Adventist Health Increases Infection Control Emphasis

The Delivery of Care Team at Adventist Health has increased its infection control emphasis with the promotion of Marsha Barnden, R.N., to director of Clinical Standards and Infection Control. While she retains many of her previous responsibilities, as of July 15 Barnden now formally oversees clinical components of the Quality Compass Infection Prevention and Control program. Her new emphasis will be organization-wide infection control as well as ongoing compliance/survey readiness and the Culture of Safety initiative. Barnden continues to be a member of the Clinical Best Practices subcommittee and Clinical Transformation team, which include her responsibilities related to standards/policy development.

Barnden, who has nearly 30 years of nursing and management experience began her Adventist Health career in 1993 as the director of Women’s Services for San Joaquin Community Hospital (SJCH) where she successfully managed the Family Birth Center and two perinatal health clinics. She then transitioned into Quality Management at SJCH, which grew into a larger role in the Central California Region as director of Standards and Compliance, a position she held for several years before transferring to the corporate office in 2001.

Barnden received both her BSN and MSN from California State University, Bakersfield. She is certified in obstetrics as well as advanced fetal monitoring and still works in direct patient care as a per diem nurse on SJCH’s OB/GYN unit. She also is a Certified Legal Nurse Consultant and just completed nearly four years of service as a hospital surveyor for The Joint Commission. Barnden is a member of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Sigma Theta Tau, American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants, and Association of Women’s Health/Obstetrics/Neonatal Nursing.