Rural Health

Christina Denton is the Manager of the Virtual Health Support team at UCHealth system.  She earned her BSN at Middle Tennessee State University and MSN from University of Phoenix.   Her career began in the United States Air Force Nurse Corps, followed by over a decade of bedside care in the ICU prior to moving to UCHealth as a nurse leader.  Her primary interest is promoting innovation among clinical teams by helping them identify technical tools and capabilities which allow them to improve the lives of their patients.

Dr. Patel is an Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus. She completed medical school, residency and chief residency at the University of South Florida followed by a fellowship in Academic Hospital Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco focusing on Quality Improvement. She is currently the Associate Chief Medical Officer for Virtual Health for UCHealth System. Her main interests are in health systems re-design to improve quality of care and efficiency in order to drive strong patient outcomes and a culture of safety as well as outstanding patient, provider and staff experience.

Scott began his career in Health Information Technology while coordinating the regional Wiring the Clinics Project in 1999. In 2002, he secured grant funding for a TeleEmergency Project for Horizon Health and was hired as the organization’s IT Technician. Since starting at Horizon, he has secured approximately $2 million in telemedicine grant funds and provided oversight for numerous grant-funded projects. He has also helped secure funding and provided project oversight for several FQHC Network Initiatives. In 2006, he was promoted to Horizon’s Chief Information Officer and remains in the role overseeing development and maintenance of Horizon’s Wide Area Network that includes data, video, telehealth and wireless technology. Scott oversees the day-to-day communication of IT and Health IT plans, policies, and technology trends among the management team and healthcare providers. 

Lacey Finkbeiner is currently employed at Horizon Health Care as a Clinical Informatics Specialist. Lacey has worked in the FQHC world for over 15 years, beginning her career at Prairie Community Health in Isabel, SD. In 2016 Prairie Community Health and Horizon Health Care merged forces in which she has continued her employment path. Currently at Horizon Lacey works closely with Horizon Health’s electronic health record and telemedicine programs. Lacey was born and raised in Isabel, SD. After high school she completed college at the University of Mary in Bismarck, ND graduating with a Bachelor’s of Science and minor in Management Information Systems in 2007 and Master’s in Business Administration in 2009. Lacey enjoys camping, travelling, volunteering in community activities, and spending time with her family. 

Heather Armstrong, CRHCP, is the Project & Product Manager at CCMC Health System, a critical access hospital with four RHCs. In her role, Heather oversees the implementation of health system updates, telehealth services, and software enhancements, ensuring that both the patient and provider experience remains efficient and well-supported. A key part of Heather’s work includes managing the Health on Campus program, which provides essential healthcare access to students and school staff across the surrounding area. She is deeply passionate about overcoming healthcare barriers in rural communities and fostering innovative solutions to ensure residents have access to high-quality care without the need to travel long distances. Beyond her professional role, Heather is deeply involved in her community as Chamber President, a Board Member for the Economic Development Corporation, and DSA Secretary. She is also a youth coach and an active participant in local initiatives. Heather and her husband have four daughters who are involved in multiple sports, with travel softball being a family staple, taking them across the state throughout the year.

Sonja W. Bachus, BBA, MJ, CHCEF, is the SVP, PCA and HCCN Relations for the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) and is responsible for expanding partnerships with the federally designated Primary Care Associations and the Health Center Controlled Networks that collaborate with NACHC in support of community health centers. Prior to this role she served as Chief Executive Officer of Community Care Network of Kansas, the state’s federally designated Primary Care Association (PCA) leading the PCA in providing advocacy, training, technical assistance and other supporting services for its 35 members, which includes nineteen Federally Qualified Health Centers and two Look-Alikes. Before Community Care, Sonja served as Chief Executive Officer of Greater Baden Medical Services (GBMS) a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) serving nearly 20,000 patients through more than 59,000 visits annually in Prince George’s, Charles and St. Mary’s Counties in Maryland. As a transformational healthcare leader who has a passion for community health, Sonja possesses more than 20 years of experience across the healthcare spectrum and has spent most of her healthcare career serving in FQHCs. Her previous, progressively responsible roles include Service Line Administrator for the satellite health centers of Swope Health Services in Kansas City, MO; roles with HCA’s MidAmerica Division IT&S, Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, CA and executive operations leadership as Chief Operating Officer of HealthNet, Inc., Indiana’s largest FQHC located in Indianapolis, IN. Her core leadership belief is that a foundation of love, coupled with strong accountability, brings out the best in people and leads to meeting and exceeding organizational goals.