Nurse Manager, Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehab Center  |  

Susan has more than 21 years of clinical and leadership experience in post-acute care. She has strong knowledge of SNF long-term care regulations and standards of practice and a commitment to continuous quality assurance improvement. Having worked as a DON and administrator, she understands that while providing medical and rehabilitative care is of utmost importance, ours is also a business arena.

Currently working “in the trenches” as a nurse manager, Susan understands the plight of the hands-on caregivers working in long-term care. Her unique experience gives her a well-rounded perspective. She understands that the simple act of picking up trash from the resident’s floor is just as important as budgeting enough for an effective caregiver staff.

Susan received her bachelor’s in Nursing and bachelor’s in Psychology from San Jose State University. She is a licensed RN, public health nurse, and nursing home administrator.

Vice President of Business Development, American Association of Post- Acute Care Nursing
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Betsy oversees the promotion and development of business partnerships, affinity partnerships, and professional development partnerships for AANAC. In her many years working in long-term care, she has previously held positions as staff development coordinator, MDS coordinator, assistant director of nursing, and director of nursing. She also has a bachelor’s of nursing science from Platt College in Aurora, CO. 

President  & CEO, American Association of Post- Acute Care Nursing
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In 2014, Diane was inducted as a Fellow into the American Academy of Nursing. In 2007, Long-Term Living Magazine named her one of long-term care’s 10 most influential people of the past 40 years for harnessing the power of the Internet and web-based learning in 1999 and for being the creative force behind the American Association of Nurse Assessment Coordination (AANAC). More recently, she has overseen development of the American Association of Post-Acute Care Nursing (AAPACN) and its constituent associations, AANAC and the American Association of Directors of Nursing Services (AADNS).

Prior to forming AAPACN, Diane was the associate director of the Colorado Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, now LeadingAge, and the RAI/MDS coordinator for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE). She was an advisor for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), formerly HCFA, and an advisor on developing the Quality Indicators and Quality Measures. 

Diane earned a BS and MS in nursing administration and is a clinical specialist in psychiatric nursing. Her career began as a nursing home nursing assistant; her RN career began in surgical intensive care and as director of nursing in a Denver nursing home. 

Partner, Benesch Attorneys at Law  |  Columbus, OH 
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Janet focuses her law practice in the area of healthcare law, including long-term care survey and certification, state and federal regulation, physician and nurse practice, and fraud and abuse involving hospitals, suppliers, insurers, and physicians.

She retains active licenses as a registered nurse and nursing home administrator. Janet is a member of the editorial board of Caring for the Ages, a monthly newspaper for long-term care practitioners, and is a frequent writer and speaker on health law and related topics, particularly in the area of long-term care. She is a coauthor of Post-Acute Care Handbook: Regulatory, Risk and Compliance Issues, 2015, published by the American Health Lawyers Association.

Janet was awarded her Juris Doctorate from Saint Louis University School of Law and her BSN from the University of Missouri. She is a member of the American Bar Association, Columbia Bar Association, and Ohio State Bar Association. She is the past president of the American Association of Nurse Attorneys. 

Clinical Risk Manager and Quality Assurance Consultant, Preferred Care Partners Management Group  | Lorena, TX
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Gail is a nurse executive with more than 25 years of experience. In her current role as a consultant for Preferred Care Partners Management Group, she provides oversight and training of clinical and reimbursement systems to over 112 long-term care facilities across 12 states. Her responsibilities include quality assurance, policy development, and research to assist teams with strategic planning, streamlining workflow, and performance improvement initiatives.

Her nursing career started as a nursing assistant in her teens and later led to coordinating care in the community, hospital, and long-term care settings as a nurse. Gail has worked with families and staff as a director of nursing services, case manager in the Community and Long-Term Care, utilization review/reimbursement nurse, staff Development nurse, and quality assurance nurse. She has a passion for developing safe transitions of care and fosters the “voice” of the nurse in the development of sound care management practices, meeting both clinical expectations and operational standards for viability.

Gail received her Associates Degree in Nursing from McLennan Community College and her BSN from Chamberlain College of Nursing.  She is a Legal Nurse consultant and certified Parish Nurse.

Clinical Assessment Director, Miller's Health Systems  |

Jo-Anna has been actively involved in long-term care nursing for more than 28 years. She has held just about every imaginable facility nursing position. In her current role as clinical assessment director at Miller’s Health Systems, she does policy reviews for 33 SNFs, with accountability related to documentation in clinical records, care plans, and MDSs. Jo-Anna reviews requests for medical information related to claims and has participated in appeals related to Medicare A claims, managed care organizations, and national audit requests.

Clinical Reimbursement Director, Community Eldercare Services  |

Linda has over 22 years of nursing and healthcare management experience in a variety of leadership roles, including ADON, DON, and MDS coordinator or director of clinical reimbursement. She “grew up” in a nursing home, as her mother worked as a nurse in the same home for over 35 years. Linda’s experience in nursing began with work in both sub-acute and post-acute facilities. She has over 18 years’ experience with RAI and PPS processes. As clinical reimbursement director for Community Eldercare Services, she oversees 19 facilities in Mississippi and Tennessee for compliance with Medicare and Medicaid case-mix requirements, PPS guidelines, supportive documentation, timely completion of assessments, billing requirements, and reimbursement.

Linda received her bachelor’s in Management and Human Relations from Trevecca Nazarene University, her legal nurse certificate from Kaplan College, and her associate’s in Nursing from Columbia State Community College.

Vice President of  Curriculum Development, American Association of Post- Acute Care Nursing
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As the vice president of curriculum development for AANAC, Judi Kulus oversees the development and integrity of the content and curriculum for the Resident Assessment Coordinator Certification (RAC-CT), Medicare University and other educational programs. She serves as the executive editor of the LTC Leader newsletter and represents AANAC nationally.

In her role, she supports long term-care nurse leaders in the resident assessment instrument (RAI) and minimum data set (MDS) process, regulatory compliance, Medicare integrity, and quality resident care. Judi has been a certified AANAC RAC-CT Master Teacher since 2004 and has taught prolifically on MDS and Medicare related topics.

Judi’s career began as a nursing home administrator in 1987. She holds a master’s degree in nursing with a specialty in informatics and a master’s degree in education and has been a registered nurse since 2000. Throughout her 28-year career in long term care leadership, Judi has focused her work on supporting facilities in managing the RAI process, MDS coding, and nursing system quality improvement. She has served as corporate operations manager, case mix and quality assurance consultant, including working as a crisis control administrator for a variety of organizations including facilities in multiple states.

Senior Clinical Quality Assurance Specialist, Answers Software  |  Warren, PA
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Rob has over 13 years’ experience in healthcare. He started out as a CNA in a skilled nursing facility and then attended nursing school. After obtaining his nursing degree, he worked in medical/surgical, telemetry, critical care, and emergency services. Rob returned to long-term care as a rehab/skilled nursing unit manager. His experience in long-term care includes serving as MDS coordinator and director of nursing services. In his role as senior clinical quality assurance specialist at Answers Software, Rob works closely with developers in the areas of computerized order entry, medication administration, care plans, point-of-care, and all facets of EMR.