• Sexual Wellness Services

Call: (760) 323-2118
8am to 5pm Mon - Fri

Care Team

The DAP Health care team is staffed by astute, compassionate healthcare professionals who lovingly support the healing process of each unique patient.

Image of Senior Management

David Morris, MD

Physician, AAHIVS

Whether patients come to DAP Health specifically for HIV Care, or are HIV-negative and looking for high-quality primary health care, David and his skilled staff of doctors, nurses, and assistants are here to serve the residents of Coachella Valley. David maintains an ongoing, nationwide search for his Dream Team to help ensure DAP Health continues offering quality health care at every stage of adult life.

David takes pride in his service to the LGBTQ+ and straight communities. His calm personality, deepened by a natural sensitivity to providing stigma-free care, is a great fit for DAP Health. These traits translate into a comforting manner of assurance to his patients who feel confident that their care is in good hands. David's patients bond with him over his excellent current, progressive, and integrated approach to their medical care and his ability to build trust with them through honest, clear communication.

Before joining DAP Health in 2016, David was Medical Director and Attending Physician at Pride Medical, an LGBTQ+-oriented clinic in Atlanta, from 1999 to 2015. He is a certified HIV Specialist and Board-Certified Family Medicine Physician with a proven commitment to the medical excellence of hospital and outpatient clinical experience.

David attended medical school at the Emory University, School of Medicine in Atlanta and did his residency at Memorial University Medical Center in Savannah. His certification and licensure includes the American Board of Family Medicine; American Academy of HIV-Medicine; California (Physician’s) Medical License, (Medical Board of California); and Georgia Physician’s Medical License.

David has been a part of missions to El Salvador, where he did research on the effect of chiropractic adjustments in lowering blood pressure, as well as volunteering with Doctors/Surgeons Without Borders in Colombia. He also volunteered with Dr. Robert Grant of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation on “Ending the Epidemic with PEP and PrEP.” Among his research projects at DAP Health are HRA/Anal Dysplasia and Treating Antibiotic Resistant Gonorrhea.

“At the end of the day, my professional commitment is pretty simple: I want DAP to provide a safe place for our patients to be well, healthy, and happy.”

DAP Health clinicians, including Dr. Morris, provide the latest HIV/AIDS treatments in a safe, judgement free environment. They are skilled in working with LGBTQ+ individuals to craft treatments that work and enhance their patients' quality of life. Services includes HIV testing; STI screening; linkage to care; HIV medications, including antiretrovirals, PEP and PrEP; patient education; mental health services; dental services; and more.

Image of DAP Care Provider

Howard A. Aronow, MD

Primary Care Physician, Adult Neurologist, AAHIVS

Howard Aaron Aronow, MD, or Aaron as everyone including his patients call him, is currently Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology and Medicine at the USC Keck School of Medicine where he has been on faculty since 1990. At present, he directs the HIV Neurology program part-time, but is happy to also join us part-time at DAP Health.

Dr. Aronow has been treating people living with HIV since the beginning of the epidemic, in 1981, when he finished medical school. He completed his Neurology residency training at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and his fellowship in Neuro-virology at the Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, in the mid to late 1980’s. Dr. Aronow was a member of the first Neuro-AIDS Study Group in the nation.

In addition to previously serving as the first Medical Director of the HIV Health Care Center, subsequently known as the Jeffrey Goodman Special Care Clinic at the LA Gay & Lesbian Center, Dr. Aronow currently serves as Attending Neurologist at the HIV Outpatient Clinic of the Los Angeles County + University of Southern California (LAC+USC) Medical Center.

Moreover, in addition to extensive clinical experience, Dr. Aronow has expertise in the field of neurological HIV/AIDS research, and is the co-investigator on numerous studies researching the neurological effects of HIV on various populations, resulting in publications including “Effects of Coinfection with HIV and Hepatitis C Virus on the Nervous System.”

Dr. Aronow has served as a board member for many organizations including the Center for Health Justice, Gay and Lesbian Adolescent Social Services (GLASS), and Jewish AIDS Services. He is the only physician on the Los Angeles HIV Legal Services Advisory Panel.

