Meet the Team
MedTrait is backed by a team of professionals dedicated to delivering personalized medicine guidance with maximum transparency, clinical utility and accuracy. MedTrait is a collaborative effort of data curated by PTC’s genetic scientists and pharmacists with computer programmers to create a highly functional PGx Assisted Medication Management Platform.
Kim Gorman
President, PTC Laboratories
Kim Gorman is President of PTC Laboratories, Inc. (PTC). Kim obtained a degree in Chemistry from the University of Missouri - St. Louis and began her career in genetics at the Washington University School of Medicine’s Center for Genetics in Medicine in 1991. While at Washington University, she performed over half a million PCR reactions in helping to map the X chromosome for the international Human Genome Project. Kim then served for three years as a forensic DNA scientist at the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department Crime Laboratory. In 1996, Kim co-founded PTC. Kim is PTC’s Laboratory Supervisor and Forensic Technical Leader. Under her direction, PTC has focused exclusively on performing high throughput DNA testing, and has been at the forefront of developing applications for genetic technologies.
Under Kim’s guidance PTC has accomplished much. Examples include co-developing and commercializing a patent-pending forensic DNA technology that is used by government crime laboratories in the United States and Europe, the successful completion of many government contracts for forensic and other human identity testing, and development of the MedTrait medication management solution.
Kim’s daily responsibilities include the functional aspects of laboratory supervision. She oversees all bench work, implements new testing procedures, develops protocols and procedures, and designs studies and validations. She is a hands on scientist in the laboratory and is proficient in all testing procedures performed within the laboratory.
Michelle Beckwith
Vice President, PTC Laboratories
Michelle Beckwith is a scientist and a computer programmer. For the past twenty-three years, she has been Vice-President and Director of Information Technology for PTC Laboratories, Inc. (also doing business as GeneTrait Laboratories), which she co-founded in 1996. She earned a B.S. in Chemistry and a minor in mathematics from the University of Missouri - Columbia. Her career has been focused exclusively on the complex issues of DNA testing, bioinformatics, and related programming challenges and solutions.
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Throughout her career, Michelle has focused on the development of software to improve the delivery of DNA test results and the operation of DNA testing. Her mastery of complex DNA testing concepts, combined with programming expertise, has allowed her to be an innovative problem solver on the leading edge of developments in DNA technology. In 2006, Michelle agreed to spend six months in Baton Rouge as the DNA Data Review Team Leader on the Hurricane Katrina DNA Identification Effort, where she used complex kinship analysis to identify victims of Hurricane Katrina. She provides consulting services for DNA population statistics and kinship issues for communities around the world and has helped to develop international standards in this area.
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Michelle is the primary architect of PTC’s MedTrait algorithm that aggregates scientific studies and government agency findings to present current clinically actionable genetic guidance. Michelle also led and coordinated PTC’s team of scientists, pharmacists, programmers and outside database support to structure and develop the MedTrait comprehensive medication management solution. Under her guidance, all aspects of drug interactions and a patient’s unique genetic makeup have been taken into account to produce a uniquely comprehensive, effective, and user-friendly medication management solution.
Judith Miles, M.D., Ph.D.
Medical Director, PTC Laboratories
Judith Miles, M.D., Ph.D. is the Medical Director of PTC Laboratories, Inc. and has been with PTC since 1996. She is a Board Certified Medical Geneticist with a Ph.D. in genetics, and with over forty years of high level experience in the field of Medical Genetics. For twenty-three years she was the Director of the Division of Medical Genetics at the University of Missouri, in addition to being a professor in the University of Missouri School of Medicine and a practicing physician. From 1981 to 2006 Dr. Miles was the chair of the Missouri Genetics Advisory Committee which is appointed by the Governor, making her the top genetics advisor to the State of Missouri for twenty-five years.
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Dr. Miles has worked hard to promote and contribute to the field of Medical Genetics through many positions in regional and national medical associations. She served on the Board of Directors of the American Board of Medical Genetics, and served as chair of two committees. She was a member of the Board of Directors, and a committee member, for the American Society of Human Genetics. She participated as a committee member of the Cytogenetics committees at both CAP and NIH, and held similar positions in these and other medical organizations.
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Throughout her career, and long before the phrases “personalized medicine” and “pharmacogenetics” became popular, Dr. Miles has worked to realize the promise of Medical Genetics. Based on the knowledge that each person has a unique genetic makeup, she has worked on a daily basis to identify patient-specific treatments that reduce complications and side effects and improve patient outcomes.
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Dr. Miles’s experience, knowledge, and dedication to the promise of Medical Genetics are reflected throughout the MedTrait medication management solution. Her emphasis on developing a product that was easily usable by physicians in the midst of a busy practice has resulted in a product that allows physicians to find exactly what they need to know in seconds.
Charlotte Phillips, Ph.D.
Laboratory Director, PTC Laboratories
Charlotte Phillips, Ph.D. is the Laboratory Director of PTC Laboratories, Inc. She is a Board Certified Medical Geneticist and a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Dr. Phillips has twenty-five years of experience teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in the areas of biochemistry and medical genetics.
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Dr. Phillips exemplifies the ability of medical genetics to improve lives. A prime example of this commitment is her work with the Old Order Mennonite community to develop a genetic test for Maple Syrup Urine Disease (MSUD). A recessive mutation affects approximately one in every one hundred and seventy-six newborns in this population. Dr. Phillips’s rapid PCR test has saved the lives of many mennonite babies, and tremendously improved the quality of life for many more. She continues to devote time and resources to develop applicable solutions using genetic information through her research.
