About Us
Clinician led, community driven
From the beginning, this Coalition has been led by clinical priorities. When Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, Idaho’s near total abortion ban went into effect. A small group of maternal fetal medicine experts - the doctors who care for the most complex and sometimes tragic pregnancy complications - formed the Coalition to find a way forward for safe healthcare.
Today, the Coalition continues to be guided by medical providers who deliver real care to real patients at some of the most significant times of their lives. Community members from across the state and from every walk of life have joined the Coalition to support this work and the medical professionals who care for all of us.
The Coalition works to advance safe healthcare for all Idahoans by educating lawmakers, business leaders, and everyday Idahoans about the realities of safe healthcare. We’re last in the nation in patient to provider ratios. We’ve lost more than 35% of our practicing ob/gyns since Idaho’s abortion bans went into effect. Our population continues to grow and legal restrictions on healthcare providers continue to increase. Our work helps lead the way forward toward safe healthcare for all Idahoans.
We partner with medical groups, advocacy organizations, state lawmakers, researchers, business leaders, journalists, and people just like you.
Our goal is a state that provides clear laws that support patients getting the best care possible from their doctors, no matter where they are from, what complications they have, or what they believe.
Mission
Uniting medical professionals and the communities they serve to advance safe healthcare in Idaho.
Vision
An Idaho where every community can count on safe, high-quality healthcare.
Born and raised in Boise, Amber Nelson is the Executive Director of the Idaho Coalition for Safe Healthcare Foundation. She brings decades of experience in leadership, healthcare, and advocacy to her role as well as a deep love for the state that “raised” her. Like Idaho, she prizes her independence, treasures her people, and appreciates those with grit. No stranger to hard work, she was digging post holes and saddling horses before she hit junior high. A graduate of Borah High School, she earned a B.S. from Boston University and a master’s in organizational leadership from Gonzaga University. Before returning to Idaho in 2024, she served on the operations leadership team at Teladoc Health, the executive leadership team at Washington Permanente Medical Group, and on Microsoft’s global Customer Service and Support leadership team. Prior to that she ran a consultancy serving highly regulated finance and healthcare organizations, conducting nationwide qualitative and ethnographic research, and coaching executive leaders.
Amber Nelson
ICSH Foundation 2026 Board of Directors
President: Caitlin Gustafson, MD
Caitlin Gustafson, MD, is a family doctor with obstetrics in McCall, Idaho who cares for patients across their entire life span. She has served as a plaintiff in multiple lawsuits protecting safe healthcare – including abortion. Dr. Gustafson regularly speaks on panels, serves as an expert media source, and advocates for safe healthcare in a variety of professional and community settings.
Treasurer: Jennifer Dempsey, JD
Jennifer Dempsey, JD, is an attorney practicing business and contract law in Boise, Idaho. She is a long-time advocate for bodily autonomy, safe healthcare, and reproductive rights.
Secretary: Leanne Elisha, NP
Leanne Elisha, NP, is a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner in North Idaho specializing in maternal mental health. In addition to her clinical work with patients and her role at ICSH, she sits on the board of Postpartum Support International where she serves as Regional Director for North Idaho.
Members at Large
Heather Burry, MSN, RN, is a native Idahoan and nurse leader with nearly three decades of experience at Idaho’s Veteran’s Administration Medical Center.
Loren Colson, DO, is a family doctor with obstetrics in Boise, Idaho who, in addition to treating patients throughout their lives, teaches in a residency program. He frequently advocates for safe healthcare – including abortion – in Idaho’s state legislature, and in the many professional and medical organizations to which he belongs.
Kate Dobbie is a Sun Valley local, previously the Executive Director of Higher Ground. She brings deep fundraising and governance expertise to the board.
Anne Feighner, MD is an OB/GYN affiliated with St. Luke's Health System in Boise. In addition to delivering babies and providing comprehensive health care to women throughout their lives, she sits on the board of the Idaho section of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG).
Leslie Gunnerson, RN, is a nurse from Eagle, Idaho who has expertise built over decades in Neonatal ICU and maternal-child health labor and delivery – including pregnancy loss.
Heather Hammerstedt, MD, is an emergency medicine physician, public health expert and lifestyle and menopause medicine physician. She splits her time between saving lives in the Emergency Department in Idaho, Oregon and East Africa … and helping people build sustainable health habits through real food, mindset, and skill-based wellness programs.
Amy Holly is a director at Portman Square Group, where she leads business intelligence, strategic communications, competitive intelligence, and public affairs client engagements. A lifelong Idahoan and former lobbyist, her insights are essential to effectively delivering meaningful messages across the state.
Amy Klingler, PA-C, leads the Salmon River Clinic and treats patients throughout central Idaho. As a Physician Assistant in a truly rural area, she is often the only clinician her patients see.
Brenna McCrummen, MD, is an obstetrician-gynecologist at Kootenai Health in Northern Idaho. She sees rural patients from a wide geographic area and serves as a media spokesperson for the Coalition. She trained at the University of Washington School of Medicine and Advocate Lutheran General Hospital and is board-certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Kelly O’Neill, JD, is a litigation attorney working at Legal Voice to advance gender equity in Idaho through impact litigation, legislative advocacy, and public education. She previously served as a public defender.
Jim Souza, MD, is Chief Physician Executive at St. Luke’s Health System. He continues to practice part-time as a pulmonary and critical care physician. He leads the physician and Advanced Practice Provider enterprise for the health system and focuses on improving clinical performance, patient experience, clinician wellbeing, and system design.
Stacy Seyb, MD, is a leading maternal fetal medicine expert who provides clinical care for pregnant women who are facing some of the most complicated and complex medical issues in Idaho. He has leveraged his expertise and experience as a plaintiff in a number of lawsuits fighting for safe health care.
Jane Van De Grift, PharmD, MPH, BCPS, is a clinical pharmacist at Saint Alphonsus, specializing in oral chemotherapy for hematology and oncology patients. She previously worked as a clinical pharmacist in the pediatric and neonatal intensive care units at St. Luke’s Health System.
