L+M Healthcare names Shannon Christian as Senior Vice President Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer

New London, CT/Westerly, RI (April 25, 2024) - L+M Healthcare has tapped Shannon Christian, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, to serve as senior vice president, Patient Care Services and chief nursing officer for Lawrence + Memorial Hospital and Westerly Hospital. She was previously vice president of Nursing and Patient Care Services.

In this role, Christian will lead more than 1,000 nurses across both hospitals. She has more than 28 years of experience in nursing and has spent her entire career at Lawrence + Memorial and Westerly hospitals.

“We are fortunate to have a chief nursing officer as passionate and committed as Shannon,” said Richard C. Lisitano, MS, RPh, president, L+M Healthcare. “Her commitment to delivering compassionate, patient-centered care and driving positive outcomes for both our staff and those we serve will enhance the overall patient experience.”

Christian, who was born at L+M, has been in various roles at L+M and Westerly since 1996 with ever-expanding responsibilities including nurse manager of the orthopedic and Medical-Surgical Unit, director of Patient Care Services; administrative director of Heart and Vascular and Critical Care; and administrative director of Patient Care Services at L+M. At Westerly Hospital, she held the position of director of Patient Care Services for two years as well as filling the position on an interim basis in 2019.

As a student at New London High School, Christian volunteered as a candy striper at L+M, leading to her interest in a healthcare career. During college she worked in the hospital’s medical records department. After earning her associate of nursing degree from St. Vincent’s College of Nursing, Bridgeport, CT, she went on to earn her BS in Nursing from Central Connecticut State University, New Britain, CT, followed by a Master of Science in Nursing from Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT.

Lawrence + Memorial Hospital, a member of Yale New Haven Health, is a non-profit, 308-bed general and acute care hospital providing patient care to medical, surgical, pediatric, psychiatric and obstetrical patients in southeastern Connecticut and southern Rhode Island since 1912. Lawrence + Memorial offers cardiac acute, step-down and rehabilitation programs and is the only eastern Connecticut hospital that performs emergency and elective angioplasty. www.lmhospital.org

Westerly Hospital, a member of Yale New Haven Health, is a 125-bed hospital that has been providing residents of southern Rhode Island and southeastern Connecticut with a full range of inpatient and outpatient services in a community hospital setting for more than 90 years. Westerly Hospital patients receive the finest quality treatment in the following areas of care: emergency, medical, surgical, radiology, laboratory and rehabilitative services. The hospital also offers heart and vascular care, interventional pain management, wound care, pulmonary rehabilitation services, inpatient geriatric psychiatric care and comprehensive cancer care provided through the Smilow Cancer Hospital Care Center. All inpatient rooms are private. westerlyhospital.org