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The MedTrait medication management system is the most recent example of Dr. Phillips’ commitment to develop practical applications of the information garnered from medical genetics to improve the lives of patients. By identifying the patient’s relevant DNA variants, providing the most current scientific knowledge about the implications of those variants, and analyzing the interactions of all medications in the patient’s regimen as well as demographic and lifestyle factors, MedTrait will facilitate prescription of the most effective medications with the fewest side effects, and greatly improve patient outcomes.
Rosie Stauder, BSPharm
Pharmacy Leadership, PTC Laboratories
Rosie Stauder, BSPharm, has been a pharmacist for thirty-three years. She has held positions from staff pharmacist at various medical institutions to Supervisor Pharmacist for the University of Missouri Healthcare, and has served as a preceptor for various schools of pharmacy. Rosie has experience in both hospital and retail settings, and has been instrumental in pharmacokinetic dosing services. Rosie is also certified in Medication Therapy Management.
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Rosie takes her role as a pharmacist very seriously and feels a great responsibility to provide a very high level of care to patients. Throughout her career, Rosie has been very patient focused and patient friendly. She has a reputation for going out of her way to find alternative medications as needed, and also to find work-arounds in order to make certain that patients receive the medication they need, regardless of the patients’ insurance coverage or ability to pay.
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In helping to develop the MedTrait platform, Rosie has taken great care and pride in developing a system that will consistently provide a previously unavailable level of care in medication risk management, and especially with regard to those patients for whom many medications must be coordinated. Her contributions are critical in making certain that the patient always receives the most effective medication.
Michael Perkins, Pharm.D.
Pharmacy Leadership, PTC Laboratories
Michael Perkins, Pharm.D. is responsible for analyzing pharmacogenomic studies and developing treatment guidance. Michael earned a Doctorate in Pharmacy from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He is the Pharmacy Manager for the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine. He is also an Adjunct Clinical Instructor for the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Pharmacy.
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Working in a teaching hospital, Michael enjoys the daily opportunities to provide educational services and has a passion for compounding and helping find affordable medication alternatives. Michael is an active fellow of the Society of Veterinary Hospital Pharmacists and promotes the open dissemination of information to providers and students.
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Michael has a deep interest in the application of pharmacogenomics in daily medicine. He has endeavored to set the MedTrait report apart from others by providing the highest quality treatment guidance backed up with solid studies. Michael enjoys the process of cumulating pharmacogenomic studies and tying together pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data to develop the practical and impactful treatment guidance that are incorporated into the MedTrait database.
Tim McCarty
Features and Design Leadership, PTC Laboratories
Tim McCarty is a biotechnology marketing and operations specialist. Surrounded by scientists, he became familiar with technology and genetics at an early age and studied business at the University of Missouri where he closely examined trends in the healthcare industry.
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Tim learned the specifics of modern genetics and clinical laboratory operations during a part time role at PTC Laboratories while simultaneously working full time in strategic media marketing. Shortly thereafter, he dedicated his efforts to managing the growth and sales of PTC’s new pharmacogenetics (PGx) division.
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Currently, Tim supports business development, product design, marketing strategy, sales and clinical implementation for the company’s PGx services. He has a key role in the development and delivery of MedTrait, representing and communicating physician needs and helping to incorporate those requirements into the platform.
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Tim takes pride in connecting patients and healthcare providers to life changing achievements in biotechnology to maximize health and happiness. “Bridging the gap between data and the point of care can empower everyone to make better healthcare decisions,” he says.
Scott Wein
IT Infrastructure Leadership, PTC Laboratories
Scott Wein is responsible for the information technology (IT) infrastructure at PTC Laboratories and business development in Asia. He has earned a B.S. from the University of Maryland University College in IT Systems and Security.
Scott’s skill set includes multiple programming languages, operating systems and network design. He has created the PTC Laboratories IT infrastructure to provide stable and redundant systems to ensure greater uptime for websites, applications, databases, and storage. He also integrates new technologies when appropriate.
Scott has developed the application programming interfaces (APIs) and services that combine data for and support the MedTrait application and allow for the MedTrait data to be accessible to any allowed user or application.
Utilizing his experience gained while in the service, Scott has extended PTC Laboratories business into a global biotechnology company by making PTC’s DNA testing services available in three Asian countries.
Joshua Lewis
Web Development Leadership, PTC Laboratories
Joshua Lewis is responsible for developing MedTrait’s front-end user experience, bringing the platform to life. Adept at modern web frameworks and familiar with building large scale products from scratch, he is ideally positioned to turn requirements into seamless web applications. His work centers on building and delivering MedTrait’s interactive app, including functionality, security, compatibility and scalability.
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Joshua has occupied lead development roles since 2013 at a variety of companies across the US and has been a programmer since 2009. He is formally trained in mathematics and applied this early in his career to software development in order to build image processing and object detection algorithms for the food and beverage industry.
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Joshua spent three years in a project management role for industrial systems and then pivoted to work on insurance pricing models for Transamerica. Joshua participated in developing software to optimize and automate the production of the Model X and Model 3 at Tesla. Today, Joshua is focusing on forensic and genetic software applications.