Profiles in Risk Management

 

 

Maribeth Schmidt, R.N., B.S., CPHQ, LHRM, CPHRM, is the Risk Manager for Broward Health Coral Springs. She is responsible for maintaining the comprehensive risk management and patient safety program. Schmidt works with patients and their families as well as hospital staff to maintain safe quality care. She finds the role of Risk Manager extremely rewarding. A Broward Health employee for over 36 years, Schmidt began her career at Broward Health as a staff nurse and patient care coordinator at Broward Health Imperial Point. Prior to her role at BHCS, Schmidt served as regional manager of Quality Management at Broward Health North. Schmidt is a Past Member, Board of Directors, for the Florida Association for Healthcare Quality, and is a member of such organizations as the National Association for Healthcare Quality; the Florida Society for HealthCare Risk Management; the American Society for HealthCare Risk Management.; and the National Patient Safety Foundation.

 

 

Sandra Baysinger, RN, MHM, LHRM, has served as Regional Risk Manager at Broward Health Weston (BHW) since 2008. A licensed Healthcare Risk Manager in the State of Florida, Baysinger also serves community health sites for Broward Health, CDTC (Children’s Diagnostic and Treatment Center) and Broward Health Physicians Group (66 employed physicians of all specialties). Additionally, she serves as Patient Safety Officer and Privacy and Security Officer.

After beginning her career as a registered nurse, Baysinger decided to pursue risk management. She served for 17 years as a Clinical Healthcare Risk Management Consultant, providing services to acute care hospitals, clinics and ambulatory care, mental health facilities, long term care, physician practice groups, home health, managed care and insurers across the country. She credits her nursing background as a basis for her success as a risk manager. She earned her undergraduate degree in nursing from the State University of Iowa in Iowa City and her master’s in healthcare management from St. Thomas University in Miami, Florida.

 

 

Eileen Daly is the regional manager of Risk Management at Broward Health North.

 

Daly and her team assess opportunities where BHN can minimize and prevent risks to patients and visitors. They work closely with nursing staff to answer questions about Do Not Resuscitate requests (DNRs), advanced directives, patient’s rights to refuse treatments, and more.

 

She has been the risk manager at Broward Health North since October 2000. Before that she served as risk manager at Mount Sinai for eight years and at Catholic Health Services for two years.

 

Daly earned her diploma from Jackson Memorial Hospital School of Nursing in Miami in 1973. She then went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in Nursing from Coe College in Cedar Rapids Iowa in 1978 and her master’s degree in Human Resource Management from Nova Southeastern University in 1981.

According to Daly, the best part of her job is the collaborative effort between the staff, nurses and various departments to properly prevent and minimize risks.

 

 

Linda Huffman has been a Registered Nurse for 30 years. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing (BSN) and a Masters in Nursing (MSN) with a concentration in Organizational Leadership. Linda is board certified by the American Nurses Credentialing Center as a Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse and is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International, the Honor Society of Nursing. She has been a Licensed Healthcare Risk Manager since 1998. In 2006, Linda began her VA career for a few months as a staff nurse and then as a Quality Management Specialist. She has been the Medical Center’s Risk Manager since 2008. At the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center, the Risk Management (RM) Program is aimed at identifying, analyzing, prioritizing, and addressing the risks and opportunities that will improve the quality of patient care and patient safety.

 

 

Duana Stabile is the Director of Risk Management at Palms West Hospital. As an outstanding leader, her work and consistent contributions are translated throughout the facility to continuously reduce risk and preserve the physical facility, data, records, physical assets – and patient health and safety.

 

After experience as a CNO and COO at an acute care facility, as well as Director Professional Services at Home Care Agency, Duana attended The Risk Management Institute in 2000. She became the Director Risk Management at St. Lucie Medical Center and was later promoted to Director of Quality & Risk Management.

