Peggy Pettit brings 25 years of experience in nursing and hospice care to her role as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for VITAS Innovative Hospice Care®, one of the nation’s oldest and largest providers of end-of-life care.

As chief operating officer, Peggy is responsible for the consistency and quality of care provided to more than 11,000 patients and their families each day by more than 8,000 VITAS employees.

Peggy joined VITAS in 1983 as a registered nurse on a patient care team in Broward County, Florida, and quickly rose through the ranks. She served at various times as a nurse on a VITAS inpatient hospice unit, a team manager, patient care administrator and general manager. As general manager she led two of the largest VITAS programs—Florida’s Broward County and Los Angeles and Ventura County in Southern California, where she was a vital part of the senior management team that successfully managed VITAS’ acquisition and integration of Anaheim-based Community Hospice Care, Inc.

Peggy subsequently served as vice president for all VITAS hospice programs in California before moving to the corporate office in Miami in 1997, when she was appointed the company’s first vice president for patient & family services. She was elevated to senior vice president for patient & family services in 1999 and to executive vice president and chief of hospice operations in the summer of 2002. She was promoted to her current position in the fall of 2004.

As head of Patient & Family Services, Peggy was responsible for the departments of education and training, outcomes measurement, bioethics & pastoral care, curriculum development, quality improvement and audit and compliance. As chief operating officer she continues to be responsible for those areas and adds market development, admissions and product line management.

Peggy has distinguished herself at VITAS as an advocate for patients and families and as a mentor to nurses and other clinicians who provide direct patient care on the hospice interdisciplinary teams. VITAS’ strong corporate commitment to education and training reflects her belief in providing clinicians with the tools and skills necessary to meet the needs and expectations of VITAS patients and their families.

Peggy also helped shape VITAS’ initial response to the AIDS pandemic affecting adults and children in Sub-Saharan Africa. She encouraged VITAS staff from throughout the company to join fact-finding missions to the region and she has helped lead the VITAS response to the crisis—marshalling financial assistance, material support and educational resources for hospices struggling to provide care to the epidemic’s victims and survivors of AIDS in Africa.

Peggy is a long-time member of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization; Florida Hospice and Palliative Care, Inc.; and the American Nurses Association. She received an ASN degree from Broward Community College, graduating with honors. She is a member of the Professional Women of Broward and the Coconut Creek Women’s Club.

Rev. October 2007