Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health and Human Services, to which was referred Governor's Message No. 174, submitting for study and consideration the nominations of:

begs leave to report as follows:

Upon review of the testimony and written statements submitted by the nominees, your Committee finds that Lani Bowman, Kevin M.F. Ho, Pharm.D., T. Vivian Ishimaru-Tseng, M.D., Barbara-Ann Keller, Mitchell Kepa, Chad Y. Koyanagi, M.D., and Judith Y. Akamine have the necessary character, experience, and qualifications to serve on the Hawai'i Advisory Commission on Drug Abuse and Controlled Substances.

Your Committee received testimony in support of the seven nominees from the Department of Health.

Kevin M.F. Ho holds a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree and is employed as the Staff Pharmacist for Long’s Drugstores. As a pharmacist, Dr. Ho is trained as a patient-centered, outcomes oriented practitioner who works in concert with the patient and the patient’s other healthcare providers to promote health, to prevent disease, and to assess, monitor, initiate and modify medication use to assure that drug therapy regimens are safe and effective. He is knowledgeable about the possible side effects i.e., foods, drinks or activities that should be avoided while on a particular medication, and works with physicians and nurses in determining medication effectiveness, patient tolerance to medications, and other related factors that affect the success of a patient treatment program.

T. Vivian Ishimaru-Tseng, is a board certified addiction psychiatrist. She completed her psychiatric residency at Northwestern University and her doctorate in medicine at St. Louis University Medical School. Dr. Ishimaru-Tseng is on staff at the Queen’s Medical Center and serves as medical director with Drug Addiction Services of Hawaii, Inc. (DASH). She has also served as an Assistant Professor with the Department of Psychiatry at the John A. Burns School of Medicine, and Associate Residency Director of the Hawaii Residency Program at the John A. Burns School of Medicine. In addition to her numerous professional accomplishments, Dr. Ishimaru-Tseng has been a member of the Hawaii Medical Association’s Physician Wellness and Peer Review Committees, the Queen’s Medical Center Outpatient Services Women’s Mental Health Program, Department of Defense Teen Involvement Program, and the University of California at Berkeley School of Public Health Peer Sexuality Outreach Program.

Barbara-Ann Keller is the Clinical Supervisor for the Family Court of the First Circuit, Juvenile Drug Court program. The program is an eight-month, post adjudication, treatment-based drug court program for substance abusing, non-violent juveniles under the age of eighteen and their families. The philosophy of the program is to provide comprehensive judicial and substance abuse treatment services to juveniles and their families in an environment that promotes accountability, respect, opportunity and personal wellness. The mission of the program is to reduce harm to communities by responding to the treatment needs of alcohol and drug exposed adolescents and their families through gender-specific, culturally competent, family-based and juvenile justice appropriate interventions. Ms. Keller is a Certified Substance Abuse Counselor (CSAC).

Mitchell Kepa is an Educational Specialist with the Maui Community College, Educational Opportunity Center, which provides access to post-secondary education for all Maui County residents, with an emphasis on assisting persons from low-income families and those whose parents did not graduate from college. In addition to providing students with career assessment and educational information, college catalog information for Hawaii and mainland schools, financial aid counseling and information on grants, loans and scholarships, Mr. Kepa conducts workshops and gives presentations for high schools and community agencies and hosts tours of the Maui Community College campus.

Chad Y. Koyanagi is a psychiatrist on staff at Queen’s Medical Center. Dr. Koyanagi’s extensive clinical work includes assisting federal magistrate judge Kevin Chang in oversight of the Hawaii State Hospital, assisting severely mentally ill and dually diagnosed patients at the Kalihi-Palama Health Center’s Health Care for the Homeless Project, providing medical backup and in-house coverage at Hina Mauka, and teaching at the University of Hawaii, John A. Burns School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Koyanagi, who is a McKinley High School graduate, completed his undergraduate education at Harvard College (in biology) and medical school at the University of Hawaii, John A. Burns School of Medicine.

Judith V. Akamine is a public health nurse on the Big Island. She is a member of the Hawaii Island Rural Health Association and serves on the Board of Directors of the Hawaii Alliance for Community Health. In her professional capacity as a registered nurse, and in her work as a volunteer, Ms. Akamine is keenly aware of the impact of substance abuse on the individual, families, and communities. Her familiarity with the Big Island and public health concerns within the community provide insights to formulating substance abuse prevention and treatment strategies that are appropriate to the island’s unique characteristics.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health and Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee, after full consideration of the background, character, experience, and qualifications of the nominees, has found the nominees to be qualified for the positions to which nominated and recommends that the Senate advise and consent to the nominations.