Committed to an enterprise-wide risk management model, Maria has developed and implemented numerous initiatives that have positively impacted Barrett Hospital & HealthCare’s operational and clinical goals, including but not limited to quality and safety of patient care, medical record documentation, policies & procedures, CAH licensure & certification, and regulatory compliance. Her commitment to the risk-management community is far-reaching, as she served on the ASHRM Educational Scholarship Task Force Committee and is an active member of the Montana Society for Healthcare Risk Management. Maria received the prestigious MSHRM Risk Professional Service Award in 2023 and was a contributing author to ASHRM’s Legal and Regulatory Playbook, published in 2021.

Part of the Barrett Hospital & HealthCare team since 1989, Maria has held multiple roles, including Obstetrics/Nursery Supervisor and Charge Nurse, Director of Specialty Nursing Units, Quality-Risk Director, and Compliance Privacy Officer. In addition to maintaining her RN license and certification as an Obstetric Nurse, Maria is a certified professional in healthcare quality (CPHQ) with the National Association for Healthcare Quality (NAHQ) and a certified professional in healthcare risk management (CPHRM) with the American Society for Health Care Risk Management (ASHRM). In 2022, she was one of only 50 individuals in the US accepted into the FBI’s Compliance Academy Training program.

Maria earned her bachelor’s of science degree and became a registered nurse at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. She holds a master’s of jurisprudence in healthcare law from Loyola University of Chicago. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau, the international honor society of nursing. Maria loves spending time with her family including her husband, three children, and their families. She and her husband have added eight rescue dogs to their family over the years. Maria enjoys competing in Spartan races and sprint triathlons, swimming, biking, skiing, and travel. Her favorite travel memory is summitting Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Africa. Maria can be found sharing her voice talent as a cantor at her local Catholic church on the weekends.