130 Great Women Leaders in the ASC Industry

Here are profiles of 130 women leaders in the ambulatory surgery center industry. Editor's note: Names are listed alphabetically. Please contact Rachel Fields at rachel@beckersasc.com with any comments or questions. 

Margaret Acker, RN, MSN, CASC. Ms. Acker is the administrator of Southwest Surgical Center, a multi-specialty freestanding ASC in Grand Rapids, Mich. She was formerly CEO with Blake Woods Medical Park Surgical Center in Jackson, Mich., a multi-specialty, physician-owned center. She has worked in the ASC industry for over a decade as a consultant, administrator and presenter. Ms. Acker holds a master's degree in nursing from Eastern Michigan University and serves on the "approver committee" for the American Society of Ophthalmic Registered Nurses continuing education. She also serves on the board of directors for St. Luke's Clinic, providing healthcare for the poor and medically underserved. 

Amy Allard, BSN, MPH, RN. Ms. Allard is administrator of Ramapo Valley Surgery Center in Ramsey, N.J. The center opened in the fall of 2005, and surgeons at RVSC perform around 4,500 cases annually. The multi-specialty ASC focuses on orthopedics, general surgery, ENT, podiatry, pain management, ophthalmology, gynecology and dentistry. Ms. Allard has been with RVSC since early in its construction phase.

W. Jan Allison, RN, CHSP. Ms. Allison manages accreditation and survey readiness for Surgical Care Affiliates by supporting corporate-wide initiatives for quality improvement and assistance for approximately 130 ASCs with accreditation participation. In 2002, Ms. Allison authored the book "Assessment and Care of Patients: Your Guide to JCAHO Compliance." Since then, she has served as a speaker on numerous nationwide audio-conferences and seminars about quality, regulatory and accreditation issues. Ms. Allison is certified as a healthcare safety professional and has served on two advisory panels at the National Quality Forum to provide technical review of quality measures for ASCs. She currently sits on the NQF Steering Committee for Patient Safety Measures.

Lisa A. Austin, RN, CASC. Ms. Austin serves as vice president of ASC operations for Pinnacle III. She has acted as a board member of the Colorado Ambulatory Surgery Center Association and currently serves as president of the organization. Ms. Austin also serves on the surgery center advisory board of MedAssets. Ms. Austin has been a registered nurse for over 29 years and has served in the ambulatory care arena for the majority of those years. Her extensive experience with operational development, management and consulting provides clients with expertise in facility administration, budget development, regulatory compliance, staff recruitment and retention and other ASC processes. 

Glenda Beasley, RN. Ms. Beasley is the administrative director of the Kentucky Surgery Center in Lexington, a multi-specialty surgery center opened in 1986. Ms. Beasley joined the center in 1990 and celebrated her 20-year anniversary with KSC in July 2010. She started at the center as an OR circulator and was promoted to OR/PACU/pre-operative supervisor and then clinical director before becoming the administrative director. She currently oversees 90 employees and an average of 1,000 cases per month. Ms. Beasley attributes much of her success to the people she works with on a daily basis. She takes great pride in her center and has watched it grow from a two-OR center to a seven-OR, three-procedure room center that saw close to 11,000 patients in 2010. Staying abreast of current issues affecting the ASC industry is a constant challenge, but she believes educating oneself, staff and physicians keeps the center on top. Ms. Beasley is certified in BLS, ACLS and PALS and is a member of AORN and the ASC Association.

Linda Beaver, RN, MSN, MHA. Ms. Beaver serves as administrator of Gateway Endoscopy Center in St. Louis. She started as a her career as a critical care nurse who specialized in cardiovascular recovery before moving into the management sector as a nursing supervisor, nurse manager and clinical director of multiple unit specialties in an acute-care hospital. While at her hospital, she developed and implemented a multidisciplinary "value analysis team" to standardize hospital clinical inventory. Ms. Beaver has been in the outpatient setting for three years and has over 16 years of management experience.

Cristina Bentin, CCS-P, CPC-H, CMA. Ms. Bentin is the founder and president of Coding Compliance Management, a healthcare consulting company specializing in coding support, training, reimbursement audits and business office assessments. She is nationally recognized as a leading freestanding ASC coding educator, speaker and writer, with more than 21 years of experience in the ASC industry.

Sandy Berreth, RN, MS, CASC. Ms. Berreth is the administrator of Brainerd Lakes Surgery Center in Baxter, Minn., a multi-specialty ASC that performs approximately 4,500 cases a year. She has been in the ambulatory surgery management arena for 12 years and has been with the center in Baxter since 2004. She is also currently working as an AAAHC surveyor. Ms. Berreth believes that her staff is what makes the center what it is today. "Hard work, compassion and dedication are shared visions by everyone," she says.

Lee Anne Blackwell, RN, BSN, EMBA, CNOR. Ms. Blackwell is a director of clinical services, quality and safety for Surgical Care Affiliates. In this position, she is responsible for developing and coordinating clinical-quality strategies, accreditation and regulatory survey readiness, clinical and quality best practice programs and patient safety initiatives for approximately 50 facilities, including surgery centers and surgical hospitals. Ms. Blackwell's accomplishments include patient care and surgical services in the hospital and surgery center arenas, as well as the development of several formal and self-paced nursing clinical education programs.

Dotty Bollinger, RN, JD, LHCRM, CASC. In just three years with Laser Spine Institute, Ms. Bollinger, senior vice president of medical operations, has established processes and procedures that improved efficiency of care at the facilities. Ms. Bollinger was instrumental in implementing electronic medical records at all Laser Spine Institute surgical centers, and she has been tasked with leading the company's accreditation readiness efforts as well. Under her leadership, Laser Spine Institute has successfully acquired AAAHC accreditation status for three of its clinic and ambulatory surgery facilities. Ms. Bollinger is a frequently sought-after speaker on topics such as infection control, accreditation and patient safety. 

Regina Boore, RN, BSN, MS. Ms. Boore is the principal and CEO of Progressive Surgical Solutions. She has more than 25 years of clinical, administrative, teaching and consulting experience in ambulatory surgery. She has held every nursing position in a surgery center throughout her career and currently serves as the administrator of Newport Bay (Calif.) Surgery Center. As the CEO of Progressive Surgical Solutions, Ms. Boore's goal is to equip clients with functional tools and strategies to increase efficiency, improve outcomes and enhance the quality of life in the work environment. She is a frequent presenter on ambulatory surgery topics at national meetings and has published numerous articles in industry publications. Prior to coming to Progressive Surgical Solutions, Ms. Boore worked as a perioperative nurse, OR supervisor and ASC director.

Betty Bozzuto, RN, MBA, CASC. Ms. Bozzuto is executive director of Naugatuck Valley Surgical Center and former president and a founding member of the Connecticut Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers. She is a former board member of FASA. Ms. Bozzuto is also a surveyor for AAAHC and president of Connecticut's Ambulatory Surgery Center Patient Safety Organization. Ms. Bozzuto holds an MBA from the University of New Haven.

Bonnie Brady, RN. Ms. Brady is the administrator of Specialty Surgical Center, a multi-specialty, two-OR ASC in Sparta, N.J. Ms. Brady has served as administrator of SSC since May 2008. Her ASC was recently featured in a New Jersey physician magazine as a notable surgery center. Ms. Brady is the co-chair of the New Jersey Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers membership committee; the organization recently held its first annual conference in June. 

Colleen Bridge, BSN. Ms. Bridge serves as an assistant administrator at Providence Health & Services Alaska. Ms. Bridge started her career in healthcare with Providence Alaska Medical Center straight after receiving her bachelor's of nursing in 1976. Over the last 37 years, she has held a variety of positions within the health system, beginning as a staff nurse in orthopedics and moving into a position as the assistant administrator for affiliations and partnerships. 

Pamela Bronson. Ms. Bronson has been the administrator of Northeast Surgical Care since the center opened in 2000. The freestanding ASC features a single OR that regularly functions at maximum capacity and handles 1,800 cases each year. The ASC recently celebrated its 10th anniversary with an open house celebration for physicians and staff. According to Eric Simon of Access Sports Medicine and Orthopaedics, Ms. Bronson played an integral role in the opening of Northeast Surgical Care. "The project was met with a significant amount of resistance in the Seacoast communities," he says. "The hospital system that was in place was very strong, and they did not want to allow a freestanding ASC in their market." Following lengthy legal battles, Northeast Surgical Care was built and served as a foundation for other ASCs in New Hampshire. "There are now more than 20 ASCs throughout the state," Mr. Cimon says. "By accommodating patients more quickly and efficiently, Northeast Surgical Care can offer services at a significant discount compared to what patients would face at many other facilities."

