Laura Gamble
Wayne,NE
Summary
Highly effective, community orientated leader with over 30 years of experience directing operations, finances, and facilities management. Focused on employee engagement, quality, and service excellence to achieve growth objectives.
Overview
31
31
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Chief Executive Officer
Pender Community Hospital
Pender, NE
10.2022 - Current
- Oversee a 21 bed Critical Access Hospital, four Rural Health Clinics, three retail pharmacies, a 16-bed assisted living and a child development center.
- Work closely with the Board of Directors to move the organization forward.
- Implemented strategic planning and strategic tactics. Currently in the middle of master’s facility planning, revenue cycle review, centralized scheduling and leadership training.
- Collaborate daily with the Administrative Team and Operations team to work on processes and hospital operations.
- Successfully led the organization through a difficult electronic health record conversion.
- Performed a comprehensive review of the revenue cycle and continue to make appropriate changes.
- Instituted a new employee engagement and patient safety process with follow up plans to create an open and safe environment.
- Worked closely with the revenue cycle to make necessary changes for financial viability.
- Implemented daily safety huddles within the organization.
- Work closely with providers to create a collaborative relationship that promotes a positive culture and enhances quality of care.
- Participated in a large Master's Facility Plan and project management.
- Recruited specialty and primary care providers.
- Secured an affiliation agreement with larger health system to ensure sustainability.
Case Management Manager/Interim Outpatient Clinic Manager
Winnebago Comprehensive Healthcare System
Winnebago, NE
06.2019 - 10.2022
- Initiated the case management department at Twelve Clans Unity Hospital.
- Enhanced the Utilization Review program. Started inpatient case reviews using InterQual.
- Implemented numerous utilization and case management policies.
- Responsible for scheduling, hiring, setting policies, growing services and ensuring access to care for the outpatient clinic.
- Changed the culture of the outpatient department over a two-month time-period by hiring the right people, communicating expectations and empowering staff to help move the clinic forward.
- Work closely with patients to improve their experience in the outpatient department.
- Manage expenses and revenue on a daily basis. This includes navigating the complex payment system that involves the Indian Health Service and Omaha Tribe Contracts.
- Winnebago Comprehensive Healthcare System
Chief Operating Officer
Winnebago Comprehensive Healthcare
Winnebago, NE
06.2019 - 11.2021
- Led organizational changes, enabling organization to better respond and adapt to industry and market changes. This included bringing services to the community such as specialty physicians that were not available in the past.
- Served as strategic advisor and functional expert on critical strategic and operational matters including reopening the inpatient unit that had been closed since 2015.
- Work with a diverse population in a tribally ran facility on the Winnebago Reservation. This includes ensuring management and staff are culturally competent.
- Worked closely with the Board and helped with Board development. This involved working collaboratively, reporting frequently and ensuring transparency.
- Served as Incident Command during the Pandemic. This included ensuring adequate personal protective equipment was available, policies and procedures were in place and guiding employee health to ensure staff, patients and visitors stayed safe.
- In charge of COVID vaccine acquisition and helped with distribution.
- Worked with the Quality and Risk Management Department to monitor outcome measures, program outcomes, and performance improvement.
- Negotiated contracts to secure extensions and preserve optimal leadership.
- Directed special projects and daily operations including the goal to reclaim Center’s for Medicare and Medicaid Services re-certification that was lost in 2015.
- Established new workflow and employee training processes to improve operational efficiency.
- Worked closely with the Chief Medical Officer to introduce new Medical Staff By-laws, credentialing forms, and implement a new electronic credentialing system.
- Helped implement a patient satisfaction program which included contracting with a patient satisfaction company.
Chief Executive Officer/Director of Nursing
MercyOne Oakland Hospital
Oakland, NE
06.2018 - 06.2019
- Oversaw budgetary and financial activities. Implemented strategies to grow business and profits. This included adding more specialty clinics and growing surgical services.
- Built relationships with the providers and engaged them in much of the decision making.
- Participated on the MercyOne brand development team. Made decisions on new logo’s, signage and roll out to the community.
- Worked within the budget to ensure the hospital had a marketing plan that was viable.
- Controlled business direction changes and provided support during restructurings.
- Reviewed outmigration statistics and implemented a business model to ensure community members could receive care close to home. This included increasing cardiac services at the facility in a community with high incidences of heart disease.
