2017 Telehealth Awards
2017 Awards for Excellence in Telehealth Leadership
Improved Care for Underserved Population: Award for organization that incorporates virtual health care services as part of an initiative resulting in improved quality of care and better value healthcare for underserved populations.
- Leadership Award: Illinois Telehealth Network (ITN) is a nonprofit launched by several rural hospitals in collaboration with Hospital Sisters
Health System (HSHS). With a membership today of 26 mostly rural organizations, ITN’s mission is to help members improve patient access to healthcare in rural, underserved and disadvantaged communities through the application of telehealth and telemedicine solutions. ITN has helped its members develop pilot projects such as 24/7 emergency department tele-stroke services and AnytimeCare direct-to-consumer virtual urgent care. Since its launch in 2014, the HSHS-led Tele-Stroke program has treated more than 1,500 stoke patients in 14 Emergency Departments throughout central and southern Illinois, and HSHS Medical Group has served more than 2,400 virtual urgent care patients, helping decrease unnecessary emergency room visits and facilitate follow-ups with primary care physicians. Click here for more.
- Achievement Award: Rush University Medical Center’s Tele-Stroke Network is the 24/7/365 network of Rush Medical Center and
11community hospitals throughout the Chicago region. Nationally, eligible stroke patients receive clot-busting drugs 5% if the time. Some hospitals in the Rush Network administer the clot–busting drug in 40% of the eligible patients. In the Rush TeleStroke Network, 32% percent of stroke patients consulted through our service receive tPA, with many remaining at their home hospital. Since March 2011, Rush’s physicians performed more than 3,300 telemedicine consultations, and the network projects to exceed 4,000 consultations by the end of 2017.
Improved Policy Changes to Advance Telehealth: Award for an individual or organization that demonstrated leadership in Illinois in promoting and advocating for improved telehealth policies, laws and regulations.
- Leadership Award: Presence Health researched what changes were needed in current Illinois law regarding telehealth and identified a
regulatory issue that was a substantial barrier to the delivery of behavioral health care. They recognized that lack of access to behavioral health providers, especially psychiatrists, was one of the major reasons behavioral health issues remain untreated. The barrier was the Medicaid requirement that a licensed healthcare professional be present in the room with the patient at all times during a telepsychiatry appointment. This barrier created an unnecessary cost for a tele-psychiatry consultation. Presence worked with legislative leaders in both the House and Senate to write and pass a bi-partisan bill which removed that regulatory requirement. Click here for more.
Advancing Telehealth by Innovation: Award for organization that advanced telehealth in Illinois through innovative technology, health applications or approaches to fostering partnerships and collaborations.
- Leadership Award: Regroup Therapy is a corporation located in Chicago, engaged in offering telepsychiatry services across 84 health
entity sites. Regroup provides both the HIPAA-compliant telehealth platform and the behavioral health clinician to deliver best-in-class tele-behavioral health services in shortage areas across the Midwest. Regroup is currently delivering services for 50,000 patient sessions per year in Illinois alone. At current growth rates, by the year 2018, it projects 250,000 sessions per year in Illinois.
- Achievement Award: TelePharm, a Cardinal Health company, is a retail community and outpatient telepharmacy software solution which
enables pharmacists to remotely review and dispense medications, as well as counsel patients. Their cloud-based software application is safe and secure, and makes access to a pharmacy convenient for patients. More than 50 brick-and-mortar telepharmacies in Illinois operate using TelePharm. Their solution enables pharmacies to function and maintain profitability in low-volume locations. These pharmacies serve rural patients in central, western and southern Illinois, as well as underserved, low-income communities in the Chicagoland area.

2017 Awards for Excellence in Telehealth Leadership
In Partnership with the American Telemedicine Association
Thursday, November 9, 2017
Guest Speaker:
Dr. Sabrina Smith
Interim Chief Executive Officer
American Telemedicine Association
McDermott Will & Emery LLP - Chicago, IL
Honoring:
Improved Care for Underserved Populations
Leadership Award: Illinois Telehealth Network

(from left to right) Maria Clark, ITN Finance Director; HSHS St. Francis Hospital (Litchfield); Julie D. Edwards, MBA, ITN Network Director (Springfield); David Mortimer, MDiv, ITN Administrative Director; Innovation Institute Director, Hospital Sisters of St. Francis Foundation (Springfield); Gurpreet S. Mander, MD, MBA, CPE, FAAP, ITN Executive Director and Board Member, Chief Medical Officer, HSHS St. John's Hospital (Springfield); Patricia L. Fischer, RN, MBA, FACHE, ITN Board Member, COO, HSHS St. John’s Hospital (Springfield); Erin F. Kochan, MBA, ITN Project Director (O’Fallon)
Achievement Award: Rush University Medical Center Tele-Stroke Network
Joshua Bock, Neuro Emergency Response Program at Rush and Dr. James Conners, Medical Director-Rush Telestroke Network, with Tony Licata, PCI Board Chairman
Policy Changes to Advance Telehealth
Leadership Award: Presence Health

Laura Messineo, System Director of Telehealth Strategy & Development with Tony Licata, PCI Board Chairman
Advancing Telehealth by Innovation
Leadership Award: Regroup Therapy

Justine Mitchell, Chief Clinical Officer with Tony Licata, PCI Board Chairman
Achievement Award: TelePharm
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