PWH® is an organization dedicated to ongoing professional leadership development in healthcare businesses. We are a member organization providing a national voice and progressive leadership for women in healthcare products manufacturing and delivery industries. Our goal is to reach all women in our industry and empower them in their personal and professional lives. We are also committed to integrated leadership development and gender equity for all individuals within the industries we serve. Vision – To create a culturally inclusive healthcare industry equally led by women.
PWH® Builds Its Legacy with Year-Round Programming
Wow! What an amazing PWH® Leadership Summit in Louisville. We had a record-breaking number of attendees—270—enjoying two days of leadership development. Our theme of legacy inspired attendees to leave an imprint with impact as they support their organizations and build their own personal legacy! See all the beautiful pictures of this year’s Summit at www.mypwh.org/ 2024-photo-gallery. I can’t wait to see everyone next year at the Omni Frisco Hotel at the Star in Frisco, Texas, March 31st – April 2nd, 2025.
As I write this, we are now halfway through or 20th year. PWH® represents an organization that now spans two decades of providing a platform and a catalyst to help women and men succeed, grow and become leaders. I am so proud of all we have accomplished. Seeing everyone at the Summit reminded me of how many lives we have touched and how many more leaders we will help develop in the future.
This issue of the PWH ® Connect Journal features a look back at the effort to develop PWH® and sustain its mission of creating a healthcare industry equally led by women (See our 20th Anniversary spotlight on page 4.)
As always, I want to extend a special thank you to the Partners and Sponsors who make our organization stronger. This year’s Summit sponsors helped us deliver our best Summit yet! We thank you for all that you do!
Although our Summit is over, PWH® programming continues yearlong. The PWH® Professional Development Committee curates webinars and online courses in leadership development. In the fall, we have a special course planned for aspiring leaders: “The NeXt Factor – Elevate your Personal Brand and Professional Presence.” Register on the PWH® website (MyPWH.org) by October 18, 2024. The two-session synchronous virtual course takes place on consecutive Fridays, November 1st and 8th, 2024, from 10:30 am to 1:30 pm ET.
Our unique mentoring programs support professional development year-round too. The PWH® Mentoring Committee facilitates one-on-one mentoring, situational mentoring and mentoring circles. I encourage you to consider becoming a mentor. While helping your mentee, you will end up with valuable lessons and experiences of your own leadership.
Debuting this year was our very first whitepaper, featuring the results of a PWH ® -led collaborative research project investigating our industry’s efforts toward advancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB). The paper, entitled “Cultural Inclusion and Diversity in Healthcare: Shaping the Future of Leadership,” provides a baseline of our industry’s efforts thus far and a framework for implementing DEIB programming. (Again, visit our website to access the paper.) A special
Therwhanger
thanks goes to our sponsor, Premier, and to our PWH ® Cultural Inclusion & Diversity Committee for working hard to deliver this first-ever report. I can’t wait to see what future whitepapers discuss in terms of trends, best practices and areas to improve.
I want to thank ALL our volunteers that help us make it happen every day. We are better, together working hard on our collective PWH® goals. The passion and commitment I see every day is inspiring! Thank you all!
From 17 to 800: How PWH® Became Today’s Leadership Force
This year, we, the members of the Professional Women in Healthcare® organization, also known as PWH®, celebrate 20 years of determination to create a culturally inclusive healthcare industry equally led by women. We have come a long way since 2004! So in this issue of the PWH ® Connect Journal, in addition to recapping our most successful PWH® Leadership Summit yet, we also celebrate our effort to build the PWH® legacy. In this article, we take stock of where we are today, but we also indulge in sweet reminiscence. This is a brief history of how PWH® became our industry’s leading professional development organization.
