Licking Memorial Health Systems Employee Receives Annual Statewide Health Care Worker of the Year Award

(Columbus, Ohio – 43215) The Ohio Hospital Association’s Albert E. Dyckes Health Care Worker of the Year award honoree is Michael Brazil, Environmental Service Assistant, Licking Memorial Hospital (Newark). The award was presented on June 11 during an awards ceremony event at the Hilton Columbus at Easton.

OHA President and CEO Mike Abrams shared this message to during the awards event, “Tonight is a reminder of the profound importance and impact of your (nominees) efforts within our communities. In the past year alone, our member hospitals throughout Ohio deliver exceptional and personalized care during nearly 38 million patient encounters. Those services range from the mundane to the miraculous.”

OHA’s Health Care Worker of the Year Award is presented each year to one Ohio caregiver who personifies a leader, motivates colleagues, influences others, provides valuable service and contributes, personifies the mission, vision and values of the organization, and has an impact in their community. OHA received 72 nominations for health care worker of the year award.

Brazil’s nominator had this to say about him, “he is an exceptional health care worker who supports his coworkers, creates a productive and pleasant work environment, and inspires patients and visitors with his optimistic attitude. As a boy, he sustained a severe brain injury that left him with permanent right-sided body impairments. As a patient at Licking Memorial Rehabilitation Services, he worked to maximize his physical potential and was able to obtain a job. Brazil’s therapists then assisted in finding him a position in the Physical Therapy Department where he began working in 2007. Every day, he overcomes physical challenges to perform his duties, including cleaning the treatment areas and equipment. He is motivated, extremely dependable, a positive role model for the staff and patients, and an integral part of the Rehabilitation team.”

OHA also announced four finalists for the statewide health care worker of the year award:

• Dr. Richard Paat, Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of Toledo Medical Center; Chairman of Medical Missions for the Special Commission on Relief and Education, Mercy Health – Perrysburg Hospital (Perrysburg)
• Cheryl Royster, Licensed Independent Social Worker, Adena Fayette Medical Center (Washington Court House)
• Rachael Sammet, Director of Nuclear Medicine, Kettering Health Main Campus (Dayton)
• Deborah Walsh, Registered Nurse, University Hospitals Home Care Services (Cleveland)

Each year, OHA invites member hospitals and health systems to nominate one outstanding professional for consideration for Health Care Worker of the Year. OHA enlisted a panel of outside reviewers to help identify this year’s five finalists and ultimate recipient. The award was established in 1996.

OHA also presented leadership awards to the following:

Coalition to Strengthen America’s Healthcare received OHA’s Dr. Eli Crew Community Service Excellence Award. This award recognizes an individual’s or organization’s support of the health care industry. The award is named in honor of Dr. Eli R. Crew, former superintendent of Dayton’s Miami Valley Hospital and OHA’s first president. In 1914, he led Ohio hospital administrators to an organizational meeting where OHA was founded.

Michael Canady, MD, MBA, CPE, FACS, FAAPL, FACHE (Gallipolis), CEO (retired), Holzer Health System, received OHA’s Donald R. Newkirk Award. The award is named for Don Newkirk who led OHA for 27 years and recognizes an individual who has made a significant lifetime contribution to the health care profession in Ohio.

Click here – event photos of 2024 Health Care Worker of the Year finalists and honoree and leadership award honorees.

2024 Nominees for Health Care Worker of the Year Award:

Cheryl  Royster, LISW

Licensed Independent Social Worker

Adena Fayette Medical Center

Lori Brodehl, RN, ACLS, PALS

Nurse, Post Anesthesia Care Unit

Atrium Medical Center

Jaclyn  Parr, RN

Registered Nurse

Aultman Hospital

Melody Joice, RN

Nurse Navigator Women’s Health

Avita Heath System

Michael Leifheit, PharmD

Pharmacy Clinical Coordinator and Residency Program Director

Blanchard Valley Hospital

Ashleigh Hoying, MHA, CCLS II

Child Life Specialist II

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center

Oluwatosin “Tosin” Goje, MD

Medical Director, Center for Infant and Maternal Health

Cleveland Clinic Main Campus

Matt Gunderman, RN, MSN, EMT-P

Asst. Administrator- Clinical Operations

Clinton Memorial Hospital

Robert Lober, MD, PhD, FAANS

Board-certified neurosurgeon and director of the Living Biobank

Dayton Children’s Hospital

Deserae Belcher, RN

STEMI coordinator and cardiovascular data analyst

Fairfield Medical Center

Juliet Russell, LPCC, NCC

Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor and Substance Use Coordinator