Mary Beth Brust. As senior vice president of shared services for Health Inventures, Ms. Brust is responsible for operational performance and same-store growth throughout the company's network of ASCs. She joined Health Inventures in 2000 as an administrator for one of the company's surgery centers and has since held several positions within the company, ranging from regional manager to regional vice president. She has more than 20 years of progressive experience in healthcare administrative positions and has been involved in outpatient service delivery for 15 years. 

T. Taylor Burnett. Ms. Burnett is CEO of Plastic and Hand Surgery Associates, a large plastic surgery practice that is the parent company of The Plastic Surgical Center of Mississippi, a physician-owned, multi-specialty surgery center in Flowood, Miss. Ms. Burnett is the administrator for The Plastic Surgical Center and lead the turn-key operation that opened in August 2003. She is the current president of the Mississippi Ambulatory Surgery Center Association and occasionally consults for other ASCs and their particular concerns.

Sue Dill Calloway, RN, MSN, JD. Ms. Calloway is a nurse attorney and president of Patient Safety and Healthcare Consulting. She was the past vice president of legal services at a community hospital in addition to being the privacy officer and the compliance officer. She worked for over eight years as the director of risk management and health policy for the Ohio Hospital Association. She was also the immediate past director of hospital patient safety and risk management for The Doctors Insurance Company in Columbus area for five years. She does frequent lectures on legal and risk management issues and writes numerous publications. 

Carol Ciluffo. Ms. Ciluffo joined Pinnacle III in Sept. 2008 to launch a physician billing division within Specialty Billing Solutions and to oversee the operations of the ambulatory surgery billing division. She leads a staff of 19 employees in four departments and serves as a critical member of Pinnacle III's executive management team. Specialty Billing Solutions works in tandem with Pinnacle III's ASC development team in choosing, configuring and implementing the HIS system for the facility, as well as establishing business office policy and procedures and workflow for billing and collections. Ms. Ciluffo possess 25 years of service in the healthcare arena.

Monica Cintado. Ms. Cintado is the senior vice president of development for United Surgical Partners International, and she has been with USPI since 1998. Prior to joining USPI, Ms. Cintado provided development and operations support with the international group at HCA. 

Kelli Collins, RN. Ms. Collins is regional vice president for Surgical Care Affiliates, which manages more than 125 ambulatory surgical facilities and surgical hospitals. With 30 years of experience in the medical field and an operating room nurse by trade, Ms. Collins currently oversees the development, operations and management of a network of surgery centers in North and South Carolina. She has extensive experience in creating and nurturing physician partnerships and developing joint ventures with health systems such as the Wake Med Health System in Raleigh, N.C. 

Mary Ann Cooney, RN, CASC. Ms. Cooney is the administrator of Riverside Outpatient Surgery Center, a multi-specialty facility in central Ohio with six ORs and one minor procedure room. ROSC performs over 6,000 cases per year. The specialties at the facility, which is currently managed by Health Inventures, include general surgery, gynecology, hand orthopedics, ophthalmology, orthopedics, pain management, plastic surgery and urology. The evolution of the center began with its building and opening in 1972 by a small group of innovative physicians and in 1977 was acquired by Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, Ohio as a freestanding outpatient surgery department. The surgery center became a joint venture with OhioHealth and physicians in 1997.

Rebecca Craig, RN, BA, CNOR, CASC, CPC-H. Ms. Craig is CEO of Harmony Surgery Center, a multi-specialty ASC in Fort Collins, Colo. Ms. Craig has been with the center since it opened 11 years ago. She began her career as a registered nurse, working at a rural hospital in the OR, PACU, gastroenterology and pain management areas. She held several management roles in perioperative services before moving into outpatient and ambulatory surgery. Ms. Craig was recently elected and will serve on the national Ambulatory Surgery Center Association Board of Directors.

Deborah Lee Crook, RN, CASC. Ms. Crook is the administrator of Valley Ambulatory Surgery Center & Valley Medical Inn in St. Charles, Ill., a seven-OR, multi-specialty surgery center with adjacent inpatient facility. Mrs. Crook has been with Valley ASC since 1993 starting as a pre-op nurse before serving as director of nursing at Valley's post-surgical recovery care center and then assuming the role of administrator of both facilities in 2006. 

Jean Ann Day, BSN, CNOR. Ms. Day serves as director of clinical operations for Pinnacle III, where she spearheads project management for the development of new surgery centers and provides ongoing administrative management for established centers. Ms. Day joined Pinnacle III in Feb. 2004, prior to which she established a free-standing, four-OR surgery center specializing primarily in orthopedics and plastic surgery. She has been a clinical educator at several conferences, including the Becker's ASC Review conference in Chicago and the AORN Congress in Anaheim. 

Vicki Dekker. Ms Dekker is the director of business development at Blue Chip Surgical Center Partners. Prior to joining Blue Chip, she was responsible for the business office supporting the ENT, neurosurgery and neurology departments at the University of Minnesota. Ms. Dekker also managed an ENT group in Atlanta, where she developed and managed a single-specialty ENT surgery center that included facial plastic surgeries.

Pamela Dembski Hart, CHSP, MT. Ms. Hart serves as principal and founder for Healthcare Accreditation Resources in Boston. In her role at Healthcare Accreditation Resources, Ms. Hart assists ASCs, dental practices and medical practices in successfully meeting federal, state and accreditation requirements. She also serves as an active member of the safe injections policy task force and as a scientific advisor for the Hepatitis Outbreak National Organization for Reform. Ms. Hart has met with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Division of Healthcare Quality to present objective data and concerns regarding the standard of healthcare in ambulatory clinics, office-based surgical practices and other ambulatory surgical facilities. 

Joan Dentler, MBA. Ms. Dentler has spent the past 15 years consulting for, developing and operating successful ASCs in 26 states. She has worked with clients providing direct services such as feasibility analysis, project design, partnership development, day-to-day management, physician recruitment and multi-disciplinary ASC troubleshooting. Through these activities, she has personally conducted hundreds of interviews with surgeons to determine physician preferences in the structure and operations of ASCs and hospital surgical service delivery. Ms. Dentler has worked as a hospital liaison for hospital/physician joint ventured surgery centers and an administrator of women's health and pediatric primary care facilities. She holds an MBA from the University of Texas. 

Meena Desai, MD. Dr. Desai serves as the founder, president and CEO of Nova Anesthesia Professionals. Established in 2001, Nova Anesthesia provides physician and CRNA anesthesia services to endoscopy centers and ambulatory surgery centers, and the company's more than 40 physicians and CRNAs provide anesthesia services for over 40,000 cases per year in three states. A board-certified anesthesiologist who has practiced since 1991, Dr. Desai also serves in numerous leadership positions for the Society of Ambulatory Anesthesia and the AAAHC. "Dr. Desai is truly one of the outstanding leaders in the field of ambulatory surgery and anesthesiology," said Michael Rose, practice administrator with Nova Anesthesia.

Ann S. Deters, MBA, CPA. Ms. Deters is CEO and co-founder of Vantage Outsourcing (formerly Vantage Technology), which provides complete cataract outsourcing services to hospitals and ASCs. Ms. Deters also serves as founder of 7D, a consulting and management service company for ASCs across the United States. With Ms. Deters' leadership, her businesses saved the healthcare industry more than $70 million in capital costs and more than $20 million in disposable cost savings. Vantage Outsourcing is also a certified "women-owned small business." 

Michelle Dickison, RN, CASC. Ms. Dickison is the administrator of Baptist Plaza Surgicare in Nashville, Tenn., an ASC managed by United Surgical Partners International. Since starting her career with USPI in 2002, Ms. Dickinson has served in various roles — clinical manager, chief nursing officer and administrator among them. She has also had the opportunity to open several multi-specialty facilities with USPI, including a specialty hospital. Ms. Dickison has concentrated the majority of her 15 years as an RN on the surgical environment, during which time she has worked with several health systems and physicians as partners.

