A leading health care executive who led the largest multispecialty, physician-owned practice in Colorado is the new president and CEO of Colorado Health Medical Group (CHMG).

Debbie Chandler will begin her position in February and work with physicians, advanced practice providers and staff on enhancing access and expanding CHMG’s high-quality services to patients, according to UCHealth President and CEO Liz Concordia.

Chandler most recently was executive vice president and CEO of Colorado Springs Health Partners, P.C.

“As a business leader, Debbie has served well as CEO of the largest physician-owned practice in Colorado,” said Dirk Draper, president and CEO of the Colorado Springs Regional Business Alliance (RBA), of which Chandler was 2015 board president. “She has steered CSHP through technology advancements and expansion, and this year navigated their acquisition by Davita.”

Chandler has more than 20 years of experience in multispecialty group management and administration, and has a strong expertise in topics related to health care reform and innovative care transformation.

She’ll bring a wealth of knowledge to CHMG, Concordia added.

Chandler began her career as a certified nuclear medicine technologist. She is a certified medical practice executive with the Medical Group Management Association; she earned her Bachelor of Science from the University of South Florida and her Master of Business Administration from Rollins College’s Crummer Graduate School of Business.

She is an active member of the Colorado Springs community. As well as being 2015 board president of the Colorado Springs RBA, she is a board member of Community Health Partners, Pikes Peak Workforce Center and Southern Colorado American Health Association.

“Debbie is well recognized in Colorado Springs as an effective leader of her business and our community,” said Draper, who’s known Chandler for seven years. “Our community’s collective respect for Debbie’s leadership is evident in the high profile boards on which she serves… Our appreciation for Debbie’s impact on the community is reflected in the recognitions and accolades she has received in recent years from community organizations, including the Girls Scouts’ as a ‘Woman of Distinction’ and the Colorado Springs Business Journal’s ‘Woman of Influence’. Those are remarkable achievements in the less than eight years that she’s been a citizen of Colorado Springs. You’ve got a gem in Debbie Chandler.”

The national search for a CEO began in early 2015 after former CEO Dan Robinson accepted the president and CEO position for the new UCHealth Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont, which is expected to open in 2017. Robin T. Levy, CHMG interim CEO appointed in November 2015, will continue working with CHMG and ensure a smooth transition for Chandler.