Today, PWH® enjoys a growing membership of both men and women and robust year-round programming. Member benefits include mentorship, education and networking. PWH® offers monthly webinars, multi-session virtual courses, coffee chats, in-person regional meetings and our annual, three-day PWH® Leadership Summit. We also touch our members with a biweekly newsletter, monthly blog, and quarterly journal. Our website serves as a resource hub of industry, leadership and diversity information. Facilitating all this great programming is the PWH® Board, comprised of 44 active PWH® members who run our committees and
COFFEE CHAT - NOVEMBER
TO REGISTER
Friday, November 14, 2008 12:00 pm (EST)
If you are interested in participating, simply submit a question. You can post it on the Discussion Section of the PWH Google Group or send it via e-mail to rbailey@mdsi.org. Your questions will be answered during our one-hour conference call-style Coffee Chat on November 14.
Once we have your name, company, and question, we will e-mail you with the call-in number and passcode. Note: we must limit the questions to the first 15 received, so if this topic is important to you, let us know by submitting your question right away!
Questions?
Sara Hanlon (shanlon@seacoastmedical.com) ph: 800-306-6885 or Rachel Bailey (rbailey@mdsi.org) ph: 770-263-5258.
offer advisement. In addition to meeting with their committees throughout the year, these volunteers meet as a group biannually to push each other and our organization forward.
As of this issue, we have 800 members, nine committees and 24 Corporate Partners who help fund our year-round programming. However, the organization began with just 17 brave women who realized our industry needed more women attending industry events and more women leading the industry. So they endeavored to bring women together to inspire each other and cultivate women’s leadership.
The committees of PWH® represent our organization’s engine. To meet the needs of our growth, their number and structure have evolved over the years. In 2004, we began with just 17 founding members, their passion and ideas. By 2008, we had established a Board of Directors with a handful of Board Advisors and three other committees: Marketing, Membership and Professional Development. As the organization and our membership grew, we established an early version of today’s Strategic Oversight Committee and an early version of today’s Corporate Partner Committee to maintain consistency of our brand and funding. As a result of our first PWH® Leadership Summit in 2018 we added the Mentoring Committee, the Leadership Summit Committee and the Technology Committee. Today, we are proud to have added a committee dedicated to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, the Cultural Inclusion & Diversity Committee.
PWH Coffee Chat - Join the Conversation
Making the Most of Your Performance Reviews
Sharyl Gardner, VP of Human Resources at Midmark and Kim Bedwell, Assistant Dean of Operations at Owens & Minor will answer questions directed at both managers and employees regarding performance reviews and how to make them useful year-round.
This PWH® Coffee Chat held via telephone in 2008 featured the topic of performance reviews.
Sharyl Gardner, then VP of Human Resources at Midmark and Kim Bedwell, then Assistant Dean of Operations at Owens & Minor answered questions from members on the call.
Vintage PWH® advertising.
Mentoring, education and networking have represented the three pillars of PWH® since our inception. Today, the PWH® Mentoring Committee provides PWH® members with a variety of mentorship experiences, from traditional mentorship pairing to six-week mentoring circles. During our early years, however, we had PWH® Pals. Existing PWH® members would befriend a new member and help her find a starting place in the organization. PWH® Pals helped us increase the number of active committee members by helping to place new members in a committee where their existing job skills and personal passions could be further developed. At the same time, these new members gained the opportunity to build relationships with women outside of their companies, women who could help them exceed their business goals and advance in their current organizations and beyond. My Pal was Angie Euston (née McLaughlin), of IMCO. She made me feel welcome and encouraged me to join the Professional Development Committee. There, I overcame some of my shyness and developed relationships with other PWH® members like Pam Wedow (then of the Palm Tree Group), Sandi Parker (then of Kimberly Clark) and Janis Dezso (then of Bovie). These fierce and nurturing women taught me how to lead conference calls and negotiate!
PWH® members have always thrived on educating each other about industry and leadership skills through educational events that have also helped us attract new members across the country. Before virtual meetings became technologically possible and popular, PWH® members worked hard to share knowledge and create a sense of community by holding multiple in-person regional events in Atlanta, Chicago, Richmond, Nashville, Southern
Join PWH for an Educational Event & Networking Reception
Thursday, August 21, 2008 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Women and Investing
Stacy Eaton, CFP ® , UBS Financial Services
Stacy has over 15 years helping women define their goals and plan for their financial independence, in the areas of retirement and financial planning and wealth management. She is a Certified Financial Planner™ and Financial Advisor active in many professional and personal organizations, including the Atlanta Association of Women in Securities.
