CRISTA DURAND, FACHE
Newport,RI
Summary
Executive with deep experience in healthcare strategy, finance, and operational transformation. Builds growth plans, improves revenue performance, manages complex budgets, and leads change across clinical and administrative functions to support sustainable performance and stronger organizational alignment.
Overview
33
33
years of professional experience
Work History
Founder & Principal
Durand Advisory LLC
03.2026 - Current
- Durand Advisory LLC is a healthcare consulting and executive advisory firm created to help healthcare organizations navigate complexity, accelerate performance, and lead meaningful transformation. The firm partners with boards, executives, and leadership teams to strengthen strategy, improve operations, advance governance effectiveness, support leadership development, and position organizations for sustainable growth.
- Founded Durand Advisory LLC to deliver strategic advisory services that empower healthcare organizations to navigate challenges and achieve sustainable growth.
- Guided clients in business planning, risk assessment, and growth strategy to enhance organizational resilience and success.
- Created service offerings and engagement models tailored to client needs, fostering stronger partnerships and effective advisory relationships.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Hospital for Special Care
New Britain, CT
03.2025 - 03.2026
- Set enterprise strategy and oversaw operations, financial performance, quality, and organizational effectiveness for a nationally recognized long-term acute care hospital.
- Advanced growth through service expansion, clinical partnerships, physician recruitment, market positioning, and stakeholder engagement.
- Developed a three-year strategic plan aligning organizational priorities with growth and operational execution, setting clear direction for future initiatives.
- Strengthened culture, employee engagement, patient outcomes, and leadership accountability across complex, Medicaid-dependent healthcare organization, enhancing overall organizational effectiveness.
- Represented organization with legislators, state agencies, health systems, physicians, community leaders, and key external stakeholders, fostering collaborative relationships to advocate for community health needs.
- Hospital for Special Care is a nationally recognized, independent nonprofit healthcare system with 230 licensed beds, serving adults and children through long-term acute care, rehabilitation, and specialty programs for medically complex patients. HFSC also offers distinctive inpatient and outpatient autism services and specialized care for patients with acquired brain injury, spinal cord injury, and neuromuscular disorders, and is considered the fourth-largest LTACH in the country.
- Select Accomplishments | Hospital for Special Care
- Secured $13 million in additional Medicaid funding for fiscal year 2026-2027.
- Achieved first-time Joint Commission Behavioral Health accreditation and earned Hartford Courant Top Workplace recognition for the 13th consecutive year.
- Secured a $1M philanthropic gift to establish the Jeffrey & Sara Buell Impact Fund.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Newport Hospital
Newport, RI
01.2014 - 01.2024
- Led strategic direction, operations, market development, and financial performance for a 129-bed acute care hospital within the Lifespan system.
- Led a sustained financial turnaround, moving the hospital from a $16M annual loss to a positive bottom line for the first time in more than a decade.
- Delivered FY2023 performance of 3% operating margin, $4.1M actual results against a $2.8M budget, 4.04 employee engagement score, 70.8 patient experience score, Leapfrog A rating, and $4.3M in philanthropy.
- Partnered with medical staff, system clinical leaders, senior management, trustees, and community stakeholders to align strategy with community needs and enhance enterprise priorities.
- Advanced physician recruitment and service-line growth while implementing philanthropic strategy and quality imperatives to strengthen access and improve organizational performance...
- Led system-level rehabilitation services with a revenue portfolio exceeding $90M and expanded inpatient rehabilitation capacity from 13 to 28 beds during COVID-19.
- Co-led development of Lifespan Physician Group in Newport County and integration of radiology, orthopedics, general surgery, emergency medicine, and urology service line.
- Advanced innovation strategy across medical imaging, ICU care, spine care, cardiac care, retail pharmacy, partial hospitalization, and neonatal care to expand access and modernize services.
- Led the organization through the pandemic while achieving budget, increasing employee engagement, maintaining quality metrics, and minimizing leadership turnover.
- Increased employee engagement year over year since 2019 through Bright Ideas, stay interviews, intentional rounding, well-being strategy, and a front-line President Advisory Council.
- Raised $13.5M against a $12M capital campaign goal to support emergency department expansion and transformed the emergency room experience to achieve the lowest wait times in Rhode Island.
- Implemented Rhode Island's only hospital-based COVID-19 community vaccine clinic, vaccinating more than 4,000 community members.
- Achieved the fifth Magnet accreditation for nursing in July 2024
- Achieved the fifth Magnet accreditation for nursing in July 2024
Vice President, Strategic Planning, Marketing & Business Development
Lawrence & Memorial Hospital
New London, CT
01.2009 - 01.2014
- Led system-wide strategic planning, annual business planning, market assessment, scenario modeling, divestiture, and growth strategy, including integration of the newly acquired 100-bed Westerly Hospital.
