From ER Nurse to Chief Nursing Officer: Hard Work Pays Off

Anastasia Pemberton, has been promoted to chief nursing officer for Grand River Health in Rifle, Colorado. The Chicago native moved to Colorado in 1989 to attend the University of Colorado at Boulder. After her graduation in 1993, she worked as a ski patroller during the winter and traveled the world in the summer working as a dive master, raft guide and mountaineering guide.

The attacks on September 11 caused Pemberton to rethink her direction in life. She decided she wanted to have a greater impact on the lives of others so she started her new career in emergency nursing working the nightshift in the ER at Grand River Health. Pemberton worked her way up, quickly taking positions as a trauma nurse coordinator, supervisor and emergency department director. She has now been with the hospital system for nine years.

She considers her newest appointment as chief nursing officer a privilege and gave recognition to Grand River health in aiding her success. “Grand River is committed to quality, customer service, and service to our community. I am thrilled to be part of such a great team,” said Pemberton. She added that her ability to perform her new duties is due to Grand River Health’s exceptional clinical staff and the hospital’s dedication to community health care.

She went on to say that Grand River Health continues to grow and offer new services to meet the community’s needs, including a new outpatient infusion clinic and transitional intensive care unit. She says it hopes to add a labor and delivery unit as well in the years to come.

Grand River Health network includes the Grand River Hospital and Medical Center, the Grand River Student Health Centers and the Clinic West in Battlement Mesa. The network and its employees continue to strive to provide the best possible local health care with premier customer service.