A Harris Interactive nationwide survey (2002) revealed that women have become smarter, more confident investors over the last 10 years but those gains haven't necessarily brought them closer to financial security.
Boost your investment confidence and learn more about the current market and future trends to make your financial security a reality during this informative and enlightening program.
Schedule:
4:00 Doors Open
4:30 Welcome and Introductions 4:45 Program
5:30 Networking Reception – Drinks and Appetizers (Be sure to bring business cards)
Registration: $30 in advance
$40 at the door
Special for Non-Members – Receive the PWH Member Rate Above
Register now at Registration link: www.123signup.com/register?id=tybnd Info Page link: www.123signup.com/event?id=tybnd. All major credit cards accepted
More Info? Contact Kerry Cronin at 678.291.3167 or Micah Winkler at 770.263.5255.
Bring a Friend – Open to all Healthcare Professionals
California and the Northeast. Before webinars, we held conference call style coffee chats where, again, more seasoned PWH® members would lead and facilitate conversations about issues affecting our industry, our roles within our companies and our personal relationships as we struggled
to balance work and life. We developed a reputation for hosting fun themed parties but also educational, networking luncheons that aligned with HIDA’s conferences. These events have helped attract new members and build partnerships with other industry organizations.
This PWH® Regional Event was held in Atlanta in 2008 and featured the topic of women and investing. PWH members Micah McGlinchey (née Winkler) then working at Share Moving Media (then MDSI) and Graham Field’s Kerry Cronin helped manage the event.
Vintage PWH® advertising.
In June of 2018, PWH® held the first PWH® Leadership Summit in Minneapolis, MN, attracting 170 women leaders across the country. Our most recent Summit was held at the end of April 2024 in Louisville, KY and attracted 270 leaders, both men and women. The PWH® Leadership Summit is our
advertising.
industry’s only conference dedicated to inclusive leadership development. Before the PWH® Leadership Summit, mentoring, education and networking took place on a smaller scale at PWH® Board and Planning Meetings. These multi-day meetings served as retreats for relationship building, executive
Joi n Pro fessional Women in Healthcare for an Educational Seminar And Netwo rking R eceptio n Wednesday - October 8, 2008
She's back by popular demand! If you enjoyed Dr. Urbanski's great webinar on “The Goal Achiever”, you'll love her program, "THE SUCCESS PUZZLE." Highly successful in her own periodontal practice and in her consulting career, Marianne will lead our group in an interactive program designed to help us find the 'missing pieces' of our ideal lives and careers. Her presentation will be followed by a panel of PWH vice presidents’ who will be discussing their career paths and the 'secrets' of their success in the healthcare industry For more information about the speaker contact: www.marianneurbanski.lifesuccessconsultants.com or www.docfloss.com
Schedule:
2:00 - 4:00 The Success Puzzle
4:00 - 5:00 Panel Discussion with Vice President PWH Members 5:00 - 6:30 Networking Reception and Light Dinner
Registration : PWH Members – $55 in advance; $65 at the door * Non-Members – $65 in advance; $75 at the door *
* Deadline for advance registration is October 6th. Onsite payments must be made by cash or check.
Register Now: www.123signup.com/register?id=tnyqz
For More Informatio n: www.123signup.com/event?id=tnyqz
Special Thanks to our Sponsor
Please forward this on to friends and colleagues and sign up now!
Covidien sponsored this PWH® Regional Event held in Ledyard, CT in the fall of 2008. Attendees put together their “Success Puzzle.”
development and brainstorming to codify our mission, vision, core values, yearly goals and programming.
As you will realize by reading about the success of the 2024 PWH® Leadership Summit on the next several pages, we have much to celebrate as we continue to advance our PWH® mission!
