Editor’s Note: McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, McKnight’s Senior Living and McKnight’s Home Care are profiling the McKnight’s 2023 Women of Distinction honorees daily from July 5 to Aug. 15. For additional McKnight’s Women of Distinction content, visit this page.

Payne is responsible for VHCA-VCAL’s quality improvement initiatives and provides extensive support to members in dealing with regulatory, compliance and clinical issues. Prior to joining VHCA-VCAL, she was the vice president of operations and assisted living services/administrator for Beth Sholom retirement community in Richmond, VA. 

Payne represents the long-term care sector before various state agencies, boards and committees, including the Virginia Board of Nursing, the Virginia Board of Long-Term Care Administrators and regulatory task forces led by the Virginia Department of Health. She also is an active participant in various American Health Care Association/National Center or Assisted Living committees and initiatives. 

It has been Payne’s mission to create a collaborative relationship between regulators, policymakers and long-term care providers. She is a bridge between providers, regulators and policymakers in Virginia who may not have a common understanding of issues, and she has built trust among the state survey agencies that regulate and oversee skilled nursing facilities and assisted living communities. 

Payne was a key contributor to the efforts to design Virginia’s Medicaid Nursing Facility Value-Based Purchasing Program.

She helped VHCA/VCAL earn civil money penalty reinvestment funds in 2019 to achieve an overall reduction in preventable rehospitalizations for individuals who reside in nursing facilities throughout Virginia. She also played a key role in the development and ongoing value of VHCA’s Survey Management Analysis Resource Tool.

With her extensive knowledge of federal and state regulations, she has helped state legislators understand the effects of their proposed legislation on issues such as staffing minimums, discharge requirements, scope of practice, licensing, resident screenings and more. 

Payne understands that achieving regulatory compliance and doing what is right for residents requires taking care of the staff members who care for the residents.

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. PointClickCare is the Diamond sponsor of this year’s program. PharMerica is the Silver sponsor. Additional sponsors include American HealthTech, Healthcare Services Group, Omnicare, Sentrics and ShiftKey.

Visit this web page to see lists of honorees from 2023 and previous years.