Vanessa Arcuri

Physician Assistant

Christopher Arboleda, MS

Exercise Physiologist

A personal trainer and college athlete, Chris has a passion for fitness and education. He joined the Comite team upon graduating Syracuse University, where he obtained a Bachelor of Science in Health and Exercise Science with a minor in Psychology and a Master’s of Science in Exercise Science. He is a first-generation Colombian-American, born and raised in Queens, NY. Chris spent his formative years playing competitive soccer, and in college: rugby and cheerleading.

Chad Poole

Exercise Physiologist

Chad comes to Comite as a former baseball and football player, as well as an avid educator of the health and fitness industry. After completing his Bachelor’s Degree in Kinesiology at Fresno State University, Chad moved to New York to complete his Master’s Degree of Exercise Science with a concentration in Exercise Physiology. Outside of work he enjoys weightlifting, boating on the water, and attending various sporting events across the country.

Ioana Raica

Medical Assistant

Ioana’s passion is working with people in a meaningful way and making a positive impact in the world. After earning her BS in Hospitality and Tourism in Romania, Ioana moved to the United States and obtained her Certified Medical Assistant Associates Degree. Ioana attributes her decision to pursuing a career path in the medical field to the wonderful and rewarding experiences she has had as an internal medicine medical assistant. Ioana loves finding new ways to keep herself busy and face new challenges. When she is not working at the Comite Center, you can find her working part-time at an animal hospital. Ioana is also trilingual (fluent in Romanian, English and Spanish)!

Ali Shamsa

Clinical Intern

Ali spent his childhood touring the Midwest and lived in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 2016 and followed up his bachelors with a yearlong masters in management. After his masters, Ali gained experience working as a digital marketer. He now continues his pursuit of medicine and is applying to enter medical school in the Fall of 2020.

Hunter Myers

Clinical Intern

Hunter is originally from Cape Cod, Massachusetts. He graduated from Smith College with a double major in Chemistry and Jewish Studies. Among other activities at Smith, Hunter worked in an environmental chemistry lab (work on aerosols was recently published). He also wrote an award-winning thesis in the Jewish Studies Department.

Hunter pursued a Post Baccalaureate Pre-medical Program at Columbia University and intends to go to medical school. His career ambition is to better transgender healthcare.

Fanny Migliore

Clinical Intern

Fanny completed the academic portion of her Master’s Degree in Medical Science at Boston University, where she also completed her undergraduate degree in Human Physiology.

Fanny grew up on Long Island, where she spent most of her childhood doing competitive gymnastics. During college, Fanny did clinical research at Yale New Haven Hospital, and published some works on movement disorders. She is excited to continue working in the medical field and pursuing her goal of attending medical school.

Tahera Aktar

Clinical Intern

Tahera is a New Yorker who is passionate about serving her community through a career in medicine. She graduated from New York Institute of Technology in May 2018 with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. She is currently applying to Masters in Physician Assistant programs and expects to start in Fall 2020.

Tahera has a profound love for technology, which she expresses through teaching S.T.E.M (science, technology, engineering and math) coding and engineering classes to the youth across New York City.

During her days off, you can find Tahera hopping from museum to museum and enjoying different coffee brews at local cafes. Her hobbies include painting, reading and singing along with Disney classic songs.

Steven Berlin

VP of Finance

Steve will have oversight of the company’s finances and strategic operations. Steve is a CPA with over 25 years of financial experience and has held various executive level roles within the broadcasting, advertising, franchising and private equity industries.

Steve received his BBA in Accounting from the University of Massachusetts – Amherst while also playing college soccer.

Steve is a native Long Islander and enjoys paddle boarding, boating and playing golf.

Daniel Lenzo

Daniel is responsible for driving the company’s execution strategy across technology, operations, and product integration. Before joining the Comite team, Daniel held multiple strategic and executive management roles in the education sector. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from NYIT and a Master’s degree in International Economics & Finance from Brandeis University. In his spare time, Daniel enjoys playing with his amazing young son and supporting community theater with his terrific wife.

Anita Beri Emly

Client Relations Manager

Anita has worked with Dr. Comite since 2010. Her knowledge of the program and operations allows her to coordinate with prospective patients and facilitate their introduction to our Center. Anita is fluent in American Sign Language and volunteers as an interpreter in her church’s Deaf ministry.  

Janine Forrestal

Program Manager

Janine’s dedication to patient relationships and her strong interest in precision medicine allow her to efficiently manage the interface between clients and clinicians, scheduling, and medical records. Prior to joining the Comite team, Janine worked in surgical oncology as a Session Assistant at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She graduated from Stony Brook University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology.

Barbara Blum

Controller

Barbara is responsible for finance, accounting, and bookkeeping at the Comite Center. She studied at Universidad de San Carlos and Universidad Mariano Galvez in her native Guatemala, where she worked in Guatemala as a judicial clerk and at Warner-Lambert and DHL. She moved to the United States in 1995 and started working for Dr. Comite soon thereafter.

Andi Hanken

VP, Operations

Andi joined the Comite Team in October of 2017 bringing with her more than fifteen years of experience in the industry. She began her career in the NewYork-Presbyterian health care system and she later migrated to multi-specialty outpatient care in what is now known as the Mount Sinai Health System. Andi holds a passion for putting patients first and ensuring customer service is met at every level. Outside of work she can be found whipping things up in the kitchen, volunteering at her favorite animal shelter, or trying a new fitness class with friends.

Karey Wallace

Director, Human Resources

Karey serves to optimize our people organization to achieve the missions of the Practice. She is a graduate of Pace University and a SHRM certified professional. Before joining our team, Karey developed and managed the human resources function across multiple industries including medical practice management, construction and technology. Karey lives in Brooklyn with her husband and children. A homemaker at heart, she enjoys cooking and entertaining, painting and decorating, writing, traveling and going to the beach.

Christal Edwards

Healthcare Office Manager

Originally from a small town in North Carolina, Christal moved to New York City to live the exciting, fast-paced life she saw on television.

She has accrued more than seven years of experience in the Healthcare industry and almost two decades working in customer and client relations.

Christal enjoys working with various individuals and learning new facts and skills.

When not at work, she enjoys shopping, exercising and going on adventures with her husband and children.

Jill Harrison

Esthetician

Paulina Tulikorpi

Social Media Marketing Intern

Paulina is a new graduate from the University of Western Ontario. She completed a double major in Political Science and Media Information & Techno-culture.

Paulina is passionate about healthcare and believes that sharing the benefits of a healthy lifestyle and precision medicine will make for a healthier and happier population.

When not at work, Paulina enjoys traveling, exercising, shopping, and cooking.

Ellie Reilly

Ellie works in administration to support the Center across multiple platforms, including client services, operations, and finance. She attended Ithaca College, where she obtained a BA in Economics. Before joining the center, Ellie worked in the financial services and design industries for 18 years, respectively. Ellie enjoys time with family and friends. Her hobbies include interior design and long walks at the beach.