PWH® Chairs (Job title during their term as Chair)
These PWH® founding members celebrated the PWH® 10-year anniversary in 2014 during a HIDA conference.
PWH® Builds Legacies through Connection
The Professional Women in Healthcare ® (PWH ® ) organization held its sixth annual PWH ® Leadership Summit in Louisville, KY, April 29 through May 1, 2024. The PWH ® Leadership Summit is our industry’s only conference dedicated to inclusive leadership development. Derby City was a fitting place to honor the legacy of PWH ® and all the great organizations that have built our industry. Thanks to Summit sponsorship from 15 industry-leading
organizations and for the generous support of 24 corporate partners, PWH® brought together 270 industry leaders.
Our dynamic program was curated by the PWH ® Leadership Summit Committee, led by April Shomper, Sr. Director, Events Strategy & Planning, Vizient. Thanks to their hard work, the event emboldened attendees to reflect on our leadership legacies, build connections and implement rituals for resilience as we continue to lead through change.
“Legacy is an imprint with impact,” said PWH® Chair and Vice President, Innovia Corporate Sales, Allison Therwhanger, as she inspired attendees to be intentional about our “ripple effect.” Allison also reminded us that this year marks the 20th anniversary of PWH® “The PWH® mission is our legacy— creating an inclusive healthcare industry equally led by women and men. I want to thank all of you who continue to support PWH® and our great industry.”
The PWH® Board is comprised of voluntary and active PWH® members who also serve as members of the PWH® Executive Committee, as Chairs or Vice Chairs of the organization’s nine other committees, and as Board Advisors.
Vizient sponsored the event’s opening keynote speaker, Adam Markel, who explained that being resilient and adaptable to the changing environment means you don’t bounce back. Instead, challenges bounce you forward. To be resilient and adaptable, however, we must prevent fatigue and burnout with “recovery rituals” that sustain our mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-bring. What are your recovery rituals?
After the opening session, attendees enjoyed a reception before heading out for small group networking dinners at various restaurants in downtown Louisville. I had the pleasure of dining with several members of the PWH® Cultural Diversity & Inclusion (CID) Committee, chaired by Enid Oquendo. Our dinner group included Joe Machicote, Chief Diversity Officer, Premier, who helped the PWH® CID Committee recently complete a 32-page white paper entitled “Cultural Inclusion & Diversity in Healthcare: Shaping the Future of Leadership.” It provides foundational information about the state of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) within our industry and is available on the PWH® website (www.mypwh.org/pwhcultural-inclusion-diversity).
Day two of the Summit began with “Leadership Insights,” sponsored by Midmark. Five industry leaders elated attendees with unique 15-minute talks on leadership.
> Sharyn Ford, Strategist, Trainer & Coach, Strategic Visions International, reminded us that we are all still recovering from the pandemic world as we rebuild our lives. Her story urged us to strategically unplug regularly and build organizational capacity for resilience.
Anne Eiting Klamar Leadership Award of Distinction
2024
Recipient:
Sue Hulsmeyer,
Chief People and Administrative Officer, Midmark Corporation
The Anne Eiting Klamar Leadership Award of Distinction recognizes a woman who is an active supporter of PWH® and who promotes PWH® within the industry. She is a woman who has experienced significant growth to become an accomplished leader (C-Suite), and a woman who has catapulted her career, scope of responsibility and professional development. She exudes confidence, integrity, and is well respected by the industry, her peers and her subordinates. She is committed to giving back and is a leader that others desire to follow and be mentored by. This award is in honor of Anne for her wisdom in recognizing the need for PWH®, her inspiration and determination to start the organization, and her leadership and mentorship to so many. Anne was the first Chair of PWH® and helped lay the groundwork for the development and continued success of the organization.
> Mark Zacur, CEO, Avantik, inspired us to learn from both effective (e.g., adaptable) and ineffective leaders. Our privilege to serve this great industry obligates us to instill passion in our teams to work and help people every day.
> Jessica Wells, Sr. Director, Customer Experience, Vizient, encouraged us to “tend” our legacy by first taking stock (looking behind, around, and clearing the clutter). Next, celebrate accomplishments before deciding how best to grow forward.
