Deborah Burton PhD, RN, FAAN recently retired after 13 years as the first Chief Nursing Officer and Senior Vice President for Providence St. Joseph Health, a 7-state, comprehensive health system in the western United States.  She was responsible for nursing and interdisciplinary strategy and standards including clinical quality, productivity, patient-centered care, strategic workforce and leadership development, nursing research, and nursing education. She launched and grew both the Providence Nursing Institute and the School of Health Professions at University of Providence, owned and operated by Providence, in Great Falls, Montana.

Prior to the corporate CNO role, Dr. Burton served as Regional Nursing Director for the Providence Oregon region.  Before joining Providence, she launched and served as Executive Director for the Oregon Center for Nursing, the state’s strategic nursing workforce center. She served for 11 years as Director of Education for the Northwest Region of the Department of Veterans Affairs.  Deborah’s clinical practice has included critical care, transplant, I.V. therapy and public health.

Dr. Burton has held a wide range of clinical, administrative, research and teaching positions in acute care, public health, and long-term care.  She has served on and chaired the Oregon State Board of Nursing and served on the National Council of State Boards of Nursing Board of Directors. She served for 12 years as an officer in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps.  An international consultant on nursing workforce and regulation, Dr. Burton has worked with the countries of Oman, Ethiopia and Guatemala to advance professional nurse standards, education and workforce.

Dr. Burton holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Portland, and masters and doctoral degrees in nursing and health policy from Oregon Health & Science University. She was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing in 2017. Deborah Burton’s sustained contributions include visionary and high standards for nursing practice, nursing workforce development, nursing regulation, interdisciplinary clinical practice, executive clinical leadership development, innovative academic partnership and advancement of men and minorities in nursing. She has received numerous grants and awards and recognitions for her unwavering dedication to leadership in advancing the societal and public health contributions of the profession of nursing.