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Airth-Kindree, Raabe named Mile Bluff’s 2010 Rural Health Ambassadors
The award recognizes healthcare employees at RWHC hospitals who have gone above and beyond the call of duty in promoting their respective organizations, while making significant contributions to rural health. Each recipient demonstrates a history of fostering positive communication and relations within the hospital's respective service area by: serving on community boards/service organizations; taking advantage of volunteer or public speaking opportunities; and supporting community health activities beyond the scope of the hospital.
Martha has been a member of Mile Bluff’s team for 10 years. As the librarian she works with staff members and students to help them find information that they need to stay up-to-date with the ever-changing world of healthcare. She organizes presentations and educational inservice programs, and has initiated community programs to educate about Alzheimer’s, depression and women’s health – to name a few. As a grant writer, Martha helps bring much-needed dollars to the organization to help fund programs and projects to better the health of the community.
Ann has been with Mile Bluff for over 20 years. As an audiologist she has dedicated her life to bringing normalcy to the lives of those affected by hearing impairment. She goes out of her way to provide excellent service to her patients, and works hard to find affordable hearing equipment for the people she serves. Her commitment to her patients and her profession has earned her the Wisconsin Speech Language and Hearing Association’s Audiologist of the Year award in 2005. She was also recently named Mile Bluff’s 2010 Employee Pride recipient through the Wisconsin Hospital Association’s recognition program.
Ann and Martha have pulled together individuals from public health, community resource groups, area schools, women’s groups and other organizations in the county to form the WHI. The biggest event they have brought to the area is Women’s Night Out. It features over 60 display vendors with topics pertinent to various aspects of women’s health, offers educational breakout sessions and panels of healthcare professionals, and brings in nationally-recognized inspirational speakers for the keynote address. Martha and Ann, along with their dedicated committee members, work very hard to coordinate and nurture the many components of the event. Both years it’s been around, Women’s Night Out has hosted a sell-out crowd of 600 women – indicating an obvious need these ladies worked to meet in the community!
To honor their most recent achievement - receiving the RWHC Health Ambassador Award - Mile Bluff held a reception in honor of Martha and Ann on Thursday, May 20. Many of their co-workers, friends and family members attended the event to celebrate, and show their support and appreciation for all that these two dedicated individuals have done to better the community.
Jo Anne Preston and Jeremy Levin from RWHC presented the ladies with their awards, and Mile Bluff’s president and CEO James O’Keefe took a moment to personally thank Martha and Ann for their commitment to making life better for the individuals in our community.
In a short speech accepting the award Ann stated, “It has been said that people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Today I shine the spotlight really on all of you [her co-workers], who with so much dedication care for the people who are our friends and neighbors on a daily basis. Having had the opportunity to work at three different facilities in Madison before moving to a rural healthcare setting, I can say that I prefer the rural setting by far. Why? We are all personally invested in our community. We are stakeholders that get to see first-hand the fruits of our efforts, which I dare say you would not have the opportunity to see in a bigger city.”
In closing, Ann spoke for both Martha and herself saying, “We share this award with all of you, who get up every day - rain or shine, snow or ice - to care for your friends and neighbors. You are the face of rural healthcare at its finest. We feel privileged to be a part of such a great group of people who together, make a difference in the quality of life in Juneau County. Thank you.”
Mile Bluff Medical Center congratulates Martha and Ann for being named its 2010 Rural Health Ambassadors!
PHOTO CAPTION: On May 20, many friends, family and colleagues came to congratulate Martha Airth-Kindree and Ann Raabe on receiving the Rural Health Ambassador Award. Pictured here (left to right) are Mile Bluff's president and CEO James O'Keefe, Jeremy Levin from RWHC, Airth-Kindree, Raabe and Jo Anne Preston from RWHC. |
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Mile Bluff Medical Center/ 1050 Division St./ Mauston, WI 53948 / 608 847 6161 Mile Bluff Medical Center, 1050 Division Street, Mauston, WI 53948 608 847 6161 or Toll free in WI at 800 252 4377 © 2008 Mile Bluff Medical Center |
The
Rural Wisconsin Health Cooperative (RWHC) recently bestowed its 2010 Rural
Health Ambassador Award to two of Mile Bluff Medical Center’s employees. Martha
Airth-Kindree is the Director of the Health Science Library and Grants for the
organization, and Ann Raabe is the Director of Audiology. Together, these
ladies chair the Juneau County Women’s Health Initiative (WHI), and are two of
only 11 healthcare professionals in the state who received the honor from RWHC
this year.