PLYMOUTH, N.H. — Speare Memorial Hospital is pleased to announce Alison Ritz, a member of the Hospital’s Board of Directors since 2008 has been named Outstanding Trustee of the Year by the New Hampshire Hospital Association (NHHA). The award is given annually to a hospital trustee whose achievement serves as an example to others in the pursuit of excellence in hospital governance.

Ms. Ritz was nominated by Michelle McEwen, FACHE, Speare’s president and CEO, based on her previous clinical and hospital experience that have been an invaluable asset to Speare. In nominating Ms. Ritz, McEwen says, “Quality and patient safety are near to Alison’s heart, and under her leadership, we have become one of the top performing critical access hospitals. She insisted that we hard-wire processes and systems to ensure that we delivered the right care, to the right patient at the right time, every time.” McEwen says Ms. Ritz has also promoted medical staff relations, help to support “friend-raising” events and engaged the community to help forward the concept of patient and family centered care.

As Ms. Ritz said when first becoming a board member at Speare, “I was very fortunate in my career, and learned quality healthcare is not just about good clinical outcomes, but also ensuring the patient feels cared about. The patient comes first in any setting.”

A progressive nursing career that spanned nearly four decades, Ms. Ritz began as a registered nurse in Canada and eventually become the vice president for clinical program management and development at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. Her experience includes hospital business development, clinical programs and facilities planning and development. Ms. Ritz and her husband live in Holderness.

Speare Memorial Hospital is a 24-hour, acute care, non-profit community hospital and health care provider serving the greater Plymouth area in central New Hampshire, and nationally ranked as a HealthStrongTM: Top 100 Critical Access Hospital. Visit online at www.speare2020.wpengine.com and join us on Facebook.