On November 15, 2023 the Hospital Association welcomed nearly 200 attendees to our annual meeting Wednesday morning at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick. Richard Charest, Secretary of the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services, received the association's highest honor, the Benjamin R. Sturges Distinguished Service Award.

There were two recipients of The Francis R. Dietz Award for Public Service: Senator Louis P. DiPalma, and Representative Jacquelyn Baginski.

A panel discussion, Catalysts for Change: Innovations and Collaboration for Positive Outcomes in Children's Behavioral Healthcare, was introduced by HARI Board Member Dr. Henry T. Sachs, III the President of Bradley Hospital. Tanya Kubas-Meyer, the Executive Director of Rhode Island Coalition for Children and Families was the panel's moderator. The panelists included: Margaret Holand McDuff, CEO, Family Service of Rhode Island; Dr. Farah Shafi, EVP and Chief Medical Officer, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island; Susan Stevenson, Director, Children's Services at Gateway Healthcare; Christopher Strnad, Associate Director for Community Services & Behavioral Health for DCYF; and Erin Ursillo, Director, Young Adult and Adolescent Services at Butler Hospital.