Colleen Scanlon is the former (retired July 2020) Executive Vice President, Chief Advocacy Officer at CommonSpirit Health in Englewood, Colorado where she led a comprehensive, multi-faceted advocacy program within the largest Catholic health care system in the US. Colleen has been the senior advocacy leader at Catholic Health Initiatives for over 20 years before the formation of this new ministry. Previously, she was director of the American Nurses Association Center for Ethics and Human Rights in Washington, DC, and a clinical scholar in the Center for Clinical Bioethics at Georgetown University Medical Center. As a clinical nursing professional she held positions in public health, oncology and palliative care. Colleen has published multiple articles and book chapters and lectured frequently.

Special interests include palliative care ethics, advocacy on behalf of vulnerable persons/communities, global health and the prevention of violence prevention/human trafficking. Colleen serves on several boards and is involved in a variety of professional associations. She served as chair of the Board of trustees of The Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA) from 2009-2010 and on the Catholic Medical Mission Board (2013-2016). She is presently on Bon Secours Mercy Health Ministries and the Board of Advisors of Georgetown University School of Nursing and Health Studies. Colleen received her BSN from Georgetown University (Washington, District of Columbia), Masters in Science in Gerontology from the College of New Rochelle (New Rochelle, New York), and a Juris Doctorate with a health law and policy certificate from Pace University School of Law (White Plains, New York). Colleen has received numerous awards including the CHA’s Sister Mary Concilia Moran Award from the Catholic Health Association for visionary leadership in 2018. She has also received several awards from Georgetown University: the John Carroll Medal (the highest alumnae award), an honorary doctorate in humane letters, the Nursing & Health Studies School’s Values-Based Health Care Award and Distinguished Alumnae Award.

Ms. Scanlon rejoined the CMMB Board of Directors in 2021 and serves on the Governance & Nominations and Audit, Risk, and Compliance Committees.