Public Health Excellence Award
Healthy Rural California’s Board of Directors receives nominations and selects award recipients twice a year for the Andy Miller, MD Public Health Excellence Award. Awards are presented at the spring dinner and December gala. The Board reserves the right to present the award once or twice a year. The award may go to any excellent and outstanding public health individual, program or organization in the rural and underserved areas of the State. This page was updated in August 2022.
2020 Awards
The Public Health Excellence Award was created in the spring of 2020 as public health efforts and Public Health Officers were disparaged, threatened or forced to resign. Dr. Andy Miller was the Public Health Officer for Butte County before, during and after the Camp Fire. As he stepped out of this position in the Spring of 2020 and Healthy Rural California was first launching, the first award was presented to Dr. Miller. The Board immediately voted to present the award to more Public Health Officers and to name the award after Dr. Miller.
These 3 Public Health Officers received the award in the summer and fall of 2020: Dr. Karen Ramstrom of Shasta County (pictured) , Dr. Phoung Luu of Yuba and Sutter Counties (pictured) , and Dr. Aimee Sisson of Placer County who resigned and moved to Yolo County soon after receiving the award. Dr. Ramstrom was fired from her position in 2022.
2021 Award
Enloe Medical Center’s Substance Use Navigation (SUN) program led by Dr. James Moore and Jake Miller received the award for their hard work and diligence creating the program. In 2022, the SUN program recorded 500 Bupenophrine starts. Dr. Moore and Jake remain actively involved with the Butte Glenn Opioid Safety Coalition and the MAT Provider Workgroup, and have made many presentations encouraging physicians to provide MAT. Also something to cheer: Medi-Cal offers reimbursement for physicians providing Medically Assisted Treatment (MAT). Dr. Liston presented the award virtually at Butte-Glenn Medical Society’s Virtual Opioid Summit in September 2021 and gave the framed award to Dr. Moore privately due to COVID surges.
2022 Award(s)
Enloe Medical Center’s Monoclonal Antibody Treatment (MAB) program was recognized for their diligence in establishing MAB early in the pandemic as well as fast and effective distribution of the vaccine. The award was presented to Dr. Marcia Nelson and Chris Marking, Director of Pharmacy, at the BGMS/HRC Dinner April 6.
Healthy Rural California’s Board met on August 8 and reviewed 6 nominations! The award winner will be announced shortly.
