Sha was a registered nurse for 18 years prior to becoming an attorney. Her nursing career took her from working with patients in hospitals, to the University of Illinois Department of Crippled Children, to the Special Education Division of the Illinois State Board of Education, and to the Illinois Department of Public Health. Sha continued pursuing higher education while working as a registered nurse, earning a PhD in Health Education/Administration. With a desire to serve the healthcare industry in a different capacity, Sha decided to attend law school at Southern Illinois University.
After law school, Sha moved to Indiana and was a prosecutor in Indianapolis, Marion County. Sha was recruited to become the Director of Clinical and Health Affairs and a Lobbyist for the Indiana Health Care Association. In her work for the IHCA, she developed the one-week training program for new DONs, which the Illinois Health Care Association subsequently adopted. She served on several American Health Care Association committees during her time at IHCA, and was instrumental in securing legislative victories for the healthcare industry. Sha represented Indiana Health Care Association and American Health Care Association during the development of OBRA ’87 Rules and Regulations for Long Term Care. She was successful to include “medically unavoidable” carve-out language for certain regulations.
Sha eventually concluded her work at IHCA to enter private practice in Indianapolis. She practiced long-term care and healthcare law at two highly respected firms before starting her own law practice, which quickly became the largest all-female firm in Indianapolis. There, she practiced healthcare law on a national level with a focus of Long Term Care. In 2000, Sha made the full-time move from Indiana to Illinois, where she has continued to practice. Sha lives in Springfield, Illinois.
Legal Insight. Human Wisdom.
Education
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Juris Doctorate, 1986.
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Health Education PhD, 1983.
- University of Illinois at Springfield, Masters of Science, 1979.
- St. Francis College at Joliet, Bachelors, 1978.
- St. John’s College, Department of Nursing, 1969.
Bar Admissions
- United States Supreme Court
- Illinois
- Indiana
Professional Affiliations
- American Health Lawyers
- American Healthcare Association
- Illinois State Bar Association
- Sangamon County Bar Association