J. Donald Schumacher, PsyD, President and CEO, National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization

Dr. Schumacher has more than 30 years experience in hospice and palliative care administration.  Since 2002, he has served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO), which is the largest nonprofit leadership organization representing hospice and palliative care programs and professionals in the world.  In 2003, he was appointed as the President and CEO of NHPCO’s subsidiary organization, the National Hospice Foundation.  He became the President of FHSSA (originally the Foundation for Hospices in Sub-Saharan Africa) in 2004. He also became the President of The Hospice Action Network in 2007.

From 1989 until he joined NHPCO in 2002, Dr. Schumacher served as the President and CEO of The Center for Hospice and Palliative Care, Buffalo, New York.  During his tenure, he led the development of an integrated hospice campus in the Buffalo, New York area, launching a variety of hospice-related organizations including nursing homes and mental health and pediatric care facilities, as well as a stellar bereavement education program.  Among his other notable professional endeavors, Dr. Schumacher was the President and Founder of The Hospice of Mission Hill, Boston, Massachusetts, which was established as one of the first HIV/AIDS hospices in the U.S.

Dr. Schumacher is a licensed clinical psychologist in New York and Massachusetts and holds a doctorate degree in psychology from the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology, Boston, Massachusetts.  In 2005, he received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the State University of New York at Buffalo, where he earned his M.S. degree in counseling psychology.

Galen Miller, PhD, Executive Vice President, National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization

Galen Miller is the Executive Vice President of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.  Immediately prior to joining NHPCO, Galen served as Vice President of Professional Services (Professional Education, Membership, Corporate Relations, Marketing/Customer Service, Business Advancement, Health Information Services, Executive Education, Minority Training and Meeting Services) for the American Association of Health Plans in Washington, DC. AAHP is the national trade organization representing over 1,200 health maintenance organizations, preferred provider network organizations and other group health plans across the nation that provide care for over 160 million Americans nationwide.    Prior to joining the AAHP staff in July of 1998, Galen served for seven years as Vice President and Director of Professional Development, Research and External Relations for the National Hospice Organization.  In addition to education, research and external relations, Galen provided leadership for NHPCO in HIV/AIDS care, Access to Hospice Care, Rural Initiatives, Strategic Planning and for the development of the Library and Information Center.

Galen holds his undergraduate degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, his MS from the College of Business Administration at Utah State University, Logan, UT, and his Doctorate in Administration, Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  He has served in state administrative roles for the Nebraska Department of Education and the Colorado Community College and Occupational Education System.  Galen also has experience as a secondary classroom teacher, and as a member of the faculty at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO and has held both faculty and administrative appointments at California State Polytechnic University in Pomona, CA.