Jill Dowe. Ms. Dowe was recently appointed director of business office operations for Blue Chip Surgical Partners, joining the company from a position as business office manager of Surgery Center Cedar Rapids (Iowa). In her role at SCCR, Ms. Dowe supervised office teams and worked with other members of the management team to ensure interdepartmental continuity and efficient operations in key areas, including scheduling, registration, admissions, coding and billing, accounts receivable and medical records. She has also worked as a consultant for Health Inventures, where she trained new business office managers in daily and monthly tasks. Ms. Dowe obtained her MHA from the University of Iowa.

Renee Duff. Ms. Duff has more than 14 years experience managing physician practices owned by a large integrated health system. During that tenure, she was responsible for the general office functions (including coding, billing, and collections) for a number of primary care physicians and surgical specialists. Ms. Duff oversees MCG Billing Services, a Medical Consulting Group affiliate that provides billing and collection services to ASC clients.

Vicki Edelman, RN. Ms. Edelman is the administrator of Blue Bell (Pa.) Surgery Center, a four-room, multi-specialty ASC managed by ASCOA that opened in Sept. 2008. Ms. Edelman has been with Blue Bell since May 2008, during the center's construction phase. She has been a nurse for 33 years and began her career in medical surgical nursing and high-risk obstetrics. As she continued her career, she pursued ambulatory surgical settings, initially as an assistant manager of the short procedure unit at Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia and then as staff RN in multiple other ambulatory settings. She worked for 13 years in an ASC dedicated to outpatient endoscopy, first as a staff RN and then as the administrator for the facility.

Rose Eickelberger. Ms. Eickelberger is the director of surgical services at Summit Surgical Center and Beacon West Surgical Center, both part of Beacon Orthopaedics in Sharonville, Ohio. Ms. Eickelberger began at Beacon in May 2006. Previously, she was the director of nursing at the Cincinnati Eye Institute for eight years, after having served as its assistant director for six years.

Rosalie A. Einspahr, MA, MSN. Ms. Einspahr serves as director of operations for Pinnacle III, where she heads operations for Boulder Surgery Center and Children's North Surgery Center. Prior to joining Pinnacle III, Ms. Einspahr served as chief operating officer of Spine One, where she assumed total operational and financial responsibility for multiple physician practices, surgery centers, diagnostic MRI centers and physical therapy departments. She has also served as the administrator of several surgery centers. Ms. Einspahr earned her MBA from Webster University in St. Louis.

Stephanie Ellis, RN, CPC. Ms. Ellis is the president of Ellis Medical Consulting and has worked with most surgical specialties, assisting ASCs, physician practices, hospitals and outpatient clinics around the country in her consulting work. Prior to starting the company, she worked as a fraud investigator for the Medicaid program in Tennessee and served as a case manager and utilization review nurse. Ellis Medical Consulting has been in business for 19 years, and Ms. Ellis is a regular contributor of articles on ASC topics for many national publications, including Becker's ASC Review and Becker's Orthopedic & Spine Review, AORN, AAPC and the ASC Association Focus magazine.

Carolyn Evec, RN, CNOR. Ms. Evec opened a surgery center in Mississippi and served as its nurse manager prior to joining The Surgery Center at Beaufort (S.C.). She has 30 years of nursing experience and has held various management positions including director of surgery, director of medical and surgical services, vice president of patient services and director of rural health clinics. Ms. Evec has helped improve efficiency at her center in many ways. "With the help of the staff, we developed an ordering system for supplies that now involves all of the staff and eliminated a part-time staff position," she says. "We now order supplies two days a week, and it takes only about an hour to complete the process." Ms. Evec says, "I love the privilege and challenge of being involved in all aspects of the operations of the center."

Terri Gatton, RN, CASC, CNOR. Ms. Gatton is the administrator of the Andrews Institute Ambulatory Surgery Center in Gulf Breeze, Fla., a joint venture between Baptist Health Care and area surgeons. Ms. Gatton was instrumental in setting the foundation for AIASC, which opened in 2007. According to Barbara J. Holder, RN, QA coordinator for the center, Ms. Gatton's experience as an administrator has guided the center through several successful surveys, including AAAHC, CMS and the state of Florida. "Under Ms. Gatton's leadership, healthcare professionals from throughout the world travel to AIASC to learn the art of regional blocks, infection control practices and improved patient safety standards through an automated medication delivery system," she says. Under her leadership and guidance, more than eight employees have returned to higher education via the AIASC tuition reimbursement program. 

Ann Geier, MS, RN, CNOR, CASC. Ms. Geier is senior vice president of operations with ASCOA and has been involved in the ambulatory surgery industry in management roles since 1985. She has worked in all areas of freestanding ASCs and HOPDs, including pre-assessment, pre-op, OR and PACU. She has been a CNOR since 1992 and obtained her CASC certification in ASC administration. Ms. Geier speaks frequently at national meetings on topics relating to case costing, financial topics for ASCs, human resources and staffing and clinical issues. She is a surveyor with AAAHC and serves on the editorial boards of Outpatient Surgery Magazine and Same Day Surgery.

Judy Graham. Ms. Graham is administrator of Cypress Surgery Center, a freestanding, multi-specialty ASC that opened in Dec. 2000. Ms. Graham has been with Cypress for more than 10 years, since construction began. She has a strong clinical background in the operating room and ambulatory surgery and previously served as an OR manager and a clinical director in ASCs before becoming an administrator. Ms. Graham has over 35 years of clinical, managerial and administrative experience in the ASC industry and was named "operating room director of the year" in 1997 while employed by HCA.

Amanda Gunthel. Ms. Gunthel is the administrator of Wilton (Conn.) Surgery Center, a two-OR, two-procedure room ASC that specializes in ophthalmology and pain management. Ms. Gunthel has been with Wilton since its inception, and before taking on the role of administrator, she worked for four years as director of practice management and development for the healthcare management firm that first opened the center.

Marilyn Hanchett, RN. Ms. Hanchett is the senior director of clinical innovation at the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. She is dual-certified in infection control and healthcare quality and has spoken and written on the topic of infection control on numerous occasions. Before joining APIC in 2010, Ms. Hanchett served at CMS as infection control technical lead for the ambulatory surgery center program.

Anne Hargrave-Thomas. Ms. Hargrave-Thomas, CEO of West Bloomfield (Mich.) Surgery Center, is "definitely someone to know in the ASC industry," according to her colleagues. When Ms. Hargrave-Thomas joined West Bloomfield Surgery Center as CEO, she encountered a facility that was struggling to survive in a challenging economy. She took a facility in disarray and turned it into a competitive, highly-functioning surgery center, earning her praise and recognition from the center's managing partner, National Surgical Hospitals. Under her leadership, the facility has received several awards from National Surgical Hospitals and was named to the Becker's ASC Review list of the "100 Best Places to Work in Healthcare" in 2010 and 2011. Ms. Hargrave-Thomas also serves as president of the Michigan Ambulatory Surgical Center Association. 

Dare Hartsell, RN, MSN. Ms. Hartsell serves as vice president of clinical services for Practice Partners in Healthcare. She has over 15 years of healthcare experience including direct patient care experience in CVICU, PACU and PRE-OP. She has experience in capital equipment planning, accreditation support, state licensure, clinical policy and procedure development and staff education, physician credentialing, infection control, risk management, compliance and development in the ASC industry, which enables her to offer a broad scope of services to meet the clinical and regulatory support needs of ASCs. 

Colleen Heeter. As senior vice president of operations design for Nueterra Healthcare, Ms. Heeter provides leadership for a broad range of clinical and operational services, including project development, business office services, policies and procedures, clinical services, risk management, compliance, imaging services and supply chain management. Before assuming her current role, Ms. Heeter served as a group vice president for Nueterra. She brings more than 20 years of diverse healthcare experience to the company, including service as an ASC administrator, where she was responsible for financial administration, operations, human resources and planning and development. Ms. Heeter is a published author as well as a nationally requested speaker. 

Tracy Hoeft-Hoffman, RN, MSN, MBA. Ms. Hoeft-Hoffman is the administrator at Hastings Surgery Center, a Nueterra Healthcare facility. She has 27 years of experience as a registered nurse and more than 20 years of experience in nursing management and administration. Ms. Hoeft-Hoffman is involved with the Nebraska Association of Independent Ambulatory Centers and Nebraska Medical Group Management Association.