> Marisa Farabaugh, SVP/Chief Supply Chain Officer, AdventHealth, challenged us to engage lifelong learning and provided a three-step framework to bolster success: One: Learn something new. Two: Act on it. Three: Communicate and share it.
Sue Hulsmeyer (left) receives the AEK Award personally from Anne Eiting Klamar (right).
PWH® Chair and Vice President, Innovia Corporate Sales, Allison Therwhanger, inspired attendees to be intentional about our legacies as we serve this great industry.
> Gary Corless, Advisor, Former CEO & Board Member, PSS World Medical, taught us how to multiply our growth by balancing strengths with their counterparts. Be both bold and humble; thoughtful and active; demanding and grateful.
The morning session ended with a presentation of PWH® Awards. We congratulate the following outstanding industry members:
> Jessica Carney, Senior Specialist Member and Field Communications, Premier, received the 2024 Sandi Parker Leadership Scholarship with funding from Graham-Field.
> Andria Davis, Director, Supply Chain Operations, VCU Health, received the 2024 GHX Leadership Scholarship.
> Vicky Lyle, Vice President, Industry Association, Owens & Minor, received the 2024 Jana Quinn Inspirational Award.
> Sue Hulsmeyer , Chief Human Resource Officer, Midmark Corporation received the 2024 Anne Eiting Klamar Leadership Award of Distinction.
After various breakout sessions ranging in topics from workplace identity to technology turbulence and communication skills development, B. Braun sponsored a “Fireside Chat.” PWH ® Corporate Partner Committee Chair Jen O’Reilly, who also serves as Vice President, OPM Corporate Accounts for B. Braun, facilitated a conversation on “Change: Obstacle or Opportunity.” Jim Brook, Sr. Vice President / General Manager, Vizient and Christine Arme, Sr. Vice President, MedSurg, Solventum shared some hot
Jana Quinn Inspirational Award
2024 Recipient: Vicky Lyle, Vice President, Industry Associations, Owens & Minor
Professional Women in Healthcare® created the “Jana Quinn Inspirational Award” in memory of our friend, Jana Quinn, PWH® founding member, mentor and inspiration to all in the healthcare industry. The award recognizes an inspirational person in the healthcare industry, male or female, with qualities that define their success not only professionally, but throughout life. The recipient encompasses the qualities that were an inherent part of Jana. She was a mentor, role model, leader, family focused, encouraging, accepting, a loyal friend, a person not afraid to struggle, and so much more.
The 2024 PWH® Leadership Summit had a record turnout of 270 industry leaders, many of whom are pictured here during the event’s networking dinner held at the Louisville Palace Theatre.
PWH® Chair Elect Ashleigh MCLaughlin (far left), PWH® Chair Allison Therwanger (far right) and Jana Quinn’s daughter, Lia Quinn (inside right) present Vicky Lyle with the Jana Quinn Award at the 2024 PWH® Leadership Summit.
takes: “Clarity is knowing the path, not every step; Be curious, open-minded, respectful, and excited!”
GOJO, Makers of PURELL ® sponsored the final leadership panel on day three. Scott Adams, Publisher of Repertoire Magazine and Managing Partner of Share Moving Media, moderated the session entitled “Leaving Your Leadership Legacy.” Our panelists shared thoughts on legacy:
> Emily Wilburn Andrews, CEO, Wilburn Medical said, “At the end, it’s what stands and what lasts; You do not need to have it all together to be a mentor.”
> Meena Miller, Vice President and General Manager, OR Products Kits & Services, Owens & Minor said, “Sky is the limit. If you set your mind to it, then you can do it.”
> Diana LeFabvre, Executive Vice President, Medline said, “It’s the imprint of our values; There is a small amount of people we impact, and it may not be someone we have met.”
> Carrey Jaros, GOJO, Makers of Purell said, “There are little things we can do every day that add up to make a difference; Find a non-profit board to join. It will teach you and help you build a network.”
