President’s Welcoming Message – 2020

Greeting Southeast ACHE Chapter Member,

Noel J. Cárdenas, FACHE

Noel CardenasI would like to thank everyone for the opportunity to serve as your 2020 Chapter President.  As a member of ACHE since 1997, I have had the privilege and honor of serving ACHE in numerous capacities from Regent Advisory Councils, Local and National Committees, and as the Army Regent.  As your Chapter President, my #1 goal is to build on the Chapter’s past successes.  I’d like to personally thank Jack Buckley, FACHE, for his exceptional leadership and dedicated service as our 2019 Chapter President.  Jack has served our Chapter for many years and will continue to his service as the Immediate Past President on our Chapter Board.  A big thanks to Todd Caliva, FACHE, for his service as our ACHE Regent for the past 3 years.  Todd did a phenomenal job supporting our ACHE members, Chapter Board and Foundation.  He will continue to serve on our Foundation in 2020.  As Todd completes his term this week as our Regent, I’d like to welcome Jeanna Bamburg, FACHE, as our new Regent.  Jeanna has a long history of service to our Chapter and I look forward to working with her this year.

As you read my message, I know that we are all dealing with the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) virus on our communities.  Due to the social distancing and potential impact of exposure, ACHE made the decision to cancel the 2020 Congress on Healthcare Leadership as healthcare organizations are actively managing the response to coronavirus in their communities.  The Chapter Board is also assessing the situation in our communities and the impact on future events including our May Education Breakfast.  Our goal is to keep our members safe and we will follow the guidance being provided by the CDC and local government official regarding future Chapter events.  We will continue the planning for our October 2020 Education Conference.  We know that with the cancelling of Congress, our members will rely heavily on attending the Conference to obtain their required education hours need for advancement and recertification.  We will keep you updated on our Chapter website as we assess the situation in dealing with the coronavirus.

As your Chapter President one of my top goals this year is to increase member engagement and involvement in Chapter activities.  During our annual Chapter Board planning meeting, we identified opportunities to improve our Chapter’s Committee structure, membership and participation.  At the January Board Meeting, we made the decision to reengineer our Committee structure.  You may have also seen a message from Mark Biscone calling for volunteers for these committees.  The response to Mark’s message was impressive and we had many healthcare leaders step forward to lead and serve on a committee.  Below are committees and healthcare leaders that will be leading our committees.  I’d like to thank these leaders for stepping forward to lead our committees.  We are still looking for volunteers so if you would like to serve on one of the below committees please contact Mark at: mbiscone@ache-houston.org.

Chapter Awards Committee:

  • Chairperson: Laura Comer
  • Board Champion: Chris Okezie

Community Service Committee:

  • Chairperson: Doug Blackard
  • Board Champion: Bill Hyslop

Diversity & Inclusion Committee:

  • Chairperson: Erika Brown
  • Board Champion: Open

Education & Events Committee:

  • Chairperson: Christopher King
  • Chairperson: Mitali Paul
  • Board Champion: Open

Membership Advancement Committee:

  • Chairperson: Kevin Long
  • Board Champion: Monica Rasmus

Membership & Retention Committee:

  • Chairperson: Felix Bradbury
  • Chairperson: Grant Magness
  • Board Champion: David Wagner

Mentorship Committee:

  • Chairperson: Puneet Freibott
  • Chairperson: Andrea Harrow
  • Board Champion: Gregory Haralson

Nominating & Governance Committee:

  • Chairperson:  Open
  • Board Champion:  Richelle Dixon

Student Membership & Involvement Committee:

  • Chairperson: Alla Adams
  • Board Champion: Sandra Murdock

I would like to close by thanking Mark for supporting our Chapter as our new Executive Director of Operations.  I also would like to thank our members for your support to our Chapter and most of all for your service to your communities.  As healthcare leaders, we are being asked to support the needs of communities during this difficult time.  I know that as we all work together, we will overcome the challenges of dealing with the coronavirus.  I wish all of you the very best of health.

Noel

Noel J. Cárdenas, FACHE

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