About Us

Probari’s model was developed and tested through a $30.3 million CMS clinical demonstration project to Indiana University and partners. For over 8 years, the Probari Team worked alongside nursing home leadership and staff to refine the core elements of the care model. Centered around additional RN support to improve safety of transitions, manage acute conditions in the facility and document resident goals of care, the Indiana-based program reduced potentially avoidable hospital transfers of long-stay nursing home residents by a third. 


Probari was founded by Dr. Kathleen Unroe and Russ Evans in order to take this proven model outside of the demonstration program and into nursing homes across the country. The Probari team has adapted the OPTIMISTIC model, now delivering virtual support services to support care of residents. Since it’s founding, Probari has supported over 100 nursing homes in the Midwest and continues to grow.

The OPTIMISTIC Project

Probari was built from an 8 year, $30 million CMS Innovations Grant to reduce avoidable hospital transfers from nursing homes.

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COVID-19 Support

Probari worked alongside the Indiana Department of Health to assist nursing homes during the pandemic.

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Probari Initiatives

Probari continues to do research in geriatrics, palliative care and Health IT by way of grants and partnerships.

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Meet The Team

Team Member Kathleen Unroe, MD, MHAChief Executive Officer/Chief Medical Officer

Kathleen Unroe, MD, MHA

Dr. Kathleen Unroe, Probari co-founder, CEO and CMO, is a practicing geriatrician and nursing home physician in Indianapolis with research, clinical and policy interests focused on improving quality of care for nursing home residents. Dr. Unroe is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Indiana University and a Scientist at the Regenstrief Institute Center for Aging Research. She is a nationally known expert in long term care, with multiple NIH grants, including UPLIFT, an NIH R01 clinical trial to testing a robust model of palliative care in nursing homes and APPROACHES, an NIH R33 pragmatic trial of advance care planning in nursing homes. Dr. Unroe led the 8-year, $30.3 million CMS-funded demonstration project, OPTIMISTIC, which aimed to improve quality of care and reduce unnecessary hospitalizations in 40 Indiana nursing homes. Dr. Unroe is an Associate Editor of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society and a member of the CMS Care Compare technical expert panel which advises on quality measurement in nursing homes.

Team Member Russell Evans, RN, MHAChief Operating Officer

Russell Evans, RN, MHA

Russ Evans is the Chief Operating Officer of Probari, a healthcare startup which was founded out of a $30M CMS grant called OPTIMISTIC. He received his Bachelors in Nursing from Marian University and Masters in Health Administration from Indiana University – Indianapolis. In OPTIMISTIC, Russ oversaw the clinical staff in 17 different Long Term Care facilities throughout Indianapolis as they worked to provide geriatric focused care at the bedside and ultimately reduce avoidable hospitalizations among the long stay residents. Building off this work, Probari has developed a Virtual RN Care Model to support nursing homes with the goals of increasing patient outcomes and reducing avoidable transfers to the hospital. Probari has also played a crucial role in supporting the State of Indiana Department of Health during the COVID19 pandemic providing outreach, training and logistical support around testing, vaccination and results reporting.

Team Member Jenna Beard, RN, MSNNurse Manager

Jenna Beard, RN, MSN

Jenna is an RN and the Nurse Manager for Probari currently supporting the daily operations of the clinical team. She received her Bachelors of Science in Nursing from the University of Cincinnati and her Masters of Science in Nursing with a focus on Health Systems Leadership from the University of Indianapolis.

Prior to Probari, Jenna had clinical and leadership roles on the OPTIMISTIC clinical demonstration project for 6 years. She started her nursing career at a Level I Trauma Center working on their orthopedics and trauma unit - this led to her love of geriatrics and understanding of communication barriers between care settings.

Fun Fact: Jenna enjoys watching cooking competition shows with her husband when their children finally go to sleep. She also spends time outside of work teaching barre and bootcamp classes.

Team Member Sarah Klepfer, RNClinical Compliance Lead

Sarah Klepfer, RN

Sarah is an RN and the Clinical Compliance Lead for Probari currently coordinating the development and refinement of the clinical review forms and protocols in addition to supporting daily facility Admission Reviews, QI Audits, and conducting training to strengthen clinical alignment and quality amongst Probari’s team of nurses.

In her first years with the Probari team, Sarah provided direct support of the IDOH response during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. She brought her Infection Prevention experience to serve as a subject matter expert providing weekly updates and training alongside the TN Dept of Health and University of Indianapolis Center for Aging Communities. Prior to joining Probari in 2021, she spent 5 years working on the OPTIMISTIC Demonstration Project with Indiana University Health.

With over 15 years of nursing leadership experience in the post-acute and long term care setting, Sarah brings a wealth of knowledge and understanding to the Probari team. In her pursuit to expand her knowledge and expertise she served in various levels of nursing leadership including Inservice, Staffing/Supply, MDS Coordinator, and Director of Nursing in her years of service to Miller’s Health Systems. She has always held an admiration and respect for the elderly; this drew her to serve the geriatric population in her nursing career and drives her unwavering commitment to improving the outcomes of patients in the post-acute and long-term care settings.

