Rural hospitals serve populations with greater need, fewer resources and less margin for error than almost any other type of healthcare institution. The CFOs who steward their finances are making the decisions that keep these organizations financially viable.
Through disciplined strategy and careful resource allocation, these executives make affordable, accessible, high-quality care possible in rural areas.
Note: Becker’s Healthcare developed this list based on nominations and editorial research. This list is not exhaustive, nor is it an endorsement of included leaders or associated healthcare providers. Leaders cannot pay for inclusion on this list. Leaders are presented in alphabetical order.
Contact Anna Falvey at afalvey@beckershealthcare.com with questions or comments.
Christine Asato. Regional CFO of Hawaii Health Systems Corporation-Kauai (Hawaii) Region. Ms. Asato, a financial healthcare management executive with nearly three decades of experience, is responsible for revenue cycle, financial reporting, treasury management, financial analyses, and IT for the Kauai region of Hawaii Health Systems Corporation. She also formulates and implements the financial strategies for the region. Before joining the Kauai region, Ms. Asato acted as the State of Hawaii’s lead practice facilitator for the comprehensive primary care program and served as the director of internal audit and then the director of business intelligence at Hawaii Health Systems. As CFO, she upholds high performance and ethical standards.
Jim Bands. CFO at Ivinson Memorial Hospital (Laramie, Wyo.). Mr. Bands oversees all financial operations for the 99-bed rural community hospital, including accounting, patient financial services, third-party reimbursement, and financial and statistical reporting. He leads revenue cycle, materials management, IT and compliance, partnering with the hospital foundation on long-term sustainability. Since 2016, he has helped maintain strong performance, including an operating margin exceeding 10% that has funded capital projects from cash while building reserves. He led the system’s 2019 conversion to a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and secured $3.1 million in state grant funding to expand and renovate the emergency department. Major projects under his direction include a two-story medical office building and parking garage, as well as a new labor and delivery, gynecology, special nursery and pediatric unit. He also spearheaded a master facility plan and instituted a conservative, liquid investment strategy, supporting award-winning performance recognized by Chartis, Global Healthcare Exchange, Leapfrog and CMS.
Paul Beaudoin. CFO for Day Kimball Health (Putnam, Conn.). Mr. Beaudoin oversees the financial operations of Day Kimball Healthcare, a critical resource in rural Northeast Connecticut that provides essential medical services to 70,000 residents across 13 towns. Amid economic pressures, Mr. Beaudoin navigated the sudden withdrawal of a proposed healthcare affiliation, securing $15 million in legislative financial support to stabilize and improve Day Kimball’s services. His strategic financial maneuvers included a $28.6 million debt reduction through a pension settlement, renegotiation of service agreements and the optimization of property use. He also improved staff retention, engaged consultants for improved efficiency, outsourced revenue cycle management, and secured Medicaid rate enhancements. His extensive career experience, including previous roles at Warwick, R.I.-based Kent Hospital and Memorial Hospital in Pawtucket, R.I., has enabled him to help Day Kimball to maintain high-quality care and expand services.
Katie Berg. CFO at Cuyuna Regional Medical Center (Crosby, Minn.). Ms. Berg serves as CFO of Cuyuna Regional Medical Center, a rural critical access hospital, overseeing budgeting, financial reporting, cash flow management, revenue cycle operations, and compliance with federal and state regulations. She manages the hospital’s Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement strategy, including cost-based reimbursement for critical access hospitals and payment methodologies for rural health clinics. She also oversees IT, purchasing and compliance functions. Under her financial leadership, Cuyuna Regional Medical Center opened three new freestanding clinics and one new rural health clinic, while adding service lines including interventional spine and pain management, endocrinology, neurology, surgical podiatry, an opioid treatment program, osteopathic manipulation, surgical weight loss and urology. Ms. Berg oversaw four major hospital building projects that relied on complex financing structures, including government bond financing, U.S. Department of Agriculture financing and New Market Tax Credit financing. She has also helped establish key partnerships, including a cardiology services collaboration with Minneapolis-based Allina Health and a skilled nursing partnership with Roseville, Minn.-based Presbyterian Homes. Ms. Berg helped maintain organizational stability throughout the Covid-19 pandemic while keeping the hospital focused on patient care. She previously served as director of finance and corporate controller at the organization.
