TORCH’s staff and Board of Directors would like to thank the hospital attendees and corporate sponsors for making the 2007 TORCH Annual Conference and Trade Show a great success. We had over 500 attendees for the second year in a row and we were blessed with the generous support of a number of our corporate members and endorsed vendors, as well as some companies that were new to the show.
Our presenters this year gave it their all and addressed this year’s theme with purpose and skill. Transparency is an evolving public policy issue, and each speaker did an excellent job of dissecting the subject from their own point of view and providing valuable information. Thank you to all of the members of our talented faculty for 2007:

 • Larry Anderson, CPA, JW Anderson & Associates, PC, Lubbock
 • John Ansbach, RECON Intelligence Services, Dallas
 • Fletcher Brown, JD, Davis & Wilkerson, PC, Austin
 • Shannon Calhoun, Southeast Texas Health System, Goliad
 • Bob Charron, BR Healthcare Services, Flint
 • Jennifer Claymon, JD, Davis & Wilkerson, PC, Austin
 • Barry Couch, HealthSure Insurance Services, Temple
 • Brian Dabson, Rural Policy Research Institute, Columbia, Missouri
 • Ron Davis, Titus Regional Medical Center, Mount Pleasant
 • Brandon Durbin, CPA, Durbin & Company, Lubbock
 • Preston Gee, Phase 2 Consulting, Houston
 • Steve Gularte, El Campo Memorial Hospital, El Campo
 • Ann Heape, RN, HealthSure Insurance Services, Temple
 • Steve Jolly, SRJ Marketing Communications, Dallas
 • Amy Jones, Zig Ziglar, Inc., Dallas
 • Ron Luke, Ph.D, Research & Planning Consultants, Austin
 • Don May, American Hospital Association, Chicago, Illinois
 • Camille Miller, Texas Health Policy Institute, Austin
 • Alan Morgan, National Rural Health Association, Alexandria, Virginia
 • William Parrish, CPA, Parrish, Moody & Fikes, pc, Waco
 • Mary Patterson, Trans-Century Resources, Austin
 • Kevin Reed, JD, Davis & Wilkerson, PC, Austin
 • Jay Seifert, LoneStart, Dripping Springs
 • Kenneth Shine, MD, University of Texas System, Austin
 • Tom Watson, CPA, BKD, LLP, Houston

We want to thank each and every participant for their unique and valuable contributions to this event. Our goal of making each meeting better than the last would not be possible if it weren’t for the support of the many exhibitors and sponsors who make such a significant investment in the TORCH Annual Conference. Please be sure and refer to your syllabus for a list of the vendors that you met with in Dallas. Join us again next March for the 2008 Texas Conference of Rural and Community Hospitals.

John Boff passed away on July 22, 2006. On that day, rural hospitals in Texas and all across the country lost a true champion. However, John’s many achievements and his contributions to rural healthcare are still reflected in all that we do. In that spirit, the Board of Directors decided to dedicate this year’s TORCH Annual Conference to the memory of our beloved founder and former President/CEO.
      The Texas Conference of Rural and Community Hospitals is a major part of John’s enduring legacy and as always, we are extremely gratified that so many of our TORCH members took part. Two of John’s sons, Shane and Paul, as well as their families, were on hand to take part in the dedication ceremony and remembrance of John in a special video and music presentation. We appreciate their participation in the other events also. John’s family has a deep admiration for TORCH and the support of its many members.
      Everyone knows that the TORCH Annual Conference and Trade Show truly was John’s pride and joy. Thank you for making this year’s Annual Meeting a very special occasion and if you haven’t already, please consider making a contribution to the John F. Boff Endowed Fellowship Fund. Donations should be made payable to the HSC Foundation and sent to the Texas A&M University Health Science Center, School of Rural Public Health, 1266 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843.

