Penny Pabst, CAO, holds a Bachelor of Science in Child Development and Human Relationships and a Master of Education in Educational Psychology. She worked for eight years as a Child Life Specialist at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston before obtaining her master’s degree in 1997 and “found” her work mission in community health. Ms. Pabst has 27 years of experience working in federally qualified health centers. Ms. Pabst first worked at Fort Bend Family Health Center, Inc., where she served as a Children with Special Health Care Needs case manager before moving into administration. As Associate Director of Health Care Services (2002-2012), Ms. Pabst managed the daily operations of six physician land-based medical clinics and supervised the clinical and administrative support staff, including the front desk, nursing, patient registration, and medical records. She served as the project lead for clinic process measurement improvement (Access and Redesign Collaborative). As the Special Projects Officer from 2012-2017, Ms. Pabst served in the role of Project manager and implemented an integrated practice management/electronic health record system, and as system administrator; obtained contracts for new copier and phone systems; served as the Grant and Contract Manager and coordinated evaluation and monitoring of grant and contract funded programs, including reports and other communications with funding sources. Ms. Pabst was responsible for preparing and submitting the federal, state and private grant proposals and report, and managing the programs.
In her current position as CAO, Ms. Pabst oversees quality, risk management, compliance, credentialing, grants development, medical records, and social determinants of health (SDOH) duties. Ms. Pabst is responsible for overseeing the patient satisfaction survey process, private foundation and the state and federal contracts to ensure compliance with all contract components. Ms. Pabst is responsible for ensuring all staff receive cultural competency and LEP training through the Risk management program. Ms. Pabst oversees the HRSA site visit as the Compliance Officer, adds new sites and services to scope, and is responsible for any audits that occur at the organization.