Sara Bradley. Vice President and CFO at UNC Health Southeastern (Lumberton, N.C.). Ms. Bradley assumed permanent CFO leadership at UNC Health Southeastern in 2022, bringing more than 20 years of healthcare finance expertise to the rural North Carolina health system. She oversees revenue cycle, supply chain, care management and health information, driving financial stability across the organization while delivering timely, actionable insights to senior leadership and the board. During her tenure, UNC Health Southeastern earned a Leapfrog hospital safety grade of “A” in spring 2026. The hospital was also named to U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Hospitals for Maternity Care” with a “Maternity Care Access” designation in 2026, following a 2024-2025 U.S. News recognition as “high-performing” in seven adult procedures and conditions, including heart attack, heart failure and stroke care. In 2025, the organization received the American College of Cardiology’s “NCDR Chest Pain-MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award,” after earning the “Silver” award the year before. Before joining UNC Health Southeastern, Ms. Bradley served as chief fiscal leader for nonprofit health systems in Arkansas and Oklahoma, most recently as CFO of Arkansas Heart Hospital in Little Rock, a for-profit specialty system focused on cardiac and bariatric care. She also served as CFO of the Arkansas Department of Human Services and as vice president of network finance for Lutheran Health System in Brooklyn, N.Y.
John Bujak. Vice President of Finance and CFO at Heywood Healthcare (Gardner, Mass.). Mr. Bujak assumed the CFO role at Heywood Healthcare in 2024 after joining the system as senior director of finance in 2023, during a period of financial instability. As CFO of the rural system, he led Athol Hospital, a 21-bed rural critical access facility, through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy process beginning in October 2023, achieving $14 million in annual savings through cost reduction and $2 million in additional savings from service line optimization. Under his leadership, Heywood Healthcare successfully exited bankruptcy in less than a year as an independent community health system, an outcome achieved by fewer than 3% of health systems in 2023. Mr. Bujak has paired financial recovery with service expansion, sustaining critical inpatient and outpatient offerings in a federally designated provider shortage area. He previously served as CFO of TaraVista Behavioral Health Center in Devens, Mass. and MiraVista Behavioral Health Center in Holyoke, Mass., as well as director of finance at Harrington Memorial Hospital in Southbridge, Mass.
David Butler. CFO of Ochsner Rush Health (Meridian, Miss.). Mr. Butler became CFO of the seven-hospital, 30-plus clinic Rush Health System in 2018. His responsibilities include providing leadership, direction and management for financial operations such as accounting, insurance and financial systems throughout the organization. Before joining Rush, Mr. Butler served as a partner with the HORNE LLP healthcare practice group for 17 years.
William J. Craig. CFO at Howard Memorial Hospital (Nashville, Ark.). Mr. Craig oversees finance, patient financial services, patient access, health information management, IT, case management, materials management and linen services as CFO of Howard Memorial Hospital, a 20-bed, nonprofit critical access hospital, administering an $85 million annual budget. He developed the hospital’s budget process and reporting system, including training for department directors, and has enhanced financial reporting and closing processes to the point of no audit adjustments from independent auditors. Mr. Craig implemented point-of-service collections that improved the hospital’s revenue cycle and overhauled its emergency department acuity system, producing a $3 million revenue improvement. He also identified and helped launch new outpatient service lines, including wound care, outpatient behavioral health and a pediatric therapy center, and has written grant applications that brought in $300,000 for the hospital in 2020 and 2021. Under Mr. Craig’s financial leadership, the hospital met and exceeded state-set targets for days cash on hand and net operating margin through the governor’s sustainability plan, along with securing more than $3.4 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding over two years. He was named Arkansas Business‘ “Hospital CFO of the Year” in 2021 and its “Financial Executive of the Year” in 2025. Mr. Craig also serves as a board member of the Howard County Children’s Center and the Nashville Chamber of Commerce, having previously served as the chamber’s president. He holds board and treasurer roles with the Arkansas chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Association.
