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DeNarvaez, Farnsworth Honored For Visionary Leadership In Health Care

Contact: Dave Dillon -- 573/893-3700, ext. 1311

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Two Missouri health care executives have been honored by the Missouri Hospital Association for their contributions to improving the health of their communities.

Recipients of MHA’s 2009 Visionary Leadership Awards are Denny DeNarvaez, senior vice president — regional markets of Sisters of Mercy Health System and president and CEO of St. John’s Mercy Health Care in St. Louis, and Ed Farnsworth, FACHE, president of Capital Region Medical Center in Jefferson City, Mo.

The awards were presented Thursday, Nov. 5, during a dinner ceremony at MHA’s 87th Annual Convention & Trade Show in Osage Beach, Mo.

Denny DeNarvaez, senior vice president — regional markets of Sisters of Mercy Health System and president and CEO of St. John’s Mercy Health Care in St. Louis, is congratulated by Herb B. Kuhn, MHA president and CEO.

MHA recognized Denny DeNarvaez for her leadership in structuring the health system’s services to better meet the needs of the communities they serve while identifying programs and partnerships to expand access to care for vulnerable populations in the system’s St. Louis and Washington, Mo., service areas.

“Denny’s ability to identify areas of community need and build systems to meet those needs is exemplary,” said Herb B. Kuhn, MHA president and CEO. “She has expanded and transformed the system’s service lines in St. Louis with the addition of expanded emergency care, cardiac care and pediatric services. At the same time, she has focused on primary care access for the uninsured and underinsured by expanding outpatient clinic services in St. Louis and Washington.”

DeNarvaez’s leadership and willingness to partner with both organizations and physicians was essential in establishing the St. John’s Mercy Heart and Vascular Hospital and the St. John’s Mercy Children’s Hospital. In addition, a partnership with Dubuis Health System has expanded access to long-term care, and a partnership with Centerre Healthcare allowed for the establishment of the St. John’s Mercy Rehabilitation Hospital.

Care for the poor and uninsured also is a priority for DeNarvaez. She has championed the St. John’s Mercy Neighborhood Ministry to connect patients in need with health and social services programs available in the community. She also has expanded the John F. Kennedy Memorial Outpatient Clinic located within St. John’s Mercy Medical Center and the McAuley Clinic in Washington, to meet the increasing demand for outpatient primary and specialty care for the uninsured.

Herb B. Kuhn, (left)MHA president and CEO, congratulates Ed Farnsworth, president of Capital Region Medical Center in Jefferson City, Mo.

Ed Farnsworth, FACHE, was honored by MHA for his efforts to improve health and promote wellness within the community.

“Ed’s dynamic leadership helped reshape the health care environment in Jefferson City,” Kuhn said. “He was a driving force behind the merger that created Capital Region Medical Center, and has been a fierce advocate for expanding health services into the communities the hospital serves.”

Farnsworth’s leadership was essential to merging Jefferson City’s Still Regional Medical Center and Memorial Community Hospital into Capital Region Medical Center. He has focused on strengthening hospital-based acute care services while extending and decentralizing the hospital’s community-based services. Under his leadership, CRMC established the Goldschmidt Cancer Center, enhanced its emergency services, transitioned to private inpatient rooms and adopted electronic medical record technologies to increase quality and patient satisfaction.

Farnsworth has worked to bring the hospital’s services into the community. Throughout the last 12 years, the hospital’s clinical system expanded from 14 clinics and 26 providers to 22 clinics and more than 80 providers. Access to community health service has increased remarkably, with clinic visits growing from 145,000 in 2004 to 207,000 in 2009. In addition to its significant clinical presence, Capital Region Medical Center’s outreach efforts include a home health agency, fitness center, a sports medicine program and a flourishing screening and vaccination outreach program.

The Missouri Hospital Association is a not-for-profit association in Jefferson City that represents 153 Missouri hospitals. In addition to representation and advocacy on behalf of its membership, the association offers continuing education programs on current health care topics and seeks to educate the public, as well as legislative representatives, about health care issues.

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