Leadership

Senior Vice President & Chief Nurse Executive

Monica Puga holds her master’s degree in nursing from Barry University with specialization as a Family Nurse Practitioner.  She joined Memorial Healthcare System in 2001 and has held eight different leadership roles in acute care, information technology, digital innovation, care transformation, population health and value-based care.  Monica has a great passion for improving the health of the community through population health initiatives such as addressing social determinants of health and developing programs to reduce health disparities.  In her current role as the CNE, Monica is heavily focused on creating an environment that focuses on the health and wellness of our caregivers, driving care transformation through data, innovation, and reinforcing shared governance councils whereas every caregiver has a voice.  Puga is also proud to serve on the Florida Center for Nursing Board of Directors.  

Chief Nursing Officer for Ambulatory Services and System Operations

Kimberly currently serves as the Chief Nursing Officer for Ambulatory Services and System Operations.  With 20 years of nursing leadership experience, Kimberly has led a variety of service lines in acute care services including oncology, critical care, cardiovascular and neuroscience services.  Kimberly has performed in various leadership capacities leading clinical operations at Memorial Regional Hospital, Memorial Hospital Pembroke, Memorial Hospital Miramar, Memorial Hospital West and most recently as the Administrative Director of Clinical Operations at Memorial Cancer Institute.  As part of her Systems Operations role, Kimberly is responsible for Labor & Staffing, the System-Wide Float Pool, the Care Coordination Center, Advanced Care Planning & Palliative Care as well as other strategic system functions.

Kimberly is a Registered Nurse since 1998 where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from the State University of New York at Brockport.  In 2016, Kimberly completed her Master’s Degree in Nursing from Florida Atlantic University with a specialized track in Administrative and Financial Leadership. Kimberly is an active member in several professional and community organizations that are committed to providing support and care to our patients and community we serve. 

Chief Nursing Officer

Memorial Regional Hospital South

Shelly began her Memorial Nursing journey in 1992 at Memorial Hospital West. With over 25 years of nursing leadership experience at MHS, Shelly currently serves at the Chief Nursing Officer at Memorial Regional Hospital South and the Memorial Rehabilitation Institute. Prior to her current role, Shelly was the CNO at Memorial Hospital Pembroke and served in nursing leadership roles at Memorial Hospital West.

Shelly received her Doctorate in Nursing Practice- Healthcare Systems Leadership at Chamberlain University in 2022. She also holds an MSN-Nursing; Advanced Practice from Florida International University. Shelly holds a yellow belt in LEAN processes and is Just Culture certified. Shelly has received recognition as an outstanding Nurse Leader by the South Florida Organization of Nurse Leaders. Shelly is a member of Florida Association of Nurses, Florida Organization of Nurse Leaders, and the American Organization of Nursing Leadership. Shelly is passionate about growth and development of nurse leaders across the Memorial enterprise.

Chief Nursing Officer

Memorial Hospital Miramar

Alberto has over 20 years of nursing leadership experience working for complex healthcare systems. His background includes Critical Care, Emergency, and Transplantation Medicine. He recently joined Memorial Healthcare System in late 2019 as the CNO of Memorial Hospital Miramar. He received his BSN from Florida International University and a Master’s degree from the University of California in San Francisco. His extensive experience in both academic and community medical centers provide the foundation to enhance patient care and evidence based practice. Alberto is a member of the American Organization of Nurse Executives and is passionate about new nurses and the nurse residency program.

Chief Nursing Officer

Memorial Regional Hospital

Leslie has over 20 years of nursing leadership experience working for complex healthcare systems. Her background includes Critical Care, Oncology and Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation. Leslie’s passion for nursing and education led her to serve as an adjunct professor at the Broward College School of Nursing and she held clinical and leadership roles in inpatient and outpatient oncology and acute care clinical settings prior to joining the Memorial Healthcare System.

She has worked at Memorial Healthcare System since 2007, leading patient safety and quality of care initiatives in various roles. In September of 2018, she was appointed as the Chief Nursing Officer of Memorial Regional Hospital and has led the growth of the heart, kidney, and pancreas transplant programs, Level IV Maternity Care accreditation under the Joint Commission, and other programmatic achievements. Leslie has conducted national presentations in an effort to share best practices and advance nursing practice, receiving recognition from the Memorial Healthcare System and other organizations for project leadership and innovation.  She received her BSN from FAU, MSN and MBA from UOP and holds an active certification in Oncology. She is an active member of the South Florida Organization for Nurse Executives and the Oncology Nursing Society.

Chief Nursing Officer

Memorial Hospital West

Denise began her nursing career in the United States Navy Nurse Corps, stationed at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. During her first tour of duty, she was deployed to the Middle East in support of “Operation Desert Shield/Storm” as an officer aboard the USNS Comfort, where she trained in Burn ICU and Casualty Receiving (ER). After leaving military service, Denise continued to practice in varied critical care settings, including PACU, ICU/CCU and Emergency Care. Her tenure of 20 years with Memorial Healthcare System began in 1998. Denise has since served in various roles within three of Memorial facilities being promoted through several levels of clinical leadership. She has been CNO at Memorial Hospital West since 2016. Denise earned her BSN from the University of Vermont, and also has a master’s in Nursing Administration from Barry University.

Chief Nursing Officer

Joe Dimaggio Children's Hospital

Jineal’s career at Memorial spans over 20 years, beginning with a roles as Nurse Clinician at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital. She advanced into a leadership role as the Nurse Manager for the Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Unit and the Pediatric Rehabilitation Unit, and was subsequently promoted to Director of Nursing at the hospital. In 2016, she was appointed the Chief Nursing Officer of Memorial Regional Hospital South and Memorial Rehabilitation Institute. And in May 2019, Jineal was appointed to her current position of Chief Nursing Officer of Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital. Jineal has dedicated her life to nursing, a profession that provides daily inspiration to make a difference in the lives of the people she has the privilege to serve. She is known for her strong critical thinking skills and ability to create a collaborative work environment. Jineal holds a BSN from Barry University and MSN from Florida Atlantic University.

Chief Nursing Officer

Memorial Hospital Pembroke

David Starnes joined the staff at Memorial Hospital Pembroke as its Chief Nursing Officer in 2019. Previously, he had been the Director of Emergency Services at Memorial Regional Hospital (MRH), for the past six years. During his tenure at MRH, Starnes was responsible for building the only ER-based Observation Unit at any Memorial hospital and also implemented a split flow emergency care unit, internal behavioral health unit, and a system-wide Medication Assisted Therapy Telehealth program. Under his leadership, the Emergency Department at Memorial Regional Hospital recorded more than 110,000 visits during its most recent fiscal year, including a publicly reported “left without being seen” rate of under 1%.

Starnes has been contributing to the success of the Memorial Healthcare System for nearly two decades, serving in a variety of roles during that time. In addition to his leadership role with emergency services, David has also been Emergency Room Director at Memorial Hospital Miramar, Nurse Manager, Clinical Manager and a Registered Trauma Nurse. He attended the RN to BSN program at Nova Southeastern University and is currently working on his Masters in Healthcare Administration in Davie. Starnes is also an active member of the Broward Emergency Medical Services Council.