The Dark Intelligence Group Team
Robert L. Michel
President & Editor in Chief
Deborah Lucas Michel RN
Vice President
Deborah Lucas Michel RN is the Vice President for the Dark Intelligence Group based in Spicewood, Texas since 2000. She is responsible for Audio Conferences, Human Resources, Contract Monitoring, and financial oversight. She has a nursing degree and a bachelor’s degree in Healthcare Administration from USC. Nurse Debbie is a psychiatric nurse with expertise in Quality Management, Program Development, and Case Management. When not working, she does volunteer work for community based services, trains Engel, enjoys sailing, and dancing. She can be reached at djlucas@darkreport.com or directly at 512-264-7103.
Robert Croce
Executive Publisher/General Manager
Email: bcroce@darkreport.com
Phone: (512) 264-7103
After almost 18 years as an executive in B2B publishing, Bob joined The Dark Intelligence Group in September 2018 to run daily operations and assist founder Robert Michel with a plan for future growth. Bob’s stops as a publishing company leader include health care information and training companies HCPro and Carlat Publishing, and Wellesley Information Services in the IT space. While at HCPro as Group Publisher, Bob was a part of a management team that helped that company through 10 years of super growth, leading to two private equity recapitalizations. A Boston area native, and graduate of Northeastern University, Bob splits his work time between our Spicewood, TX, main office, and his home office in the Boston area, where he lives with wife Maureen and their two “cheagle” puppies named Sully and Murphy.
Scott Wallask
Editorial Director
Email: swallask@darkreport.com
Scott has more than 25 years of writing, content marketing, and conference planning experience in the healthcare, software, and life science industries. A former newspaper reporter, he graduated magna cum laude from Northeastern University in Boston with a bachelor of arts degree in journalism.
Bill Sinagra
Marketing Director
Email: bsinagra@darkreport.com
With more than two decades of marketing experience, Bill joined The Dark Intelligence Group in September 2021 as the new Director of Marketing. He has served as a marketing leader across various organizations, including healthcare information and training company HCPro, Harvard Business Review, international internet security company Kaspersky, and award-winning music production software developer iZotope. A graduate of Northeastern University, Bill works from his home office in the Boston area and enjoys writing, drawing, and reading in his spare time.
Jim Whitehurst
National Sales Director
Jim Whitehurst joins The Dark Intelligence Group as a Senior Sales Executive. Jim Brings with him over 25 years of experience in the laboratory industry, selling highly-complex laboratory, revenue cycle, document imaging, web portal and connectivity solutions to both commercial and outreach laboratory marketplaces. Prior to TDIG Jim was the the Director of Sales at tevixMD and was responsible for all sales, marketing and business development activities. Prior to tevixMD Jim worked as Vice President of Sales at ASPYRA LLC where he was he is responsible for all sales and new business development activities. Prior to ASPYRA, Whitehurst worked as VP of Sales for Halfpenny Technologies selling connectivity, web portal and mobile reporting solutions for laboratory service providers.
Liz Carey
Managing Editor
Email: lcarey@darkreport.com
Phone: (512) 264-7103
Liz Carey joined The Dark Intelligence Group in February 2019. She is responsible for developing content and new products in several areas, including special reports, white papers and webinars. Liz previously served as Senior Editor of HomeCare Magazine, which is part of Cahaba Media Group in Birmingham, AL, and she previously spent 13 years with Oakstone Publishing. Liz has more than 15 years of experience in developing and managing editorial and creative programs for B2B digital and print publications, in addition to a range of educational products and tools. She is a former newspaper reporter and editor and is a graduate of the University of South Alabama with a BA in English and Communication. Liz is based in Birmingham, AL. Outside of work, she enjoys roller skating and watching Pittsburgh sports with her family. Liz is assisted in the office by her leopard gecko, Jeffrey.
Michael McBride
Managing Editor
Email: michael@mcbrideimedia.com
Phone: (616) 502-0850
Michael McBride is Managing Editor of Dark Daily and The Dark Report. He has been writing/editing magazine and website content on clinical laboratory medicine, pathology, healthcare information technology, and related topics for three decades. He also has edited 12 fiction novels for various authors. Michael is former Editor-in-Chief of Health Management Technology magazine, Technology Editor for Medical Economics magazine, and Editorial Director for Pandamoon Publishing.
Sue Calabro
Customer Care Specialist
Email: scalabro@darkreport.com
Phone: (512) 264-7103
Sue joined TDIG in February 2019 as Customer Care Specialist for The Dark Report. She has more than 25 years of experience in customer service and came to the Dark Group to assist subscribers with questions, and provide information for potential subscribers and those signing up for our 14-day free trial .
