HR0964 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0964 LRB093 22262 KEF 51254 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to recognize Barbara B. Dallas of Murphysboro on the occasion of her retirement from the Illinois Hospital Association after almost 25 years of representing the interests of and advocating on behalf of the 90 small rural Illinois hospitals; and

WHEREAS, As a collaborator and initiator, she has played a founding role in such organizations as the Illinois Rural Health Association and the Illinois Critical Access Hospital Network; where she sees the need, she brings people together to address the need and better the future; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Dallas has over the years made many contributions to rural health including spearheading the Illinois Health Association 1997 Rural Hospitals' Transitional Models Initiative and the 2000 Community Transition Project; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Dallas is a charter board member and past president of the Illinois Rural Health Association; she is a past member of the Governor's Delta Advisory Council and the Rural Partners Board, and has had various roles with other organizations, such as the Rural Affairs Council, the Illinois Area Health Education Center, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, the University of Illinois College of Medicine, and the Illinois Farm Bureau; in addition, she has been a frequent contributor to national, state, and regional publications on rural health issues; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Dallas has received many awards and honors, including the IRHA 2003 Rural Health Worker of the Year Award; she was a Presidential Award recipient in 1991, 1992, 1997, and 2003, and won the Service Award in 1996; and she was also presented with the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs Special Recognition Award for 2004; and

WHEREAS, Her knowledge and education of hospital CEOs and boards of trustee has lead Illinois to have one of the highest success rates in maintaining access to quality healthcare in rural areas; she has encouraged communities to realize the transition they have experienced in healthcare and move to Critical Access Hospital designation where appropriate; the educational material she has produced, Leadership and Action in Transition, is recognized and used in Illinois and in several other states including Arkansas, Arizona, Mississippi and Texas; and

WHEREAS, The growth, care, and development of the Small and Rural Hospital Constituency Section of the Illinois Hospital Association over the past twenty-five years has been a labor of love for Barbara Dallas and a contribution of major significance; her most significant contribution may be in the number of administrators and members of hospital boards for whom she has been a trusted advisor and friend; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Barbara B. Dallas on her retirement after many years of hard work and dedication on behalf of small rural Illinois hospitals; and we wish her good health and happiness in all of her future endeavors; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Barbara B. Dallas as an expression of our respect and esteem.