Again, the PWH ® mission is to create a more inclusive healthcare industry equally led by women and men. We hope you join us in this mission and inperson next year for more mentorship, education and networking. Save the date for the 2025 PWH ® Leadership Summit in Frisco, TX, March 31-April 2, 2025. Bring more colleagues and customers with you!
Sandra Parker Leadership Scholarship
2024 Recipient: Jessica Carney, Senior Specialist, Member and Field Communications with Premier
With funding from Graham-Field, PWH® is honored to present one woman in the healthcare industry with a scholarship to the PWH® Leadership Summit. In loving memory of one of the PWH® founding members, Sandi Parker, the scholarship recognizes an active PWH® member for selfless hard work and a spirit of commitment that invokes the memory of our PWH® forever friend.
GHX Leadership Scholarship
2024 Recipient: Andria Davis, Director, Supply Chair Operations with VCU Health
With funding from GHX, PWH® is honored to present one woman in the healthcare industry with a scholarship to the PWH® Leadership Summit. This scholarship is awarded to a Provider as an opportunity to expand the PWH® network across the Healthcare continuum.
PWH® Chair Elect Ashleigh MCLaughlin (far left), PWH® Chair Allison Therwanger (far right) and Heather Brown of Graham Field (inside right) present Jessica Carney with the Sandra Parker Leadership Scholarship Award at the 2024 PWH® Leadership Summit.
PWH® Chair Elect Ashleigh MCLaughlin (far left), PWH® Chair Allison Therwanger (far right) and Denise Odenkirk of GHX (inside right) present Andria Davis with the GHX Leadership Scholarship at the 2024 PWH® Leadership Summit.
Tending Your Legacy Garden in 3 Steps: Take Stock, Enjoy, Decide
Every PWH® Leadership Summit features Leadership Insights by industry icons. PWH® Membership Committee Chair, Jessica Wells, who also serves as Sr. Director, Customer Experience for Vizient, aligned her insight talk with the Summit’s theme of legacy. Here, we have captured Jessica’s key thoughts for those PWH® members who could not join us in-person at the Summit. Legacy. Just think about that word. Maybe it’s heavy and maybe exciting.
Either way, let’s lean into our legacy. We are all looking to belong and make an impact. We are all trying to make a mark. As Kristin Schaal says, “That’s why there are graffiti and babies.” We are building a legacy!
I think of legacy as the gift or opportunity given to someone else behind us. These gifts are something special and something fun that we all hope to leave behind. Let’s explore how we tend to our
legacy, as if it were a garden, little by little every day.
We might already have a clear path of the legacy we are building, intricately planting our seeds. Maybe we are scattering seeds everyday not realizing that our legacy is growing as we go. Or we could be staring at the bare dirt, questioning if we can make an impact. Wherever we are, we are in the middle of building our legacy. And in that middle,
we need to take the time to intentionally cultivate our legacy. Here are three steps to tend to our legacy.
1st – Take Stock
Start by taking stock. We do that by looking behind us and looking around. By looking behind, we know what is growing and how we got to where we are. Ask, how did I get to this place where I am currently leading?
Analyze the path it took to get here. To understand our path as part of our legacy, we need to look at the points of impact where we made a difference.
A pattern that emerged for me is that I have been able to lead small
nimble teams, cultivate individuals and see talent they may not see in themselves. I thrive when I’m able to cultivate those talents and send folks off to do greater things.
After looking at the path behind us, we need to look around. We may realize that there are things around us that we did not intend to be there. We want to clear this debris. Examine what isn’t working and get rid of what has wilted, even if you once loved it in its unwilted state. Dead things don’t grow! They must be removed. Dead things invite pests and decomposing processes. This is why it’s important to clear the debris.
Consider, too, that passion wains or shifts. Maybe we are no longer inspired by something that we were once passionate about. Notice when we aren’t thriving. Apathy can chomp away on our leaves. Sometimes we need to pull out certain plants from their roots, much like my once beloved but then neglected tomatillos!
