Leadership Team

Dr. Tim Huggins completed his undergraduate studies at Washington University in St. Louis, MO, and then pursued his Gastroenterology (GI) Fellowship at University Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He built a successful practice in a smaller community west of Ft. Worth, TX, attracting patients from all over the DFW metroplex and Oklahoma. Dr. Huggins believes many smaller communities are losing GI patients to larger cities, causing community hospitals to suffer financially. He co-founded We Staff GI to address this issue, and is passionate about his work.

Van Allen gained experience in physician recruitment in the early 90s in Dallas, TX. He briefly left recruiting and was recruited to Columbia, MO to manage 8 practices throughout Mid-Missouri. When that system relocated, Van returned to his passion of physician recruiting and started his first permanent recruiting firm. He sold his first firm to Maxim Health in 2006 and started his second firm.

His most recent venture is with We Staff GI, the staffing company he co-founded with longtime friend Dr. Tim Huggins, to help mid-sized hospitals solve the problem of patients leaving their communities to have their GI needs met. Van is married to his wife, Julie, and their daughter is a graduate of the University of Missouri.

Sharia McDowell has been working in the medical field since the early 2000s. She has been collaborating and working with Dr. Huggins for about 15 years. She has also gained experience in Urgent Care, Cardiology, Primary Care, and ENT, and has spent a few years as a school nurse. She is deeply passionate about helping people.

Her most recent project began when Dr. Huggins introduced the idea of We Staff GI to her and explained its potential impact on the medical field. She immediately got onboard, saying, "When Dr. Huggins puts his mind to something, it WILL happen!" She is looking forward to this journey and is excited to see what great things lie ahead. Sharia is happily married to her husband, Nick, who is a Fort Worth Firefighter/EMT/Paramedic. They have 5 children and 3 dogs, ensuring that there is never a dull moment in their household!