Advancing Comprehensive Obesity Care: Pharmacology, Personalization, and Lifestyle Integration

Robert Kushner, MD, MS

Professor of Medicine and Medical Education
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Chicago, IL, USA

Robert Kushner, MD, MS, is Professor of Medicine and Medical Education at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, and former Director of the Center for Lifestyle Medicine in Chicago, IL. After completing a residency in Internal Medicine at Northwestern University, he went on to complete a postgraduate fellowship in Clinical Nutrition and earned a master’s degree in Clinical Nutrition and Nutritional Biology from the University of Chicago, IL. Dr Kushner is past President of The Obesity Society, the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition, and the American Board of Physician Nutrition Specialists, and a founder and first Chair of the American Board of Obesity Medicine (ABOM).

Dr Kushner has authored over 250 original articles, reviews, books, and book chapters covering nutrition, obesity, and medical education, and is an internationally recognized expert on the care of patients with overweight or obesity. He is the author/editor of multiple books; current books include Nutrition and Bariatric Surgery (CRC Press, 2015), Lifestyle Medicine: A Manual for Clinical Practice (Springer, 2016), Creating a Lifestyle Medicine Center (Springer, 2020), and Six Factors to Fit – Weight Loss that Works for You! (Eat Right Press, 2020), and Primary Care: Evaluation and Management of Obesity (Wolters Kluwer, 2022). His two newest books, Lifestyle Medicine - Closing Research, Practice, and Knowledge Gaps (Springer) and Patient-Centered Weight Management (Eat Right Press), are due out this Spring.

Colleen Dawkins, FNP-C, RDN, CSOWM

Nurse Practitioner
Big Sky Medical Wellness, Owner
Oxford, MS, USA

Colleen is a Nurse Practitioner in private practice at Big Sky Medical Wellness. She is board-certified in family medicine, a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, a Certified Specialist in Obesity and Weight Management, and holds a Certification of Advanced Education in Obesity Medicine from the Obesity Medicine Association. 

Currently, Colleen serves as treasurer for the Washington Obesity Society, vice chair of the Commission on Dietetic Registration’s Obesity Certificate of Training program advisory board, member of the Obesity Medicine Association’s membership committee, associate editor and reviewer for the Obesity Pillars journal, and is a doctoral student at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Renee J Rogers, PhD, FACSM

Senior Scientist
Bio-Behavior Obesity & Activity Researcher
University of Kansas Medical Center
Kansas City, KS, USA

Dr Renee Rogers is an expert in developing bio-behavioral healthy lifestyle interventions for obesity treatment with special focus on physical activity and relevant strategies to promote long-term success. She has worked in weight management and physical activity research and programming for 20+ years playing many professional roles that include working as an instructor, practitioner, program director, researcher, designer, and consultant and strategist to large corporations. She blends her background in theater and production with her formal academic training in Exercise Physiology, Behavior Change, and Weight Management to develop and implement innovative health promotion, physical activity, and weight management initiatives that encourage well-being and healthy lifestyle engagement. Her current work is focused on the body composition, behavioral, and lifestyle factors related to contemporary obesity treatments and pharmacotherapy. Dr. Rogers also serves in leadership and committee roles for the American College of Sports Medicine and The Obesity Society.

Dominique Williams, MD, MPH, FOMA, Dipl ABOM

Medical Director 
Adult Nutrition, Abbott 
Columbus, OH, USA

Dr Williams is the Adult Nutrition Medical Director at Abbott, a global healthcare company. Her responsibilities include supporting the U.S. and global adult nutrition commercial operations, collaborating with the clinical project team on Abbott-sponsored clinical studies, and driving the development, submission, and execution of investigator-initiated studies, including research publication. She also leads the medical strategy and content review, including moderation for national and international advisory meetings and symposia with multi-disciplinary teams. 

Dominique is double board-certified in Obesity Medicine and Pediatrics. She is a dedicated educator and clinician with more than 20 years of experience in person-centered care, holistic mentoring, and curriculum development. In addition to her clinical work, she has been a mentor to medical students and resident physicians and serves as Adjunct Faculty at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. Dominique has publications on the topics of mentoring, equity-focused initiatives in medical education, nutrition therapy, and the care of people with obesity. She has also worked on several local and national initiatives to address health disparities. 

Dominique obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition from Case Western Reserve University, MD from Wright State University School of Medicine, and MPH in Nutrition from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.