurer
John Cook, CPA
Evansville
John Cook, CPA, graduated from Ohio Northern University in 1979 with a degree in Accounting. He began his career working as Assistant Controller for Pepsi Cola General Bottling in Chicago. He began his health care career in 1984 working for what is now UnityPoint Meriter Hospital. In 1988 he joined Physicians Plus Medical Group as Controller and was later promoted to CFO. In 1995 he worked in health care consulting for McGladrey and Pullen. Mr. Cook retired in 2019 from Mercy Health in Janesville after 20 years of service as Senior Vice President and CFO. John Cook also served as Chief Financial Officer for the Marshfield Clinic. He has been a guest speaker at various conferences held by the MGMA and HFMA as well as a guest faculty for Notre Dame University’s MBA program. His previous Board memberships include; Wisconsin State Medical Society Holdings Corporation, Treasurer for Blackhawk Region United Way, Madison United Laundry Service, and Health South Van Matre Rehab Hospital.
John has been a member of the Holdings Corporation Board of Directors for the past nine years where he routinely reviews the financial statements before being distributed to the Board of Directors and assisted greatly with the decisions regarding recent changes to our captive insurance company. He assisted the Wisconsin Medical Society (Society) with the termination of its pension plan and served for a period on the Society’s Finance Committee. In 2021, he was elected to the position of Treasurer for the Society. As Treasurer, John would continue to serve on the Executive Committee, Finance Committee, attend Board meetings and consult with the Society and Holdings management teams. It is anticipated that John’s experience will continue to enhance strategic financial planning for the Society and for the Holdings Corporation.
Directors
District 1 (Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Walworth, Washington and Waukesha Counties)
Laurie Gesell, MD, Summit
Michelle L. Graham, MD, MME, Milwaukee
Kieran McAvoy, MD, Milwaukee
Tracy McCall, MD, Waukesha
Charles Rainey, MD, JD, River Hills
David Tylicki, MD, Summit
Jennifer Zeman, MD, Milwaukee
District 2 (Adams, Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Grant, Green, Iowa, Jefferson, Lafayette, Marquette, Richland, Rock and Sauk Counties)
Laurel Bessey, MD, Madison
Amy Doherty, DO, Portage
Jerry L. Halverson, MD, DFAPA, Oconomowoc
Kenneth Klein, MD, Beloit
Roanne Osborne, MD, MBA, FAAFP CPE, Fitchburg
Aditya Sukhwal, MD, Platteville
District 3 (Buffalo, Crawford, Jackson, Juneau, La Crosse, Monroe, Trempealeau and Vernon Counties)
Martha Binn, MD, La Crosse
Robyn Borge, MD, La Crosse
Michael White, MD, Mindoro
Vacant
District 4 (Clark, Florence, Langlade, Lincoln, Marathon, Oneida, Portage, Price, Taylor, Vilas and Wood Counties)
Sonal Chandratre, MD, Stevens Point
Larry Gordon, DO, Weston
William Johnston, III, MD, Wausau
Michele H. Montgomery, MD, Wausau
District 5 (Calumet, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Outagamie, Waupaca, Waushara and Winnebago Counties)
Paul A. Larson, MD, FACR, Oshkosh
Bret Pasiuk, MD, Fond du Lac
Robert Sedlacek, MD, Waupaca
District 6 (Brown, Door, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto, Shawano and Sheboygan Counties)
Bradley Burmeister, MD, Green Bay
Kenneth Pechman, MD, PhD, MMM, DePere
Vacant
District 7 (Barron, Chippewa, Dunn, Eau Claire, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Rusk, St. Croix, Burnett and Washburn Counties)
Andrew Calvin, MD, MPH, FACC, Eau Claire
Donn Dexter, MD, Eau Claire
Thomas Joles, MD, Eleva
District 8 (Ashland, Bayfield, Douglas, Iron and Sawyer Counties)
Kristie Johnson, MD, Ashland
Special Sections
Young Physician Section
Erica Larson, DO, La Crosse
Resident Physician Section
Stephanie Strohbeen, MD, Milwaukee
Medical Schools Section
Tosha Wetterneck, MD – UWSMPH
Medical Students Section
Matida Bojang—MCW-Milwaukee
Greigory Dimailig—University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
Ex Officio Members
David M. Hoffmann, MD, FAAFP, Mauston
Charles L. Shabino, MD, Wausau