About Us
We are here for our community.
Awender Chiropractic Health Services (ACHS) was formed out of the need seen in our community to provide quality chiropractic health care services, particularly for low-income, uninsured and underserved Californians, who might otherwise not have access or even a drug-free choice to their health and wellness needs.
Dr. Joseph E. Awender, II
Founder and CEO
Dr. Joseph E. Awender serves as the CEO of Awender Chiropractic Health Services, with over three decades of experience in the chiropractic field. Hailing from a family deeply rooted in chiropractic practice, with more than 15 family members practicing chiropractic across North America, he brings a wealth of knowledge to his role. Dr. Awender's expertise extends to collaborating with Rural Health Centers (RHCs) and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) to effectively integrate chiropractic care, a skill he has employed in regions such as the San Francisco Bay Area, Central Coast, Southern California, and the Central Valley of California.
His impact goes beyond his clinical work; he has also held the position of Chairman of the Board for Life Chiropractic College-West in Hayward, California, showcasing his dedication to advancing chiropractic education. Working closely with the CEO, executive team, and Board of Regents, the leadership successfully increased student enrollment from 275 to over 600 within a span of four years. During this period, the financial budget saw substantial growth, rising from $9 million to over $21 million. Notably, the team also oversaw the development of a state-of-the-art chiropractic health center, leading to a twofold increase in revenue. This progress was the result of collaborative strategic planning that allowed for effective coordination and execution of key initiatives. Dr. Awender's commitment transcends borders, as evidenced by his participation in chiropractic mission trips to countries such as El Salvador, Panama, Venezuela, Mexico, and South Africa.
Dr. Awender's personal background, with grandparents who emigrated from Mexico and Germany, has instilled in him an awareness of the challenges that underserved immigrants face in accessing chiropractic care. This awareness has fueled his mission to extend his services to individuals from all walks of life, especially those who are often marginalized.
Pamela Pewitt
Director of Strategic Planning and Operations
As the Director of Strategic Planning and Operations, Pamela works with Leadership teams, staff, and providers of Community Health Centers to increase revenue for their clinic relieves overburdened staff and providers of their workload.
When it comes to program development and building strategic partnerships, Pamela is motivated by carefully listening to clients, identifying the issues, and getting to the right solutions in a consistent manner. She is driven by growing organizations not only monetarily, but culturally.
After being in a car accident that left her immobile for 14 months, she is extremely passionate about health, especially Chiropractic. In her rehabilitation, she was her own advocate to access to many channels of treatments to walk again. Chiropractic was the most impactful to her recovery. Pamela truly believes EVERYONE has the right to their own optimal health with all options equally available to them.
Pamela brings in a unique blend of medical, pharmaceutical, and cutting-edge enterprise technology sales with implementation follow through. She has turned around a declining specialty pharmaceutical territory and noted for her 200% in sales. She brought in $40M for a medical diagnostics company while managing a sales team. As a Director of an innovative start-up psychiatry practice, Pamela increased referrals by 49% the first year by forming strong ties with large Bay Area institutions.
In her early career, working for the State of New Mexico, as a Pathology Assistant, where she performed high profile criminal cases. She still works at SF General morgue as needed, performing autopsies and training Pathology residents. Working with families and helping them through the bereavement process has given her exposure to all elements of life.
Pamela holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology and an Area of Focus in Neuropsychology from U.C. San Diego. She completed Fellowship training in Forensic Pathology through the University of New Mexico.