Beterra Client Leadership Series: Cheryl Roberts

Commitment to a sustainable safety culture: Cheryl Roberts’ Leadership at Sarasota Memorial 

Systems do not change themselves; people make the change. 

That belief has guided Cheryl Roberts from the rehab unit floor to the frontlines of healthcare transformation. With roots in bedside nursing and a mind for systems thinking, she’s built a career leading safety, quality, and cultural change from the inside out. For Cheryl, that journey into healthcare safety and quality began at the bedside, caring for patients with traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries on a high-acuity rehabilitation unit in Dayton, Ohio. But even in those early years, she found herself drawn to something more profound: process improvement, root cause analysis, and the systems behind care delivery. 

“I’ve always been driven by a desire to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives,” she says. 
 
Today, as the Executive Director of Quality and Risk Management at Sarasota Memorial Health Care System, Cheryl plays a key role in enhancing system-level safety, patient outcomes, and the culture of care itself. 
 

From Drill Team to Executive Director: Leading with Calm and Clarity 

Even before healthcare, Cheryl was drawn to leadership. In high school, she was captain of the drill team, a role that taught her how to stay poised under pressure, coordinate teams, and bring structure to motion. “It’s funny how those early experiences prepare you for leading in complex environments,” she reflects. 
 
That calm, methodical leadership style still defines her today. 

Building Safety into the System

Throughout her career, Cheryl has focused on creating sustainable safety cultures that are built on people, process, and learning. 
 
At Sarasota Memorial, Cheryl’s work encompasses everything from facilitation of root cause analyses, completion of failure mode event analyses and spearheading improvements across multiple service lines.  

The health system has implemented numerous initiatives to enhance system safety and quality, but Cheryl points out one that has had a transformative impact: Sarasota Memorial’s investment in employee development. 

A cornerstone of this initiative is Sarasota Memorial’s robust support for professional growth through tuition reimbursement and certification programs. These resources empower employees to deepen their expertise, stay current with best practices, and bring innovative solutions to their roles.  

“This commitment not only strengthens individual performance but also elevates the overall quality of care we provide,” she says. “By investing in our people, we’ve built a resilient system where safety and quality are not just goals but are embedded in everything we do.”

The Human Complexity Behind the Work

In today’s high-pressure environment, our patients are more complex than ever,” she explains. “Many are older, with multiple chronic conditions. Our goal is to avoid fragmentation,” she says. Comprehensive assessments, clear documentation, and collaborative plans “reduce duplication, close treatment gaps, and protect patients from preventable harm.”  

Workplace violence, which is on the rise around the nation, is another priority.  “Healthcare workers are five times more likely to be injured than those in other industries,” Cheryl notes. “We are dedicated to train, protect, and support our staff—not just after incidents, but before they escalate.” 

Innovation with Intention 

One of the most exciting current projects underway at Sarasota Memorial is the health system’s transition to a new, state-of-the-art electronic health record. “This is more than a technology upgrade,” she says. “It’s a complete transformation in how we coordinate care.” Once implemented, the new Epic EHR system will provide unified access to patient information across all points of care throughout the organization, from primary or specialist visits to hospital admissions and recovery. For Cheryl, it will enhance continuity of care, communication, and decision-making. 
 
She and her team are also designing a new high-reliability rounding process that integrates real-time feedback, staff recognition, and issue escalation. “It’s about making safety visible and actionable,” she says. 

What Makes a Great Safety Leader 

Ask Cheryl what defines excellence in this field, and she starts with character: compassion, integrity, and the ability to listen. “Great leaders create psychological safety. They model transparency. And they engage teams not by directing, but by asking,” she says. She also believes that being proactive is essential. “Don’t wait for harm. Anticipate it. Build systems that prevent it.” Cheryl also underscores the importance of regulatory literacy. “Understanding the why behind Joint Commission, CMS, and AHCA requirements allows us to lead improvement—not just respond to audits.” 

Cheryl credits her growth to mentors who embodied what she now strives to model: resilience, integrity, and compassion. “They didn’t just give advice,” she says. “They led by example and fostered a culture of growth and collaboration.” She now returns that investment by mentoring others, striving to support and advance the next generation of safety professionals. 
 

Her advice to those who are starting out

Be fully present. Let data guide you. Don’t rush to judgment, and always, always stay curious. 

Cheryl Roberts’ leadership reminds us that systems don’t become safer by chance. They do so by design through people who ask better questions, invest in others, and stay grounded in purpose. That’s the kind of change that lasts. 

About Cheryl Roberts 

Cheryl Roberts, BSN, MS, CPHQ, CPPS, CPHRM, is the Executive Director of Quality and Risk Management at Sarasota Memorial Health Care System. With a clinical background in nursing and two decades of leadership experience, Cheryl is recognized for her unwavering commitment to systems that protect patients and empower teams. 

About Sarasota Memorial Health Care System

Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is one of the largest public health systems in Florida, delivering nationally recognized care across its hospitals, freestanding ERs, physician network, and outpatient services. With a mission to provide exceptional health care to the community, SMHCS is consistently ranked among the top hospitals in the U.S. for quality, safety, and patient outcomes. 

We are proud to be partnered with leaders like Cheryl and organizations such as Sarasota Memorial Health Care System. 

This post is part of Beterra’s ongoing series highlighting exceptional leaders in healthcare safety and quality. Stay tuned for our next story!