For influencing health care across the state, the Michigan Health & Hospital Association (MHA) recently honored Allegiance Health President and CEO Georgia Fojtasek with the association’s highest achievement award—the 2015 Meritorious Service Award. Fojtasek has worked diligently to help shape policy on the national, state and regional levels that would improve access and quality of care for residents of Jackson and the surrounding counties, including the underserved.
“Georgia has always understood that improving the health and well-being of the people of the Jackson region required her service locally, regionally and nationally,” said MHA Board of Trustees Chairman Tom DeFauw.
“I am honored to receive the award on behalf of Allegiance Health,” said Fojtasek. “Our accomplishments are the direct result of decades of commitment by staff, physicians and governance members, including volunteer community trustees. Many of our achievements are also the result of partnerships formed between Allegiance and other community organizations that shared our vision for supporting residents of this region in becoming the healthiest in Michigan.”
Fojtasek has led Allegiance Health since 1994 with a passion for elevating the quality and safety of care, as well as improving the health and well-being of the people of the Jackson area. She has led the Allegiance team in transforming the organization into a nationally recognized regional health system, bringing services such as open-heart surgery and radiation oncology services to Jackson, launching a graduate medical education program, and establishing the Health Improvement Organization (HIO), a pioneer program which led to Allegiance receiving the prestigious Foster G. McGaw Award for community service from the American Hospital Association.