Debra Hurwitz, MBA, BSN, RN

Debra Hurwitz, MBA, BSN, RN, Executive Director

As the Executive Director for CTC-RI, Debra Hurwitz provides program administration, contract development and strategic planning for the Initiative, working closely with project leaders and key stakeholders to improve the Patient-Centered Medical Home Model within the existing practices and to develop plans to expand and spread the model throughout Rhode Island. She works closely with Dr. Yeracaris, Chief Clinical Strategist in supporting the practices and leads the nurse care manager best practice learning collaborative.

Ms. Hurwitz is a graduate of the UMass Dartmouth School of Nursing and University of Rhode Island MBA program. Her career includes work for the Hospital Association of RI as a Senior Management Systems Engineer and Nurse Consultant providing consultation on nurse staffing and quality improvement to member hospitals throughout New England. She later worked in hospital administration and served as the Executive Director/CEO of a non-profit disability management company spinoff which provided care management services for self-insured employers in the area. 

As the Director of State Health Policy Analysis for the UMass Center for Health Policy and Research, Ms. Hurwitz led an 11-person team that provided policy analyses, program evaluations and strategic planning for Medicaid and Department of Mental Health (DMH) in Massachusetts. While at the Center, she served as a Senior Director of several large, multi-year CMS grants including the Medicaid Infrastructure Grant and the Real Choices System Change grant. In addition, Ms. Hurwitz served as the Principal Investigator for the Mental Health Systems Transformation Grant working with DMH and a large and diverse group of stakeholders to promote recovery-oriented mental health programs and services in Massachusetts.  In addition, she led a large and complex stakeholder group in the development of a strategic plan to promote competitive employment for people with disabilities.

Ms. Hurwitz serves as a faculty member of the UMass Medical School, Department of Family and Community Medicine and the Graduate School of Nursing and as an instructor for Brown University Department of Family Medicine.