Carol Crews. Executive Vice President and CFO at Tanner Health (Carrollton, Ga.). Ms. Crews oversees Tanner Health’s financial operations, including budgets, audits, accounting, payroll, patient financial services, registration, scheduling, health information management and revenue integrity. She has advanced initiatives to streamline billing and payment processes, improve access to financial services, and align financial resources with both operational and strategic system priorities. Her leadership has strengthened financial performance while supporting Tanner Health’s mission to deliver patient-centered care. Ms. Crews is active in professional associations including the Georgia Society of CPAs, the Healthcare Financial Management Association and the Georgia Hospital Association.
Jodie Criswell. CFO of Hammond Henry Hospital (Geneseo, Ill.). Ms. Criswell navigates complex tasks such as cost reports, managed care negotiations, EHR selection and more as CFO of Hammond Henry Hospital. Under her leadership, the hospital has achieved heightened CMS stars for patient experience, having transformed financial services, registration, scheduling and billing for patients and families. Prior to joining Hammond Henry in 2011, Ms. Criswell was CFO of Mercy County Hospital.
Angela Davis. CFO for Bartlett Regional Hospital (Juneau, Alaska). Ms. Davis took on the CFO role at Bartlett Regional Hospital in June 2025. She is an expert in finance, accounting, payroll, human resources, IT and procurement services. She brings nearly three decades in financial leadership roles to her position. Prior roles include serving as CFO for Medicine for Business and Industry in Phoenix, overseeing 31 clinics across four states. Ms. Davis has also served as CFO for Pinehurst (N.C.) Surgical Clinic, where she specialized in revenue cycle management, medical coding, accounting and finance.
Ann Duffy. CFO of Cottage Hospital (Woodsville, N.H.). Ms. Duffy serves as CFO for Cottage Hospital, a 35-bed critical access hospital. She handles the financial health of both the hospital and its rural health clinic. She is adept at navigating the complexities involved with the financial oversight of a critical access hospital.
Brian Dunn. CFO for ECU Health (Greenville, N.C.). Mr. Dunn became CFO of ECU Health at the end of July 2026, taking on oversight of the finance and supply chain departments for both ECU Health and the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University. He joined ECU Health in 2011 and most recently served as senior vice president of finance, leading corporate accounting and financial reporting, financial planning and analytics, treasury services, reimbursement and cost reporting, and strategic financial and capital planning. Prior to joining ECU Health, Mr. Dunn spent more than a decade with RSM, one of the nation’s largest accounting firms, specializing in complex accounting, auditing and financial reporting for healthcare, governmental and nonprofit organizations. As CFO, he will continue supporting the financial integration goals of the joint operating agreement between ECU Health and the Brody School of Medicine, helping advance a shared-services model designed to improve efficiency, strengthen academic medicine and support patient care delivery across the region.
Emily Emery-Shea. CFO of Mee Memorial Healthcare System (King City, Calif.). Ms. Emery-Shea was appointed CFO of Mee Memorial Healthcare System in July 2025. She brings more than 10 years of leadership experience in healthcare finance, cultivating fiscal stewardship, strategic planning and operations. Her new role entails the oversight of financial strategy and advancing the system’s mission of bringing exceptional healthcare to the rural region it serves. She previously held leadership positions at community hospitals and has served as a senior healthcare consultant.
Mark Gross. Vice President and CFO at Hillsdale (Mich.) Hospital. Mr. Gross has served as vice president and CFO of Hillsdale Hospital since April 2018, overseeing budget and contract management, fiscal services, supply chain, revenue cycle and patient accounts, health information management, admitting and inpatient pharmacy services. He has renegotiated multiple payer contracts during his tenure, including one with a commercial insurer that added millions of dollars in revenue. Mr. Gross oversaw the hospital’s shift from a manual, Excel-based budget process to dedicated budgeting software, improving monitoring and reporting of budget variances while holding department managers accountable to their numbers. Under his leadership, net days in accounts receivable have steadily decreased, and he introduced a monthly stoplight report that guides the revenue cycle committee’s decision-making. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Mr. Gross proactively secured state and federal funding to help the hospital weather mandated shutdowns of revenue-generating services. He also oversaw a group purchasing organization change that produced significant savings in materials management and purchasing. Mr. Gross serves on the boards of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association, the Michigan Works! Southeast workforce development board, the Hillsdale Board of Public Utilities and the Hillsdale County Economic Development Partnership.