She spent 15 years in similar customer service roles at healthcare publisher HCPro, Inc., and at The Greeley Company, a consulting company that assists hospitals in the area of medical staff leadership, credentialing, and quality. Sue’s role as a customer service professional has always been to serve the best needs of customers, and she is always just an email or a phone call away.
Sue works remotely from her home office North of Boston, where she resides with her husband, Guy, and their two beautiful grandchildren. In her free time, she enjoys reading and spending time with her family.
Adam Curtis
Controller
Phone: (512) 264-7103
Adam Curtis has a litany of experience in corporate financial management and corporate administration from experience in corporate roles with the likes of Washington Mutual, Deloitte Consulting, and AMD, to name a few. Along with financial and business savvy, Adam brings a technical skillset poised to drive process improvement and process automation. Adam graduated from the University of Dallas with a BA in Business leadership and is currently a CFA level 1 candidate. Adam has been married to Amanda Curtis for 18 years. They have 3 children: one daughter and two sons. They also recently celebrated the birth of their first grandson!
Amanda Curtis
Accountant and Executive Administrator
Phone: (512) 264-7103
Amanda has over 20 years experience working in executive supporting/accounting roles. She has been an executive office manager, retirement plan administrator, and bookkeeper. Amanda lives near The Dark Report headquarters in Spicewood, TX with her husband and twin sons. She also has a grown daughter who lives in Dallas. Amanda is also a certified personal trainer, part-time wedding coordinator and venue manager.
Discovery of Antibody that Neutralizes All Known Variants of SARS-CoV-2 Could Lead to New Vaccines and Clinical Laboratory Treatments for COVID-19
Though only in early stages, findings could lead to a ‘therapeutic against current and newly-arising variants,’ say researchers As SARS-CoV-2 changes and mutates, some therapeutic antibodies that were once highly effective in fighting the virus have lost potency. But...
Monkeypox Clinical Laboratory Testing Capacity in US Is Strong according to CDC Director. But Is It really?
Testing capacity has been boosted by inclusion of commercial laboratory companies and the fact that the virus spreads less easily than SARS-CoV-2 At the start of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, clinical laboratories were unprepared for unprecedented testing volumes. Fast...
Proven Approaches to Clinical Laboratory Cost-Cutting and Effective Staff Recruitment/Retention to Be Shared at New Workshops in Chicago and Miami
Answers and effective solutions to the lab profession’s most urgent challenges will be front and center at the innovative ‘Lab Management Essentials Workshop’ Three powerful forces are slamming clinical laboratories today. One is the urgent need to cut costs. Second...
UK Researchers Develop Clinical Laboratory Diagnostic Skin Test for Parkinson’s Inspired by Woman’s Ability to Smell the Disease before Onset of Symptoms
An assay using mass spectrometry could go to clinical trial within two years Dark Daily has regularly observed that humans generate a variety of volatile substances—particularly in breath—which can be used for diagnostic purposes. But what if people, like certain...
India’s Central Government Tasks 15 Viral Research and Clinical Laboratories to Perform Monkeypox Surveillance Testing
South Asian nation aims to do what US, UK, and Europe failed to do during start of COVID-19 pandemic and slow spread of disease while case counts are low With monkeypox quickly spreading around the world, India may be taking a lesson from western nations’ delayed...
Nearly One Million Patient Records of Hospitals, Health Clinics, Medical Laboratories, and other Providers Stolen in Ransomware Attack on Medical Records Company
Clinical labs should proactively investigate how a vendor will respond to a data security incident and how quickly, says expert Clinical laboratory managers in New York and surrounding areas should be aware that almost one million protected health information (PHI)...
First It Was Health Monitoring Devices on Wrists, Now It’s Health Monitoring on Fingers
Will health monitoring with finger rings become more popular than wrist worn devices? One company hopes the answer is yes! Personal health monitoring devices continue to grow smaller. Now there is a company selling a smart ring that fits on an individual’s finger....
Clinical Pathologist Once Again at the Center of a National News Story as Theranos Founder Elizabeth Holmes Seeks New Trial
Federal judge must rule on her bid for a new trial, after former Theranos lab director Adam Rosendorff’s statement that he regrets his testimony during her criminal fraud trial It is a rare event for a board-certified clinical pathologist to be named in national news...
Researchers Use Genetic Sequencing and Wastewater Analysis to Detect SARS-CoV-2 Variants and Monkeypox within Communities
Researchers surprised that process designed to detect SARS-CoV-2 also identifies monkeypox in wastewater Early information about an outbreak in a geographical region can inform local clinical laboratories as to which infectious agents and variants they are likely to...
New Monkeypox Challenges Abound for Public Health Agencies as Virus Travels Beyond Traditional Hotspots
Officials also worry about diminishing smallpox vaccinations, which offered people protection against the infectious disease Monkeypox challenges from the current outbreak have dogged public health agencies even though the disease was first identified more than 50...