For over twenty-five years, Dr. Aronow has devoted his medical career to the research, teaching, clinical, and neurological care of patients living with HIV/AIDS. Over the course of the past ten years alone, he has clinically treated or supervised treatment of thousands of HIV/AIDS patients. Consequently, he has developed a deep understanding of the emotional and medical challenges this particular patient population endures.

As an open, long-time survivor of HIV himself, Dr. Howard Aaron Aronow has a lengthy and unique personal experience in caring for people living with HIV/AIDS.

DAP Health clinicians, including Dr. Aronow, provide the latest HIV/AIDS treatments in a safe, judgement free environment. They are skilled in working with LGBTQ+ individuals to craft treatments that work and enhance their patients' quality of life. Services includes HIV testing; STI screening; linkage to care; HIV medications, including antiretrovirals, PEP and PrEP; patient education; mental health services; dental services; and more.

Image of DAP Care Provider

Daniel Jo, DDS

Dentist

Dr. Daniel Jo Dentist Daniel is a native Californian who is a member of both the American Dental Association and the California Dental Association. Prior to joining DAP Health in 2015, he attended the Loma Linda University School of Dentistry and then worked in private practice where some of the many services and procedures he offered included surgical/non-surgical extractions and bone grafting, crown/bridge/inlay/onlay, cosmetic concerns, root canal therapy, and dental cleanings.

Daniel provides a comfortable, relaxed environment for his patients, thoroughly explaining the purpose of all the procedures they will undergo, what they can expect during the process, and assuring them that they will get the best possible care. DAP Health's dental clinic offers basic dental services such as fillings, crowns, extractions, and dentures, plus the dental hygienists provide cleanings as well.

Daniel has been involved with a number of community service organizations where he has provided restorative dental procedures pro bono. He has taken several international service trips to provide dental/medical care, including trips to Nicaragua and Uganda. He has also performed restorative dental procedures at a number of California community organizations. He finds his work at DAP Health very fulfilling and enjoys being part of an organization that is working to help underserved and marginalized communities.

"I am always learning and trying to provide the best care for our clients. I enjoy using my skills as a dentist to help alleviate pain."

DAP Health clinicians, including Daniel, provide the latest HIV/AIDS treatments in a safe, judgement free environment. They are skilled in working with LGBTQ+ individuals to craft treatments that work and enhance their patients' quality of life. Services includes HIV testing; STI screening; linkage to care; HIV medications, including antiretrovirals, PEP and PrEP; patient education; mental health services; dental services; and more.

Care Team

The DAP Health care team is staffed by astute, compassionate healthcare professionals who lovingly support the healing process of each unique patient.

Shubha Kerkar, MD

Director of Infectious Diseases, FACP, AAHIVS, FIDSA

Shubha has been performing infectious disease consultation since 1991 and has the distinction of having been a part of DAP Health since 1993 when she joined us as a part-time infectious disease consultant. Her practice is primarily focused on inpatient or hospitalized patients at both Desert Regional Medical Center and Eisenhower Health where she cares for individuals with serious infectious diseases. Once these patients recover and leave the hospital they continue on their path to a healthier life by transitioning to Shubha's office-based skilled management program at DAP Health.

At DAP Health, she also evaluates, treats, and provides consultations in infectious diseases for patients referred from physicians throughout the community. In addition, she works with DAP Health's network of other services such as Social Services, Case Management, Substance Abuse Counseling, Mental Health, Community Outreach and Advocacy, and our pharmacy and laboratory services to provide a seamless, total care experience for patients.

In her early career at DAP Health, Shubha worked toward setting up a HIV/AIDS Health Center at Desert Regional Medical Center to care for DAP Health clients who needed hospitalization and hospice care. Her practice has evolved into skilled management of these clients, allowing them to lead healthy, productive lives. She is also involved with research into newer medicines such as those able to cure infections like Hepatitis C.

Shubha is Board Certified in Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine and has maintained certification and credentialing by the American Academy of HIV Medicine since 2012. In 2008, she became one of the founding members of the 100 Women Charitable Foundation which provides assistance to women and children living with HIV/AIDS.

Dr. Kerkar is an Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) Fellow, a recognition of and honor conferred upon those who have achieved professional excellence in the field of infectious diseases.

She has also volunteered at several organizations such as Guide Dogs of the Desert, the Braille Institute, and the Palm Springs Art Museum.