Fun Fact: Born and raised in Indiana, she enjoys spending her free time being active outdoors, cooking, and spending time with her friends and family. She has two cats and a big loving German Shepherd. Her greatest blessing in life is being a mother to her two children.

Team Member Melissa SpanosAccount Specialist

Melissa Spanos

Melissa is the Account Specialist for Probari and is the primary communicator with facility partners. She also holds responsibility on the Innovations and Compliance Teams. Additionally, she has taken on various administrative tasks for the Probari team, and “keeps us all organized”.

Melissa joined Probari in 2022 and her experience includes: Strike Team through the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH) and supporting projects with data analytics.

Prior to Probari, Melissa worked as a dietitian for the Marion County WIC Program for 12.5 years before deciding to transition out of the dietetics field and focus on data analytics in the health sector.

Fun Fact: Melissa is originally from the Chicago south suburbs and is a graduate of Illinois State University. She has a passion for personal and professional development, where she strives to learn new skills that can translate into her daily activities.

Team Member Megan Burgess, RN, BSNImplementation Specialist

Megan Burgess, RN, BSN

Megan is an RN Implementation Specialist at Probari currently supporting daily facility Admission Reviews, and supporting a Michigan Advance Care Planning (ACP) Grant. In her Virtual ACP Specialist role Megan educates and supports the staff of 13 Michigan facilities on ACP and the MI-POST, while also facilitating ACP discussions with residents and families.

Megan joined Probari in 2012 after transitioning from the OPTIMISTIC grant and her experience includes: OPTIMISTIC grant project through IU Health, Strike Team through the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH), COVID outreach and education, Indiana National Guard SNF deployment and antiviral call center operations during COVID, and the Communicare and Trinity INSPIRE Grant.

Prior to Probari, Megan has held various nursing positions for 12 years. She has worked as a Public Health nurse surveying for the IDOH LTC division, and Unit Manager of an LTC SNF facility. Megan’s passion for geriatrics blossomed in high school working in LTC as a Dietary Assistant and Activities Assistant.

Fun Fact: Megan enjoys flower and vegetable gardening, canning, working in the Children’s ministry and Landscaping team at her church, being active in her Indiana DAR chapter as Recording Secretary, traveling with her family, and completing the daily Wordle challenge. She met her husband on a blind date at Purdue 17 years ago, and they have three beautiful daughters and an energetic rescue puppy.

Team Member Faith Falkowski, RNVirtual Nurse

Faith Falkowski, RN

Faith is an RN at Probari currently supporting daily facility Admission Reviews by identifying problems through cross examination of medical records and reconciling them with the facility’s nursing team.

Prior to Probari, Faith has held positions including: Remote Admission Nurse for LTC/Rehab for multi-states, CARE RN Specialist for a Michigan LTC Grant in collaboration with the Probari Team, Clinical Care Coordinator/Unit Manager in LTC/Rehab, Clinical Teacher for Health Careers Program (CNA training) at High School Technical Center. Hospital RN experience in ER/ICU/Med-Surg.

Fun Fact: Faith has interests in traveling, gardening, antiquing/junking, and spending time with her family in Michigan, which includes her husband, 4 children, 3 grandchildren, and 1 old yellow lab.

Team Member Angie Morris, RNVirtual Nurse

Angie Morris, RN

Angie is an RN and Board Certified Infection Preventionist at Probari currently supporting daily facility Admission Reviews and assisting in key areas of infection prevention control, policy, education, implementation, and facility specific tracking and trending tools.

Prior to Probari, Angie has served in the healthcare industry for more than 25 years and has held positions as a CNA, LPN, RN, and ADON. Angie also holds an Antibiotic Stewardship Board Certification, and is an active member of NADONA, APIC, and MSIPC. In addition, Angie has authored pamphlets used to educate residents and families on key aspects of infection prevention and appropriate antibiotic use. Her passion for Geriatrics started at the age of 15, and since then has worked specifically in LTC for 23 years.

Fun Fact: In her spare time, Angie enjoys fishing, gardening, working in her flowers, canning, and spending time with her family.

Team Member Janice Shipley, RN, BSNVirtual Nurse

Janice Shipley, RN, BSN

Janice is an RN at Probari currently supporting daily facility Admission Reviews by identifying problems through cross examination of medical records and reconciling them with the facility’s nursing team.

Janice joined Probari in 2012 after transitioning from the OPTIMISTIC grant and her experience includes: OPTIMISTIC grant project through IU Health, Strike Team through Indiana Department of Health, COVID outreach and education, Indiana National Guard SNF deployment and antiviral call center operations during COVID.

Prior to Probari, Janice has held a variety of roles including a Hospice RN Case Manager, a PACI and Surgical Services RN, and an ICU RN. She holds certifications and training with Respecting Choices Advance Care Planning Facilitator and Dementia Care Series and Challenging Behaviors Training.

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