She says she's excited to have come home. “It’s been 30 years since I first worked at Rio Grande Regional Hospital. Now, I’m returning as its CEO at the same time the hospital is celebrating its 30th anniversary. It’s a great homecoming and I look forward to serving our community and continuing Rio Grande Regional Hospital’s commitment to quality and compassionate care.”
Much has changed at the hospital in thirty years since 1982, the same year Rio Grande opened its doors. For one, the population of Hidalgo County has more than doubled to 798,000.
With more local opportunity available now, Cris is hoping to persuade former staff to return to the area under a similar initiative she started in Iola, called "Come Back Home".
“Cris is an experienced hospital executive with a strong knowledge of financial and clinical operations,” said Maura Walsh, HCA Gulf Coast Division President. “Her passionate commitment to the health and welfare of the people of the Rio Grande Valley makes her the perfect fit for our hospital and the communities it serves.”
As Allen County Hospital's CEO, Cris lead the way for the facility to receive recognition by the Joint Commission as a top performing hospital on key quality measures.
She's also served as CEO at Savoy Medical Center where she completed several renovation projects and opened a health clinic that included pediatrics and obstetrical services. She served as COO and Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer at Overland Park Regional Medical Center where she completed the final site plan and detailed construction drawings for the largest expansion at Overland in its history.
Cris is a COO Development Program graduate, having served as COO at Valley Regional Medical Center in Brownsville, Texas on completing the program.
She earned her Bachelor of Science from Incarnate Word College and her Master of Business Administration and Healthcare Management from Our Lady of the Lake. She is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and recently served as the organization's Regent-at-Large for District 4.
Currently she serves on the board of the Kansas Association of Healthcare Executives and is heavily involved in several charitable organizations including the AHA, American Cancer Society and March of Dimes.
She returned to Rio Grande on November 12. “In the back of my mind — in the back of my heart, if you will — I always wanted to come back here.”