Shane Hilton. CFO of Ballad Health (Johnson City, Tenn). In April 2024, Ballad Health appointed Mr. Hilton as its new CFO. He brings over 20 years of experience within the system of rural hospitals. He began his healthcare career in 1991 as a pharmacy technician at Holston Valley Medical Center in Kingsport, Tenn. He gained further experience as a hospital accountant and finance director outside Ballad Health before rejoining Ballad Health in 2000. Since, he has held various financial leadership roles, including senior accountant, controller of regional financial operations, CFO of Washington County operations and CFO of corporate, retail and non-acute services. Mr. Hilton aims to make Ballad a model for rural healthcare.
Jason Hinkle. CFO at Deaconess Illinois (Marion). Mr. Hinkle serves as CFO for Deaconess Illinois, an affiliate of Evansville, Ind.-based Deaconess Health System. In his role, he leads the finance function for four hospitals across Southern Illinois. He facilitates monthly financial performance reviews for system executive leadership and has built a systemwide tool for tracking key financial initiatives and identifying payer denial and underpayment trends. Mr. Hinkle also serves as a primary liaison to regulators, auditors, financial institutions and strategic partners, all while providing financial analysis for new service lines and capital investments. He has overseen a more than 33% increase in patient volumes and a more than 900-basis-point year-over-year improvement in operating margin since joining Deaconess Illinois in 2025. During his tenure, Deaconess Illinois Medical Center earned a primary stroke center designation and installed a first-in-the-nation 3T MRI. Mr. Hinkle previously served as regional director of finance operations at Maywood, Ill.-based Loyola Medicine and as a finance manager at Charlotte, N.C.-based Advocate Health. He also serves on the advisory board of the Kiwanis Club of Marion.
Greg Jones. CFO of Wayne Memorial Hospital (Jesup, Ga.). Mr. Jones has served as CFO of Wayne Memorial Hospital since 2007. During his tenure, the hospital has experienced a significant increase in net income, with patient revenue also rising. Additionally, Mr. Jones oversaw the successful opening of a home healthcare division, Community Home Care, in six Georgia counties.
Catherine Keck. CFO at Decatur County Memorial (Greensburg, Ind.). Ms. Keck is responsible for finance leadership, accounting, revenue cycle, IT and supply chain management for Decatur. She engages in professional organizations, pays attention to trends and implements best practices for the system. She has over 30 years of experience in health finance, and specializes in the reporting and auditing process.
Travis Lakey. CFO at Mayers Memorial Healthcare District (Fall River Mills, Calif.). Mr. Lakey is responsible for all financial operations at Mayers Memorial, managing financial risks, records and finance planning. He supervises the billing, finance and admissions departments, and is the chief financial spokesperson for the organization. In over a decade with the system, he has worked with management to reduce spending, increase charge capture, renegotiate contracts and handle outstanding debts. He led the organization from the brink of bankruptcy to financially stable in five years. He also increased the system’s assets and cash-on-hand.
Rebecca Liljestrom. CFO of Spooner (Wis.) Health. Ms. Liljestrom leads financial operations for Spooner Health, a 25-bed critical access hospital. She also handles revenue cycle management, materials management, IT, HIPAA, compliance and dietary departments. Along with her own keen understanding of financial principles, she is also skilled at distilling complicated financial information into layman’s terms that anyone can grasp.
Deborah Mann. Executive Vice President of Finance and CFO of Schneck Medical Center (Seymour, Ind.). Ms. Mann serves as executive vice president of finance and CFO at Schneck Medical Center, a healthcare center that offers services including maternity, orthopedics, rehabilitation, neurology, women’s health, surgery and more. She jump-started her career at Schneck as a staff accountant in 1994 and has worked her way through the ranks. She served as director of accounting and controller before her promotion to vice president of fiscal services at the hospital. She is also a certified public accountant.