 

In 2008, she was Director of Continuous Quality Improvement, also supervising Risk Management & Infection Control at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center. In 2010, Duana joined Palms West Hospital.

 

Her certifications include BSN from SUNY Binghamton Decker School of Nursing; MHSA from FIU; Certification as Health Care Risk Manager from AHA; and Certification as HealthCare Quality Professional from NAHQ.

 

 

As a Risk Manager at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center, Teri Hughes wears many hats. Hughes’ focus is on improving patient safety, whether she is meeting with a patient and their family or collaboratively working with the nursing staff. She enjoys working at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center because of the working environment, which promotes understanding and innovative thinking. Hughes is responsible for implementing risk management models in quality, nursing, patient safety, environment of care and infection control together to prospectively and retrospectively address concerns. Hughes’ background in RN Legal Consultant is complimented with certifications as a licensed Health Care Risk Manager (LHRM) and Certified Professional Hospital Risk Manager (CPHRM). Hughes earned her Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Brockport State University College in New York and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Adelphi University in Garden City, New York. She also received her Masters of Public Administration in health management and finance from New York University.

 

 

As director of risk management, Georgianna Barley is responsible for monitoring risk exposures; implementing plans to reduce risk while promoting patient safety; meeting regulatory guidelines for Holy Cross Hospital, Holy Cross Medical Group, Holy Cross Home Health, and the Holy Cross Physician Outpatient Surgical Center; and effective administration and operation of the organizations’ risk management and insurance programs and claims and litigation management. Prior to joining Holy Cross in 2006, she served as director of risk management and patient safety officer for Florida Medical Center. Barley is a registered nurse in Florida and a licensed healthcare risk manager. She is a member of the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management; Sigma Theta Tau, International Honor Society of Nursing; and the National Association of Rehabilitation Nurses. Barley received a master’s degree in science nursing from the University of Phoenix and a bachelor’s degree in science nursing from Florida International University.

 

 

Sharon has been with Martin Health System for more than 25 years and a risk manager for the past three years, originally starting her career as an RN in Labor and Delivery. Sharon is responsible for managing a systematic process to identify, evaluate, and mitigate actual and potential exposure to loss through root cause analysis and universal protocol. She analyzes reports of variance, medical error, grievance and claim data to develop, enhance and implement risk control, patient safety and risk modification plans for Martin Hospital South.

           

“My nursing philosophy is to provide safe, compassionate and the highest quality of care to every patient at Martin Health System,” Beiser said. “With the changes that are constantly occurring in health care, I am committed to promoting positive change that increases efficiency and improves the quality of patient care. It’s the most rewarding part of the job.”

 

 

Chris is a certified risk manager who has been with Martin Health System for 15 years and in the medical field for 23 years, originally starting her career in Albany, NY. Chris uses root-cause analysis, trending data and content management systems to constantly analyze patient risks at Martin Medical Center. She believes in treating the underlying cause of patient risks by meeting with clinical coordinators to determine any system changes that need to take place to prevent occurrences from happening.

 

“No two days are the same,” Friedman said. “We can’t fix everything, but I greatly appreciate the opportunity to help resolve issues with the ultimate goal of patient safety.”

 

 

As a risk manager at Good Samaritan Medical Center, Elizabeth DeLuca finds it very satisfying to help create and monitor plans to improve patient safety and quality outcomes. Preferring the title of Patient Safety Officer, DeLuca oversees processes that keep patients safe and informed of their healthcare choices. She maintains an excellent rapport with patients and clinical staff alike. At Good Samaritan Medical Center, DeLuca appreciates the open door policy of the administrative team that allows for an open discussion of ideas. She also keeps a strong tie to every department within the hospital, contributing to most hospital based committees including those that have staff participation. She believes it is a perfect forum to share ideas and strategize.

 

DeLuca earned her undergraduate nursing degree from University of Miami, a MBA from Nova Southeastern University and a MSN from Florida Atlantic University. In addition, she is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Nursing Practice from Florida Atlantic University.