2nd Step – Enjoy
After taking stock and refreshing our garden, we get to enjoy. We do this by celebrating where we are right now. Celebrate what we have already done, the work we are doing to tend our legacy.
This can be as easy as grabbing a pen and writing down one way we know we have already made an impact.
Enjoying the fruits of our labor is so important and fun. Remember, some plants will not grow as strong as they can if we don’t harvest along the way.
Soak up every part of our journey as we move forward creating our legacy. Building a legacy does not happen all at once, but little by little, so we must enjoy it along the way.
3rd Step – Decide
You get to decide what to tend, what to pull, what to plant next and what direction to head in. Time is yours to invest. Resources are yours to spend.
The people who have been placed specifically in your life are likely able to help.
As you tend to your legacy every day, tend to the little things and the big things. Make decisions to keep your garden strong and thriving.
Take stock, enjoy and decide what your thriving garden looks like for you. Good tending as you stand in the middle of your legacy!
Jessica Wells
B. Braun Champions PWH® and Employee Development
Leadership Team
Company Name: B. Braun Medical Inc.
30 Location(s): Bethlehem, PA; Allentown, PA; Daytona Beach, FL; Carrollton, TX; Irvine, CA; Dominican Republic; etc. Year Established: 1839
Number of Employees: 8,500 (US)
Number of PWH® Members: 40
Internal PWH® Champion: Don Nymberg, Vice President Sales, OPM Division
Rob Albert, Chief Executive Officer
Leigh Ann Stradford, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer
James Allen, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Joe Grispo, Senior Vice President and Chief Sales Officer
Pat Witmer, Corporate Vice President Corporate Affairs
Jim West, Senior Vice President and Chief Operations Officer
Zach Hornsby, Corporate Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer
Christiana Jacxsens, Corporate Vice President, General Counsel Life Science and Litigation
Bill Macknight, Corporate Vice President, General Counsel Tran and Legal Op
Mike Golebiowski, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer
Christian Kelly, Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer
“Professional Women in Healthcare® is a perfect complement to our development programs. It allows our employees to learn and grow by interacting with their industry peers. It also affords them the opportunity to hone skill sets that may be different from their daily work by chairing and participating on different PWH® committees. I appreciate the value that the organization brings to both our established and emerging leaders.”
– Leigh Ann Stradford, SVP & Chief HR Officer
B. Braun Vision and Mission
> What drives us: We protect and improve the health of people around the world.
> Our values: Sustainability, Accountability, Diversity, Trust, Innovation and Efficiency.
B. Braun Products and Services
B. Braun is a leader in smart infusion therapy and safe and effective pharmacy products, patient and provider safety and sustainable health solutions. We're committed to helping providers constantly improve patient satisfaction and outcomes. With products and services created to help healthcare professionals focus on what matters most—their patients—we’re uniquely positioned to help health systems succeed now and in the future.
B. Braun Top Initiatives for 2024
B. Braun is focused on driving towards our strategic goal to double the number of patients we touch, while pushing the boundaries of technology in healthcare through focused investments, strategic partnerships and new products and services.
Why B. Braun Became a PWH® Corporate Partner
B. Braun is committed to developing our employees to grow in their careers through internal learning and development programs as well as external professional organizations. Our partnership with PWH® at the diamond level demonstrates our commitment and investment in our employees.
Unique Ways B. Braun Supports PWH®
B. Braun has a PWH® Executive Advisory Board (EAB) focused on actively championing employee development, integrated leadership and gender equity to contribute to the achievement of the company’s diversity goals. The EAB manages all aspects of the program including corporate partnership, member selection and engagement, advocating for internal resources and regular communication of program updates and member contributions. This ensures that we are maximizing our investment and our employee’s engagement in the program and all the benefits afforded to the company.
The Value PWH® Brings to B. Braun
Our PWH® membership allows our employees to engage with others in the industry who have shared goals and objectives to gain empowerment in both their personal and professional lives. The EAB amplifies the opportunities available to our members including the monthly webinar series, networking and volunteer opportunities within PWH®, giving employees an opportunity to learn a new skill set.
