Senior Management
Rashmee Patil, MD
Hepatologist & Chief Executive Officer
Dr. Rashmee Patil completed her undergraduate education at Yale University where she also competed on the Division 1 tennis team. She obtained her medical degree from Saint George’s University School of Medicine. She completed her Internal Medicine Residency at NYU and Hepatology and Liver Transplantation Fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine.
Dr. Patil has practiced medicine in diverse settings and has served as principal investigator for over 60 studies in the field of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. She currently serves as CEO of Pinnacle and founded South Texas Research Institute (“STRI”), a leading site management organization in NAFLD/NASH focused on serving a diverse patient population in the historically underserved Rio Grande Valley. Prior to founding STRI in 2020, she led the Hepatology Department at the DHR Liver & Transplant Institute in McAllen, TX.
In December 2022, STRI partnered with Pinnacle, expanding its network and geographic presence. In her spare time, Dr. Patil enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, mentoring, and seizing every opportunity she can for personal and professional growth.
Madhavi Rudraraju, MD
Gastroenterologist, Hepatologist &
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Rudraraju is triple board-certified in Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology and Transplant Hepatology with over 12 years of medical experience. She received her Doctor of Medicine from Andhra Medical College in 2001, did her internal medicine residency at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in 2006, followed by two fellowships in Transplant Hepatology at Mayo Clinic and Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.
She was the recipient of the 2022 Summit Apex Award for overall excellence in research, has over 6 original publications in peer-reviewed journals, and 4 publications worldwide. Dr. Rudraraju comes with a superb background holding positions like Medical Director at Methodist Specialty and Transplant- Liver Failure Program, Medical Director for United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), and Chief of Transplant service line for the Medical Executive Committee.
She was the recipient of the 2022 Summit Apex Award for overall excellence in research, has over 6 original publications in peer-reviewed journals, and 4 publications worldwide. Dr. Rudraraju comes with a superb background holding positions like Medical Director at Methodist Specialty and Transplant- Liver Failure Program, Medical Director for United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), and Chief of Transplant service line for the Medical Executive Committee.
She is an active member of the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG), American Gastroenterology Association (AGA), American Association for the Study of Liver Disease (AASLD), and European Association for the study of the Liver (EASL). Dr. Rudraraju has been with Pinnacle since 2020 and has formed a multitude of relationships with physicians and experts to raise awareness of liver disease and find a treatment for the patients that need it most. Dr. Rudraraju is an avid plant enthusiast and loves spending her free time cooking, gardening, and with family.
Andre DeLeon, CPA
Chief Financial Officer
Andre DeLeon is a certified public accountant with over 20 years of experience in public and private markets. After almost a decade at Ernst & Young (EY), with a principal focus on mergers and acquisitions, Andre went on to serve as Controller for the City of San Antonio, the country’s seventh largest city. He joins Pinnacle Clinical Research after eight years scaling a successful technology company, most recently as Chief Financial Officer, where he was responsible for all aspects of finance, accounting, legal, and human resources operations.
Andre was a student-athlete at St. Mary’s University before earning his graduate degree from the University of Virginia. In his spare time, you can find Andre in search of swells and snow with his 80-pound retriever, Atlas, always in tow.
KaTasha Green, MBA
Vice President of Business Operations
KaTasha is a Louisiana native who joined the Army right out of high school and credits the Army core values for helping develop her into the person and leader she is today. After her time in the Army, she attended Louisiana Tech University and spent over 15 years working in the healthcare sector focusing specifically in mental health. She later pursued and obtained her MBA from The University of Texas Permian Basin.
KaTasha joins Pinnacle as Vice President of Business Operations from an extensive background in management and business development. She previously served as Manager of Financial Planning & Analysis for the local San Antonio Mental Health Authority. While in this role she led the company’s efforts to restructure the organizational wide onboarding core competencies processes for clinical staff, led and oversaw annual budgets, provided strategic planning based upon past performance and business trends and participated in various advisory groups that laid the fundamental strategy, planning, and operations for various programs throughout the organization.
She is a decisive and self-motivated leader who possesses the ability to create breakthrough strategies to advance Pinnacle’s mission. When not serving as Vice President of Business Operations you can find her very involved in the community advocating for equality, mentoring to young girls to ensure they see role models in leadership that they can identify with, and traveling the world making memories.
Margaret Leal, MS, CCRC
Vice President of Clinical Research Operations
Margaret (Maggie) Leal was born and raised in the beautiful state of Washington. She obtained her Bachelor of Science with a concentration in Chemistry from The University of Texas-Pan American in 2014. She later pursued and obtained her Master of Science with a concentration in Health Sciences in Health Care Administration from The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley in 2015. Maggie is also a Certified Clinical Research Coordinator through the Association of Clinical Research Professionals (ACRP). She showed proficiency in research design, ethics/safety, regulation, clinical trial operations, study and site management, and data management and informatics.
Maggie joins Pinnacle Clinical Research as Vice President of Clinical Research Operations with 10 years in the clinical research field. Her background comes from being a Research Assistant, Clinical Research Coordinator, and Director of Clinical Research Operations in the clinical research industry. She has executed protocols in different therapeutic areas and most recently in the field of Hepatology. She has worked directly with our CEO, Dr. Patil, since 2018 and helped obtain top-enrollment recognition for NASH research sites in both global and national research protocols.
Maggie brings enthusiasm and optimism to her workplace and enjoys going to concerts with her husband, going fishing with family, and teaching her son how to play sports.
Monia Garza, CCRC
Vice President of Compliance
Native to the Rio Grande Valley Monica Garza comes with 15 years of research experience. She obtained her Bachelor of Science with a concentration in Biology from the University of Texas-Pan American in 2007. Monica has worked compliance on multiple Phase I through Phase IV research trials in various therapeutic areas.
Her background includes being a Certified Clinical Research Coordinator at a private clinic with a focus on adult endocrinology research in Austin in 2009. Then in 2017, she moved to the greater Houston area to work in pediatric neurology clinic research at one of the largest children’s hospitals in the United States as a Project Manager. In 2021, she joined the quality department at a private research site focused on NASH and cirrhosis clinical research, where she became the Director of Compliance and Data Management in 2022. She is enthusiastic and honored to utilize her expertise in clinical research and patient care as Pinnacle’s Vice President of Compliance.
Monica is passionate to bring Pinnacle’s mission of innovative health care and education to her Texas community. She is a joy to the workplace and enjoys reading, traveling, and baking in her spare time.
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