 

 

Seen as a patient advocate, educator and safety officer, Joseph Gerasci serves as the Director of Risk Management at Delray Medical Center. With 23 years of clinical nursing experience, Gerasci decided to transition into the risk management field to better evaluate and improve the quality of patient safety. He ensures that Delray Medical Center patients receive safe, quality care. Gerasci achieves this by spending quality time with the patients and their families. He enjoys working with the diverse patient population at Delray Medical Center who come from all walks of life, offering opportunities to learn from and educate them as well. Working closely with hospital departments and staff, Gerasci acts as an advisor, resource, mentor, and educator to help with any issue that may come up in their areas. To back his 10 years of experience, Gerasci has an Associate degree in nursing and a Baccalaureate degree in healthcare administration and attends risk management education seminars to continually enhance his knowledge and skill set.

 

 

Patient safety and quality care is of the utmost importance to Estelle “Lin” Tuthill, risk manager at North Shore Medical Center. With more than 30 years of professional experience, Tuthill regularly trains and provides staff education in patient safety risk reduction and believes that it takes a team effort to ensure a patient’s well-being while in the hospital. She boasts of having the “world’s best boss,” a great team of peers and a caring, professional staff at North Shore Medical Center which makes her job even more rewarding. Before earning her professional license as a health care risk manager, Tuthill received her BSN at the University of Florida where she also earned her Juris Doctorate. With a deep desire to use both her nursing background and law degree to help fellow health care professionals and patients, Tuthill found her passion in pursuing a career as a risk manager. When she’s not in the halls of North Shore Medical Center, Tuthill enjoys spending her time sewing, fishing and cooking.

 

 

Rae Hibner fell into the Risk Management profession 19 years ago by happenstance, while filling an interim position, and has not looked back since. Hibner truly enjoys helping patients, families and staff members while utilizing her nursing education to the fullest. As a Risk Manager at St. Mary’s Medical Center and the Palm Beach Children’s Hospital, Hibner strives to create a safe place for patients to receive care. Even though her favorite part of being a Risk Manager is her interactions with patients and families, Hibner is also deeply involved with the hospital staff. As a proactive step towards achieving and maintaining quality, Hibner is a part of every new employee orientation and annual re-orientation. However Hibner claims that it is an all-out effort from all staff and administration members in the facility to uphold patient safety. As with any healthcare position, Hibner recommends that charismatic and compassionate people pursue a career in Risk Management.

 

 

After having spent many years working as a registered nurse, Regina Vianna looked forward to a change in her career and found her true passion when she began to pursue a career in risk management. In her current role as risk manager at Hialeah Hospital, Vianna is committed to maintaining a high level of patient safety and quality care for all patients at the hospital. She is focused on working with the entire hospital team on implementing policies that put safety first. She also works closely with hospital staff on patient safety education and also provides support for patients and their family members during their stay at the hospital. Vianna uses the words “dynamic, interesting and challenging” to describe her job as risk manager. Outside of her role as risk manager, Vianna loves to spend her time with family, go to the beach and play tennis.

 

 

Combining critical thinking and conflict resolution skills to make a positive difference in the lives of patients and their families is what makes Andrea Nunes shine in her role as Director of Risk Management/Patient Safety Officer at West Boca Medical Center. She establishes open and honest relationships with the hospital’s patients, as Nunes wants to have open dialogue with patients. During admission, Nunes validates that patients receive information about their rights and patient safety. Nunes also works closely with the hospital staff to provide education on patient safety and new processes while maintaining a focus on quality. Although a nursing license is not a pre-requisite for her job, experience as a registered nurse did help promote Nunes into an initial risk and quality management role. West Boca Medical Center is special to Nunes due to the fact that the administrative team, hospital directors, managers and staff, commit daily to a patient-centered focus. Outside of her work responsibilities, Nunes is a “band mom” who helps her daughters and their University Winterguard program.