Area Residents To Receive Waterbury Regional Chamber's Care Council Awards

The Waterbury Regional Chamber’s Health Care Council (HCC) will host its 12th Annual Members Breakfast and Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, June 20th, from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the Wyndham Southbury Hotel, formerly The Crowne Plaza. The event will include presenting awards to four exceptional local healthcare professionals and organizations in Greater Waterbury.

State Healthcare Advocate Ted Doolittle will be the keynote speaker for the breakfast. He will speak on the responsibilities of the Advocate’s office and on current healthcare issues facing the state. Mr. Doolittle is a seasoned government executive, attorney and former federal prosecutor who served as the Deputy Director of the Center for Program Integrity at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service (CMS). He has had a long career in healthcare, legal practice and law enforcement, and has a strong record in healthcare and fraud-related investigations and litigation.

The four awards to be presented during the event are: the 2017 Leadership Award, to Woodbury resident Dr. Peter Jacoby of Saint Mary's Hospital; the 2017 Unsung Hero Award, to Southbury resident Robin Cracco, nurse navigator in the Emergency Department at Saint Mary's; the 2017 Organizational Excellence Award to Easterseals Center for Better Hearing in Waterbury; and the 2017 Stephen Sasala Health Advocate Award to Meghan Lennon, Health & Wellness Director for the Greater Waterbury YMCA.

2017 Leadership Award: Dr. Jacoby, who was the founding chairman of the Chamber’s Health Care Council, is Chairman of Emergency Medicine at Saint Mary’s, a member of Trinity Health – New England. He is a past Council Speaker of the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Traumatology and Emergency Medicine at the University of Connecticut, School of Medicine. He is a past winner of the Phil Stent Award given annually to the Emergency Physician of the Year in Connecticut, and the 2005 recipient of the ACEP Council Meritorious Service Award. He was also named by ACEP as one of its “Heroes of Emergency Medicine” in celebration of its 40th year, and a “Healthcare Hero” by the Connecticut Hospital Association.

Dr. Jacoby is a member of the Board of Directors of Saint Mary’s Hospital Foundation, serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Emergency Medicine Political Action Committee (NEMPAC), Vice-Chairman of the Palace Theater in Waterbury, and as Chairman of the Israeli-Palestinian Cooperative for Economic Expansion (IPCEE). He was selected for the 2017 Leadership Award for his complete body of work over the past decade, and specifically for his work with Sen. Christopher S. Murphy on legislation to improve care for mental health patients nationwide, and for his work with Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary’s Opioid Task Force. His wife, Kristen Jacoby, president of United Way of Greater Waterbury, won this award in 2014. The couple resides in Woodbury.

2017 Unsung Hero Award: Cracco, RN, MSN, is a resident of Waterbury and has been a nurse at Saint Mary’s for 42 years. In her current role as nurse navigator in the Emergency Department, she provides support and guidance to patients after they are discharged from the hospital and helps them to understand both their medical conditions and the recommended treatment. She guides patients and their families through the healthcare system’s complexities, helps identify the best facility or specialist to provide follow-up care, and connects them with community resources.

A parishioner of Saints Peter and Paul Church since 1978, Cracco has served on the school’s board for 30 years and received the school’s Medal of Honor in 2016 for her leadership and volunteerism. She also is a past recipient of the H.O.P.E.S. Award and the Reverend Moon O’Donnell Award. Ms. Cracco also serves as vice president of the board of Family Services of Greater Waterbury and was selected as the 2014 Family Champion of Family Services of Greater Waterbury. She has served as a member of the Steering Committee of the Greater Waterbury Health Improvement Project (GWHIP), and subcommittees focused on improving access to care for the underserved and those in need of behavioral healthcare services. She is vice president of Saint Mary’s Hospital School of Nursing Alumni Association and a recipient of the Saint Mary’s Hospital Award for Caring.

2017 Organizational Excellence Award: Easterseals Center for Better Hearing in Waterbury is a nonprofit audiology practice that has served Greater Waterbury since 1969. It does not focus on selling products, but on meeting the unique hearing needs of patients, who range in age from birth to 99 and up. Medicaid patients make up approximately 70 percent of those who seek services at the center. Because hearing aids are not automatically covered under all medical insurance programs, the center offers financial assistance to those with significant financial hardship. In 2016, nearly 2,000 individuals and families were served at its three locations and approximately $50,000 in financial assistance was provided to local residents from a community outreach fund set up for this purpose. The goal is to ensure that patients’ hearing needs are addressed regardless of their ability to pay.

The center’s audiologists and staff also provide education to community groups on hearing loss and related subjects and attend community events to provide information about hearing loss prevention. They also are active advocates at the state and national level for causes and legislation related to hearing care.

2017 Stephen Sasala Health Advocate Award: Meghan Lennon, a resident of Southbury, is Health & Wellness Director for the Greater Waterbury YMCA. She is passionate about wellness and a role model, speaking to youth about nutrition, helping the morbidly obese make a start toward change, and helping cancer survivors feel whole again. Lennon has implemented the Y’s signature chronic disease prevention programs, such as LIVESTRONG and, this year, the Diabetes Prevention Program. She oversees all community wellness programs, group fitness, senior programming, procurement, and budgeting.

Lennon has worked for more than 10 years to provide friendly, inclusive and professional wellness programs, and was the cohort leader for New England for all YMCA’s in implementing LIVESTRONG. Her work has provided more than 150 people access to a cancer wellness program, she has led more than 300 people toward their first 5K or 10K road race, and she has made a significant health impact on the more than 20,000 people who visit the Y each year.

Platinum sponsor for the event is Saint Mary’s Hospital. Gold sponsors are Harold Leever Regional Cancer Center; OptiCare Eye Health and Vision Center; Spectrum Associates Market Research Inc. and Waterbury Hospital. Silver sponsors are CohnReznick LLP and G.S. Regan Associates.

The Waterbury Regional Chamber is one of Connecticut’s largest, representing over 1,100 businesses in Greater Waterbury. The Chamber and its Health Care Council create and distribute a semi-annual “HealthMatters” magazine produced in cooperation with the Republican-American newspaper in Waterbury.

Costs for the Annual Meeting and Awards Breakfast are $35 for Waterbury Regional Chamber members, $50 for not-yet-members, and $400 for a table of 10. For information, and to reserve a seat, visit the Chamber’s website at www.waterburychamber.com or call 203-757-0701.

S
Submitted by Southbury, CT

Become a Local Voice in Your Community!

HamletHub invites you to contribute stories, events, and more to keep your neighbors informed and connected.

Read Next