Carolyn R. Hollowood, RN, CASC. Ms. Hollowood is the administrator of City Place Surgery Center in Creve Coeur, Mo., which is located in West County of St. Louis. The center is housed in a medical office building and has four ORs. The physician-owned, multi-specialty facility focuses on orthopedics and pain management. City Place opened in Dec. 2000 and moved to its current location in April 2006. Ms. Hollowood has been a part of the center for 10 years. Prior to coming to City Place, she was a RN first assistant at an acute care center. She has 20 years of nursing experience.

Tracey Hood, RN. Ms. Hood is the administrator of Ohio Valley Ambulatory Surgery Center and Mid Ohio Valley Medical Center in Belpre, Ohio. She previously worked as an ASC charge nurse, OR circulating registered nurse, PACU nurse, certified emergency RN, cardiac catheterization lab nurse and a critical care nurse. Ms. Hood currently serves as an executive board member for the Ohio Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers and is active in the government affairs committee. 

Georganna Howell, RNFA, CNOR, CEN, LNC. Ms. Howell serves as the administrator of Greenspring Surgery Center in Baltimore, bringing 32 years of nursing experience to her role at the facility. She has achieved several meaningful accomplishments with Greenspring, including increasing case volumes, decreasing center operational costs, negotiating vendor agreements, improving throughput, unearthing hidden equipment and supplies and improving staff morale. She has achieved numerous certifications, including the Trauma Nurse Core Curriculum, Emergency Pediatric Nurse Core Curriculum, Certified Nurse Operating Room and Certified Fixed Wing Helicopter Transport.

Lauren Jensen, RN. Ms. Jensen is the nursing director of endoscopy centers for Digestive Health Management, which manages the Digestive Health Associates of Texas. The centers were developed over the last seven to eight years, and include Endoscopy at Redbird Square, Old Town Endoscopy Center, Central Park Endoscopy Center, Park Ventura Endoscopy Center and North Richland Hills Endoscopy Center. In addition to helping develop new centers, Ms. Jensen serves as a CPR instructor for her employers and for staff at the physician offices.

Beth Ann Johnson, RN. In 2005, Ms. Johnson joined Blue Chip Surgical from LCA Vision, where she served as vice president of operations, responsible for the growth of the ophthalmic surgery center business. Previously, Ms. Johnson was with Aetna as director of provider relations, recruitment and contracting for the tri-state region. She has extensive experience in the development and ongoing management of hospital-owned, minimally invasive surgery centers. She began her career as an RN in the operating room, rapidly advancing to director of surgical services, supervising 13 ORs and the PACU of a major tertiary care medical center in Cincinnati.

Ellen Johnson. Ms. Johnson is COO of Facility Development & Management and has more than 20 years experience within the healthcare arena. She has been with FDM since 2001 and previously held management positions within a physician management firm and in various departments of a 370-bed suburban regional medical center. She also served as nursing director for a home care agency and a staff nurse in a medical surgical unit and newborn nursery of a community hospital. Prior to joining FDM, Ms. Johnson was director of clinical services and executive director of an emerging group purchasing organization for a physician management company.

Jen Johnson, CFA. Ms. Johnson is the managing director of professional service agreements with VMG Health. Her expertise is related to the in-depth knowledge required to understand fair market value challenges, market data and regulatory guidelines associated with valuing professional service arrangements for healthcare systems and life sciences companies. She has been published and presented over a dozen times on determining fair market value for physician compensation arrangements. She previously worked with a national consulting practice in their forensic and litigation services department and at University of North Texas as a finance professor. She earned her MBA in finance and her CFA designation while working for several companies as a consultant.

Milla Jones. Ms. Jones serves as vice president of government relations for United Surgical Partners International. She has 40 years of healthcare experience and has been politically active at the state and federal level for over 20 years. Prior to USPI she worked for Baylor Health Care System in Dallas. Her current responsibilities include coordinating and managing state and federal advocacy efforts for USPI and its partners. She is also active on the board of the Texas ASC Society and with many other state ASC associations. 

Sandra J. Jones, BA, MSM, MBA. Ms. Jones is executive vice president of ASD Management, a board member of the ASC Association and Ambulatory Surgery Foundation, and member of the ASC Advocacy Committee. She also owns Ambulatory Strategies. She has 30 years of experience in healthcare and has overseen or contributed to the successful establishment and development of more than 80 ASCs nationwide.

Kelly Kapp, RN. Ms. Kapp is the administrator of Specialty Surgery Center in Westlake Village, Calif. Ms. Kapp began her nursing career as an OR nurse at L.A. County Hospital. She then was an assistant at Southern California Orthopedic Institute and served as orthopedic coordinator at St. John's Regional Medical Center in Oxnard, Calif., for 13 years before accepting a director of nursing position at SSC. 

I. Naya Kehayes, MPH. Ms. Kehayes is the founder, managing member and CEO of Eveia Health Consulting & Management. She is a nationally recognized for her expertise in reimbursement systems, managed care and insurance contract negotiations for ASCs and surgical practices. Ms. Kehayes is a former president of the Washington Ambulatory Surgery Center Association.

Cindy King, RN. Ms. King serves as Health Inventures' associate vice president of clinical, quality and compliance. In this role, she works closely with and provides consultation and education to corporate and client members on licensure, regulatory and accreditation compliance, oversight of risk management issues and managerial direction of facility operations within the clinical practice setting. These services promote positive physician, staff and patient relations while upholding high quality standards of patient care. The services also utilize the most efficient and cost-effective methodology available.

Beverly Kirchner, RN, BSN, CNOR, CASC. Ms. Kirchner is the owner and CEO of Genesee Associates. She has served on the Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses board of directors, has authored many AORN manuals and leads research in collaboration with the organization on violence in the nursing workplace. Ms. Kirchner also sat on the Joint Commission Task Force that assisted in developing the 2009 standards format and content, as well as a task force to revise the National Patient Safety goal on medication reconciliation. "I have found that helping others win the CMS survey battle is the best reward anyone could have," she says. She has been a member of the ASC Quality Collaboration group since it was founded. 

Susan Kizirian, BSN, RN, MBA. Ms. Kizirian is the COO of ASCOA and has more than 27 years of experience in all aspects of ASC operations. Ms. Kizirian has served as an administrative executive and a consultant for ASC management and development, physician practice management and clinical site research. She is one of the founders and lifetime president emeritus of the Florida Society of Ambulatory Surgical Centers and past president of the Ambulatory Surgery Management Society of the Medical Group Management Association.

Catherine W. Kowalski, RN. Ms. Kowalski brings more than 20 years of healthcare experience to her position as executive vice president and COO for Meridian Surgical Partners. Prior to joining Meridian, Ms. Kowalski served as the executive vice president of operations and co-founder of Surgical Alliance Corp., a specialty surgical hospital company founded in 2001. Prior to Surgical Alliance, Ms. Kowalski served as co-founder and vice president, operations and hospital/ancillary services of OrthoExcel, a hospital management company focused on contractual management of orthopedic hospital business lines. She is an excellent source on topics related to ASC and surgical hospital development and operations, orthopedic-driven ASCs, managed care contracting and optimizing reimbursements. 

Kris Kroeger. Ms. Kroeger is the administrator of Windward Surgery Center in Kailua, Hawaii, a multi-specialty ASC that opened in late 2009 as a partnership between local physicians and Castle Medical Center. Ms. Kroeger began her management career in Columbus, Ohio, as the administrator of a freestanding, joint-venture imaging center. She joined Health Inventures in 2005 to provide oversight to a number of ASCs in the Ohio, New Jersey and Colorado areas. When the opportunity to start a surgery center in Hawaii presented itself, Ms. Kroeger moved to Hawaii, established the new center and forged relationships in the healthcare community. 

Beth LaBouyer, RN, BSN, CNOR. Ms. LaBouyer is the executive director of the California Ambulatory Surgery Association, for which she has served as a board member since 2000. CASA currently has over 340 members and is an extremely active association, advocating on behalf of ASCs with the legislature, CMS and the major health plans. Most recently, through a partnership with the Ohio Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers, CASA launched a California specific benchmarking program that allows CASA members to compare their operations to other ASCs in their particular regions from a management and clinical perspective. Ms. LaBouyer previously served as director of Feather River Surgery Center in Yuba City, Calif., and as a surgical nurse and manager at Rideout Hospital in Marysville, Calif.

