Editor’s Note: McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, McKnight’s Senior Living and McKnight’s Home Care are profiling the McKnight’s 2024 Women of Distinction honorees daily from July 1 to Aug. 13. For additional McKnight’s Women of Distinction content, visit this page.

Kristen Palumbo joined Innovive Health full time in 2005 as a case manager. Since then, she has conducted more than 20,000 patient visits and has held numerous leadership roles, including director of quality improvement, regional director of clinical services and vice president of clinical services. Earlier in her career, she worked as a registered nurse in Boston Medical Center’s Psychiatric Emergency Department and with Baldpate Hospital, now known as Baldpate Treatment Center. She also is board-certified as a nurse executive. 

At Innovive Health, Palumbo has been crucial to the success of the organization’s employee training efforts, according to her nominator. She created the New Graduate Residency Program, which matches newly licensed nurses who have a passion for providing nursing care in the community into a year-long program that supports both clinical skill and nursing case management development. She also is the executive sponsor responsible for Innovive Health’s expanding list of academic partnerships.

Palumbo’s performance as a leader has turned many heads. She and her team have accomplished much, including guiding her clinical team to multiple deficiency-free state Department of Public Health audits, a new clinical model restructuring, a new emergency medical records system migration and significant census growth. All of her colleagues have tremendous admiration and respect for her, not only as an innovative leader and clinician, but also for her high level of integrity and moral character. 

More about Palumbo: 

  • After receiving an MS diagnosis in October 2022, Palumbo contacted the National Multiple Sclerosis Society to see what she could do to help those with new diagnoses. She has supported advocacy, education and fundraising efforts and has assisted with presentations.
  • She received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Salem State University. She most recently graduated from the Master of Health Care Delivery Science program at Dartmouth College. 
  • The Women’s Edge in Massachusetts named her as one of the 2023 Annual Extraordinary Women Advancing Healthcare. 

The McKnight’s Women of Distinction program is jointly administered by McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, McKnight’s Senior Living and McKnight’s Home Care. Healthcare Services Group was the Platinum sponsor of this year’s McKnight’s Women of Distinction Awards and Forum. PointClickCare was the Gold sponsor, and PharMerica was the Silver sponsor. Other sponsors included Curana Health, DirecTV for Business, Easyshifts, Hireology, Reliant Rehabilitation, ShiftKey and Sentrics.

Visit this web page to see lists of honorees from 2024 and previous years.