GEMS Authors

The Geriatric Education for EMS (GEMS) author team is responsible for developing the GEMS course materials for students and instructors, and providing advice and guidance to GEMS faculty. Read about the authors below:

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GEMS Authors

Daniel Talbert, MA, EMT, Chair

Dan Talbert is a Certified Flight Paramedic for UF Health in Jacksonville, a Level One Trauma Center in Northeast Florida. He brings education leadership, community outreach and program coordination experience. He's held positions as a trauma education and outreach coordinator and STEMI program coordinator. He has grant writing experience, as well as project development, implementation and quality assurance (QA) oversight. Talbert has been credited in published EMS educational materials, such as Field STEMI Alert Clinical Tools.

Talbert has several instructor and provider certifications; specialty training in haz-mat, EMS and mild cognitive impairment; holds organizational memberships with several organizations; and is a combat veteran of Desert Shield/ Desert Storm with the United States Marine Corps. He received his Bachelors of Health Science from Kaplan University and a Masters in Health and Human Services from Liberty University.
Manish Shah, MD, MPH, Medical Director

Dr. Manish Shah is an associate professor of emergency medicine, geriatrics and public health sciences at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. He holds a number of leadership positions in EMS, including serving as the medical director for Livingston County, N.Y. and a number of Advanced Life Support (ALS) and Basic Life Support (BLS) agencies.

Dr. Shah is a leading researcher focusing on improving the prehospital care of acutely ill older adults. He has published more than 200 manuscripts and abstracts on this topic and has been awarded a number of grants from private and governmental sources, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Christopher Schmidt, ARNP, MSN, CEN

Chris Schmidt is Chief Operating Officer of Flagler Hospital in St. Augustine, Fla. He oversees day-to-day operations of the 335-bed acute-care facility, which has been ranked among the top five percent in the nation for clinical excellence and patient safety. Previously, he was director of Emergency Care, leading more than 130 physicians, nurses and technicians in the hospital’s 48-bed Emergency Care Center.

A 22-year veteran of Navy Medicine, Schmidt served around the world as Nurse Corps officer. In 2004, he was deployed to Africa to help lead one of the Navy’s first Expeditionary Medical Units for counter terrorist operations. In 2008, he deployed with the U.S. Army to Afghanistan in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. He served as Chief Nurse of a Navy team charged to mentor Afghan National Army medical leaders at the nation’s largest medical facility. Schmidt retired in 2012 at the rank of Commander after an impressive naval career.

Schmidt is a Board Certified Acute Care Nurse Practitioner and Emergency Nurse; has received national certification as paramedic and flight nurse; national appointments with the Emergency Nurses Association; and has held clinical faculty positions. He is also a published author.
Lance Villers, PhD, LP

Lance C. Villers, PhD, LP is an associate professor and chair of the Department of Emergency Health Sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Dr. Villers graduated with a B.S. degree in Kinesiology/Exercise Physiology from Texas A&M University, an M.A. in Adult Education from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and Ph.D. in Educational Administration and Human Resource Development, specializing in Adult Teaching and Learning from Texas A&M University. His research focused on situated cognition theories applied to training paramedics in advanced airway procedures. He has been involved in the emergency medical services as a paramedic, educator, and national speaker for over 20 years.

Dr. Villers was the Texas EMS Instructor of the Year in 2002, a member of the University of Texas Academy of Master Teachers, a Distinguished Teaching Professor, and developed the first online bachelor of science degree program for paramedics and advanced practice/community paramedic certification program. He has directed EMS educational programs for the US Army Special Operations Command, US Army 68W, F2 and F3 Paramedic program, San Antonio Fire Department, numerous rural and urban fire and EMS departments, and is a member of the Texas Governor’s EMS and Trauma Advisory Council, Education Committee.
Keith Widmeier, BA, NRP, FP-C

Keith Widmeier serves as an EMS education specialist at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. He is a regular lecturer at local, state and national EMS conferences, where he also teaches a variety of continuing education courses, coordinates the Mobile Critical Care Provider course, and assists in teaching emergency response courses to medical students.

Keith began his EMS career as a volunteer firefighter/EMT in the suburbs Philadelphia, and later moved to Kentucky to pursue his undergraduate degree. He has worked as a paramedic in urban, suburban and rural settings, and as a mobile intensive care paramedic, and flight paramedic.

Keith is an accomplished author in various trade and scientific journals, as well as many textbooks. In education, he served as a training officer for a rural third-service EMS system, as well as the inaugural program director for a community college paramedic program in southern Kentucky, operating two campuses. He continues to be active on a variety of national EMS committees.