Diane Lampron, RN, BSN, CASC. Ms. Lampron serves as director of operations for Pinnacle III in Lakewood, Colo., where she oversees business and clinical operations of ambulatory surgery centers in the role of administrator for multiple multi-specialty ASCs. She has successfully obtained AAAHC accreditation for these ASCs. Prior to joining Pinnacle III, Ms. Lampron worked as the administrator of Harvard Park Surgery Center in Denver, Colo., a center she successfully opened and developed in collaboration with two ASC management companies. She has more than 25 years of progressive experience and more than 15 years of management-specific experience within a variety of healthcare settings.

Linda M. Lansing. Ms. Lansing is the senior vice president of operations and clinical services at Surgical Care Affiliates. She is a nurse with 38 years of healthcare experience in hospital and outpatient services, physician practice management, intensive care, pediatrics, dialysis and ambulatory surgery centers. She also serves as part of the Expert Group for the ASC Quality Collaboration.

Marian Lowe. Ms. Lowe serves as a partner at Strategic Health Care in Washington, D.C., where she advises clients on Medicare policy and strategy. Through her work at SHC, she has represented the ASC industry in various capacities, including as a consultant to the AAASC and then the ASC Association. She currently serves as executive director of the ASC Advocacy Committee, where she directs political, policy and public relations work on behalf of the industry. She has worked to improve Medicare payments to ASCs, expand the list of Medicare-covered services and maintain equitable policies for participation in Medicare. Prior to joining SHC, Ms. Lowe worked in a number of capacities at MedPAC, most recently as special assistant to the executive director.

Sue D. Majewski, CASC. Ms. Majewski currently serves as COO of Bedford Ambulatory Surgical Center, which she joined in 1994. Her expertise includes overall management of facility and staff operations, oversight of compliance with state and federal regulations and development and implementation of marketing and strategic planning ventures. Additionally, her primary responsibilities include payor relations, negotiation/maintenance of contractual agreements and oversight of all aspects of the accounts receivable process. Ms. Majewski currently serves at the ASC executive member on the board of directors of the New Hampshire Health Care Quality Assurance Commission, and is vice president of the New Hampshire Ambulatory Surgical Association.

Becky Mann. Ms. Mann is the director of Houston Orthopedic Surgery Center. She came to Houston Orthopedic in May 2007 and was involved in the development of the center. Ms. Mann has been working in the medical industry for 37 years in surgery or in post-surgical care. According to Ms. Mann, one of the most important things to know as an ASC administrator is the difference between reimbursement and cost per procedure. "To know this, it is key to keep preference cards and supply costs current and to know your payors' reimbursements," she says.

Marianne Maravich. Ms. Maravich is an account executive-clinical specialist at Kimberly Clark. With more than 30 years in the medical sales industry, Ms. Maravich is responsible for the launch and development of new pain management technologies for Kimberly Clark. She works with neurosurgeons, orthopedic and pain management physicians to sell new devices for spine pain relief. Prior to her career in pain management, she worked in sales and market development for several product and procedure lines for Ballard Medical and Kimberly Clark. The lines included a patented brand of suction catheters, which prevent hospital acquired infections in ventilator-dependent patients and a low-profile feeding tube for children.

Lori Martin. Ms. Martin, administrator and director of nursing at SUMMIT Surgery Center since 2009, is responsible for the day-to-day operations of one of the newest surgery centers in Reno. She was an integral part of opening the center and is now focused on recruiting physicians, hiring quality staff and achieving financial success. During her brief tenure with the center, she has helped to double case volume and take the center from a negative cash flow position to a positive cash flow position in just five months. She has also negotiated managed care contracts and implemented new purchasing and software programs. The center achieved a successful three-day unannounced CMS survey in March 2010, and the center's first AAAHC survey will occur before the end of the year. 

Sarah Martin, MBA, RN, CASC. Ms. Martin serves as VP of operations for Meridian Surgical Partners, where she excels in directing financial and clinical operations of surgery centers, understanding accreditation best practices and recruiting and retaining physicians. Ms. Martin has close to 30 years of healthcare experience and has concentrated her efforts in the ambulatory surgery arena for the past decade. Prior to joining Meridian, Ms. Martin served as regional director of ASCs for Universal Health Services, where she managed both ASCs and specialty hospitals. She also worked as a regional vice president for Symbion Healthcare, covering the Midwest region that included ASCs, surgical hospitals and an imaging center. 

Sara McCallum, CASC. Ms. McCallum, administrative director of Sheboygan (Wis.) Surgery Center, has been actively been involved in the ambulatory surgery center industry for many years. She had worked all phases of perioperative nursing prior to obtaining her MBA from Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She has opened seven surgery centers from construction to operation and has served as an administrator at five of those centers. She has served in many professional organizations and helped to form the Florida Society of Ambulatory Surgery Centers. Ms. McCallum moved from Florida to Wisconsin five years ago and presently serves on the WISCA Board of Directors and is the legislative chairperson.

Angela McComb. One of the founders of Austin, Texas-based Innovative Health Resources, Ms. McComb has extensive experience in management, strategic planning and negotiations of insurance contracts. Prior to forming Innovative Health Resources in 1999, Ms. McComb worked for three insurance companies in Texas and Arkansas, including three start-up locations. She was also the director of managed care for a start-up, full-service outpatient radiology facility in Austin. She completed her MBA in 1999. 

Dawn Q. McLane, RN, MSA, CASC, CNOR. Ms. McLane has worked in the ASC industry since 1995 and currently serves as the regional vice president of operations for Health Inventures in Broomfield, Colo. She joined Health Inventures in 2010 and is responsible for pre-operations and operational accountability for joint venture ASCs at multiple surgery center sites. Prior to joining Health Inventures, Ms. McLane worked as chief development officer for Nikitis Resource Group and vice president of operations for Aspen Healthcare. 

Kelly McMahan, RN, CASC. Ms. McMahan has worked with Pinnacle III from 2006 to present. She serves as the vice president of operations, working with the development phase of ambulatory surgery centers. In this role, Ms. McMahan meets with partners, architects and contractors on space planning and blueprint completion. She also gathers equipment quotes, purchases equipment, obtains payor contracts, sets up software and manages the facility after development, among other tasks. Prior to joining Pinnacle III, Ms. McMahan worked at the Fort Wayne (Ind.) Orthopaedics Surgicenter and Lutheran Hospital of Indiana in Fort Wayne. 

Cathy Meredith, RN, BS, CASC. Ms. Meredith serves as vice president of finance for ASCOA. She has been managing surgery departments since 1979 and has extensive experience in all phases and aspects of inpatient and outpatient surgery management and development. Her ambulatory systems expertise extends to physician offices, where she has set up office-based operation rooms, endoscopy suites and pulmonary function and cardiac testing labs. Prior to joining ASCOA, Ms. Meredith worked primarily in the development of ASCs with Woodrum/ASD Management. 

Beth Miller, RN, CASC. Ms. Miller is the administrator of the Eastside Endoscopy Center in St. Clair Shores, Mich., which opened in 1996 as the first freestanding endoscopy center in lower Michigan. The center opened a second location in 2007. Prior to joining EEC, Ms. Miller worked at a local hospital for 16 years, spending nine years in endoscopy as assistant manager. She started with EEC as the nurse manager and moved her way up to become the business manager and later the administrator. Ms. Miller was the first ASC administrator in Michigan to receive CASC certification. Under Ms. Miller's leadership, EEC has developed a staff incentive plan based on center profits and implemented a comprehensive quality assessment program. 

Evelyn S. Miller, CPA. Ms. Miller is the vice president of development for United Surgical Partners International and is responsible for the strategic direction of USPI's mergers and acquisitions efforts. Before joining USPI, she was executive vice president of Medway Health Systems, overseeing the financial operations of its medical clinics.

Krystal Mims. Ms. Mims is president of Texas Health Partners. She is responsible for the overall management of five managed facilities. These facilities are Texas Health Center for Diagnostics & Surgery Plano, Texas Health Surgery Center Denton, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Flower Mound, Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Southlake and Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Rockwall. Ms. Mims was instrumental in the successful development and management of each of these facilities and has been with Texas Health Partners since its inception. Her background in healthcare began in physician practice management. She was CFO of Texas Back Institute in Plano and also administrator of Steadman Hawkins Denver Clinic. 