In recognition of three decades of service to Brownfield Regional Medical Center and to the community of Brownfield, Mike Click has been named the recipient of the 2007 “Gordon Russell Merit Award.” This award exists to recognize outstanding achievement by rural and community hospital administrators for their leadership and dedication to the profession.
Gordon Russell, the award’s namesake, was the administrator of Hi-Plains Hospital for over 40 years and a former mayor of Hale Center, Texas. Mr. Click was selected for his dedication to rural health care, nursing, his active involvement in TORCH as a Board Member, as well as the Governor’s EMS & Trauma Advisory Council.
      Mr. Click has over 30 years of experience with rural hospitals as both a registered nurse and administrator. After completing his nursing degree, Mike worked at Cook Memorial Hospital in Levelland for two years before coming to Brownfield Regional Medical Center. He went from Charge Nurse, to Director of Nursing in six years. From there, he became the UR/QA Director and has been Brownfield’s Administrator/CEO for the last 17 years. He is a Certified Peace Officer, a Licensed Minister, and an accomplished Football Official. Mike is also a charter member of the Advisory Board of the South Plains College School of Nursing and the Texas Tech Continuing Education program Advisory Board.
      In the nomination letter by Randall Young, CEO at Lamb Healthcare Center in Littlefield, it was written that “Mike is not one to seek recognition. However, he is well known and respected in his community, among his peers and at the state level. I appreciate the opportunity to nominate one of the most honest, genuine people I have ever met for this prestigious award.”
       TORCH wishes to congratulate Mike Click on being selected as this year’s recipient of the Gordon Russell Merit Award. The honor is well deserved.

Hospitals depend on the local media to share news and information about changes taking place within the healthcare industry. Local newspapers as well as radio and television stations are also an important part of any successful public relations campaign. Therefore, the Texas Organization of Rural & Community Hospitals developed the TORCH MEDIA SUCCESS AWARDS to recognize local media for its role in advocating for rural and community hospitals.
      The awards for Colorado-Fayette Medical Center/Weimar Mercury and Childress Regional Medical Center/Childress Index were presented at the TORCH Annual Awards Luncheon held in Dallas on April 4th.This year’s winners did an outstanding job of informing the citizens of Weimar, Childress and the surrounding counties about the good things taking place at their local hospitals.
      On hand to receive the awards were James Robinson, CEO of the hospital in Weimar, and John Henderson, CEO of the hospital in Childress. Both the hospital and the newspaper received a matching plaque to symbolize the ongoing partnership that these organizations have developed within their local community.
David Pearson, President/CEO of TORCH, said “It is a pleasure to present this year’s Media Success Awards to such deserving institutions. Newspapers and hospitals are the bedrock of the community and when they cooperate effectively, great things can happen.”
      Jim Buckner, Chair of the TORCH Board of Directors and CEO of the Uvalde Memorial Hospital, said “Congratulations to Colorado-Fayette Medical Center, Childress Regional Medical Center and their respective newspapers for working to improve communications and the understanding of rural hospitals. We hope to encourage more rural hospitals to reach out the local media and tell their story.”

In order to honor and recognize those individuals who were most heavily involved in the creation and ongoing leadership of our organization, TORCH unveiled three new plaques that will be prominently displayed in our Austin office. One plaque lists the names of the eight founders of our organization. The second is a list of the hospital administrators who have been selected to receive the Gordon Russell Merit Award. The last is a chronological listing of the hospital administrators that have ascended to be Chair of the TORCH Board of Directors. TORCH would like to thank all those who have served in leadership positions for our organization over the years. Due to your leadership and the support of our member hospitals, TORCH will continue to be a strong advocate for rural hospitals in the years to come.

At this year’s conference, TORCH paid a special tribute on the passing of Frances T. Smith, long time CEO of Childress Regional Medical Center, was an active participant in rural health care issues in Texas for many years and was remembered for her many contributions and achievements. She served on the TORCH Board of Directors and before her retirement, was a recipient of the TORCH Gordon Russell Merit Award. The years, Frances mentored many young people entering the health care field, both in patient care and administration, was a role model for countless rural hospital administrators across the state.
      In his comments upon accepting the tribute, John Henderson, who succeeded Frances as CEO at the Childress hospital, talked of Frances’ intelligence and dedication as being her strengths in tirelessly working for the hospital and community. He expressed the thanks of Frances’ family and the hospital for the special ceremony and remembrance of Frances and her service to rural hospitals and to the Texas Organization of Rural & Community Hospitals.

At the Annual Conference in April, TORCH honored Mary Walker for her years of service to hospitals in Texas as CEO of Texas Healthcare Trustees. She was recognized for her leadership in providing many outstanding programs for hospital board trustees. Mary’s dedication to her work brought valuable services to rural hospitals to enable their trustees to effectively serve their communities.

A special membership meeting was held on April 4th to give hospitals attending the TORCH Conference information on the expanded Alliance IT services and participants received details on the new Foundation services and grant activities which will provide many benefits to rural hospitals in Texas.
      The Alliance offers many telecommunication services and the Community Hospitals Foundation of Texas is the new TORCH affiliated foundation which was recently successful in receiving a $162,000 grant from ORCA for quality improvement services for rural hospitals. Additional information on both CHFTX and the Alliance is in the special newsletter, “Cornerstone,” which is provided to all rural hospitals in Texas.