Peter Powers serves as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for St. Anthony Hospital (SAH) and is responsible for overseeing all daily leadership decisions for the hospital while implementing key initiatives for the continuous improvement of the organization. In addition to acting as the St. Anthony representative in all operational-related initiatives, Peter is the leading member of the St. Anthony Hospital senior executive team which is charged with the development of service line strategies and operating plans to enhance patient care and grow market share within St. Anthony Hospital’s overall primary and secondary markets.

Peter holds a Bachelor of Public Affairs with a minor in Business and Sociology from Indiana University as well as a Master of Business Administration with Distinction from The University of Sydney, Australia. He is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE) and currently serves on the Red Rocks Community College Advisory Board and is a Healthy Learning Paths board member.

Mary Albers serves as the Chief Operating Officer (COO), St. Anthony Hospital. She is responsible for providing overall operational leadership while overseeing the daily functions of the organization.

Mary brings over 16 years of health care leadership experience and is regarded as a hands-on leader, invested in driving patient, associate and physician satisfaction. She joined Centura Health in 2013 and most recently served as the Director of Specialty Care, CHPG. Prior to her time in health care administration, Mary served as a Registered Nurse in various disciplines including pediatrics, hematology and oncology. Later, she spent 10 years with Banner Health as the Director of Operations.

Among Mary’s most proud professional accomplishments, she notes developing a multi-specialty Radiation and Medical Oncology Program across four hospitals in northern Colorado and her successes with record-breaking patient satisfaction.

Melinda Estep, MBA, serves as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for St. Anthony Hospital.

Melinda, a seasoned financial professional brings over 20 years of experience in project management, consulting and fiscal expertise. She joins us from Jensen + Partners, a health care consulting firm. There, she served as Managing Director, Market and Financial Strategy, providing financial strategy for health care master planning and programming projects. With special attention to offering insight on financial forecasting, scenario modeling and leadership in developing business cases with key stakeholders to identify barriers and mitigating risks, Melinda has illustrated proven, ongoing success. Prior to her most recent role, she served as Associate Chief of Operations – Service Lines and other roles for Denver Health and Hospital. 

Melinda has illustrated ongoing mastery in providing strategic approaches to planning, operations and fiscal insight and is responsible for the breath of St. Anthony Hospital’s financial work including tracking cash flow, planning and analyzing the hospital’s financial strengths and weaknesses as we continue our work of serving as a good steward of our resources.

Melinda earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 1993 and a Master of Business Administration with an Emphasis in Healthcare Administration also from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 2007. In addition, Melinda is a LEAN Management Systems Black Belt and was a fellow of the Healthcare Financial Management Association as well as the NAPH (America’s Essential Hospitals).

Michelle Smith, MSN, RN, NEA-BC is St. Anthony Hospital’s Chief Nursing Officer (CNO).

Michelle, a seasoned executive with over 20 years of experience as a CNO in academic, community and for-profit settings joins us from Baptist Memorial Hospital- Memphis. She brings a well-developed professional acumen with expertise in demonstrating quality and safety outcomes, financial management and building cohesive teams with her extensive nursing leadership background.

Michelle has illustrated proven success in patient safety and quality results and noted that she’s most proud of her accomplishments in reducing hospital-acquired infections and reducing rates of CAUTI and CLABSI instances. She hopes to continue this nationally-recognized work at St. Anthony Hospital as well, as her true passion and mission lies in keeping patients safe. Another of her goals is to personalize the patient and associate experience, helping associates to realize their impact and the incredible work they do each day while continuously improving patient and family experiences.

Michelle earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from William Jewell College, Kansas City, Mo. in 1983 and a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Mo. in 1991.

In 2003, Michelle was recognized by the William Jewell College, School of Nursing as an outstanding Alumnus and was a Southern Colorado Nightingale Nominee for Nursing Leadership. She is a member of the American Organization of Nurse Executives and the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Gerald Winston Tripp II, MD, serves as St. Anthony Hospital’s Chief Medical Officer (CMO). He has more than 20 years of clinical experience and a well-rounded professional acumen.

Dr. Tripp is responsible for managing St. Anthony Hospital’s clinical operations, liaising between administration and medical associates and ensuring our patients receive the highest standard of medical care. He spends 80 percent of his time serving in the capacity of Chief Medical Officer and the remaining 20 percent is spent in the clinical practice of emergency and observation medicine. This dynamic structure compliments his role as Chief Medical Officer allowing him to understand in real time the current bedside needs of our patients and clinicians.

Dr. Tripp is a Colorado native and has worked at St. Anthony Hospital and Denver Metro area hospitals since 1998. He has held several progressive leadership roles including serving as the Medical Director of St. Anthony Hospital’s Emergency Department since 2013, Physician Director of Informatics since 2014, Medical Director of the ED Observation Unit since 2015 and Vice President of St. Anthony Hospital’s Medical Staff since 2017. Additionally, in 2015-2016, Dr. Tripp served as St. Anthony Hospital’s Interim Chief Medical Officer. He also serves as a Board Member for the St. Anthony Health Foundation and US Acute Care Solutions (USACS) Colorado Regional Governance Board.

Dr. Tripp received his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical and Petroleum Refining Engineering from Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colo. A Doctor of Medicine degree from Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas and completed his Emergency Medicine Residency at Maricopa Medical Center, Phoenix, Ariz. He is currently board certified in emergency medicine.

A distinguished and well-respected pillar of the St. Anthony Hospital community and surrounding areas, Dr. Tripp was recognized on the state level as a 5280 Magazine Emergency Medicine Physician in 2018, runner-up for the St. Anthony Hospital Physician of the Year Award in 2014 and 2015, and the Outstanding Senior Medical Student in Emergency Medicine, Texas College of Emergency Physicians in 1994.

Dr. Tripp looks with excitement toward the future of St. Anthony Hospital and Centura Health, as he is passionate about ensuring that each patient is treated with comprehensive, whole person care.