The Association of California Healthcare Districts (ACHD) announced its 2018-19 leadership during its 66th Annual Meeting in Pismo Beach, September 13-14.
The Board of Directors elected Fallbrook Regional Health District Trustee Howard Salmon to serve as Chair, Pioneers Memorial Healthcare District Trustee Linda Rubin to serve as Vice Chair, Tahoe Forest Health System CEO Harry Weis to serve as Treasurer, Beach Cities Health District Trustee Dr. Michele Bholat as Secretary and West Side Health Care District Executive Director Jerry Starr as Member At-Large.
ACHD also recognized a Healthcare District and District Trustee for outstanding innovation and leadership over the last year. Grossmont Healthcare District, serving San Diego County’s eastern region, received ACHD’s District of the Year award for the program Seniors in Crisis, a collaborative effort focused on Alzheimer’s care. It’s estimated more than 64,000 San Diegans have Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia. Recognizing the severity of the disease, Grossmont Healthcare District partnered with a local hospital, and city and county agencies to support subject matter experts in Alzheimer’s treatment and care.
ACHD also honored Vanessa Poster of Beach Cities Health District as Trustee of the Year. A Trustee for 22 years, Poster has been a tireless advocate for those in need of health resources in her District, especially older adults and children. Her efforts to implement programs that benefit the health of the community caught the attention of the United States Surgeon General Vivek Murthy who visited the District in 2016.
ACHD honored two long-time Members have served as elected Trustees with local Healthcare Districts. Dr. John Ungersma with Northern Inyo Healthcare District received the Lifetime Member Award after serving his District for 18 years. During that time, he served as President, Vice President and Director At-Large for his local board and oversaw many vital projects for the community of Bishop, including the construction of a new 25-bed critical access hospital, increasing physician recruitment to assure access to both primary and specialty care and establishing the hospital’s Community Action Committee to increase public involvement. Understanding that finances are often a barrier to educational advancement, Dr. Ungersma has also served his community by providing scholarship support for graduating high school seniors for the past 30 years. Dr. Ungersma also served the Association as a prior Member of the Board of Directors, Education and Advocacy Committees.
Lloyd Weaver, Trustee with Bloss Memorial Healthcare District, received the Longest Serving Healthcare District Trustee honor. Weaver was appointed to the Bloss Memorial Board in October 1973 and served as Board Chair multiple times during his tenure. At the start of his service, Bloss Memorial, serving the Atwater community, had just 17 acute care beds; today, the District operates a Dental Clinic and provides space to a Federally Qualified Health Clinic that operates in the old Castle Airforce Base hospital building, now owned by the District. Weaver has also been an active member of ACHD, serving on the ALPHA Council.
For more information, please contact Sheila Johnston.