"Touch is the most important thing. When you touch somebody, I think it makes a difference. Touch and empathy are my mantra."

DAP Health clinicians, including Dr. Kerkar, provide the latest HIV/AIDS treatments in a safe, judgement free environment. They are skilled in working with LGBTQ+ individuals to craft treatments that work and enhance their patients' quality of life. Services includes HIV testing; STI screening; linkage to care; HIV medications, including antiretrovirals, PEP and PrEP; patient education; mental health services; dental services; and more.

Image of DAP Care Provider

Anthony Velasco

Senior Nurse Practitioner Specialist, MSN, AGPCNP-BC, AAHIVS

Working closely with his colleagues in other disciplines such as behavioral health, community health, nutrition services, and social services, Anthony is able to provide services designed to address the full spectrum of wellness needs. He derives great joy and pride from building collaborative relationships with his patients, and from partnering with all members of DAP Health's interdisciplinary team to offer caring, comprehensive, and compassionate care.

In addition to being a Nurse Practitioner, Anthony is a credentialed HIV Specialist who has been working in HIV care since 2010. He provides compassionate care to people living with, and without, HIV. He also performs high-resolution anoscopy for detection, treatment, and management of anal dysplasia. An ally of the trans community, he provides comprehensive gender-affirming care and advocates creating better access to safe and gender-affirming spaces for all.

Prior to joining DAP Health, he served as a clinical nurse supervisor in the medical department at UC San Diego Health specializing in HIV, tuberculosis, hepatitis, and AIDS-related malignancies.

His outside activities include working on research studies through universities such as UCLA and California State University San Bernardino, where he is able to assess and address the health disparities and disease burdens faced by sexual and gender minorities.

Anthony is also passionate about global health equity and has served on medical missions in Haiti and Honduras, and annually in the Philippines with Global Health Force, a non-profit organization providing access to free health care in underserved communities in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

He currently serves in the Nurse Practitioner Committee of the American Academy of HIV Medicine, president-elect of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care Greater Palm Springs Chapter, and Co-Chair of DAP Health’s Transgender Health Program.

"By providing care that fosters empowerment and engagement, I am able to develop strong partnerships with my patients in a collaborative, inclusive, and stigma-free environment."

DAP Health clinicians, including Anthony, provide the latest HIV/AIDS treatments in a safe, judgement free environment. They are skilled in working with LGBTQ+ individuals to craft treatments that work and enhance their patients' quality of life. Services includes HIV testing; STI screening; linkage to care; HIV medications, including antiretrovirals, PEP and PrEP; patient education; mental health services; dental services; and more.

Image of DAP Care Provider

Trent Broadus

Nurse Practitioner, MSN, ACNP-BC, AAHIVS

Trent is primarily responsible for our PrEP and STI clinics and he also provides HIV and primary care. He has been working in HIV/AIDS care and hepatitis treatment since 2014 when he was employed by the Tampa General Hospital Specialty Care Clinic where he provided both specialized and primary care to a case load of nearly 500 patients.

For many years, he worked at Sharp Healthcare in San Diego as a Critical Care Director and it was during his tenure there that he realized he could more directly improve the care of his patients—and improve the well-being of the community as a whole—by becoming a Nurse Practitioner. So he returned to school and earned his Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Post Masters Certificate at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas. Trent also has a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Phoenix, San Diego Campus and a B.S. in Nursing from the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg.

Trent's DAP patients bond with him because they know there will be no judgment on his part with anything they want to share with him and they can be assured that he will thoroughly follow up with them on all of their concerns.

Trent is a member of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, the California Nurse Practitioner Association, and he was the 2016 president of his local chapter of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care where he remains an active, national member. He also has a national certification from the American Academy of HIV medicine.

"I hold myself to a high standard of patient care. I feel accomplished by seeing patients improve and voice their appreciation."

DAP Health clinicians, including Trent, provide the latest HIV/AIDS treatments in a safe, judgement free environment. They are skilled in working with LGBTQ+ individuals to craft treatments that work and enhance their patients' quality of life. Services includes HIV testing; STI screening; linkage to care; HIV medications, including antiretrovirals, PEP and PrEP; patient education; mental health services; dental services; and more.