Firelands Regional Medical Center

Farid Said, MD Medical Advisor

Fisher-Titus Medical Center

Cassandra Jolly, RN

Registered Nurse

Highland District Hospital

Audrey Burris, RN

Manager Regulatory Accreditation

Holzer Health System

Denise Pugh, R. T.(R)(CT)(ARRT)

Medical Imaging Manager

Joint Township District Memorial Hospital

Sharon Merryman, DO, PT

Physician

Kettering Health Dayton

Judy Schoun, RN

Registered Nurse

Kettering Health Greene Memorial

Amy Dietz, MSN, RN

Administrative Director of Nursing

Kettering Health Hamilton

Rachael Sammet, BS, MBA, CNMT(PET), ARRT(N)

Director of Nuclear Medicine

Kettering Health Main Campus

Lisa Hill, MBA, BSN, RN

Administrative Director of Nursing

Kettering Health Miamisburg

Kwame Sarkodie, DO

Hospitalist

Kettering Health Troy

Carol Pierce, RN, MSN

Administrative Director of Nursing

Kettering Health Washington Township

Amanda Wells , BSN, RN, CEN, CCRN-K

Stroke Program Coordinator

Knox Community Hospital

Michael Brazil

Environmental Service Assistant, Rehabilitation Services

Licking Memorial Hospital

Nelson Rodriguez, MD, FAPA

Lead Psychiatrist, Rapid Access Service (RAS) Medical Director, Neuromodulation Therapy (ECT, TMS, VNS) Service

Lindner Center of HOPE

Shawn  Millen, CPhT

Certified Pharmacy Technician/Purchasing Specialist

Memorial Hospital

Edward (Ed) Hosbach II, DO

Doctor

Mercer Health

Theresa Maciejewski, RN

RN Navigator – Lung

Mercy Health – Anderson

Theresa Siemer, RT(R)(M)

Imaging Supervisor

Mercy Health – Clermont Hospital

Anna    McMaster, MD,FAAFP

Mercy Health – Defiance Hospital

Richard Paat, MD

Clinical Professor of Medicine, UTMC; Chairman of Medical Missions for the Special Commission on Relief and Education

Mercy Health – Perrysburg Hospital

Filix Kencana, MD

Physician, Medical Oncologist

Mercy Health – Springfield Regional Medical Center

Stacy    Braun, RN, MSN, CN

Clinical Nurse Manager

Mercy Health – St Rita’s Medical Center

OraLee Macklenar LISW

Supervisor Trauma Recovery Services

Mercy Health – St. Vincent Medical Center

Crista   Heibertshausen, RN, BSN

RN Case Manager

Mercy Health – Tiffin Hospital

Austin  Al-Kazaz, MD

Medical Director for Mercy Health’s Hospital Medicine Department

Mercy Health – Urbana Hospital

Christina Kirby , PharmD, BCPS

Lead Pharmacist

Mercy Health – West Hospital

Troy Wetzel, RN, BSN

Manager of Nursing Services

Mercy Health – Willard Hospital

Charles Modlin, MD, MBA

Vice President, Chief Health Equity Officer, Staff Board Certified Urologist

MetroHealth Medical Center

Ronald John (RJ) Francisco, MSN, BSN, CV-BC

System Director of Case Management, Social Services, Care Transition Program, Interpreter Services

