ISU-Boise HIV Educator Receives a Top Health Care Hero Honor; Speech and Language Clinic and Pharmacy Professor also Recognized

Boise - Idaho State University-Boise’s HIV education coordinator Judy Thorne has received the top honor in the educator category of the third annual Idaho Business Review's Health Care Hero awards competition. Winners were announced Oct. 8 during a dinner in Boise.

Other ISU honorees recognized at the event were clinical assistant pharmacy professor Elaine Ladd, Pharm. D., in the volunteer category, and the ISU-Boise Speech and Language Clinic in the rehabilitation category. The clinic is staffed by director Kristin Negilski and clinical faculty Sarah Connolly, Beth Guryan and Martha Malkasian.

ISU-Boise speech-language pathology master's student Meredith Ann Alder was awarded the newspaper's $1,000 Health Care Heroes student scholarship. Barb Mason, Pharm.D., chair of the ISU College of Pharmacy, was a keynote speaker.

Thorne, who joined ISU in 2003, received the top honor for her work in HIV/AIDS education--specifically with underserved populations in the Treasure Valley.

Thorne and the other ISU finalists were among 30 honorees representing 10 categories in health care and medical education. Judges - which included representatives from the Idaho Alliance of Nursing, Idaho Hospital Association and Idaho Health Care Association--selected a top honor from each category.

Idaho State University, Regence Blue Shield of Idaho and Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center are presenting sponsors of the Health Care Heroes’ program.