About HealthCap Risk Management Services

HealthCap Risk Management Services is the leading provider of risk management services to skilled nursing and assisted living providers. Since formation in 2001, HCRMS has completed over 14,000 risk consulting engagements with long-term care providers and has managed over 6,000 LTC professional liability claims. We’re endorsed by the American Health Care Association (AHCA), the National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL), and over 30 other provider associations.

Our Risk Managers

Angie Szumlinski, NHA, RNC, Dir. of Risk Management

Ms. Szumlinski is a nationally-recognized leader in long-term care, with a wealth of experience in virtually every operational and clinical aspect of the industry. She has experience as an Owner/Provider, Administrator, Director of Nursing, Corporate Quality Assurance Coordinator and independent consultant. In the last 8 years, she has personally conducted over 1,000 on-site risk management visits at facilities across the country, touching every acuity level within the long term care spectrum. As a nationally recognized presenter for health care associations on current trends and best practices in the long term care industry, Ms. Szumlinski is the author of hundreds of best-practice bulletins, in-service modules and has hosted hundreds of risk management seminars across the country. Respected for success in assisting facilities in achieving and maintaining regulatory compliance, Ms. Szumlinski served two terms as the NCAL Associate Board Member, a member of the AHCA Clinical Practice Committee, NCAL Risk Management and Quality committees, HCAM’s Legal/Regulatory/Clinical Committee and has served as a Team Leader/Senior Examiner for the AHCA/NCAL Quality Award Program for 7 years. Ms. Szumlinski is also a Nurse Planner for HealthCap’s American Nursing Credentialing Center’s accredited education program and an instructor at Michigan State University’s Nursing Home Administration program.

Andrea DeLand, J.D.

Ms. DeLand has served the long term care community in various capacities for nearly 20 years. She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Health Studies, with a minor in Sociology from Michigan State University. Ms. DeLand obtained her law degree from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School with certificates of merit in Insurance Law; Medical Malpractice; and Equities and Remedies. Ms. DeLand is an attorney at Clark Hill, PLC; a risk manager for HealthCap; and is an instructor for the Nursing Home Administrator Program at both Madonna University and Michigan State University. She also served as the Lead Facilitator for the Certified Assisted Living Director (CALD) Program through the Health Care Association of Michigan (HCAM), and Michigan Center for Assisted Living (MCAL).

Cathy Hamblen, BSN, RN, CLNC, RAC-CT

Ms. Hamblen was educated at the University of Kentucky and presently is President of Hamblen Healthcare Consulting. She previously was EVP of Risk Management for Carespring Health Care Management for ten Nursing Home/Transitional Care facilities in Kentucky and Ohio. Cathy worked in the Acute Care setting for 23 years with a focus on Orthopedics and Management. Cathy currently serves as the Chair of the Board of Directors of The Christ College of Nursing and Health Sciences.

Cheryl S. Wilcox, RN, CLNC, RAC-CT

Ms. Wilcox is a Registered Nurse with 30 years of clinical experience in the long term care profession to include clinical and operations management. During her successful career, Ms. Wilcox focused on quality improvement, risk management and corporate compliance programs. Ms. Wilcox is a Legal Nurse Consultant who performs case reviews and occasionally acts as an expert defense witness and she consults in long term care and assisted living facilities to assist them in risk management and quality improvement programs, policy and procedure development and implementation of Electronic Health Records.

Cynthia Tipton, NHA, RN

Ms. Tipton is a Registered Nurse and a licensed nursing home administrator with over 30 years of experience in the long term care industry. She has held positions in facility management, corporate management, and risk management as an independent consultant to long term and acute healthcare providers. Ms. Tipton consults with over a hundred facilities each year.

Donna Long, NHA, OTRL,

Ms. Long is a licensed Nursing Home Administrator and a Registered and licensed Occupational Therapist. She served as the Chief of Occupational Therapy in an acute care hospital, Rehabilitation Regional Manager for 22 skilled nursing facilities, Director of Operations in 8 Florida Rehabilitation Departments, and a licensed Nursing Home Administrator and Consultant to skilled and assisted nursing facilities with a national company. She completed audits of charts for a national SNF corporation prior to being sent for pre-payment review with recommendations to maximize revenues, and conducted reviews for a Federal retrospective audit for the OIG. She conducts detailed Rehabilitation Reviews for attorneys, corporations, and communities for corporate compliance. A nationally utilized electronic incident management and assessment program utilizes her expertise in making personalized recommendations for high risk incidents. She has created and presented educational programs approved by ANCC and authored articles published in an industry newsletter.

Dorene Spies, LNHA

Ms. Spies is a dedicated professional in the long-term care industry with a diverse background and special focus on quality of care and quality of life programs for the frail elderly. Ms. Spies served as a nursing home Administrator from 1981 – 2009, directed the Risk Management program for more than 100 homes, and is a Certified Educator and mentor for the Eden Alternative.

Joy Schultz, NHA

Ms. Schultz has worked in long term care since 1983. She has been a licensed administrator since 1993 and is also a Certified Assisted Living Manager. Joy has been the administrator at both for profit and not for profit facilities, also faith based CCRC’s and community owned facilities. She has worked as a Risk Manager for HealthCap since 2009. She has been active in promoting issues important to senior care providers. Ms. Schultz served on the Iowa Health
Care Association (IHCA) Board of Directors and the Iowa Center for Assisted Living (ICAL) Board for several years. She served on the Quality Committee, serving two years as co-chair and working on the Quality First subcommittee, participating in a federal initiative for a commitment to putting quality first in all nursing homes. Ms. Schultz spent several years on the Steering Team of IPDCC (Iowa Person Directed Care Coalition), working to change the environment in healthcare facilities across the state.

Lisa O’Neill, CALD, CDP

Lisa O’Neill is the program coordinator for HCRMS. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and is a Certified Assisted Living Administrator (CALD) and Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP). Ms. O’Neill is experienced in skilled nursing facilities, and has held positions as a Social Work designee, accounts payables/receptionist and unit secretary/ medical records. She joined HealthCap in 2006.

Patti Sweet, RN, Risk

With over 20 years of nursing experience, Mrs. Sweet serves as an independent consultant specializing in critical risk assessment. Mrs. Sweet has held various positions during her career in the long term care arena and she draws upon this diverse work history in her facility appraisals. Over the past several years, Mrs. Sweet has applied a unique and evaluative insight into risk management for skilled and assisted living facilities structured to recommend effective and appropriate risk management strategies. Her expertise takes her all over the country educating healthcare professionals on various topics to reduce risk exposures. She believes in promoting quality of care and improving resident safety while limiting risk exposure through the on-site risk assessment process.

Sherry Mastropietro, RN, BSN

Ms. Mastropietro is an RN with more than 30 years of experience. She started her career in acute care and worked MS, ER, Pediatrics, and continued into administration resulting in a CNO for an acute care hospital. In 2000, she switched directions and moved into the LTC industry as a DON in a facility that specialized in TBI. She became certified as a CRRN (Certified Rehabilitation Registered Nurse) and remained a DON in LTC until 2015. She achieved a nursing citation free survey and has also been successful with IDR’s development and submission. She is well versed in the LTC industry including regulatory requirements and how to achieve them.