Dr. Wayne Anderson, Chief Medical Officer and general surgeon of CHI St. Alexius Health Williston, will receive the Outstanding Rural Health Provider award at the 2022 Rural and Public Health Awards Banquet, which will recognize outstanding North Dakota rural health and public health advocates for their accomplishments. The award is presented to a healthcare clinician whose practice is in rural North Dakota and has made an important contribution to his/her community and area. The awards banquet is June 9 at 6:00 pm Central, in Grand Forks.
Dr. Anderson has been with CHI since 1994. In that time, additional duties including serving as clinic professor of surgery in medical education at the University of North Dakota, and a preceptor at the University of Mary, Rocky Mountain College, and various other institutions.
“Dr. Anderson’s willingness to provide medical expertise as a resource for rural communities in western North Dakota, while educating the next generation of healthcare providers, continue to impact our region,” said Dubi Cummings, director of marketing for CHI St. Alexius Williston. Dr. Anderson is the medical director for the Williston Fire Department, where he has served over the past decade. He is responsible for medical licensure of the firefighter EMTs and paramedics, overseeing the execution of all WFD protocols for the annual emergency medical responses.
He is also the medical director for the Williston Basin School District #7, providing support to school nurses, sharing evidence-based infection control best practices and COVID-19 mitigation strategies. Lynn Douglas, school nurse coordinator for the district shares, “Dr. Anderson has provided outstanding support for myself, students, parents, and school board members with his guidance and recommendations for all healthcare needs.”
Dr. Anderson does all he can to support a healthy community as he also serves on the Williams County Vector Control Board and is a advanced trauma life support instructor of the American College of Surgeons.
About the Dakota Conference on Rural and Public Health
The Dakota Conference allows healthcare professionals, educators, and students several days to share their strategies for sustaining healthy North Dakota communities, and offers workshops, keynote speakers, poster presentations, and an awards banquet, during which the awardees are celebrated. The annual event is a joint effort by the North Dakota Rural Health Association; the North Dakota Public Health Association; Altru Health System of Grand Forks; the UND College of Nursing and Professional Disciplines; and the Center for Rural Health.
About CHI St. Alexius Health Williston
CHI St. Alexius Health is a regional health network with a unified mission: nurturing the healing ministry of the Church while creating healthier communities. In 1920 the sisters of mercy came to Williston in hopes of bringing healthcare to the community. 100 years later we are still serving their mission of providing health care through Christ’s healing ministry. CHI St. Alexius Health is part of CommonSpirit Health, a nonprofit, Catholic health system dedicated to advancing health for all people. It was created in February 2019 through the alignment of Catholic Health Initiatives and Dignity Health. CommonSpirit Health is committed to creating healthier communities, delivering exceptional patient care, and ensuring every person has access to quality health care. With its national office in Chicago and a team of approximately 150,000 employees and 25,000 physicians and advanced practice clinicians, CommonSpirit Health operates 142 hospitals and more than 700 care sites across 21 states. In FY 2018, Catholic Health Initiatives and Dignity Health had combined revenues of $29.2 billion and provided $4.2 billion in charity care, community benefit, and unreimbursed government programs.