Chad Miller. CFO for West Jefferson Medical Center (Marrero, La.). In July 2023, Mr. Miller became CFO for West Jefferson Medical Center, part of New Orleans-based LCMC Health. A certified public accountant, he brings extensive experience in healthcare financial management to the role. Notably, he served as CFO at Health Management Associates, where he adeptly managed financial oversight and strategy. Now at West Jefferson Medical Center, he expertly navigates regulatory changes, optimizes financial performance and ensures its financial stability.
Lisa Miller. CFO for Sanford Health’s Bemidji (Minn.) Region. Ms. Miller serves as CFO for Sanford Health’s Bemidji Region, overseeing financial planning, performance management and long-range fiscal strategy across the rural health system. She led the implementation of relative value units-based compensation for a medical group of more than 800 clinicians, aligning incentives with productivity and quality outcomes. Ms. Miller introduced Six Sigma and Lean methodologies to standardize workflows and reduce waste, and implemented rolling forecasting and long-range planning processes that contributed to improved bond ratings. She has also led a comprehensive staff restructuring initiative to streamline operations, which then strengthened coding accuracy and revenue integrity. Ms. Miller served as financial lead during a public purchase transaction and supported master facility planning for significant capital construction projects. Beyond her CFO role, she has led clinical operations, facility planning and data analytics functions, and previously served as director of population health management. Ms. Miller’s prior roles include controller at the Center for Diagnostic Imaging, director of financial analysis at St. Louis Park, Minn.-based Park Nicollet Health Services and vice president of finance for clinic operations at Minneapolis-based Fairview Health Services.
Anthony Morales. CFO of Western Arizona Regional Medical Center (Bullhead City). Mr. Morales became the CFO of Western Arizona Regional Medical Center in April 2025. He brings prior experience in finance from hospital leadership roles in El Paso, Texas. He is known for building strategic relationships with hospital leaders and partners to support business initiatives.
Kaley Neal. CFO of Shenandoah (Iowa) Medical Center. Since 2017, Ms. Neal has directed the financial activities for Shenandoah Medical Center, a critical access hospital that includes three rural health clinics, a co-owned ambulance service with the city of Shenandoah, and a philanthropic foundation. Each year, the medical center generates almost $50 million in net operating revenue. Throughout her tenure, Ms. Neal has orchestrated the growth and expansion of the medical center, shaping it into one of Iowa’s strongest operating facilities. She helped complete a $25 million facility expansion that added a medical office building, surgery center and emergency department, and also oversaw the financing of a $13 million cancer center. Her leadership has helped to overhaul the medical center’s revenue cycle and has transformed it from pain point to strong suit. Ms. Neal is also a member of Clarinda City Council in Clarinda, Iowa, and serves as a board member of Iowa’s Healthcare Financial Management Association.
Jay Noyes. CFO of Castleview Hospital (Price, Utah). After 15 years with Castleview Hospital, Mr. Noyes stepped into his role as CFO of the organization at the end of October 2022. Previously, he acted as financial controller and ethics and compliance officer. In these roles, he oversaw the facility’s daily financials and managed the finances for the 2015 emergency room and intensive care unit expansion, as well as the 2017 urgent care and retail pharmacy build. Castleview Hospital provides inpatient and outpatient services ranging from emergency care to surgery to labor and delivery, among others. Mr. Noyes aims to build on the hospital’s strong existing foundation and ultimately improve the well-being of the community.
Judy Peek-Lee. CFO at University of Vermont Medical Center (Burlington). Ms. Peek-Lee joined UVM Medical Center in 2021 with more than 20 years of healthcare finance and operations experience, including roles with Optum, HCA-Physician Services and multiple hospitals in Kentucky and Tennessee. She oversees budgeting, financial planning, accounting and reporting while ensuring compliance with state and federal regulations. At UVM Medical Center, she has been instrumental in guiding annual budget submissions with state regulators and driving strategic financial planning, including the proposed development of an outpatient surgical center to meet rising community demand. Ms. Peek-Lee has designed and executed cost-reduction and efficiency strategies that strengthen long-term sustainability.
Marco Priolo. Senior Vice President of Finance for University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health (Bel Air). Mr. Priolo is responsible for overseeing financial operations for the rural University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health, leveraging his expertise in business development, accounting and strategic financial planning to make impactful investments for the community. He collaborates closely with clinicians and operators to tackle healthcare’s toughest challenges, aiming to provide optimal patient care. His previous roles at Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins Medicine included director of financial innovation and director of business development. Outside of his administrative role, he is an adjunct faculty member in finance at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Johns Hopkins University. He is actively involved in the community, serving on numerous boards, coaching youth and volunteering as an assistant coach for the Johns Hopkins University wrestling team.
