Emily Brandenfels, MD, MS

Emily is a physician who has dedicated her career to implementing innovative strategies to improve outcomes for vulnerable individuals as a frontline provider, leader of interdisciplinary teams, and leader in practice transformations across county and statewide systems. She has deep experience integrating behavioral health into primary care and optimizing the care and engagement of individuals most in need.

She started her career as a primary care physician working in an FQHC in Seattle, Washington, where she gained a deep appreciation for the myriad of factors that impact the health of our most marginalized citizens and the challenges that providers face in addressing those needs. She went on to work in a variety of clinical environments, including an inpatient psychiatric hospital, homeless youth clinic, nursing homes, and most recently, home-based hospice and palliative care. Each of these settings has provided additional viewpoints into the strengths and challenges inherent in healthcare delivery.

Emily has spent more than 10 years doing health plan work, both as and Associate Medical Director and Physician Advisor at Community Health Plan Washington and as a consultant with Health Management Associates, where she was a key leader in supporting IEHP in their efforts to implement Health Homes and CalAim across Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. As an independent consultant, she also assisted Intermountain Health in its efforts to launch a Collaborative Care Pilot program across Utah in 2022-2023.