Miami Valley Hospital

John Ruiz

Chaplain

Mount Carmel East

Sarah Eberts, BSN, RN, C-EFM

Staff Registered Nurse

OhioHealth Berger Hospital

Imran   Shaik, MD, MBA, CPE, SFHM

Hospitalist Medical Director

OhioHealth Doctors Hospital

Deepa  Halaharvi, DO, FACOS

Breast cancer surgeon

OhioHealth Dublin Methodist Hospital

Allison Fish, MBA, BSN, RN, EMT-Paramedic, SANE-A

Administrative Nurse Manager, Forensic Nurse

OhioHealth Grady Memorial Hospital

Dawnyel Donaldson, MHA, BSN, RN, NEA-BC

Director of Nursing, Critical Care and Trauma

OhioHealth Grant Medical Center

Lauren Poindexter, MBA, BSN, RN

Administrative Nurse Manager, Inpatient Unit

OhioHealth Grove City Methodist Hospital

Michele Garver, BSN, RN

Staff Registered Nurse

OhioHealth Hardin Memorial Hospital

Thomas Fesler, PhD, MSN

Director, Support Services

OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital

Matthew White, MD, FACEP

Medical Director, Emergency Services

OhioHealth Marion General Hospital

Deb Riley, MHA, BSN, RN, OCN

Breast Health Nurse Navigator

OhioHealth O’Bleness Hospital

Emily Knerr, PA-C, MMS

General Surgery Physician Assistant

OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital

Casey   Cook, BSN, RN, EMT-P

Administrative Nurse Manager

OhioHealth Shelby Hospital

Marilyn Watkins

Environmental Services Lead Technician

OhioHealth Southeastern Medical Center

Kristy Mueller, BSN, RN

Administrative Nurse Manager, Acute Care

OhioHealth Van Wert Hospital

Patricia Bishop , RN

Intensive Care Registered Nurse

ProMedica Defiance Regional Hospital

Julie Shawver , PA-C

Lead ProMedica Neurosciences Advanced Practice Provider / Stroke Coordinator

ProMedica Toledo Hospital

Suzanne Sands , MSN, RN, CEN

Manager of Clinical Nursing

Soin Medical Center

Michelle Evans, MSN, APRN, NP-C

Sepsis Program Coordinator

Summa Health Akron City Hospital

Jennifer Green , APRN

Advanced Practice Provider

Summa Health Barberton Hospital

Deana Vogel, PT

Physical Therapist

The Bellevue Hospital

Jennifer Manders, MD, FACS

Medical Staff President, The Christ Hospital Health Network Surgeon, The Christ Hospital Surgical Oncology Physicians

The Christ Hospital

Vanessa Vonderhaar-Picard, DNP, MEd, RN, CNML

Chief Nursing Officer

The Jewish Hospital – Mercy Health

Jason Souza, MD, FACS

Director, Orthoplastic Reconstruction and Advanced Amputation Program; Director, Military Medicine Program

The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center

Donna  Blackburn, APRN-CNP

Hospitalist Service

Trinity Health Twin City

Anthony Zoccali, HSPA

Manager of the Sterile Processing Department

Trumbull Regional Medical Center

Deborah Walsh, RN, BSN

Registered Nurse, University Hospitals Home Care Services

University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center

John Bush, RRT

Senior Respiratory Therapist

University of Cincinnati Medical Center

Shannon Gambill, CPR, ARRT

Radiologic Technologist, Mammographer

Upper Valley Medical Center

Allison Ritchie , RT(R)

Senior Radiology Technologist, X-Ray

West Chester Hospital

Erin Yarkosky, MSN, FNP-C, DNP

Director, Occupational Medicine, Urgent Care, Employer Direct Clinics & Community Health

Wilson Health

Todd Leopold , PharmD, RPh

Director, Pharmacy

Wood County Hospital

Willie   Cooper-Lohr, CPA, MBA

Chief Financial Officer

WVU Medicine – Barnesville Hospital

James Comerci, MD

Physician / Chief of Staff / Medical Director

WVU Medicine – Harrison Community Hospital