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WASHINGTON (April 22, 2022) – The American Hospital Association (AHA) will present its highest honor, the Distinguished Service Award, to Teri G. Fontenot, CEO emeritus of Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge, La. Fontenot will receive the 2020 award during a ceremony on April 25 at the AHA Annual Membership Meeting in Washington, D.C. Presentation of the award was delayed due to the pandemic.

The AHA is presenting the Distinguished Service Award to Fontenot in recognition of her significant lifetime contributions to the nation’s health care institutions and unwavering commitment to improving health care in Louisiana and neighboring states. Fontenot led Woman’s Hospital for 23 years and oversaw its expansion throughout the state and region with needed services, such as breast and gynecologic cancer care and specialized obstetrics.

“Throughout her career, Teri has demonstrated a never-ending commitment to improving the health of women and infants with innovative strategies to strengthen community partnerships and improve the health of those she served,” said Rick Pollack, AHA president and CEO. “She showed incredible leadership in response to Hurricane Katrina when it came to protecting moms, babies and the people of Louisiana. Through her leadership and dedication, she provided many significant contributions to our field and to the AHA.”

 

Fontenot has played an active role in AHA’s committee groups since 1997, serving in multiple leadership roles including chair of the AHA Operations Committee, Health Forum, Medicare DSH Advisory Group and the Committee on Nominations. She also chaired AHA’s Board of Trustees in 2012, reforming the Association’s guidance on quality improvement and delivery.

Fontenot currently is the chair of LHC Group’s Audit Committee and serves on Orlando Health’s board. Fontenot retired from Woman’s Hospital in 2019.

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About the American Hospital Association
The American Hospital Association (AHA) is a not-for-profit association of health care provider organizations and individuals that are committed to the health improvement of their communities. The AHA advocates on behalf of our nearly 5,000 member hospitals, health systems and other health care organizations, our clinician partners – including more than 270,000 affiliated physicians, 2 million nurses and other caregivers – and the 43,000 health care leaders who belong to our professional membership groups. Founded in 1898, the AHA provides insight and education for health care leaders and is a source of information on health care issues and trends. For more information, visit the AHA website at www.aha.org.