- Oversaw strategy, marketing, business development, facilities, project management, public safety, physician recruitment, and physician liaison activities, enhancing alignment with senior leadership and board committees.
- Implemented a corporate-wide multi-channel marketing plan that increased brand awareness and supported growth targets, including a refreshed logo for the hospital's centennial.
- Partnered with medical staff and Yale New Haven Hospital to identify service-line and program opportunities aligned with community health needs.
- Directed development and execution of the master facility plan, creating a three-campus strategy for implementation over five to ten years.
- Refreshed the Master Facility Plan, resulting in a three-campus, two-medical-office-building strategy totaling $125M.
- Led the design, construction, and development of a state-of-the-art Cancer Center in affiliation with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Yale New Haven Hospital, and L&M Hospital; opened October 2013.
- Implemented integrated project delivery methodology and contract model, completing the project on time and 4% under budget.
- Appointed to co-lead the merger and acquisition of Westerly Hospital into L&M Healthcare Inc., requiring significant regulatory, strategic, marketing, and operational execution.
- Designed and launched multiple Centers of Excellence, advancing the hospital's strategic plan and improving service delivery across various specializations.
- Developed and implemented a three-person Physician Liaison team to strengthen communication, relationships, and growth initiatives with the Medical Staff.
- Oversaw primary and secondary market research and analytics to evaluate strategic initiatives, growth opportunities, and resource allocation.
- Led and planned five hospital retreats focused on strategic planning, master facility planning, and market share updates for medical staff, board, and leadership audiences.
- Developed portfolio analysis to monitor hospital service lines and guide resource allocation.
- Led the first system-wide strategic plan effort, completed June 2013.
- Select Accomplishments | L&M
- Lawrence & Memorial Hospital is a 280-bed acute care hospital serving Southeastern Connecticut through a technologically advanced nonprofit healthcare system with approximately 2,300 staff members and 350 physicians. The organization serves a regional population of more than 250,000 through its hospital, satellite, and outpatient facilities, with Yale New Haven Hospital as its tertiary partner.
- Developed portfolio analysis to monitor hospital service lines and guide resource allocation.
Chief Financial Officer & Senior Vice President
Day Kimball Hospital
Putnam, CT
01.2001 - 01.2008
- Co-developed and executed the 2001-2005 strategic plan, increasing net revenue by $30M while expanding programs, market share, customer satisfaction, and clinical technology.
- Improved credit rating from BBB to A/A+ and reduced accounts receivable days from 65 to 39.
- Tripled the hospital's cash position from $10M to $30M over four years.
- Established a Revenue Cycle Enhancement Team that reengineered revenue cycle practices and generated more than $4M in bottom-line improvement.
- Led financial administration, budgeting, reimbursement, managed care, revenue cycle, patient access, medical records, materials management, and finance leadership, enhancing operational efficiency for a community hospital.
- Prepared and managed a $160M operating budget and administered a $30M liquid cash portfolio.
- Restructured hospital-wide pension plan from defined benefit to defined contribution, reducing future costs and preserving benefits for long-tenured employees.
- Developed a hospital Finance Compliance Program, integrating internal audit, decision support, paperless budgeting, and payment compliance processes to strengthen financial governance.
- Increased operating margin and financial ratios for six consecutive years, averaging 2.10% operating margin versus the state average of 0.75% from 2001-2005.
- Transitioned three for-profit entities into Patient Accounts, generating $2M in cost savings.
Director of Finance and Reimbursement
Day Kimball Hospital
01.1997 - 01.2001
Director of Finance
Day Kimball Hospital
01.1995 - 01.1997
Staff Accountant
Community Health and Homecare, Inc.
01.1994 - 01.1995
Education
Master of Business Administration -
Nichols College
Dudley, MA01-2001
Bachelor of Science - Financial Management
Salve Regina University
Newport, RI01-1992
Skills
- Healthcare operations management
- Executive leadership
- Financial oversight and budgeting
- Service line development
- Market expansion and access
- Strategic planning
- Performance improvement
- Organizational effectiveness
- Change management
- Business alliances
- Leadership development
- Board governance
- Market access
- Leadership development
- Board governance
Awards
ACHE & CT Association of Healthcare Executives, Service Award, 2025., Hartford Business Journal, HBJ Power 25 List, 2025., Top 50 Women Leaders of Hartford, Women We Admire, 2025., Becker's Healthcare, Women Hospital Presidents, and CEOs to Know, 2024 and 2023., Providence Business News, Industry Leaders & Achievers Award, 2023., Nichols College, Alumni Achievement Award, 2021., Providence Business News, Healthcare Leader of the Year, 2019.
