Giselle Carnaby, MPH, PhD
Professor and Director
Health Sciences
School of Health Professions
Professor and Director of the Health Sciences PhD at UTHealth San Antonio. She is also a professor of communication disorders and otolaryngology and the director of the UT Health Swallowing and Upper Aerodigestive Lab. She is an ASHA fellow and holds Honors of the association.
Giselle Carnaby, CCC-SLP, MPH, PhD
Erika Almazan, MS, CCC-SLP
Doctoral student / Researcher
Health Sciences
School of Health Professions
Erika Almazan is a clinician-researcher and PhD student in Health Sciences at UT Health San Antonio, specializing in pediatric feeding disorders. With over 20 years of experience as a speech-language pathologist, her focus is on pediatric feeding disorder, barriers to access, and early childhood intervention. She is dedicated to improving patient outcomes and supporting families navigating feeding challenges
Tomio Calhoun, MS
Assistant Professor / Clinical Imaging Specialist
Health Sciences-Imaging Science
Tomio Calhoun specializes in swallowing imaging for videofluoroscopic and modified barium swallow examination.
Hiroyasu Furuya, DDS
International Research Scholar
Health Sciences
School of Health Professions
Hiroyasu Furuya is a dentist and visiting scholar from Japan at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. He specializes in swallowing rehabilitation and oral health. His previous research focused on dysphagia rehabilitation, including interventions for enterally fed patients. He has received awards from the International Association for Disability and Oral Health (iADH) and the Japanese Association of Home Care Medicine for his contributions to geriatric and dysphagia research.
Megan Llamas, MA, RRT
Respiratory Specialist/Researcher
Doctoral student
Respiratory Care
School of Health Professions
Assistant Professor in the Division of Respiratory Care. Megan is an alumna of UT Health San Antonio. Megan currently teaches Pulmonary Function Testing, Management and Leadership in Health Professions and Board prep for our BSRC and MSRC students as well as various online courses for our degree advancement students. Megan serves at the TSRC President of the Southern Region, a current member of the CHEST interprofessional Team NetWork steering committee, a member of the CHEST Mechanical Ventilation Simulation Team and the Pulmonary Fellow Education Director. She is also a doctoral student in the PhD in Health Sciences program. In her doctoral research she specializes in working with pulmonary function in Parkinson’s disease.
Diane Longnecker, MS, PhD
Assistant Professor / Affiliated Researcher
Communication Sciences and Disorders
Baylor University
Dr. Longnecker is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Baylor University. Her research interests include the evaluation and treatment of swallowing and swallowing disorders, and theory-guided implementation of evaluation and intervention advances. She regularly serves as a peer reviewer for multiple academic journals. She serves in a variety of capacities in state and national professional associations.
Orlando Hinojosa, MS, CCC-SLP
Doctoral student /Researcher
Orlando Hinojosa is a doctoral student and speech-language pathologist practicing at University Hospital – San Antonio. His clinical expertise includes managing swallowing and communication disorders resulting from head and neck cancers and Parkinson’s disease, among other conditions. His current research focuses on dysphagia in adults with Parkinson’s disease. Orlando is also committed to addressing health disparities by improving access to care for underserved communities and individuals with limited healthcare resources. Orlando is committed to advancing his career as an instructor and researcher in health sciences and speech-language pathology, contributing to both clinical practice and academic scholarship in the field.
T. Breanne Rochester, MS, CCC-SLP
Doctoral student / Researcher
Health Sciences
School of Health Professions
T. Breanne Rochester is a first year PhD student with a clinical background in a variety of settings including public schools, pediatric and adult outpatient and home health care, adult inpatient rehab, and adult acute care in rural and urban areas. Her research interests include the evaluation and treatment of swallowing and swallowing disorders.