Last night a group of HFMA MA-RI Chapter past presidents met to say hello, reconnect and carry out some important business for the chapter.
The purpose of this annual past presidents’ event was to choose the recipients of the Medal of Honor (MOH) and the Frances M. Hernan awards. The national Founders MOH was added in 1986 and recognizes an individual who has been actively involved with HFMA for at least three years after earning the Muncie Gold Award. (More information about Founders Awards is available here or you can check out our past blog post here). The Frances M. Hernan award is presented to a chapter member who has excelled in his or her work for the chapter and has made outstanding contributions to the fields of hospital financial management. The first Hernan award was given in 1981 in recognition of Frances M. Hernan, our chapter’s first president. A list of past winners of both awards is available here. This year’s winners will be honored at an annual awards dinner this May. We will be posting more information about that special event in the coming months.
During the event, I was struck by the comradery of the group – the banter about their personal lives, catching up about professional issues, and the desire to hear more about how the organization and board are continuing to reach out to its members during this time of COVID. Although they are past presidents, each and every one of them continues to be HFMA members and continues to be involved in the work of the organization. That says quite a bit about the value that they feel being a member brings to them. Most reiterated that they would not have been able to achieve what they have in their careers without the network of colleagues that they built and the educational resources they were able to tap into by being involved in HFMA.
I want to personally thank all of the past presidents for their leadership and ongoing commitment to the HFMA MA-RI chapter.
Best regards,
Deb Schoenthaler
President 2020-2021