Community Service
- New England Medical Innovation Center (NEMIC), Women's Health Summit Planning Committee, 2026, 2026
- CT Health Council, Advisory Member, 2025, 2025
- Salve Regina University, Department of Business & Economics Advisory Board, 2022, Present
- Salve Regina University, Graduate and Professional Studies Advisory Board, 2021, Present
- Bank Newport, Corporator, 2018, Present
- Nichols College, WIN Mentorship Program, 2023, 2023
- St. Michaels Country Day School, Board Member and Strategic Planning Committee Chair, 2020, 2023
Affiliations
- Fellow, American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE), 2019; recertified through 2028.
- Regent for Rhode Island, ACHC, 2023-2025.
- Member, ACHC, 2008-Present.
- Medvale member, invitation-only national healthcare thought leadership network, 2023-Present.
- CHIEF Member, 2024.
- HARI Board Member, 2022-2024.
SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
- DGE (Design Global Events), 17th Women's Healthcare Leadership & Pharma Conference, August 2026.
- Success in Chaos, podcast hosted by Info Health, 'Disrupt the Chaos Not the Purpose,' 2025.
- Becker's Healthcare Advisory Panel, Data Driven AI in Action, 2025.
- CT-ACHE Lunch and Learn, Keynote Speaker, 2025.
- University Saint Joseph, Women in Leadership Panelist, 2025.
- Connecticut Health Council, Keynote Speaker on Healthcare Leadership Today, 2025.
- Women of Distinction, Newport Chamber of Commerce, 2024.
- Speaker, Becker's National Healthcare Conference, 2022.
- Keynote Speaker, Newport County Chamber of Commerce, 2021.
- Salve Regina University, Guest Lecturer for Healthcare Administration, 2019-Present.
IMPACTFUL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
- Reversed a $16M annual loss at Newport Hospital, restoring profitability for the first time in more than a decade and later delivering a 3% operating margin with $4.1M in actual results against a $2.8M budget.
- Secured $13M in incremental Medicaid funding for FY20262027, materially strengthening the financial sustainability of a 230-bed, nationally recognized specialty healthcare system.
- Raised $13.5M against a $12M capital campaign goalexcceeding target by $1.5Mto expand Newport Hospital's emergency department and help achieve the lowest emergency-room wait times in Rhode Island.
- Directed a $90M+ system rehabilitation portfolio and more than doubled inpatient rehabilitation capacity, expanding from 13 to 28 beds during COVID-19 to meet critical patient demand.
- Delivered a state-of-the-art Cancer Center on time and 4% under budget, aligning Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Yale New Haven Hospital, and Lawrence & Memorial Hospital in a complex three-party clinical collaboration.
- Co-led the acquisition and integration of the 100-bed Westerly Hospital into L&M Healthcare, orchestrating regulatory, strategic, marketing, and operational execution across the enterprise.
- Built a diversified growth platform across nine Centers of Excellence and service lines, spanning cancer, cardiac, orthopedic, bariatric, breast, sleep, wound care, rehabilitation, and emergency services; also recruited 26 physicians in two years to support expansion.
- Transformed Day Kimball Hospital's financial position by upgrading its credit rating from BBB to A/A+, reducing accounts receivable days by 40% from 65 to 39, and tripling cash reserves from $10M to $30M in four years.
- Generated more than $6M in enterprise value by establishing a Revenue Cycle Enhancement Team that delivered $4M+ in bottom-line improvement and transitioning three for-profit entities into Patient Accounts to capture $2M in savings.
- Sustained budget, quality, engagement, and leadership stability through the pandemic while launching Rhode Island's only hospital-based community vaccine clinic and vaccinating more than 4,000 residents.
Prior Service
- Board Member, Rectory School, 2012-2017; Finance Committee Chair, 2013-2017.
- Board Member, Center for Hospice Care, 2010-2014.
- Board Member, Associated Healthcare/DME Company, 2011-2013.
- Member, CHA Financial Oversight Committee, 2012-2014.
- HFMA, Connecticut Chapter, 1995-2008.
- Putnam Rotary Club, 2005-2008.
Timeline
Founder & Principal
Durand Advisory LLC
03.2026 - Current
President and Chief Executive Officer
Hospital for Special Care
03.2025 - 03.2026
President and Chief Executive Officer
Newport Hospital
01.2014 - 01.2024
Vice President, Strategic Planning, Marketing & Business Development
Lawrence & Memorial Hospital
01.2009 - 01.2014
Chief Financial Officer & Senior Vice President
Day Kimball Hospital
01.2001 - 01.2008
Director of Finance and Reimbursement
Day Kimball Hospital
01.1997 - 01.2001
Director of Finance
Day Kimball Hospital
01.1995 - 01.1997
Staff Accountant
Community Health and Homecare, Inc.
01.1994 - 01.1995
Master of Business Administration -
Nichols College
Bachelor of Science - Financial Management
Salve Regina University