Montana Hospital Association Names 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award Winner: Bina Eggensperger
Bina Eggensperger Earns Top Honor for Contributions to Healthcare in Montana
The Montana Hospital Association named Bina Eggensperger of Thompson Falls, MT the winner of the association’s 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award.
MHA established the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007 to honor individuals who have made important contributions to health and/or healthcare in Montana.
“At a time when healthcare is a top national concern and a top personal concern for all of our neighbors, we stand tall on the shoulders of individuals who have worked tirelessly to improve our healthcare system,” said Rich Rasmussen, Montana Hospital Association CEO. “We’re pleased to honor the lifetime achievements of Bina Eggensperger for all of her contributions to health and healthcare in Montana.”
Bina Eggensperger has served on the CFVH Governing Board since 1986, with the exception of a few years here and there. Several of those terms she served as board chair.
"Without people like Bina, small hospitals couldn't continue to exist in these rural communities we have in Montana," explained Dr. Gregory Hanson, CFVH President/CEO. "It’s important for us to have board members outside of healthcare. She came from the newspaper industry so she has that critical thinking, question asking sort of approach to everything and she brought that in to the board room which was tremendous.”
"Bina is probably the most deserving person for this award and I've thought this for a long time," shared Erika Lawyer, CFVH Governing Board Vice-Chair.
In all of Bina’s efforts to help her own community and hospital she found her passions really narrowed in on quality care, patient safety and trustee education.
This is evident in her extensive resume of board service to improve healthcare in Montana. Beyond CFVH, she served as the chair of the Committee on Governance for the American Hospital Association (AHA) and also the AHA Leadership Development Committee. Bina also served as a board member for the Montana Hospital Association (MHA) for many years where she was instrumental in bringing the Western Regional Trustee Symposium to Montana, a healthcare trustee educational event that is coordinated by a multi-state group each year.
Bina and her husband Tom owned and operated The Sanders County Ledger for 33 years after his family owned it for 30 years previously. After retiring in 2017, they have enjoyed spending more time in their small vineyard at their home in Thompson Falls.
MHA established the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007. Recent past recipients of MHA’s Lifetime Achievement Award include Dick Brown, formerly of the Montana Hospital Association (2019); John Bartos, formerly of Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital in Hamilton (2018); and Dr. Nick Wolter, formerly of Billings Clinic (2017).
The Montana Hospital Association (MHA) is the principal advocate for the interests of members in their efforts to improve the health status of the communities they serve. MHA, in partnership with our communities, will make Montana a “Top 10 Healthy State.”