UM Shore Regional Welcomes Perioperative Services and Emergency Services Directors

University of Maryland Shore Regional Health (UM SRH) has welcomed Mary Grace Hensell, MHS, BSN, RN, CNOR, as Director of Perioperative Services, and Tisha Thompson, DNP, RN, NE-BC, as Regional Director of Emergency Services. In their new roles, Hensell and Thompson are responsible for perioperative services and emergency departments and services, respectively, in Cambridge, Chestertown, Easton and Queenstown.

Hensell brings over 30 years of surgical nursing and nurse management experience from hospitals in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Most recently, she served as Patient Care Manager at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center in Baltimore, and previously as Senior Director of Perioperative Services at Inova Mount Vernon Hospital in Alexandria, Va.

Hensell earned her Master of Science degree in Nursing with a specialty in Healthcare Administration from Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing in Baltimore and her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Carlow University in Pittsburgh, Pa. She is a member of the Association of Perioperative Nurses (AORN) and served as president of the national organization for the 2008-2009 term. She has also served as both a member and trustee for the Baltimore and Pittsburgh chapters of AORN.

Thompson brings over 15 years of nursing leadership and teaching experience from hospitals and schools in New York. Most recently, she served as the Director of Nursing for the Emergency Department/Short Stay Observation/ALERT Team, at NYU Langone Health-Long Island in Mineola, N.Y.

Thompson earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice – Healthcare Systems Leadership from Chamberlain University in St. Louis, Mo.; a Master of Science in Nursing Education from the State University of New York (SUNY) Polytechnic in Utica, N.Y.; and her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Chamberlain College of Nursing in St. Louis, Mo.

She is a member of the Black Nurses Association, Maryland Eastern Shore Chapter, and the Emergency Nurses Association (ENA). She served as chapter president of the ENA in 2019 and conference delegate for numerous years.

"We are so pleased to have Mary Grace and Tisha join our leadership team," said Jenny Bowie, Chief Nursing Officer. "Their skills and vast experience, along with their dedication to patient safety, will be an asset to Shore Regional Health."