Chief Executive Officer

Jason Howard is the Chief Executive Officer for Medquest Inc. where he is responsible for the overall strategy, execution, and growth objectives for the organization.

After starting his career as a physical therapist, Jason transitioned into the business side of healthcare where he has a 20+ year track record of growing and scaling organizations while maintaining a focus on front line providers and their patients. He has taken on roles of progressively increasing responsibility across multiple segments of the healthcare industry in non-profit, publicly traded, and private equity backed organizations, most recently as the President and COO of Sound Physicians, a leading hospital based medical group comprising 4,500 clinicians across 46 states and 400+ programs prior to joining Medquest.

Jason has a Bachelors and Masters degree in Physical Therapy from the University of Evansville.

President and Chief Operating Officer

Mike Villa is the President and Chief Operating Officer of MedQuest, Inc. Mr. Villa oversees MedQuest’s imaging center operations, marketing and IT functions and serves as a member of the executive management team addressing all aspects of the business. Mr. Villa brings more than 30 years of experience in healthcare and consulting to the MedQuest team. His background in outpatient diagnostic imaging includes facility and practice development and acquisition, multi-location operations and systems design, and deep management expertise in multi-site operations. Mr. Villa joined MedQuest nearly two decades ago and served in EVP and COO roles before leaving in late 2006 to co-found Dominium Benefits, a consultancy focused on population health and health insurance program design for large employers.

Prior to joining MedQuest in 1998, Mr. Villa gained experience in healthcare, diagnostic imaging, finance and investment banking first at National Medical Resources and then with DVI, Inc. National Medical Resources was one of the first companies to engage in syndicating outpatient diagnostic imaging facilities largely with practicing physicians, a structure that literally created the industry. Mr. Villa later joined DVI, Inc., the industry leader in asset-based lending in high technology healthcare. At DVI Mr. Villa focused on diagnostic imaging and hospital transactions for numerous healthcare clients, sourcing acquisitions and arranging financing for over $100 million of projects.

Mr. Villa is a graduate of the University of Washington with a degree in Economics.

Chief Development Officer

Bruce Elder is the Chief Development Officer of MedQuest, Inc. Mr. Elder leads all strategy and development initiatives, including hospital joint ventures, acquisitions, new facility development and capital projects, and has significantly expanded the company’s national footprint and position as a leading outpatient imaging partner for hospitals and health systems. Prior to rejoining MedQuest in 2014, Mr. Elder was a Principal at ghSMART, where he advised investors, boards and CEOs on key leadership and talent issues, including executive assessments, leadership development, organizational design and effectiveness, and talent management best practices. Before joining ghSMART, he was a member of MedQuest’s leadership team, with responsibility for development efforts, performance enhancement initiatives and Virginia operations.

Mr. Elder has experience in a number of healthcare leadership roles, including his tenure as a healthcare and business strategy consultant for iXL; Vice President, Development for Meridian Corporate Healthcare; and Coordinator of Business Development for Surgical Care Affiliates.

Mr. Elder has a BA in Political Science from Vanderbilt University and an MBA from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University.

Vice President of Finance

Kristin Brinker is the Vice President of Finance of MedQuest, Inc. Ms. Brinker oversees the company’s financial functions, including accounting, treasury and financial planning & analysis. She brings to MedQuest over 20 years of financial experience in the healthcare industry. Before joining MedQuest in 2009, Ms. Brinker worked for Amgen, one of the world’s leading biotechnology companies, in various finance and accounting roles. Prior to that, Ms. Brinker was a manager at Ernst & Young, LLP, where she completed a two year expatriate assignment in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Mrs. Brinker graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting. She is a Georgia certified public accountant.

Senior Director, Revenue Cycle

Julianne B. Dreon is the Senior Director of Revenue Cycle at MedQuest, Inc. Mrs. Dreon leads the coding, billing, accounts receivable, and customer service departments. Mrs. Dreon has 35 years in the healthcare industry. She has a diverse background including direct patient care and assessment in the psychiatric field, payer claims management and business strategy development in the insurance industry, patient account systems analysis, and progressive revenue cycle leadership roles in hospital and outpatient settings.


Mrs. Dreon is an Auburn University Graduate with a degree in Psychology and a minor in Criminology. Mrs. Dreon has an innovative leadership style focusing on information technology alignment and strategic business processes.

Vice President of Development

Chris Murphy is the Vice President of Development at MedQuest, Inc. Mr. Murphy leads all development efforts for MedQuest and its clients, including network strategy, certificate of need, capital purchasing, design, project management, acquisition, mobile imaging and biomedical equipment service. Chris brings more than 25 years of development experience in both acute and ambulatory care. Mr. Murphy joined MedQuest in 2005 and has been a key member of innovative growth and expansion.

Prior to joining MedQuest, Mr. Murphy gained experience in healthcare operations and imaging as an executive with Universal Health Services (UHS). At UHS, Mr. Murphy helped to develop and expand their outpatient business in South Florida including medical imaging, occupational health, urgent care, wound care and physical therapy.

Mr. Murphy has a Masters of Business Administration with a focus in Healthcare Administration from Nova Southeastern University and Bachelors of Business in Marketing Management from Northwood University in West Palm Beach, Fl.