Joy Moore. Ms. Moore has served as executive director of Oak Surgical Institute in Bradley, Ill., since May 18, 2009 — the first day the CMS Interpretive Guidelines went into effect. OSI is an orthopedic practice that also focuses on pain. Ms. Moore has more than 20 years of healthcare experience, having served as a nurse, nursing director and administrator. She has worked on the design and development of surgery centers, including all phases of start-up, and has served as ca consultant on regulatory and accreditation activities. At OSI, Ms. Moore is responsible for overseeing accreditation, budget, contracting, policy and procedure development and personnel management, among other duties. 

Yvonda Moore, MBA, CHFP. Ms. Moore is the director of implementation at GENASCIS, a Los Angeles-based company that provides billing, coding and transcription services to ambulatory surgery centers. She has more than 20 years of experience in healthcare accounting/finance and business office operations.

Amy Mowles. Ms. Mowles is president and CEO of Mowles Medical Management. As a fee-based regulatory consultant, she not only provides rare and valuable expertise, but also educates, prepares and assists her clients with putting into practice all policies and procedures, provisions and standards; resulting in a facility that meets the highest standards for regulatory conformance and third part accreditation, without need to surrender exclusive ownership in an effort to secure outsourced management. She has successfully guided hundreds of single and multi-specialty centers in 20 states across the United States and fully developed 30 ASCs, most concentrating solely on pain. 

Miriam Odermann, RN, MPH. Ms. Odermann serves as the chief executive for ambulatory services at Providence Health and Services, Oregon region. In her role, she is responsible for strategic planning, development and implementation of the system's ambulatory strategy, including all clinical joint ventures and surgery centers in the greater Portland, Ore., metro area. Ms. Odermann is also responsible for inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services, diagnostic imaging, health education services, wellness and fitness services and occupational health and retail pharmacies. Ms. Odermann received her master's of public health in health administration and policy from Portland State University. 

Rebecca Overton. Ms. Overton brings more than 15 years of healthcare receivables and revenue cycle experience to her role as director of revenue cycle management for Surgical Management Professionals. Prior to joining the company, she served as director of A/R and materials management for SurgCenter Development, where she provided overall direction in her respective areas for more than 20 multi-specialty surgery centers. Before joining SurgCenter Development, she worked as the business director for two successful, freestanding, multi-specialty surgery centers in Florida and worked as an A/R coordinator for an ASC in Little Rock, Ark. With SMP, Ms. Overton has improved EOM processes internally and with clients; reviewed adjustment history to identify opportunities for appeals and increased collections; and implemented contract management.

Linda Kelley Peterson, MBA. Ms. Peterson is founder and CEO of Executive Solutions for Healthcare, providing consulting in mergers and acquisitions, development, management, compliance and operational reviews of surgery and imaging centers, as well as new product line consulting for physicians and hospital systems. Ms. Peterson has more than 35 years of experience in development and operational management of ambulatory healthcare organizations. Her previous experience includes corporate director of development/registered representative for HealthSouth, development consultant for national ASC management and consulting companies and executive director for ambulatory care at The Joint Commission. 

Terry Rajendran, MHA. Ms. Rajendran is cofounder and CEO of Johnstown, Colo.-based LaClaro, a revenue cycle software company that specializes in the ASC market. The company's flagship product, Lighthouse, is a web-based tool to improve workflow management, analytics and reporting for ASCs. In addition to her work with LaClaro, Ms. Rajendran serves as revenue cycle director at Surgical Center at Premier in Colorado Springs. The five-OR center treats approximately 450 patients per month, about half of which receive orthopedic surgery services. In her role at Surgical Center at Premier, Ms. Rajendran is responsible for managing workflow, collector oversight, management reporting and negotiating payor contacts.

Holly Ramey. As group vice president for Surgical Care Affiliates, Ms. Ramey currently leads acquisition, integration and physician relations for SCA. She has more than 10 years of ASC industry experience and previously served as a surgery center administrator, director of financial operations and regional vice president of operations, with responsibility for 12 surgery centers in Georgia, Mississippi and Alabama. She received SCA's President Award in 2009, given to two SCA leaders every year for outstanding leadership and exceptional contribution to the organization. 

Lori Ramirez. Ms. Ramirez founded Elite Surgical Affiliates in 2008 and now leads the company as its president and CEO. Ms. Ramirez launched her business in the middle of the recession and, despite countless obstacles, forged ahead to build a company that provides management and development services for surgical facilities with a special emphasis on orthopedics, spine and pain. Ms. Ramirez drew inspiration for the firm from her 12 years of prior experience in surgical development, operations and management. Before founding Elite Surgical Affiliates, Ms. Ramirez served as senior vice president at United Surgical Partners International. In this role, she was directly responsible for developing the second-largest network of surgical facilities for USPI in Houston and supervising more than 600 employees. 

Rosalind Richmond. Ms. Richmond is the chief coding compliance officer for GENASCIS, a company that provides billing, coding and transcription services to ASCs. She has more than 30 years of experience as a coding and HIM consultant. During her career, Ms. Richmond also served as the data quality committee chair for Colorado Health Information Association for four years.

Anne Roberts, RN. Ms. Roberts is the administrator at the Surgery Center at Reno, which consists of physician partners with a majority ownership, a hospital partner — Saint Mary's Hospital in Reno — and a managing partner — Regent Surgical Health. Ms. Roberts came to the Surgery Center at Reno in Feb. 2006 when it opened and became administrator in Oct. 2006. She began her career as a nurse in the emergency department, spending 16 years as a staff nurse and 10 years as the manager of a busy emergency department seeing 55,000 patients annually. 

Lisa Rock. For the past nine years, Ms. Rock has served as president of National Medical Billing Services, one of the largest ASC billing companies in the country. Ms. Rock is a seasoned healthcare management veteran with more than 25 years experience in the industry. Her wide-ranging background consists of director of training and education for Mid-Atlantic Medical Services and vice president of business office operations for an ASC development and management company. She has also managed private practices in the specialties of orthopedics, retina surgery, cardiology and anesthesia.

Suzanne Rogers. Ms. Rogers brings 19 years of human resources experience to her position as senior vice president of human resources for Employment Management Solutions, an employee staff leasing company owned by Health Inventures. In this role, she assumes responsibility for all facets of human resources services provided to Health Inventures ASCs. Ms. Rogers has been employed by Health Inventures since 2000 in a variety of HR roles of increasing responsibility. Prior to joining the company, she worked for the family of CH2M Hill Companies and The Washington Group (formerly Morrison Knudsen) in human resources. 

Cathy Rudisill, RN, MHA, CNOR, CASC, BSN. Ms. Rudisill brings extensive experience in the perioperative setting to her role as senior vice president of operations for ASCOA. Ms. Rudisill worked as a market manager for HealthSouth and as the executive director for the Bon Secours St. Francis Health System Surgery Center in Greenville, S.C., prior to joining ASCOA. Ms. Rudisill is a registered nurse with certification in OR nursing and completed her MHA at Seton Hall University. 

Mary Ryan, RN, CASC, MBA. Ms. Ryan is the administrator of Tri-State Surgery Center, a multi-specialty facility in eastern Iowa with three ORs and two procedure rooms. Tri State performs over 5,000 cases annually. The specialties at the facility include ENT, gastroenterology, general surgery, gynecology, ophthalmology, orthopedics, pain management, plastic surgery, podiatry and urology. The evolution of the center began with its building and opening in 1998 by Medical Associates Clinics and Health Plans and Mercy Hospital. The center is managed by Health Inventures. Ms. Ryan is a past AORN chapter president, a founding member of the Iowa ASC Association and is currently serving her second term as its president.

Karen Sablyak. Ms. Sablyak, CFO at Physicians Endoscopy, has been with the company since 1999. She has more than 20 years of experience in healthcare finance, billing and business operations. Prior to joining PE, Ms. Sablyak worked as a vice president of practice management for Allegheny University Hospitals in Philadelphia, where she had oversight responsibility for nearly 150 primary care physician practices. In her role at PE, Ms. Sablyak has directed a transition to a paperless A/R billing system and strives to enhance performance through PE's payor contracting services, group purchasing discounts and performance benchmarking.

