The NVPS Board
Taylor Ruff MS, RN, CPNP-PC
President
Taylor is a board certified primary care pediatric nurse practitioner. She received her Bachelor’s in Chemistry from the University of Virginia and her Master’s in Nursing from the Ohio State University. Taylor completed the majority of her clinical training at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, OH. She has practiced in Ohio, Maryland, and Virginia. She currently practices at Capital Area Pediatrics in Falls Church, VA.
Her passion is in adolescent medicine, mental health, and nutrition.
She enjoys working out at Crossfit and Orange Theory and spending time with her family, her husband, and her two fur babies, Bert and Ernie.
Ashraf S. Harahsheh, MD
Vice President
Ashraf Harahsheh, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.A.A.P., joined Children’s National Hospital in September 2008 as a full-time attending. He is currently the director of the Kawasaki Disease Program and Quality improvement in Cardiology and is active in inpatient and outpatient care, as well in the Preventive Cardiology Program with a focus on hyperlipidemia. Dr. Harahsheh completed his fellowship training at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, Mich. Dr. Harahsheh is board certified in pediatric cardiology. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Cardiology. Dr. Harahsheh received his doctorate of medicine from the University of Jordan-College of Medicine, Amman, Jordan. Dr Harahsheh has been at the front line at CNH helping adopt and respond to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic, he helped organize our center’s Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) task force and developed cardiology specific guidance for inpatient and outpatient follow up.
Melody Hawkins, MD, FAAP
Treasurer
Melody Hawkins, MD is a pediatric pulmonologist and Sleep medicine physician. She is from Louisiana where she completed medical school and residency before moving to New Haven Connecticut to complete fellowships in Pediatric Pulmonary and Sleep medicine at Yale school of medicine. During fellowship her research focused on disorders of the hypothalamus and the endocannabinoid system. Dr. Hawkins moved to NOVA after completing her fellowships and currently works for the Inova health system in northern Virginia.
Suma Goudar, MD
Secretary
Coming soon!