Desirée Ramacus-Bushnell, Ph.D.
Director of Operations and Partnerships at Meritan, Inc. (and subsidiaries Generations, Inc. and Apelah, Inc.)
Meritan, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) health and social services nonprofit. Our mission is to improve well-being and promote independence throughout life's stages with quality and compassion. We serve elderly individuals, individuals living with disabilities, low-income individuals and families, and children in foster care.
In her position as Director of Operations and Partnerships, Dr. Ramacus-Bushnell serves Meritan as the incident management coordinator and internal incident investigator. She also liaises with all governing boards and secures funding for the organization as the agency grant writer and grant compliance coordinator.
Desirée serves the greater Shelby County community on behalf of Meritan as the Senior Protection Coalition (SPC) manager. The SPC provides oversight to the joint efforts of the Coordinated Response to Elder Abuse (CREA) and the Vulnerable Adult Protection Team (VAPIT) in Shelby County, Tennessee.
From 2018 to 2020, Desirée worked as Program Director for the 2Gen Tennessee Department of Human Services Care Coordination Hub, funded by the United Way "Driving the Dream" initiative.
Originally from sunny San Diego, Desirée is proud to call both Memphis and Meritan her adopted home. Desirée earned her doctorate in ethics and her graduate certificate in Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership from the University of Memphis. She is a member of the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics and holds certification through Labor Relations Alternatives as a workplace incident investigator. In 2020, the office of District Attorney Amy Weirich selected Desirée to serve on the District Attorney's volunteer Community Justice Panel.