WOMEN CoE Leadership
J. Wes Ashford, MD, PhD
Position: Director
Dr. Ashford is the Director of the WRIISC at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System, a Clinical Professor (affiliated) in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, a Senior Research Scientist at the Stanford/VA Aging Clinical Research Center and Alzheimer's Center, and a staff psychiatrist at the VAPAHCS. Dr. Ashford is an authority on Alzheimer's disease, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), traumatic brain injury (TBI), and experienced in the recognition, diagnosis, and treatment of these and numerous other neuropsychiatric disorders. He has contributed major innovations to the fields of neuropsychological testing, brain imaging, and dementia treatment, with more than 160 scientific publications on Alzheimer's disease, MCI, genetic factors in Alzheimer's disease, and testing methodologies.
Dr. Ashford has worked in the VA for 35 years and run several programs, including a memory disorders out-patient clinic and substance-dependence in-patient unit. He has studied numerous clinical problems which afflict Veterans and published manuscripts on several of these, including PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and Gulf War Illness. He is the Chair of the Memory Screening Advisory Board for the Alzheimer's Foundation of America. Dr. Ashford's training includes a BA from UC-Berkeley; an MD from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA; and a PhD in Neuroscience from UCLA, where he directed a geriatric psychiatry clinic 1980-1985 and set up the Alzheimer's PET Scan Study. He is a prolific scientific writer and speaker as well as a frequent presenter at international conferences.
Jennifer Jennings, MD
Position: Clinical Director, CA WRIISC and WOMEN CoE
Dr. Jennifer Jennings joined the CA WRIISC to focus on post-deployment research on traumatic brain injury, neurodegenerative disease, and chronic pain as a fellow in 2016, and has served as clinical Director of the CA WRIISC since 2019. She was appointed as the Clinical Director of the Women’s Operational Military Exposure Network Center of Excellence (WOMEN CoE), designed to address deployment related exposure health concerns in Women Veterans, at its inception in 2023.
Dr. Jennings graduated from Stanford University with a BA in Human Biology. She has worked in Women’s Health at the Native American Women’s Health Resource Center on the Yankton Sioux reservation in South Dakota and with the Homeless Prenatal Program in San Francisco. She earned a MD at UTHSCSA (University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio) in her home state of Texas. She completed a her residency in Neurosurgery at SUNY Upstate and served as the Chief of Neurosurgery of the Syracuse VA and a Clinical Associate Professor at SUNY Upstate for two years, specializing in Spine surgery and Deep Brain Stimulation. Dr. Jennings subsequently worked as a minimally invasive spine surgeon in private practice before returning to serve the Veteran population. She has been seeing deployed Veterans for their toxic exposure concerns related to their general health in her time at the WRIISC, and welcomes the opportunity to extend this into translational research to help Veterans, focusing on conditions unique to Women Veterans.
Maheen Mausoof Adamson, PhD, MHL
Position: Research Director, WOMEN CoE
Dr. Maheen Mausoof Adamson is the Director for Research in Women’s Operational Military Exposure Network Center of Excellence (WOMEN CoE), Senior Scientist in Rehabilitation Department at VA Palo Alto Healthcare System and Clinical Professor (Affiliated) in Neurosurgery at Stanford University School of Medicine. After finishing undergraduate degrees in Biology and Women's Studies at UC Irvine, she went to complete a Ph.D. in neuroscience from the University of Southern California, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford School of Medicine. She has a Master’s in Healthcare Leadership from Brown University and is a Faculty Fellow of Byers Biodesign at Stanford University.
Dr. Adamson has 20 years of experience directing large diverse teams to develop and implement several multi-site and longitudinal studies revolving around the complex problems faced by the Veteran population. For instance, she has employed advanced structural and functional imaging modalities and biomarker assessments for diagnostic and neuromodulation treatments such as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)) for patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI), psychiatric problems, and Alzheimer's disease. She has been a leader in identifying sex differences in brain injury, particularly in the Veteran population. She is intricately involved in mentoring research postdoctoral fellows and clinical residents in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Psychiatry & Neurosurgery Departments at Stanford School of Medicine.
Lindsey Proctor, MS, RDN, LDN
Position: Director of Education, Registered Dietitian 
Lindsey Proctor is a registered dietitian and certified health coach. She obtained her Bachelors of Science in Biology/Nutrition from NC State University and her Masters of Science in Foods and Nutrition from the University of Georgia, both of which she graduated Summa cum Laude. Her graduate school research focus was on appetite regulation. Ms. Proctor went on to complete her dietetic internship at Meredith College, obtain certifications in Adult Weight Management Levels 1 and 2, certification in Childhood Weight Management, and her certification as a Health Coach. Lindsey is a well-rounded dietitian with experience in numerous areas of the nutrition field, from hospital settings and oncology centers to private practice and the military/government realm. In her free time, Lindsey enjoys long walks with her dog, practicing yoga, reading, and baking treats for others.
Stacy Moeder, MHA, MBA
Position: Program Officer
Ms. Moeder started with the Department of Veterans Affairs in 1994 as an Administrative Fellow at the VA Medical Center in Long Beach, California. In 1995, she transferred to the VA Health Care System in Palo Alto, California as an Employee Relations Specialist. In 2000, Stacy became the Administrative Officer for Surgical Service and in 2003, she moved to Research Service. In 2007, she became the Administrative Officer for the new CA WRIISC. In 2015, Ms. Moeder was promoted to the CA WRIISC Supervisory Program Officer. Currently, Ms. Moeder serves as the operational director for both WRIISC and WOMEN.
