International Patient Services

Our International Patient Services Team

The International Patient Services team at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia offers nearly 40 years of combined service and expertise. Learn more about our dedicated staff:

Cynthia Haines, MBA

Senior Vice President, International Medicine

Cynthia Haines is the executive responsible for international initiatives at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia including the international patient program, collaborations with international partners, international medical education, and global health. She has served in this capacity since 2010, and previously served as CHOP's SVP, Strategy and Business Development.

Cynthia has spent her career focused on developing new ventures and programs for leading health care organizations. Prior to joining CHOP in 2007, Cynthia was an executive at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford University. Prior to LPCH, Cynthia served health care industry clients as a management consultant in several different firms.

She currently serves as a Trustee for the Educational Commission on Foreign Medical Graduates. She received a Master's in Business Administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Rodney Finalle, MD

Director, International Patient Services

Dr. Finalle’s distinguished career at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia as a clinician, educator and advocate for children’s health has been marked by a commitment to extend CHOP’s expertise and resources to patients far beyond Philadelphia.

In 2003, Dr. Finalle launched CHOP’s Global Health Program, which provides direct care for children and ongoing education for healthcare providers in areas as far as Latin America and southern Africa. The program works to develop sustainable care models that will have lasting impact on children’s health and that can be replicated in other parts of the world. Under Dr. Finalle’s leadership, Children’s Hospital also hosts an annual Global Health conference, attracting healthcare leaders from around the world.

As Director of International Patient Services at Children’s Hospital, Dr. Finalle leads a team that facilitates care from CHOP’s world-renowned specialists and programs for children the world over. He focuses every effort on making the experience of coming to Philadelphia for care as seamless and comfortable as possible. Dr. Finalle and his team are committed to building relationships with healthcare systems, embassies, insurance providers and individual physicians to assist children seeking exceptional medical care at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Learn more about Dr. Finalle»

Ruth A. Frey, MSN, CPNP

Clinical Manager, International Patient Services

Ms. Frey, a pediatric nurse practitioner, has been with The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for nearly 30 years.  Her experience spans a wide range of clinical care settings, from the neonatal and pediatric intensive care units, to the emergency and transport services, to the Hospital’s primary care practices.

Ms. Frey has also been instrumental in CHOP’s Global Health program since its inception. She has trained and mentored healthcare teams that provide outreach in developing nations, and has trained local health workers in those areas in improved methods of care delivery for children. Ms. Frey is a frequent lecturer for professional organizations on the state of children’s health globally.

As a leader of the International Patient Services team, Ms. Frey coordinates care and access to CHOP services for patient families, facilitates communication between referring physicians and Children’s Hospital staff, and provides ongoing case management, following each patient from initial contact through discharge planning. She maintains close relationships with embassy staffs and others in the international community to help raise awareness of the unsurpassed care and the many services available at Children’s Hospital for patients from abroad.

John Truchel, MBA

Business Development Manager, International Patient Services

John joined the International Patient Services team at Children's Hospital in December 2010. A CHOP employee for six years already, John served as the Director of IS Strategy prior to moving into the IPS role. Before coming to CHOP, John was an IT management consultant at IBM, where he assisted Fortune 500 companies improve their cost savings, client service delivery and internal processes.

John brings a unique blend of business, technology, process and strategic management skills to his role as Business Development Manager. He works with global business partners to assure the highest client service and to assess new collaboration opportunities for the program. Additionally, he is responsible for the financial operations of the IPS team.

John has a Masters degree in Business Administration from Temple University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Franklin and Marshall College.

Louis Yako

Arabic Medical Interpreter

Mr. Yako is a recent addition to the International Patient Services team at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. As the Arabic Medical Interpreter, he plays a vital role in facilitating the unique language and cultural needs of international families relative to their country and culture of origin, from their first interactions with CHOP throughout the entire treatment cycle at our Hospital. Besides his native fluency in Arabic, he is also fluent in multiple Middle Eastern languages, many of which he was exposed to during his childhood, growing up in the city of Kirkuk in northern Iraq.

Mr. Yako has been working in the field of languages and cultures since 2003. Prior to joining the IPS team at CHOP, he held positions of Linguist, Cultural Advisor and Head of Translators with the US Army, USAID and the US Embassy Office in Iraq. He also taught Arabic at the university-level for a cross-cultural program in Virginia.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts in English (Literature, Linguistics and Translation) from the College of Languages, Baghdad University; a master’s degree in Public Administration from Liverpool University, and a master’s degree in English from Lehigh University, where he was also a Fulbright Scholar. His greatest passion is to be in the field doing humanitarian work where he may provide linguistic and cultural support, hence his choice to join the family of International Patient Services at CHOP.

Saif Hamel

Arabic Medical Interpreter

Mr. Hamel is the newest medical interpreter in International Patient Services at CHOP. Saif has been interpreting professionally for eight years, he holds a BA in English from the University of Baghdad, Iraq. He is also certified as a Medical Interpreter from the Department of Social and Health Services. As a professional interpreter Saif has served as head of interpreters with the US Department of State and the US Department of Defense in Iraq. He has also worked in a variety of settings throughout Iraq.

Saif was born and raised in Baghdad, Iraq, and at the age of 28 he moved to Jordan in his effort to come to the United States. In 2008 he got admitted for resettlement in Seattle. From there he pursued his career as an interpreter working for the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and Group Health Hospitals. His role was to help providers to communicate accurately with patients, both face-to-face and in print. Saif also volunteered in tutoring English to non-native speakers, helping them to master their listening, speaking and writing skills.

Saif's future is wide open and full of possibilities, and he is embracing this opportunity as an exciting stepping-stone in his career.