Members Only

RELEASE DATE: MAY 1, 2009

MEDIA CONTACT: Rebecca Davis, Executive Director 270-925-5611
RDavis@NCHN.org

LOCAL LEADER WINS NATIONAL AWARD

Tim Cox, Bismarck, ND -- Outstanding Health Network Leader of 2009

In late April, 2009, the National Cooperative of Health Networks Association (NCHN) announced their first national award winners during their annual conference in Charleston, SC. Tim Cox was selected as the first recipient nationally of the NCHN Outstanding Network Leader of 2009.

By definition, health networks are formed when three or more health care providers formally come together to better meet the needs of patients in their service area. These providers often include hospitals, community health centers, critical access hospitals, physician practices, mental health providers, rural health clinics and other for-profit and not-for-profit health care organizations. These networks work to increase access to quality health care for local patients and streamline the cost of that care, as well.

The Outstanding Network Leader of the Year Award recognizes a network leader with at least 5 years experience for leadership in managing a successful health network organization. This award is meant to be inclusive of all types of health networks, alliances, collaboratives, and consortiums. Award winners were nominated and chosen by their national peers.


Tim is President of the Northland Healthcare Alliance, a rural health alliance located in Bismarck, North Dakota. The Alliance includes 24 healthcare facilities (one tertiary medical center, 14 Critical Access hospitals, and nine long-term care facilities) working together to strengthen available resources and capacity to deliver value-based healthcare in today’s competitive market. Under Tim’s leadership, the Alliance has been able to secure over $10 million for members and network programs. The Alliance is focused on becoming a form of a RHIO (Regional Health Information Organization) with the objective of serving as a clearinghouse for patient medical information for hospitals in the region.

Over the past 17 years, Tim has been engaged in many healthcare networking activities in different regions of the country. Prior to his current position, Tim served as the Executive Director of the Association of Rural Centers for Health, a hospital network comprised of small rural hospitals located in the corners of Utah, Idaho and Wyoming. Tim is also a charter member and past president of NCHN, a board member of Communities Joined in Action (CJA), and has been recently elected to the board of the National PACE Association.

NCHN is a national level professional membership organization of health network leaders across the nation. Its mission is to support and strengthen health alliances through collaboration, networking, leadership development and education. The Association has members in 33 states. Its major focus in 2009 will be a continued emphasis on supporting Network Leaders across the nation through the expansion of the Executive Coaching Program, ongoing regional conferences and workshops, and the development of a specialized training curriculum around Health Network Governance. This Governance learning opportunity will include strategies for success with Board selection, training, and coordination.