July 2, 2009

Broadlawns Board Appoints New Trustees

DES MOINES, Iowa (July 2, 2009) – Broadlawns Medical Center Board of Trustees  took action at its meeting on Wednesday, July 1, 2009 to accept the resignation of a long-time trustee and fill two open positions on its board of trustees.

Frank Harrison submitted his resignation to the Broadlawns Board Wednesday evening, effective immediately. Citing personal reasons, he leaves the board one year in advance of completing his second term. Harrison was re-elected in November 2000 and was serving as treasurer of the board, chair of the board’s finance committee and liaison to the Polk County Health Services Board of Directors.

“Frank Harrison has been a steady and reliable force on the Broadlawns Medical Center Board of Trustees,” said Jean Logan, RN, PhD, chair of Broadlawns Medical Center Board of Trustees. “His dedication to this hospital’s mission and its patients will be missed. We wish him all the best in his retirement.”

Karen Ellis resigned from the Board of Trustees in April 2009 for health reasons. She passed away the following May. Ellis’ resignation created an open trustee position on the board, which had not been filled until now.

In steps to fill the vacancies, the board appointed David Harkness to complete the balance of Ellis’ term through December 2012. Harkness owns and operates CM Consulting, Broadcast Media Services in Des Moines. He has an extensive background in human services and is familiar with government funding programs. He has served two six-year terms on the Broadlawns Medical Center Board of Trustees previously. He was an elected trustee from 1993 to 1998 and from 2000 to 2006, when he served on the board’s finance, planning and governance committees.

Charles Montgomery accepted the board’s appointment to fill Harrison’s vacancy, which extends through December 2010. Montgomery is a senior managing attorney for MidAmerican Energy and serves as treasurer of the U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy, focusing on building international relations through person-to-person relationships. He was Assistant Polk County Attorney from 1980 to 1986 and served as a delegation member on a U.S. State Department-sponsored fact-finding mission to Iraq. His interests in volunteerism include serving as past chair on the Governor’s Task Force on Volunteerism, and personally working with Big Brothers, Big Sisters; the Boy Scouts; and V.O.I.C.E.S., a Hmong refugee resettlement organization.

“We are pleased to have Dave Harkness and Chuck Montgomery bring their expertise and passion to the Broadlawns Board of Trustees,” said Logan. “We believe our board has done extensive due diligence on behalf of the residents of Polk County, and these two gentlemen will serve our citizens well through the end of the terms to which they have been appointed.”

Per Iowa Code, vacancies on the board of trustees may be filled by appointment by the remaining members of the board of trustees. The board is made up of seven trustees who are elected to six-year terms by the voters of Polk County. Harkness and Montgomery join the seated five trustees Mary Fuller, Cynthia Gray, Judi Lahart, Logan and Janet Metcalf to complete the board’s seven positions.

This year marks Broadlawns 85th anniversary of serving the health care needs of Polk County. With a history that reaches back to 1903 as a community health center, Broadlawns Medical Center first opened its doors as a hospital to the residents of Polk County on April 13, 1924.  Over the years, Broadlawns has adapted to the changing demands of public health care, yet remained true to its mission of offering quality health services to all Polk County residents and training tomorrow’s health care professionals.

Today, Broadlawns Medical Center is composed of:

• An acute care community hospital serving medical, surgical, mental health and primary care needs, including pediatrics and women’s health care.
• A 60-member physician practice overseeing numerous specialty clinics and outpatient services.
• A family medicine residency program that graduates physician leaders who today serve throughout Iowa and across the nation.  
   

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