Catherine Sayers, RN. Ms. Sayers serves as director of clinical operations for Pinnacle III, a role she has filled since Nov. 2000. Prior to joining Pinnacle III, Ms. Sayers worked as the director of surgical services at Orthopaedic Center of the Rockies in Fort Collins, Colo., and as an administrative fellow at Hospital Shared Services in Denver. In these roles, she was responsible for all ASC and recovery center operations and worked with the CEO and marketing director of Hospital Shared Services to implement programs provided to healthcare institutions. 

Phenelle Segal, RN, CIC. Ms. Segal is the president of Infection Control Consulting Services. She has more than 28 years of infection prevention and control experience, and has led the State of Pennsylvania's mandatory Healthcare-Associated Infections Advisory panel. She also provides consulting services to ASCs, acute care hospitals and nursing home facilities.

Donna St. Louis. Ms. St. Louis currently serves as a vice president for ambulatory services at BayCare Health System. Before joining BayCare, she was a group president for Symbion and responsible for more than 45 ASCs. Prior to joining Symbion, she served as group president for HealthSouth, where she was responsible for more than 60 surgery centers. She has extensive knowledge in ambulatory surgery and the Tampa Bay market. 

Marcy Sasso. Ms. Sasso serves as administrator of Raritan Valley Surgical Center, which is managed by ASCOA. Although she has been with the center less than one year, she has made a significant impact: Employees cite her open-door policy, commitment to staff satisfaction and policy of encouraging ideas from all ASC personnel. Ms. Sasso is also the co-founder of the Surgery Center Coalition, which was founded nearly six years ago and is now one of the largest free networking groups in the state of New Jersey. In addition to her work with ASCs, Ms. Sasso has hosted numerous charitable events to benefit those devastated by Hurricane Katrina and the Haiti earthquake, for which she raised over $3 million in medical supplies.

Tona Savoie, RN. Ms. Savoie is administrative director of Bayou Region Surgical Center, a multi-specialty surgery center that opened in July 2007. Bayou Region Surgical Center has four ORs and one procedure room. Surgeons at Bayou Region specialize in orthopedics, ENT, neurology, general surgery, plastic surgery, GI, ophthalmology and pain management. The ASC operates as a 50-50 partnership between physician-investors and a subsidiary of the local community hospital, Thibodaux Regional Medical Center. It is managed by ASD Management.

Tara Sellers, RN, BSN. Tara Sellers, administrator of Surgery Center of Key West (Fla.), assisted in starting her facility in July 2008. Prior to her position with the surgery center, Ms. Sellers served as the OR charge nurse at a local hospital and also owned and managed a physician billing company. While in nursing school, she was voted "Most Likely to Become an Administrator" and received an "Excellence in Nursing" award from the local hospital in 2007. Surgery Center of Key West is also financially successful and received a three-year accreditation from AAAHC in 2009.

Caryl Serbin, RN, BSN, LHRM. Ms. Serbin is executive vice president and chief strategy officer for SourceMedical, which provides clinical and business software solutions for ambulatory surgery centers. She was founder and CEO of Serbin Surgery Center Billing, which was recently acquired by SourceMedical as the core of their new billing division, Revenue Cycle Solutions. Ms. Serbin has more than 25 years experience in healthcare industry, with the last 18 years spent in ambulatory surgery administration and consulting.

Lynda Dowman Simon. Ms. Simon is the administrator at St. John's Clinic: Head & Neck Surgery in Springfield, Mo., the only ASC in Missouri dedicated solely to ENT procedures. The center has a patient satisfaction rating of 97.2 percent. Ms. Simon has been at her center since 1994. Prior to joining St. John's Clinic, she worked for 13 years in surgery at St John's Hospital, specializing in open heart and urology. Ms. Simon is proud to say her coworkers stay at the center once hired, and she has not hired a new staff member in over four years. 

Susan Simons, RN, BSN, CASC. Ms. Simons serves as administrator of Pacific Surgery Center in Poulsbo, Wash., a multi-specialty, physician-owned surgery center that opened in 1984. Ms. Simons has been with the center, which performs over 6,000 cases annually, since 1985. She also currently serves as vice president of the Washington Ambulatory Surgery Center Association.

Donna Slosburg, RN, BSN, LHRM, CASC. As executive director of the ASC Quality Collaboration, Ms. Slosburg helps ASCs improve healthcare quality and safety by developing standardized quality measures, publically reporting quality data and assembling tools for infection prevention. Ms. Slosburg has worked in the healthcare industry for over 30 years and joined the ASC industry in 1987. As a leader in the ASC industry, her positions have included nurse manager, administrator and regional operations manager. She was a senior vice president of surgery operations and national surgery specialist for HealthSouth, one of the nation's largest healthcare services providers. Ms. Slosburg is a licensed healthcare risk manager and was one of the first to receive her CASC certification. 

Brooke Smith. In her two years with Maryland Surgery Center for Women, Ms. Smith has successfully taken a struggling ASC and turned it into a safe, profitable, professional facility. She has worked to increase collections from an average of $70K per month to an average of $240K per month, all while decreasing the center's days in A/R significantly to an average of 25 days. She also led a pilot program for online pre-surgical admission, trialing the program for presentation to the center's management company, ASCOA, for consideration among 30 other ASCs. Her cost savings in 2010 alone added up to $110,000.

Christina Smith, RN, MSN. As vice president, Ms. Smith leads the Amerinet Clinical Advantage consulting team on developing and implementing a process driven, evidence-based program which delivers improved margins and reduced supply costs for physician preference products. Ms. Smith joined Amerinet in 1998 with more than 18 years of progressive clinical leadership experience in perioperative services including staff member, nurse manager and administrative director of surgical services. Her varied healthcare background includes knowledge of both large urban teaching hospitals and small community-based facilities.

Christy Stafford. As the director of information technology for Borland-Groover Clinic, P.A., Ms. Stafford is responsible for ensuring IT drives the organization toward aggressive goals. She facilitates the direction, implementation, support and maintenance of software, hardware and telecommunications for a 15-node, 400-end use base throughout the state of Florida. Ms. Stafford brings 17 years of healthcare experience to her current position, 15 of which have been spent focusing on and directing IT for a multi-specialty private clinic in Florida. 

Kim Stevens. Ms. Stevens brings more than 15 years of healthcare experience to her role as one of the founders of Innovative Health Resources, an affiliate of ASD Management. Her expertise lies in management, human resources, operations, marketing, HIPAA, OSHA, coordination of health and vendor fairs and managed care contracting, among other areas. She has extensive experience with large and small physician groups as well as solo practitioners and has held positions with one of the largest cardiovascular groups in Texas, an international insurance company and an allergy and asthma clinic. 

Joyce M. Stiles. Ms. Stiles serves as Health Inventures' controller, overseeing all corporate and client accounting functions, including financial reporting, budgeting, accounts payable, treasury, forecasting and ad-hoc analysis. Ms. Stiles joined the company in 2009 as an outside consultant and was soon offered an internal position as the director of client accounting. 

Debra Saxton Stinchcomb, RN, BSN, CASC. Ms. Stinchcomb a consultant at Progressive Surgical Solutions and has more than 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry, including positions in administration, operations, sales and clinical areas. She previously served as director of operations preparation and transition management for Health Inventures. She has also held positions as an ASC administrator, assistant regional vice president and regional vice president.

Stephanie Stinson, RN, BSN, CASC. Ms. Stinson is the administrative director of Strictly Pediatrics Surgery Center in Austin, Texas, a multi-specialty facility that performs more than 5,000 procedures annually. Ms. Stinson has been an administrative director in the ASC industry for seven years and has been at Strictly Pediatrics since its inception in 2006. She served in the Mississippi Army National Guard as a surgical technologist for eight years and has been a nurse for 18 years, during which time she fulfilled staffing roles in neurosurgical ICU, surgery, recovery room and home health. She currently serves as a board member of Strictly Pediatrics Land Company, a position she's held since Dec. 2010.

Stacey Taylor. Ms. Taylor is a senior vice president of operations with ASCOA and holds over 15 years of experience in healthcare. Prior to joining ASCOA, Ms. Taylor served as the regional administrator of four multi-specialty surgery centers and was recognized for her resourceful management skills and the exceptional ability to lead projects. She has been involved in the ambulatory surgery industry in various management roles since 1997 and has worked in all areas of freestanding ASCs, including pre-assessment, pre-op, OR and PACU. She currently oversees projects in Maryland, Michigan and Florida. 

