Meet Our Leaders

Dr. Alexander is the Medical Director for California Rehabilitation Institute where he formulates and implements policies, procedures and protocols for the treatment of patients as well as the hospital’s quality assurance and risk management programs.  He is the inaugural holder of the Susan and David Wilstein Endowed Chair in Rehabilitation Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.  Dr. Alexander is a Professor in the Department of Neurology at UCLA and an experienced clinician educator.  As an honors graduate of both Amherst College, with a major in Neuroscience, and the University of Minnesota Medical School (AOA), he completed his neurology residency at Columbia Presbyterian’s Neurological Institute and has practiced neurological rehabilitation since residency.

Dr. Alexander has achieved board certification in three ABMS specialties with his initial board certification in Neurology, followed by board certification in Spinal Cord Medicine from the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPMR), and in Vascular Neurology (Stroke) from the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. Much of his academic work has focused on improving patient care through work on national performance measures for hospitals and physicians, and on clinical practice guidelines for stroke rehabilitation with the goal of reducing the persistent gap between evidence-based practice and actual practice.

Dr. Riggs is Chief Medical Strategy Officer and Chief of Staff for California Rehabilitation Institute. In this role, he assists in the development of medical staff, provides advice on medical staff affairs and develops and advances strategic goals for the hospital.

Dr. Riggs is also Vice President and Chief Medical Information Officer (CMIO) for the Cedars-Sinai Health System, Chairman and Medical Director for Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. He is a Professor at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

Dr. Riggs completed his medical education at the Medical College of Georgia, and he trained in Philadelphia in conjunction with the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Riggs is Board Certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Clinical Informatics.

Dr. Riggs has published and lectured nationally and internationally on clinical and administrative rehabilitation research and topics, as well as delivered lectures on physician leadership skills and health informatics.

Ms. Coughenour is the CNO for California Rehabilitation Institute. In this role, she serves as nursing administrator and is responsible for oversight and leadership of professional nursing practice, standards of nursing care, nursing outcomes, and nursing education.

She has extensive leadership experience in health care management, with a focus on acute and long-term patient care, rehabilitation therapy, reimbursement, case management and quality improvement.

Prior to joining California Rehabilitation Institute, she held leadership positions at two full-service acute care hospitals in South Texas. She served as Chief Nursing Officer at Citizens Medical Center and as Senior Vice President of Patient Care/Chief Nursing Officer at Knapp Medical Center there. Earlier in her career, she led nursing and therapy services at major hospitals and medical centers in Southern and Central California. She was formerly the Senior Vice President of Nursing at Redlands Community Hospital. She holds a bachelor's degree in Business Management, a bachelor's degree in Nursing, and a master's degree in Nursing Leadership.

Ms. Coughenour is a Certified Rehabilitation Nurse (CRRN) and a member of the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses. She is a past president of the Inland Area Nurse Executive Association, and a past member of the Texas Executive Health Care Task Force.

Dr. Jawharjian is the Director of Pharmacy for California Rehabilitation Institute. In this role, he provides leadership and management to the day to day pharmacy operations ensuring medication safety and optimizing medication therapies. As a clinical pharmacist, Dr. Jawharjian has worked extensively in the inpatient environment delivering care in various practice settings. He has held administrative roles in both tertiary care and long term acute hospitals.

 Dr. Jawharjian is a graduate of UCLA where he earned a B.S. in Biology and an M.P.H. from the Fielding School of Public Health. He then continued to the University of Southern California where he received his Doctor of Pharmacy degree and most recently was awarded an MBA from CSULA. He is currently an adjunct professor for the USC School of Pharmacy.

Dr. Roberts is Senior Director of Quality Outcomes and Research for California Rehabilitation Institute.  In this role, she monitors and analyzes outcome data to help improve patient outcomes.  Dr. Roberts’ professional career spans the continuum of care as a clinician, administrator, educator and researcher. Currently, she teaches at the University of Southern California (USC), and lectures at other Los Angeles area universities. She is a surveyor for the Commission on Accreditation for Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), and is involved with the National Quality Forum Membership Partnership for Post-Acute Care and Long-Term Care, and the All-Cause Admission and Readmission Steering Committee.

Dr. Roberts is a member of the Administrative Directors Council of the Association of Academic Physiatrists, and is a past chair of the California Hospital Association Center for Medical Rehabilitation Services. She is chair-elect of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM) Stroke Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group and chair of the ACRM Program Committee.

In addition, Dr. Roberts has served as principal and co-investigator on a variety of research projects. She participates in workshops and consults on research topics including rehabilitation, informatics and health service regionally, nationally and internationally.