Our team
True North PSO leadership have spent decades improving patient safety outcomes across the continuum of care. They are nationally-recognized quality experts, clinicians, and educators, dedicated to improving patient care across participant sites and regions.
Peter Silver, MD, MBA, FCCM
Executive Director
As Senior Vice President and Chief Quality Officer for Northwell Health, Peter Silver, MD, is responsible for Northwell’s system-wide clinical quality program and patient safety and value initiatives. Dr. Silver is also Northwell Health’s associate chief medical officer, and is an associate professor of pediatrics at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. Prior to this role, he served as medical director at Cohen Children’s Medical Center (CCMC). Prior to that appointment, Dr. Silver was chief of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine at CCMC from 2009-2017, and Associate Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Silver has extensive quality experience, including national efforts on reduction of central line acquired bloodstream infections, early recognition and treatment of sepsis, and effective handoff communication. Dr. Silver is board certified in pediatrics and pediatric critical care medicine. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Critical Care Medicine, and the American College of Chest Physicians. Dr. Silver earned his undergraduate degree from Princeton University, and his medical degree from Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine. He completed both his residency training in pediatrics and fellowship in pediatric critical care medicine at CCMC. Dr. Silver also holds an MBA in healthcare management from Hofstra University Zarb School of Business.
Karen Nelson, RN, MBA, CPHQ
Quality Director
As SVP and Deputy Chief Quality Officer, Karen Nelson, RN, oversees strategy and development for clinical excellence, quality and patient safety, as well as accreditation and regulatory affairs for Northwell Health. She holds the faculty position of assistant professor of science education at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and is on the faculty of the Northwell Center for Learning and Innovation’s Physician Leadership Development Program.
Ms. Nelson began her career as a critical care nurse holding a variety of clinical positions in a tertiary care hospital. She later became a hospital administrator where she managed strategy and operations for several departments. In her prior role as vice president she was instrumental in establishing the Northwell Institute for Clinical Excellence and Quality. She created a formal quality reporting structure for the health system’s joint ventures and was part of the team that developed a feasibility study to help stabilize five financially distressed hospitals.
Due to Ms. Nelson’s diligent efforts, Northwell has received many prestigious awards over the years, including such national recognitions as the American Hospital Association’s 2018 Quest for Quality Prize, the 2015 John Q. Sherman Award for Excellence in Patient Engagement, the 2015 National Patient Safety Foundation Award, the 2014 Joint Commission on National Quality Forum’s John M. Eisenberg Award and the 2010 National Forum Quality Award.
Ms. Nelson has co-authored peer-reviewed articles in journals such as The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety and the Annals of Surgery. She has presented nationally and internationally on a wide range of quality and patient safety topics.