Kiki Nocella, PhD, MHA, President CEO Believe Health, LLC 23214 Pelham Place Valencia, CA 91354 (323) 605 9341

Kiki Nocella is currently working as the CEO of Believe Health, LLC, and serving as President of the Board for the California State Rural Health Association. In past positions, Mrs. Nocella was the Vice Provost of Health Affairs for the University of California, Riverside, where she was instrumental in facilitating the development of the first new medical school in California in more than 40 years. The UCR School of Medicine focuses on rural and medically underserved populations in Inland Southern California and the State.  Prior to this, Dr. Nocella was a Clinical Assistant Professor at the USC Keck School of Medicine, Department Family Medicine.  During her tenure there, she also served as the Vice Chair for Finance and Administration and Assistant Clinical Professor of Family Medicine.  Prior to that time, she served as the Divisional Administrator for the Department of Medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and as a fundraising executive and consultant to a variety of non-profit organizations.

She has worked with various rural hospitals and communities in the State regarding their operations, governance, business development and medical workforce. She has also consulted for various academic medical centers and regional health systems on the intricacies of graduate medical education financing and residency program design.  She has established and moved multiple family medicine residency programs.

Kiki completed her PhD in Public Administration at USC.  Her dissertation was on the predictors of rural recruitment of family physicians, specifically focusing on the relationship between residency training program organization and the impact that may have on family physicians choosing to work in rural and underserved areas. She is the PI on an AHRQ Health Information Technology Planning Grant for a rural area of California and its subsequent three year implementation grant. She teaches both in the USC School of Policy, Planning and Development and the Keck School of Medicine and is currently consulting to the Chancellor of UC Riverside on the development of its medical school and residency program network. She has lectured nationally and internationally on rural operational, workforce, and quality issues.

Kiki is a certified member of the American College of Medical Practice Executives. She serves on a variety of boards and advisory groups, including Secretary of the Board of the California State Rural Health Association, Center for Health Justice, and the Board of the California Academy of Family Physicians Foundation.  She has served on multiple State level rural committees and task forces.  She resides in Valencia, California with her husband, Joe and daughters Cali and Lexi.