- MercyOne Oakland Hospital
Director of Quality and Care Management
Faith Regional Health Service
Norfolk, NE
10.2015 - 06.2018
- Responsible for oversight of care management, social services, utilization review, infection control, outcomes specialists, regulatory management, clinical documentation specialists, and data analysts.
- Implemented case management in the surgery department and a navigator in the orthopedic area to ensure appropriateness of care and proper reimbursement.
- Worked closely with the medical staff to review quality issues, implement a quality scorecard and provided education on the revenue cycle.
- Resolved conflicts promptly among physicians, nurses and other healthcare employees to keep workflows on task.
- Collaborated with the quality team to develop outcomes statistics for all clinical areas.
- Worked closely with infection control to ensure compliance and promote patient safety.
- Progressed the Root Cause Analysis program, increasing participation without fear of retaliation.
- Headed clinical oversight to devise and establish policies, procedures and best practices in alignment with regulatory requirements.
- Coordinated delivery of exceptional patient care by evaluating workflows and facilitating positive changes.
- Initiated hourly rounding, bedside report, and a robust patient and family experience program which included a patient and family experience committee.
- Initiated and optimized a new case and clinical management model throughout the entire hospital system. This included combining utilization review and case management as one entity and streamlining processes for efficiencies.
- Faith Regional Health Services
Vice President of Patient Care Services/Director of Nursing
Providence Medical Center
Wayne, NE
11.1994 - 09.2015
- Was a working director in the following clinical areas: OB, Surgery, Emergency Department, Medical floor and rode the ambulance.
- Communicated regularly with executive team members to deliver pertinent details related to progress status and direction of projects.
- Cultivated and maintained positive working relationships with employees, executives and other stakeholders.
- Served on the construction committee for three different construction projects during my employment time.
- Served as co-interim CEO for 4 months during the search period for a new CEO.
- Worked on the implementation phase of a new electronic medical records system.
- Worked closely with utilization review and the revenue cycle committee.
- Created a hospital wide Health Literacy Program at Providence Medical Center and served on the Health Literacy Nebraska Board.
- Oversaw aspects of business expansion objectives and opportunities, including new market exploration, joint ventures and added services (examples: Joint replacement program; Amplified Pain Program).
- Researched underlying issues, regulatory compliance status and processes to resolve complex business issues and recommend strategic corrective actions.
- Worked closely with the Public Health Department on the Community Health Needs Assessment during various disasters.
- Helped establish a New Palliative Care Program.
- Oversaw various Center’s for Medicare and Medicaid Services surveys and other regulatory surveys.
- Worked closely with the Medical Staff to formulate a peer review program, streamline Medical Staff Bylaws and reviewing processes, policies and procedures.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Nursing
University Nebraska Medical Center
Lincoln Nebraska05-1990
Skills
- Executive leadership
- Operations oversight and administration
- Revenue cycle and financial management oversight
- Community/local leadership
- Delegation
- Strategic planning
- Organizational restructuring
- Industry partnership development
- Policy development
- Knowledge of complex payment systems
- Medical Staff recruitment and collaboration
- Contract Management
- Strong case management and nurse navigation skills
- Team and interpersonal relationship building
- Employee engagement and staff retention
- Clinical knowledge and skills
Accomplishments
NHA/AHA PAC MVP for Healthcare Advocacy 2025
Named to Becker's Health Top 203 Women to Know in Health care-2026
Named to Beckers Health Top 101 Critical Access Hospital CEO's to Know-2026
Member of the AHA Region 6 Board
Certification
Healthcare Administration Certificate from Bryan School of Health.
Current Registered Nursing License
NRHA Rural Hospital CEO Certification
Timeline
Chief Executive Officer
Pender Community Hospital
10.2022 - Current
Case Management Manager/Interim Outpatient Clinic Manager
Winnebago Comprehensive Healthcare System
06.2019 - 10.2022
Chief Operating Officer
Winnebago Comprehensive Healthcare
06.2019 - 11.2021
Chief Executive Officer/Director of Nursing
MercyOne Oakland Hospital
06.2018 - 06.2019
Director of Quality and Care Management
Faith Regional Health Service
10.2015 - 06.2018
Vice President of Patient Care Services/Director of Nursing
Providence Medical Center
11.1994 - 09.2015
Bachelor of Science - Nursing
University Nebraska Medical Center