Chairperson's File
Blog posts from 2025 AHA Board Chair Tina Freese Decker, president and CEO of Corewell Health, and past chairs.
Improving the health of communities where people live, work and play is more important than ever. In early 2017, the AHA's Association for Community Health Improvement (ACHI) convenes its annual conference, bringing together professionals in community health, community benefit and population health鈥
Quality and safety are 鈥渢op of the agenda鈥 at urban and rural hospitals across the country. At Howard Memorial Hospital, a 20-bed critical access hospital in Nashville, Ark., a multidisciplinary team led a focused project to prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI). Educating鈥
To improve community health, Mason General Hospital & Family of Clinics (MGH&FC) in Shelton, Wash., has launched several programs focused on children's health. Nearly 25% of children in rural Mason County live in poverty, compared to the 18% state average. MGH&FC collaborated with the鈥
AnMed Health in Anderson, S.C., is working to achieve the three core elements of the AHA's #123forEquity Pledge to Act. #1: AnMed health collects and uses patient race, ethnicity and language data. #2: AnMed Health provides diversity and cultural competency training during orientation for new鈥
Hospitals are helping students with disabilities transition from school to the workplace. Mat-Su Regional Medical Center, a 74-bed hospital in Palmer, Alaska is one of many U.S. hospitals and organizations providing training to young adults with disabilities through Project SEARCH, a national鈥
Focusing on community needs using a data-driven approach and local resources has improved care for expectant mothers and babies in western Michigan. More than 10 years ago, the black infant mortality rate in Kent County was 22.4 deaths per 1,000 live births, one of the highest rates in the state.鈥
Here's an excellent opportunity for health care executives to study and discuss pressing health care issues with a cohort of other health care leaders and experts in the field. The AHA's Health Care Transformation Fellowship focuses on health care transformation topics, including clinician鈥
Homelessness is a hidden but real issue in Chittenden County, VT. University of Vermont Medical Center, based in Burlington, is collaborating with several community organizations to provide housing and improve health care to homeless individuals and families. A recent community health needs鈥
For more information, contact Paula Faria, media relations, at pfaria@wakehealth.edu.
Read the AHA/HPOE guide for hospitals 鈥淧reventing Patient Falls: A Systematic Approach from the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare Project.'
A health care collaboration in rural Missouri is expanding patient access to primary and behavioral health care services. In Lexington, Mo., as in many rural communities, there are not enough local resources to meet demand for primary care, dental care and psychiatric services. Lafayette Regional鈥