Meet the HBA Atlanta Board
HBA Atlanta is pleased to announce that Lynn Prothero will continue to lead the executive board in the position of President. The board provides leadership to advancing the HBA’s purpose to further the advancement and impact of women in the business of healthcare. Lynn brings more than 25 years of leadership experience from the pharmaceutical and management consulting industries. She’s is an award-winning sales leader and is currently a Senior Regional Business Director with Lundbeck. Lynn has always had a passion and tremendous success in the areas of developing successful individuals and high-performing teams. She was a founding member of HBA Florida where she was Membership Director from 2009-2012, President of HBA Atlanta in 2016 and current Engagement COE President for the HBA Southeast region since 2018. She is a member of the GA AFSP board since 2018 as well as a member of Project 2025. She’s also the area manager with WOMEN Unlimited. Lynn is credentialed as an NSA professional speaker and holds an executive coaching certificate. Lynn is a graduate of Michigan State University where she received her BA in marketing. She enjoys spending time with her family and is currently pursuing her MBA with a concentration in global business from Mercer University.
Dakar De La Cruz
Vice President 
The board provides leadership to advancing the HBA’s purpose to further the advancement and impact of women in the business of healthcare, and Dakar is committed to ensuring the chapter exceeds its strategic objectives. Dakar has been an active member of the HBA for four years where she served as the Director of Operations on the executive board and volunteered as an event logistics coordinator for the HBA Atlanta programming committee. She offers a diverse skillset with backgrounds in marketing and sales within the pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, and coatings industries. She is currently the Associate Director of Patient Marketing for NMOSD at Alexion, AstraZeneca Rare Disease, and combines her empathy for people living with diseases with the joy she gets from creatively elevating brands and services to answer unmet needs. With more than 13 years of experience in healthcare, Dakar’s passion for people living with severe illnesses comes from being a caregiver to a loved one in the past and from leading patient marketing efforts in various therapeutic areas. Dakar completed her undergraduate studies at Hampton University and obtained an MBA with a concentration in marketing from Georgia State University. She has led and participated in domestic and international missions and community outreach and is an active member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. In her spare time, she enjoys gardening, spending time with family and friends, traveling, and reading.
Ami Kumiga
Director of Operations
Previously serving as director of membership with HBA Atlanta, Ami has been a member of the HBA for three years. Currently, Ami is a Project Manager at Syneos Health Clinical Solutions where she is able to balance the business of healthcare with the practice of medicine. Her previous experience includes working for UPS Healthcare where she worked cross-functionally to design and influence strategies and manage the lab services and product management. Her skills span from market research and customer acquisition to enabling tactical execution with her sales team through collateral development and training. Prior to her marketing role at UPS, Ami had a successful career in medical devices, biotech and pharmaceutical sales where she launched several products and mastered the art of selling to surgeons and providers in both the hospital and practices across many specialties. Ami received a BA from Hofstra University as a double major in psychology and marketing. She completed additional coursework in biology, chemistry and life sciences and later completed her Master’s in Public Health (MPH) from UMass Amherst. She recently obtained certification in project management (CAPM) with PMI. When she’s not busy staring at a brightly-lit screen formulating strategies, designing sales materials, managing a project, or doing research, you can find her traveling, going to local festivals, dining at a new restaurant in town, or spending time with her family.
Maria Yi and Alexa Ceballos
co-Directors-at-Large, Membership and Volunteer Engagement
In this role, Alexa and Maria will partner with each other to recruit, onboard, and engage volunteers for HBA Atlanta.
Maria Yi is the Registered Manager for the Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy located within Piedmont Hospital, Atlanta campus. She is responsible for the operation of this specialty pharmacy including all aspects of patient care and pharmacy operations. Her team provides specialized pharmacy care to a number of patient populations including those with chronic inflammatory diseases, organ transplant, oncology/hematology, nephrology, and infectious disease. She is also responsible for the development of relationships with a number of on-site and offsite providers across the entire Southeast region. Maria attended Georgia Institute of Technology and received her Doctorate of Pharmacy from Auburn University, Harrison School of Pharmacy (Auburn, AL). Post-graduation, Maria became a Certified Diabetes Educators (CDCES) establishing a desire to care for patients with diabetes. Maria is bilingual, speaking English and Korean. In her free time, Maria enjoys traveling, eating, and spending time with her family and friends.
Alexa Ceballos is a patient-centric marketer, passionate about providing access and affordability solutions to diverse populations, and experienced in building inclusive and high-performing project teams. Currently, she works as a Marketing Manager at Pfizer, developing messaging and market strategy for molecules across the development pipeline. Previous to Pfizer, she completed her MBA at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School concentrating on Data Analytics and Marketing. During her time at GBS, she completed her Leadership Certificate and held various positions in Student Government and the Latin Business Association. Before her MBA, Alexa worked for Johnson & Johnson as a Specialty Sales Representative, bringing cardiovascular solutions to hospital systems in the Atlanta metro area. She received her undergraduate degree in chemistry from the University of Miami. In her free time, Alexa enjoys sailing with her partner and her Goldendoodle, practicing yoga, and trying out new recipes.