Lacey Carter Promoted to Chief Operations Officer at Ozarks Healthcare

Ozarks Healthcare is pleased to announce the promotion of Lacey Carter to the position of Chief Operations Officer (COO). In addition to her new role, Carter will continue to serve as the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) of the health system, overseeing the management and operations of all nursing services across Ozarks Healthcare.

“It is with great honor and enthusiasm I announce Lacey Carter’s promotion to Chief Operations Officer,” Tom Keller, Ozarks Healthcare President and CEO, said. “Lacey’s knowledge, skills, thoughtfulness, commitment, and passion for serving others make her an exceptional nurse and servant leader.”

Carter has been a vital part of Ozarks Healthcare since 2018, starting as Executive Director of Nursing and later taking on the role of CNO. She has previously served as Director of Women’s Services and Director of Education. During her tenure, Carter has led multiple nursing units and was instrumental in opening the health system’s state-of-the-art Women’s Center in November 2020. Additionally, she played a crucial role in Ozarks Healthcare’s Incident Command System during the COVID-19 pandemic and helped establish the health system’s first and second COVID-19 units.

Carter earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) from Missouri State University and a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) in Leadership and Healthcare Systems from the University of Colorado. Before joining Ozarks Healthcare, she served as a clinical nurse manager at The Birth Center at St. Anthony’s North Health Campus at Centura Health in Westminster, Colorado.

Carter also graduated from Missouri State University (MSU-WP) with an Associate of Arts in General Studies degree in and an Associate of Science in Nursing degree in 2010. Earlier this year, she received the Distinguished Young Alumni Award from MSU-WP. The award is presented annually to a former student 40 years of age or younger who has shown great promise in his/her personal life and professional field and was actively involved while at student at MSU-WP.

Originally from Willow Springs, Carter, her husband, and four children reside in the area and enjoy spending time together as a family outdoors.

“Lacey started at Ozarks Healthcare about six years ago, overseeing the Women’s Center before being named the Director of Nursing,” Keller added. “More recently, Lacey has been Chief Nursing Officer and has taken on even more than a typical Chief Nursing Officer. Most importantly, regardless of title or where she happens to be, Lacey has also been someone all of us count on, including me.”

Ozarks Healthcare is a not-for-profit health system that serves more than 160,000 residents across south-central Missouri and northern Arkansas. With its main campus residing in West Plains, Missouri, the health system offers a full spectrum of healthcare for all ages through its 114-bed hospital, behavioral health, therapies, pharmacies, rehabilitation, and home care services, along with specialty and family medicine clinics. Ozarks Healthcare has rural locations across an eight-county service area and is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations.

Lacey Carter, Chief Operations Officer (COO) and Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) at Ozarks Healthcare