Joyce (Deno) Thomas. Ms. Thomas is senior vice president for Regent Surgical Health. Before joining Regent, she served as the executive director of Loveland (Colo.) Surgery Center and worked for HealthSouth as a regional director of quality improvement and as an administrator. Ms. Thomas also opened a new facility in Mount Dora, Fla., coordinated the quality, risk and values program for Regent and was involved in the development of two new facilities.

Kimberly L. Tude Thuot, MAOM, CMPE. Ms. Tude Thuot has been in healthcare administration since 1997 and joined the physician-owned Yakima Ambulatory Surgical Center in Aug. 2009. She holds a master's degree in organizational management and is currently working on her PhD in organizational change and leadership. She is also currently board-certified in the ACMPE and is actively pursuing fellowship, as well as her CASC and CPC. Since she joined Yakima ASC, the center has been through a re-accreditation survey with AAAHC, moved billing back in-house and is in the process of adding neurosurgery and spine to the multi-specialty facility.

LoAnn Vande Leest, RN. Ms. Vande Leest is clinical director and acting CEO of The Surgery Center in Franklin, Wis., a joint venture between Associated Surgical & Medical Specialists and Aurora Health Care Ventures. The Surgery Center has five operating suites, four procedure rooms, two endoscopy GI suites, areas for pre- and post-surgery observation, and a recovery area. 

Kara Vittetoe, CASC. Ms. Vittetoe is the administrator of a one-OR, two-procedure room, multi-specialty surgery center in a growing rural area. Thomas Johnson Surgery Center in Frederick, Md., which is managed by ASCOA, features surgeons specializing in general surgery, gynecology, neuro-spine, podiatry and urology. Ms. Vittetoe has been with the center since it opened in 2008. Prior to joining Thomas Johnson, she spent the majority of her career in the private sector of healthcare management. 

Diane Wallace, RN, BSM, MBA. Ms. Wallace has been executive director and CEO of the Menomonee Falls Ambulatory Surgery Center for more than 12 years. She has previously held clinical and administrative positions in hospitals, home health and medical group practices. Ms. Wallace has served as past president of the Wisconsin Surgery Center Association and is currently a board member for that organization. She was instrumental in the development of an orientation and mentoring program for new members of the state association and serves on the association's legislative committee, which is working diligently to try to remove a new tax imposed on surgery centers in the state. 

Michelle Warren, RN, BBA. Ms. Warren is the executive director of Powder River Surgery Center in Gillette, Wyo. She began her career in healthcare as a surgical tech and soon pursed her nursing license and a bachelor's in business administration. She spent many years as an operating room traveling nurse, working mostly in trauma, orthopedic, spine and open heart specialties. She also serves as a surveyor for AAAHC.

Chris Washick, RN, CASC. Ms. Washick serves as director of the Orthopedic & Sports Surgery Center in Appleton, Wis. During her time as director, the center has added total joint replacements, which the ASC has performed since 2009, and has developed an on-site rehab facility for joint replacement patients. According to Aaron Bleier, finance manager at Orthopedic & Sports Surgery Center, Ms. Washick has "aggressively pursued growth in her career" and passed the CASC exam in Oct. 2010. Ms. Washick began her work at Orthopedic & Sports Surgery Center as a recovery nurse when the ASC opened in June 2006.

Suzanne Webb. As owner of ASC Billing Specialists, Ms. Webb has used her 25 years of experience in the healthcare finance industry to help clients increase reimbursements by an average of 50 percent, bringing the total collected to over $70 million over the last five years. Before starting her own business, Ms. Webb served as CFO for three large hospital chains: Universal Health Services, Behavioral Healthcare in Nashville, Tenn., and Iasis Healthcare in Nashville. In each of these roles, Ms. Webb used her understanding of payor collections to increase revenue by at least 30 percent. 

Michelle J. Weidner-Jordan, RN, BSN. Ms. Weidner-Jordan serves as the administrator for Lewis & Clark Specialty Hospital. She has worked as a registered nurse in Norfolk, Neb., before joining the nursing staff of Lewis & Clark when the facility opened in 2002. Since then, Ms. Weidner-Jordan has been promoted to the position of director of nursing in 2003, and most recently was promoted to the position of administrator in 2006. She oversees the daily operation and management of the hospital, while promoting the values of the hospital's mission and vision statements.

Suzanne Wienbarg, RN, CASC. Ms. Wienbarg is a senior vice president of operations at ASCOA, with more than 25 years of experience in healthcare management and operations. Prior to joining ASCOA, Ms. Wienbarg was a vice president of operations for the ambulatory surgery division of HealthSouth. During her time with HealthSouth, she worked extensively in development, operations and physician recruitment. She has been active as a member and officer in healthcare professional organizations.

Kathleen Whitlow, RN, BS, CASC. Ms. Whitlow is the COO for Blue Chip Surgical Center Partners. She has more than 25 years of experience in the medical/healthcare industry and has worked as an ASC administrator and consultant with expertise in development, marketing, operations and strategic planning in support of facilities across the country. As director of surgical services for a large national hospital system, she developed and directed the outpatient and ambulatory surgery programs, clinics, case management and endoscopy department. She has served as an advisor/consultant to a group of attorneys representing physicians.

Kim Woodruff. During Ms. Woodruff's tenure with Pinnacle III, her role has evolved from vice president of business office operations to her current role as vice president of corporate finance and compliance. In 2003, Ms. Woodruff provided oversight of in-house business office functions for Pinnacle III's clients in a multi-state region. One year later, Kim launched Pinnacle's centralized billing office providing coding, billing and collection services to single and multi-specialty ASCs who desired increased efficiencies via qualified personnel in a constantly changing reimbursement environment. She assumed her current position in 2008.

Lexa L. Woodyard. Ms. Woodyard has been the administrator of Cabell Huntington Surgery Center in Huntington, W. Va., for four years. In that time, she has decreased expenses by $200,000 for a calendar year, increased net revenue per case by introducing cases with better payor mixes, increased over-the-counter patient collections and formulated a plan to decrease days in A/R. "Many ASCs have made the hard decision to close their doors as decreasing reimbursement rates and increasing costs have eaten away their bottom line and financial stability," she says. "Every day is a struggle for ASCs in today's economy; cooperative staff and surgeons can make or break an ASC." 

Cindy Young, RN, CASC. Ms. Young has been with The Surgery Center of Farmington (Mich.) for the past 12 years. The center has shown profits quarter-over-quarter consistently for the past eight years, and Ms. Young has maintained tight staff hours per patient while producing high patient, staff and physician satisfaction scores. She led the ASC through a three-year AAAHC accreditation in 2002, 2005 and 2008 and currently manages 28 employees that staff two ORs and two procedure rooms. Prior to joining her current center, Ms. Young served as a staff nurse at Arcadia Valley Hospital in Pilot Knob, Mo., where she was responsible for supervising the night shift, handling emergency transfers and maintaining central supply and central sterilization.

Monica M. Ziegler, MSN, CASC. Ms. Ziegler is the administrator for the Physicians Surgical Center in Lebanon, Pa., a position she's held since April 2005. Physicians Surgical Center — a multi-specialty center with three ORs and one procedure room — surpassed all established benchmarks and continues to lead in operating incomes, cost containment, staff utilization and profitability after 1.5 years of operation. Ms. Ziegler's administrative approach is to focus on "efficacy and efficiency" — doing the right things in a timely and cost effective manner and serving as a leader organizational change. 

Becky Ziegler-Otis, RHIA, CPHQ, CHC. Ms. Ziegler-Otis has served in her current role as administrator of the Ambulatory Surgical Center of Stevens Point (Wis.) since Jan. 2008. In this position, Ms. Ziegler-Otis has worked to keep days in A/R at benchmark levels. When she took over as administrator, the center was at almost 100 days in A/R. Through her continued efforts and her work with an outsourced vendor, the center has stayed at 39-40 days in A/R for the past year. Ms. Ziegler-Otis' goals for 2011 include becoming more involved in the state ASC association. Prior to joining Stevens Point, she worked on implementing an electronic medical record at Klasinski Clinic in Stevens Point and oversaw facility-wide compliance at Bay Area Medical Center in Marinette, Wis.

See this article on it's original source: Beckers ASC Review