PWH ® EXECUTIVE BOARD, 2024
ALLISON THERWHANGER
PWH® Chair
Innovia Medical
Vice President, Innovia Corporate Sales
VICKY LYLE
PWH® Past Chair
Owens & Minor
Vice President, Industry Associations
ASHLEIGH MCLAUGHLIN
PWH® Chair Elect and Treasurer
IMCO, Inc.
Chief Financial Officer
LAURA RELINE
Secretary
NDC, Inc.
Vice President, Supplier Management
APRIL SHOMPER
Leadership Summit Committee Chair
Vizient
Event Director
JENNIFER O’REILLY
Corporate Partners Committee Chair
B. Braun Medical
Vice President, National Accounts
ENID OQUENDO
Cultural Inclusion & Diversity Committee Chair
NATALIE MARTIN
Marketing Committee Chair
NDC, Inc.
Director, Creative Services
JESSICA WELLS
Membership Committee Chair
Vizient
Sr. Director, Events Strategy and Marketing, Marketing and Communications
HIDA Brings the Medical Supply Chain to Capitol Hill
By Kathryn DiBitetto, Vice President of Congressional Relations, Health Industry Distributors Association
Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA) marked the 10th anniversary of its Washington Summit and Fly-In with an advocacy program on Capitol Hill on June 5-6, 2024. Healthcare industry leaders, policy makers, and distributors convened to address pressing issues in the medical supply chain.
In addition to legislative advocacy, the summit featured a series of educational sessions and panel discussions. Attendees heard from bipartisan Congressional staffers about how a bill really becomes a law, and policy experts from American Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) about the impact of payors on the medical supply chain. These sessions equipped attendees with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate the complexities of the current healthcare environment.
The keynote speaker was Senator Susan Collins (R-ME). Senator Collins was instrumental in passage of the PREVENT Pandemics Act, HIDA’s top priority in 2022. Senator Collins authored provisions to make the medical supply chain more resilient, strengthen the Public Health Workforce through student loan relief, and professional development for HHS employees through fellowships and leadership exchange programs.
One of the key highlights of the 2024 summit was the Congressional Fly-In. More than 80 healthcare distribution executives met with Congressional offices to discuss issues of concern to the medical supply chain. HIDA members met with
> Support for Preparedness
a bipartisan cross-section of 27 Senate offices and 48 members of the House of Representatives from 35 states.
Members of the medical supply chain advocated for three key legislative and policy priorities during the Fly-In.
> Enactment of Legislation to Expedite Critical Cargo: H.R. 6140, the Facilitating Access to Swiftly Transport Goods during a Publicly Announced State of Emergency Situation (FAST PASS) is a bipartisan bill directing Secretary of Transportation to study to examine efforts to expedite the movement of critical cargo through ports. Throughout the pandemic, HIDA identified disruptive transportation delays that limited movement of medical products and restricted the ability of the supply chain to support hospitals and other providers.
Legislation: The federal government uses its authority under Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA) to assist healthcare providers responding to infectious disease outbreaks and global pandemics, including Ebola, Zika, and COVID-19. It has also supported hospitals following natural disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires and floods. In the absence of PAHPA reauthorization, the federal response to future infectious disease outbreaks will be limited.
> Education Around HIDA’s Resiliency Road Map: HIDA shared with Congress the findings of its recently published Supply Chain Resiliency Road Map, which articulated five pillars to support domestic manufacturing of medical supplies and maintain robust stockpiles. Executives advocated for a strategic blend of domestic, near-shored, and global production in order to maintain a resilient supply chain that can surge to meet the demand of future emergencies.
For education, advocacy, and professional development, the HIDA Washington Summit and Fly-In was a tremendous success. If you would like to participate in HIDA’s legislative advocacy campaign, please contact me at dibitetto@hida.org.
Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) was the key notes speaker at HIDA’s 10th annual Washington Summit and Fly-In on Capitol Hill on June 5-6, 2024.
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