Southwest Health System has named registered nurse Karen Pasquinchief nursing officer.

Pasquin has more than 30 years in the health care industry, in nursing and healthcare informatics, and has a background in health care policies and programs, health care reform, clinical efficiency management, nursing informatics and staff training and development.

She served as a principal consultant in the implementation and optimization of Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems, meeting and exceeding regulatory requirements by the Joint Commission and DNV. As director of quality, she most recently completed a successful restructuring of the quality department at Southwest Health System, focusing on preventative care, collaboration and communication for a patient-centered approach to nursing.

Pasquin spent much of her nursing career in a Level 1 multi-entity trauma center as supervisor and manager for MedSurg, ICU, emergency department and family birthing center.

She started her career as a LPN, became a registered nurse, completed her bachelor of science degree in nursing, then went onto achieve a master’s in nursing from Walden University.

Pasquin is a licensed nurse in Colorado. She and her husband have five children and loves spending time riding her Can-Am, enjoying family time and listening to ’70s rock.