The AELPS Story
The Academy for Emerging Leaders in Patient Safety (AELPS) is an immersive educational program designed to prepare emerging healthcare leaders to advance safer, more reliable care. AELPS brings together residents, fellows, medical students, nurses, pharmacy students, and other healthcare professionals for experiential learning in patient safety, quality, leadership, and systems improvement.
AELPS was founded by David Mayer, MD, whose vision and leadership shaped the program from its earliest years through 2025. His commitment to educating the next generation of patient safety leaders established the foundation on which AELPS continues to grow today.
Meet Our Team
Carole Hemmelgarn, MS, MS
Carole Hemmelgarn, MS, MS, is a leading patient safety advocate and educator. She serves as Program Director for Georgetown University’s Executive Master’s in Clinical Quality, Safety & Leadership and Senior Director of Education at the MedStar Institute for Quality & Safety. Carole is the Board Chair and founding member of Patients for Patient Safety US and sits on the boards for Leapfrog and Solutions for Patient Safety. She holds master’s degrees in Patient Safety Leadership (UIC) and Health Care Ethics (Creighton University).
Stacey Gonzalez, PMP
Stacey Gonzalez is a Program Manager for MedStar Institute for Quality & Safety (MIQS) Education initiatives, where she leads the development and delivery of educational programs for healthcare professionals focused on patient safety. Her work includes the Academy for Emerging Leaders in Patient Safety (AELPS), the MedStar Quality & Safety Fellowship Program, and collaborative education initiatives with the MIQS Safety team. Her responsibilities span program and curriculum planning, faculty development, learner recruitment and engagement, and collaboration across MIQS Safety and Education.
Our Curriculum
The Academy for Emerging Leaders in Patient Safety curriculum is structured around our 4 core competencies (Leadership, Communication and Relationship, Professionalism, Knowledge of Healthcare Environment and Systems). The Patient Safety Framework holds Patients and Families at the core of everything and is designed to ground the learners in the concepts they learn throughout the week.
Our Faculty
Learners of The Academy for Emerging Leaders in Patient Safety have the unique opportunity to work closely with our program faculty, talking openly and candidly in the classroom, during teambuilding activities and over dinner. Our faculty, comprised of nationally and internationally recognized quality and patient safety leaders and patient advocates, inspire learners with unique teaching methods and powerful patient stories. AELPS challenges learners to think differently about patient safety and design quality improvement projects to implement upon returning to their institutions.
Learn more about AELPS
Learner Reflections
Read some of the blog posts written by AELPS learners over the years reflecting on their experience with the program:
The Academy for Emerging Leaders in Patient Safety is managed by the MedStar Health Institute for Quality and Safety.