dakotAMSS Board Members
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President
PENNY WATKINS
I have worked for Trinity Health for 11 years. The first 4 years I worked in Facilities Management as a Safety Compliance Coordinator. My career path pivoted in 2014 when our CEO asked me if I was interested in working in the Medical Staff Services office. Prior to working at Trinity Health, I worked for the Henry County Board of Commissioners in McDonough, GA in the Planning & Zoning Department. When I started in the MSS office, I realized I needed to join NAMSS to network with other MSPs as this was a “new field” to me. I learned quick how important our role is as we are the “Gatekeepers of Patient Safety” and that I needed mentoring and educational opportunities to learn best-practices in credentialing/privileging, while maximizing service, quality and productivity. Looking back, the first year was a blur!! I have a strong commitment to the medical staff professional and was thrilled when SD invited ND to join to form one territory, dakotAMSS in 2019. It is important to network, stay abreast of healthcare regulatory standards and to grow, learn and advance professionally as MSPs.
P (701)857-2119
President-Elect
KRISTA CRONIN
Fresh out of college, I never would have imagined that working with medical professionals would have been my career path. It started with working at Huron Regional Medical Center as a pharmacy technician and then transferring into the business office where I started learning about the importance of watching for details when it came to payer enrollment. In total, I worked there for 14 years before looking for a more challenging career. I didn’t even fully understand what locums were when I signed on with Wapiti Medical Staffing as a credentialing specialist in 2015. Attention to detail and collaborating with others are strengths of mine that have been greatly enhanced with my position. I have greatly enjoyed working with dozens of facilities all across North Dakota and South Dakota and look forward to connecting people all across our states with the help of dakotAMSS.
P (605) 438-6992
E KristaCronin@wapitimedical.com
Treasurer
TERRI LEONARD
I started my career as a Credentialing Coordinator in 2016 then moved to Medical Staff Specialist in 2019. I currently work for Sioux Falls Specialty Hospital as Medical Staff Specialist. I have learned a lot about credentialing and come to enjoy working with providers. To me credentialing is like putting a puzzle together and providing the full story of a provider and knowing that I am part of the process in providing quality providers for our patients. I am excited to serve as a board member for DakotAMSS which will provide me the opportunity to continue to learn and build relationships.Ps!
P (605) 444-8674
Secretary
SHANNON STECKELBERG
I currently work for Trinity Health, Lavonia, MI. I currently work from home in Sioux Falls, SD. I have worked in the medical staff field for 11 years. My career path in the medical field started as a massage therapist, but pregnancy induced carpal tunnel led me to an administration role and getting my degree in Healthcare Management. I am the one who actually enjoys reading and writing Bylaws, Rules and Regulations, Accreditation Standards and Policies and Procedures! I feel that through collaboration, knowledge, and leaning on others’ experience we can help our facilities, help our patients. I joined dakotAMSS so that I can work alongside others with experience and help to educate and grow our MSP profession.
P (605) 370-1121
Past President
JODI SCHAAN
I’ve been working for Heart of America Medical Center (HAMC) for the past 24 years, with the past 6 years in Medical Staff Services. I fell into medical staff services when a friend encouraged me to apply for the Credentialing Specialist position but quickly fell in love with all the nuances and the opportunities. These opportunities made it possible to develop the position further according to my strengths and the position evolved into Medical Staff Coordinator. In the spring of 2019, I took and passed my CPCS exam and quickly decided to go for the CPMSM and passed that exam in the summer of 2019. I joined NAMSS in 2015 and have attended several NAMSS conferences. I decided to get involved with dakotAMSS because continuing education is a passion of mine and I want to be a part of creating CE’s and a network of resources that will benefit all our members.
P (701) 776-5455 Ext 2814