Megan Rath. CFO at South Central Health (Wishek, N.D.). Ms. Rath oversees budgeting, policy, capital allocation and margin management while steering asset and resource decisions for the hospital. Her financial leadership helped move the organization from the brink of closure to a position of stability, pairing cost control with performance improvement. She leads strategy development and execution to strengthen operating results and balance sheet resilience. Ms. Rath drove an EHR upgrade that modernized clinical and financial data flows and supported better revenue integrity. She embeds accountability through clear financial policies and decision frameworks aligned with mission and access. Her work positions South Central Health to sustain rural services while investing prudently in priority needs.
Colleen Reid. CFO at Carson Valley Health (Gardnerville, Nev.). Ms. Reid oversees the finance division at Carson Valley Health, managing revenue cycle, materials management, accounting, payroll, third-party reimbursement and managed care contracting, drawing on more than 25 years of industry experience. She joined the rural Nevada hospital in November 2018 after 11 years as controller at UC San Francisco Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland (Calif.) and six years as director of finance and controller at South Lake Tahoe, Calif.-based Barton Health. Ms. Reid secured $40.1 million in tax-exempt bond financing on the organization’s own credit, without guaranteed debt, to fund Carson Valley Health’s 54,000-square-foot facility expansion completed in 2024. In 2021, she helped implement success-sharing payments and increased budgeted salaries for all employees despite inflationary pressures. Carson Valley Health has been a finalist in several regional “Best Places to Work” lists, recognitions that came during Ms. Reid’s tenure overseeing the organization’s finances.
LuCinda Rider. Vice President and CFO of UHS Delaware Valley Hospital (Walton, N.Y.). Ms. Rider is responsible for the financial operations for UHS Delaware Valley Hospital, a progressive critical access hospital in upstate New York. For over a decade, she has led the hospital to a positive bottom line. She has also implemented a strategic investment and cost containment plan that increased cash on hand. Prior to becoming CFO, she was controller for the hospital. Outside of her current role, Ms. Rider acts as a board chair for UHS Employee Federal Credit Union.
Richard Riter. Finance Officer for North Coast Network at Adventist Health (Roseville, Calif.). A certified public accountant, Mr. Riter serves as finance officer for Adventist Health’s North Coast Network, providing strategic financial leadership across a multi-campus, rural health system serving Northern California. He oversees operating and capital financial planning, budgeting, forecasting and performance management, and leads the development of internal controls and financial governance structures across the network’s entities. Before joining Adventist Health, Mr. Riter served as national practice leader for revenue cycle consulting at Moss Adams/Baker Tilly, where he built the practice into a multimillion-dollar business. He previously spent time as vice president and head of reimbursement for Renton, Wash.-based Providence, leading a team of more than 50 professionals on government reimbursement strategy. In that role, Mr. Riter was instrumental in identifying, validating and realizing approximately $1 billion in incremental revenue and led efforts to secure, manage and report on more than $1.6 billion in federal Covid-19 relief funding. His career also includes roles as a healthcare performance improvement consultant at Ernst & Young, a manager of financial reporting and analysis at Boston-based Mass General Brigham, a consulting analyst at Towers Perrin and a financial analyst at Cypress, Calif.-based PacifiCare Health System. Mr. Riter brings nearly 30 years of experience across health systems, consulting and population health to his current role.
