Our Staff

As the Medical Director of Emergency Health Centre at Willowbrook, Mark Cesta, MD brings a unique understanding and set of skills to the new freestanding concierge concept.

Prior to leading the medical team at Emergency Health Centre, Mark was a Fellow in the Critical Care Unit at MD Anderson. During this fellowship, Mark earned the Sweeney Award for Outstanding Fellowship. Mark has also held positions as an emergency physician at Hazelton-St. Joseph Medical Center, Hazelton General Hospital in Pennsylvania and Oakbend Medical Center in Richmond, Texas.

Mark is a summa cum laude graduate of Northern Arizona University, and he earned his medical degree from The University of Arizona College of Medicine. Mark completed his residency in emergency medicine at St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, where he was awarded the Academic Excellence Award.

Mark is certified in Basic and Advanced Cardiac Life Support, and Advanced Trauma Life Support as well as an Advanced Cardiac Life Support Instructor. He has presented with both the American College of Emergency Physicians and with the European Society of Critical Care, and his work has been published in a variety of publications, including the Annals of Emergency Medicine. As a representative for Emergency Health Centre he has also been feature on KTRH radio & regularly on local KHOU Channel 2 discussing relevant health topics. He also writes a monthly health education column in the 1960 Sun.

Mark lives in Pearland with his wife, new baby boy and two dogs.

MCesta@TheEHC.com

Malissa brings almost 15 years of nursing experience to Emergency Health Centre. As the Director of Nursing, Malissa is responsible for managing the facility’s clinical staff and patient relations.

Malissa is a board-certified registered nurse with additional certification in emergency care. She began her career as a labor and delivery nurse at Trinity Medical Center in Brenham, Texas, before becoming a house supervisor and charge nurse at Columbus Community Hospital in Columbus, Texas and Providence Health Center in Waco, Texas. Most recently, Malissa served as the emergency center nursing director at Memorial Hermann Memorial City Hospital in Houston.

Malissa is actively involved in many professional nursing organizations, and is currently the President of the Houston Chapter of Emergency Nurses. Malissa is certified in Basic and Advanced Cardiac Life Support, and has completed the Trauma Nursing Core Course and the Emergency Nursing Pediatric Course.

Malissa graduated cum laude from Prairie View A&M University College of Nursing and currently lives in Houston with her husband Tony, and children Colton and Katy.

MAing@TheEHC.com

Darrell Ruthven brings more than 30 years of strategic healthcare experience to his position as the Facility Director at Emergency Health Centre at Willowbrook. In this role, Darrell is responsible for the daily operations of the 15,000 square-foot facility.

Darrell has extensive leadership experience in the healthcare industry, serving as both Director of Business Development and Director of Managed Care at various healthcare facilities across Texas. Darrell also brings extensive experience working with many Houston-area freestanding imaging centers, successfully directing them through the standards of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Darrell has also worked with radiologists at both Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Texas Health Science Center. Most recently, Darrell served as General Manager & Administrator for several outpatient imaging centers in the Texas Medical Center area, including River Oaks Imaging and Diagnostic and Houston Medical Imaging.

Before working with freestanding imaging centers, Darrell served in the military and attended the US Army Medical Field Services School in San Antonio. After his service, Darrell became a successful medical sales and marketing representative for Dow Corning Medical Division, promoting surgical implants and medical devices to surgeons throughout Australia, New Zealand and English-speaking markets in Canada.

Darrell holds an undergraduate degree in from the University of Toronto Institute of Business Management and lives in Houston.

DRuthven@TheEHC.com

As the emergency room’s Lab Manager, Tim Wilkins, is responsible for managing Diagnostic Services including the laboratory and imaging. He is also the first recipient of the Emergency Health Centre Employee of the Year Award.

Tim brings over 17 years of laboratory experience to his position at Emergency Health Centre. Prior to joining our team, Tim was a staff microbiologist at Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. He also held positions at Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, and served as the general laboratory supervisor at Kingwood Medical Center in Humble.

Tim holds a BS in Medical Technology, as well as an MBA. When he’s not running the Diagnostic Services at Emergency Health Center, Tim enjoys softball, golf, martial arts and hunting. He currently lives in Magnolia with his wife Carrie and children Brady and Allison.

TWilkins@TheEHC.com