Maria Fernandez, MHA, CPXP

Maria Fernandez, MHA, CPXP, is the Director of Patient Experience, System Services for Emory Healthcare in Atlanta, GA. Emory Healthcare is the leading academic health system in Georgia, with 11 hospitals and more than 250 ambulatory locations in its network. In her role, she oversees the patient family advisory program, service training, and disseminate best practices across the system. With a certification in DEI, she uses disaggregated data to analyze patient experience to identify improvement opportunities across the diverse patient population in the Atlanta metropolitan area.

She previously served as the Director of Patient Experience at Emory Johns Creek Hospital, overseeing patient relations, guest services, interpreter services and performance improvement. Previous roles include an early career in health IT, clinical and quality/patient safety communications in pediatrics, and the Georgia Department of Public Health working in population health initiatives in maternal/child health. She served on the Board of Directors for Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies of Georgia, served on the steering committee for the development of The Beryl Institute’s Human Experience 2030: A Vision for the Future of Healthcare, and serves on the Beryl Institute Patient Experience Policy & Measurement Forum and Patient Advocacy Council.