Eric Salmonson. Vice President of Finance and CFO at St. Anthony Regional Hospital and Nursing Home (Carroll, Iowa). Mr. Salmonson serves as vice president of finance and CFO at St. Anthony Regional Hospital and Nursing Home, overseeing accounting, budgeting, revenue cycle, treasury and investment management for the rural Iowa health system. He leads the development of the organization’s annual operating and capital budgets and has played an integral role in advancing its master campus planning efforts. Mr. Salmonson also oversees the hospital’s investment portfolio, working with the board’s investment committee on strategy, policy development and manager selection. He has strengthened financial operations by enhancing budgeting processes and financial reporting, helping the organization navigate reimbursement pressures and rising costs common to rural providers. Beyond St. Anthony, he serves as chairperson of the nonprofit board of New Hope Village and as a board member of a local community childcare organization. Mr. Salmonson previously served as assistant controller at St. Anthony Regional Hospital and Nursing Home, and as an auditor with Eide Bailly. Under his financial leadership, St. Anthony Regional Hospital received two 2025 Women’s Choice Awards as one of “America’s Best Hospitals for Patient Experience and Emergency Care.”
Ashley Shamblin. CFO at Sweetwater (Tenn.) Hospital Association. Ms. Shamblin is responsible for the day-to-day financial operations and the financial growth of Sweetwater. She oversees $50 million in gross revenues, helping the system to grow and prosper. She also oversees the hospital’s billing and IT departments. She is a continuing presence in the documentation system, upgrading computer program tools for easier nurse documentation and supply charges.
Brad Sinclair. CFO for East Jefferson General Hospital (Metairie, La.). Mr. Sinclair, formerly senior vice president of finance at New Orleans-based LCMC Health corporate, joined East Jefferson General Hospital as CFO. He first joined LCMC Health in 2022 after previously serving as CFO at Touro in New Orleans, where he enhanced financial strategies and promoted fiscal responsibility. With nearly two decades of experience in hospital and health system management, Mr. Sinclair’s career background also includes roles as health system CFO at The University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson and CFO at Lima Memorial Health System in Ohio.
Matthew Streeter. CFO at North Country Healthcare (Whitefield, N.H.) and Interim President of Weeks Medical Center (Lancaster, N.H.). Mr. Streeter directs overall financial strategy, planning and management for North Country Healthcare to ensure fiscal strength in support of its rural care mission. He oversees budgeting, forecasting, reporting and cash management, bringing a strong emphasis on compliance, transparency and performance. He advances cost containment and revenue enhancement through service-line profitability analysis and disciplined capital investments. He navigates value-based reimbursement and payer contracts to optimize revenue while sustaining access to care. His leadership has supported stability and growth, melding savings initiatives with investments in service expansion, technology and workforce development. He also serves as interim CEO of Weeks Medical Center in Lancaster, N.H. and as culture change sponsor, aligning finance with enterprise strategy and culture.
Stacy Taylor. CFO at Nemaha County Hospital (Auburn, Neb.). Ms. Taylor stepped into the CFO role almost two decades ago, assuming all financial and business office responsibilities. She provides monthly financial statistics to the board of directors and focuses on adaptability to handle immediate system needs. Ms. Taylor helped the system to go paperless, shifting records to a new EHR. She is also focused on creating a positive workplace culture, leading “core action values” trainings and implementing a “your ideas matter” system for hospital employees to submit feedback.
Nick Townsend. CFO of Union General Health System (Blairsville, Ga.). Mr. Townsend is responsible for the overall financial strategy and management of Union General Health System. The system consists of two rural hospitals and several specialty clinics. Mr. Townsend has implemented growth strategies to increase net assets and recruit more physicians. Under his leadership, the health system has seen year over year growth for many consecutive years.
Thad Turner. CFO at Kingman (Kan.) Healthcare Center. Mr. Turner is responsible for the overall financial health of Kingman Healthcare Center’s hospital and clinics, a role that spans financial reporting, forecasting and strategic planning in a resource-constrained rural setting. Under his leadership, the organization has moved from near bankruptcy to a strong financial position. Mr. Turner has directed investments in state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment and a full facility renovation. He serves on the Sunflower Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Association’s board of directors.
Denise Welch. CFO at Arbuckle Memorial Hospital (Sulphur, Okla.). Ms. Welch has served as CFO of Arbuckle Memorial Hospital for more than 25 years. She oversees the rural hospital’s budgeting, cash flow and internal controls while ensuring compliance with healthcare regulations. Ms. Welch works closely with clinical and administrative teams to align financial strategy with patient care priorities, and uses data and financial analytics to inform forecasting and decision-making. Outside the hospital, she is past president and current secretary of the Sulphur Rotary Club and an alumna of Leadership Murray County.
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