About Us
We created Switch to solve a frustrating problem that we observed in healthcare provider revenue cycle. Millions of small billing errors – whether caused by a software system, workflow or payer – go uncaught because of a lack of data, data in the wrong context, or lack of human resources to identify and resolve the issues in a cost-effective manner. These small errors turn into incredibly large missed revenue opportunities.
Melissa
Operations
Melissa Pluke serves as the head of operations for Switch RCM, where she is responsible for running the day-to-day operations of all things related to the business, including application development and client services. Melissa is the resident expert on User Experience and takes great pride in creating applications that are functional, easy to use, and yet extremely powerful.
Melissa previously worked in product management for Passport Health (now Experian Health), where she oversaw the development for the Patient Payment Estimator (PPE). Prior to her work at Experian Health, Melissa was a project manager at Epic on the Claims team. Her clients at Epic included UCSF, Riverside Medical Clinic (CA), Washington Hospital Healthcare System (CA), Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, Methodist (IN), Rockford Health System.
In addition to her work on the operations of Switch RCM, Melissa is also one of the founders and owners of Switch RCM.
Melissa graduated with a B.S./B.A. in Finance from the University of Pittsburgh in 2010.
Nate
Product
Nate Pluke serves as the head of products for Switch RCM, where he conceptualizes and designs the products within the portfolio. Nate has an extensive background in healthcare revenue cycle in both technology and business operations.
Nate previously served in product management capacities for Passport Health (now Experian Health), Healthcare IP (now part of Olive), and Signify Health (NYSE: SGFY) and has a wide range of experience in bringing new products to market. Prior to his work in product management, Nate worked at Epic on the Claims team, working on such implementations as Sutter Health, Mercy (fka Sisters of Mercy), UCSF, and the NYU School of Medicine, to name a few.
Nate has also served as a consultant in both IT and business operations for various Epic clients around the country both as part of BlueTree Network and independently.
Nate also has experience in working directly in healthcare provider revenue cycle He held a senior management position for the Cedars-Sinai Medical Network, overseeing the Revenue Cycle Strategy and Analytics team and also briefly served as the Director - Revenue Cycle Operational Effectiveness and Technical Services at UW Health (Madison, WI).
Nate graduated with a B.A. in English from the University of Arizona in 2004 and despises writing about himself in the third person.
Nicole
Sales
Nicole serves as the head of sales for Switch RCM, where she is responsible for building new client relationships and marketing new services and products. She has spent the last 15 years in healthcare IT implementation, sales, account management, and consulting. Nicole has a passion and talent for growing and scaling young to mid sized companies through sales and account management strategies and mentorship.
Nicole previously served as the Vice President of Business Development at Nordic Global, where she developed the first sales team at the company and helped grow the company from a mid sized to large Epic focused consulting firm. Prior to that, she was an initial founder at BlueTree Network and brought the first clients to the company and developed and trained their first sales and account management team. She also established the first account management team during her time at Zynx Health and significantly improved their client retention and satisfaction. She started her sales career selling enterprise software solutions at Epic and developed a vast network of client and colleague relationships during her time there.
Nicole graduated with a B.S. in Sociology from North Dakota State University in 2002 and an M.S. in Sociology from the University of Notre Dame in 2004. She is also a fitness enthusiast and guru and works part-time as a personal trainer and group fitness instructor. She is passionate about animal rescue and volunteers her time and mentors others, particularly around educating the community about abolishing Breed Specific Legislation (BSL) and encouraging Dog Bite Prevention methods with children.
Meet The Team
Ryan
Technology and Data Science
Ryan Clark wears many hats at Switch RCM. Ryan works as a software developer working with projects that involve turning large amounts of data from machine usable to human readable and usable data, mining large data from public and private sources, and development projects related to receiving and sending ANSI/EDI healthcare transactions. Most recently Ryan created the machine learning processes that automatically detects unexpected payment variations for Switch RCM's Underpayment Detection System.
Ryan also serves as the primary system architect for Switch RCM's secure, HIPAA-compliant cloud infrastructure.
Ryan is also Switch RCM's resident data scientist as he received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering with a focus on Machine Learning from the University of California, San Diego in 2018. Ryan completed his Master of Science degree in Data Science and Machine Learning in the Spring of 2020.
Dr. Steve
Advisor
Dr. Stephen Reis, M.D., is a Board Certified Interventional Radiologist at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. His practice and research focus on interventional oncology, where he is extensively published. Steve has a keen interest in the business of medicine and is pursuing a Master’s in Business Administration from Columbia Business School with a focus on operations and finance. He is currently serving as a subject matter expert for the implementation of Epic EHR across the entire New York Presbyterian Hospital System.
Steve received his Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry and Cellular Biology from the University of California, San Diego in 2003. He received his M.D. in 2007 from the Medical College of New York. Prior to his work at Columbia University, Steve was both a fellow and an assistant professor in Interventional Radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center - Dallas.
Dr. Will
Advisor
Dr. William Harris is a vascular surgeon who recently completed service in the United States Air Force. While in the USAF, he completed tours at Keesler AFB, Nellis AFB and a final tour at San Antonio Military Medical Center at Ft Sam Houston, TX as a Vascular Surgeon and serving as director of Vascular Edcation for the largest surgical residency in the Department of Defense. He graduated with honors from University of Arizona and Midwestern University Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Harris completed residency in General Surgery at Keesler Medical Center at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi and completed a fellowship in vascular and endovascular surgery at University of Tennessee College of Medicine Chattanooga.
Will is board certified by the American Board of Surgery in both General Surgery and Vascular Surgery. He is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences. He is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and the Society for Vascular Surgery and he is a member of the Society for Clinical Vascular Surgery. He presently serves as a partner and vascular surgeon at the Vascular Institute of Chattanooga in Chattanooga, TN.