USA Health providers recognized for leadership service in the community

Three former and current USA Health staff members are among a group of professionals being recognized for the work they do in the community as recipients of the 2022 Mobile Community Health Leadership Awards. The awards were established three years ago to honor local leaders in the areas of education, awareness and action surrounding Mobile’s most urgent community health issues.

Benjamin Estrada, M.D., is a pediatric infectious diseases specialist at USA Health who has worked in the community, state and region during the pandemic on COVID-related protocols. He also serves as assistant dean for educational strategies and faculty development and professor and vice chair of pediatrics for USA’s College of Medicine.

Natalie Fox, D.N.P., executive director of academic practices, led USA Health’s efforts to provide timely and convenient COVID testing and later vaccine administration through a partnership with the City of Mobile. She previously served as chief nursing officer for USA Health Physicians Group.

Bobbie Holt-Ragler, D.N.P., a USA Health nurse and volunteer who retired after 29 years of service, continues to support her neighbors through volunteer service at the USA Center for Healthy Communities, where she connects residents with healthcare resources and education.

“This year’s honorees have shown exceptional leadership in helping our community cope with such community health issues as COVID-19, mental health and child nutrition — all of which are interrelated,” says Dr. Daryn Glassbrook, executive director of the Mobile Medical Museum. “We know that COVID-19 has stretched healthcare systems to the breaking point, but other critical illnesses, chronic health conditions, preventive and diagnostic care services demand attention as well.”

The other 2022 honorees are Corey Harvard, Prism United; John Malone Smith, Lifetime Healthcare; Ida Lockette, National Alliance on Mental Illness; Stephanie Houston, The Cookery Project; Thelma Shamburger, midwife (posthumous); Chief Jeremy P. Lami, City of Mobile Fire and Rescue Department; and Mary B. Austin Elementary School.

The awards, which are handcrafted by local artist and Mobile Medical Museum Board Treasurer April Livingston, will be diamond-shaped to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Museum by Dr. Samuel Eichold II. The awards will be presented at an outdoor luncheon on the grounds of the Mobile Medical Museum on Saturday, May 14.

“For the past three years, the Mobile Medical Museum had the honor and privilege of highlighting those in our community who pursue their passion to help others ‘live out loud’ with visible purpose and dare to perpetuate tangible lasting change,” said Valencia Belle, president of the Mobile Medical Museum Board of Trustees. “This year’s list of honorees is no exception, running the gamut of programs targeting mental, physical and spiritual health — from elementary students caring for causes to first responders answering the call of duty.”

Founded in 1962 by Dr. Samuel Eichold, II, the Mobile Medical Museum preserves and exhibits medical artifacts and archives to commemorate Mobile’s place in the history of medical education and public health within Alabama and on the Gulf Coast. The Museum’s collections and exhibitions provide the public with a broad understanding of the evolution of the art and science of healthcare.