Grantee News

Best Wishes to Sue Carparelli
Sue Caparelli, President and CEO, Colorado Center for Nursing ExcellenceSince the early beginnings of the Colorado Center for Nursing Excellence (CCNE) in 2002, Sue Carparelli – founding president and CEO – has worked hard to turn the tide of Colorado’s nursing shortage. By focusing on this challenge, the organization has emerged as a statewide leader to address the critical, escalating shortage, as well as issues related to quality of care.

 

“In Colorado, we have about 12 percent fewer nurses than our population needs,” said Sue, who will resign from her post in June. “So in our startup phase, we looked at the entire state from the perspective of the nursing workforce to better understand the nursing needs and build evidence around that.”

CCNE brought together educational institutions, hospitals, government agencies, foundations and the business community to identify the sources of the shortfall, develop strategies to address it and secure funding to implement those plans.

“Sue has been visionary in her approach to strengthen statewide efforts to improve the quality of nursing care,” Laurel Petralia, Program Officer, The Colorado Trust. “For example, through The Trust’s Colorado 5 Million Lives Campaign, the CCNE is operating the WELLS Center to meet the growing demand for technology simulation learning, which in turn helps to improve the quality of care.

“Sue has accomplished so much and we will really miss her. At the same time, it’s great to know that Sue will leave CCNE well-positioned to continue to address all aspects of nursing excellence in Colorado.”

While Sue will leave her current role this summer after ensuring a smooth transition to new leadership, she is looking forward to a sabbatical at her family’s farm in North Dakota before returning to Denver to explore her next career challenge.