Samaritan Healthcare is excited to announce that Theresa Sullivan, CEO, was awarded Washington State Hospital Association’s (WSHA) highest honor—the Joe Hopkins Memorial Award. She was presented with the award at WSHA’s annual meeting on Sunday, October 22nd. The winner of the award is selected by a committee of past award recipients.

Joe Hopkins had a long career as a leader in Washington State healthcare. According to WSHA, “The Joe Hopkins Memorial Award was created in 1987 to acknowledge an individual who displays the spirit of Joe Hopkins’ vision and dedication to Washington’s hospitals. The Joe Hopkins Memorial Award is given each year as a lifetime achievement award for a healthcare leader who has made outstanding contributions to health care in the state, especially to rural health care.”

Since her arrival at Samaritan Healthcare and Moses Lake in 2014, Sullivan has led the organization in bringing region-wide inspiration, dedication, and service to rural communities. In her role as CEO of Samaritan Healthcare—and drawing on the wealth of experience of a healthcare career that spans nearly three decades—she serves as the senior executive providing strategic, financial, marketing, and programmatic direction for the hospital and clinics.

“Theresa’s vision for high-quality rural healthcare begins with the community in mind,” said Katherine Christian, president of Samaritan Healthcare’s board of commissioners. “Community is defined through the way she led the leadership team, physicians, and staff through challenges, as well as tremendous organizational growth.”

Her many accomplishments were considered in awarding Sullivan with the Joe Hopkins Memorial Award. Most notably, and with community support (65.98% voted “yes” in favor of the bond proposal), as well as many meetings and communication efforts by Sullivan and countless others, a modern, state-of-the-art Samaritan Hospital campus recently broke ground on a 55-acre parcel of land. The new Samaritan Hospital campus is scheduled to open in 2026.

“Theresa has always been active and acknowledged in her roles with various healthcare and community organizations,” said Dale Paris, Commissioner of Samaritan Healthcare. “Her guidance and steady leadership, her inspiring vision for the community, her passion for rural healthcare, and her servant heart have all greatly impacted the region far beyond the walls of Samaritan Healthcare.”

Over five years, Sullivan worked with all six regional, publicly owned healthcare organizations to create and launch Grand Columbia Health Alliance. The Alliance allows each organization to collaborate and share resources and technology—providing patients with the convenience of state-of-the-art, local healthcare without needing to travel to large cities.

Under Sullivan’s leadership, Samaritan Healthcare has recruited more than 32 new physicians and providers across 13 new specialty service lines, including six surgeons, specialists, behavioral health, additional family medicine providers, plus 200 employees in all areas. Samaritan also opened and soon expanded a secondary Rural Health Clinic (Patton Clinic) to provide primary and urgent care for the underserved population of North Moses Lake.

When faced with the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, she helped unite a team that served as the key regional healthcare organization in rural-central Washington. Their robust response earned Samaritan the 2021 WSHA Community Health Leadership Award for COVID-19 planning.

Sullivan’s leadership and commitment to providing high-quality healthcare in a rural community was recently recognized when Samaritan Healthcare received a Five-Star Quality Rating in Washington by Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. They also achieved national recognition by securing a spot among the top 153 community hospitals in the entire United States, according to Becker’s Hospital Review. (As one of six recognized from Washington, Samaritan is the only hospital located in central Washington.)

Additionally, Samaritan was accredited with ISO 9001 Quality Management certification by DNV-GL Healthcare, the national organization for standardization. The trauma center was also upgraded to a Level III Trauma Center by the Washington State Department of Health.

These are a few examples of Sullivan’s leadership. Over the last nine years, Sullivan’s legacy has displayed the spirit of Joe Hopkins’ vision and dedication to Washington’s hospitals, and it continues to develop throughout the Columbia Basin. Her passion is firmly rooted in the belief that local patients shouldn’t have to travel for the healthcare they deserve and, above all, that high-quality, rural healthcare should be accessible by all. As Sullivan has stated countless times: “When a community hospital is strengthened, the entire community is strengthened.”