Willis Named to Maryland Rural Health Association Board of Directors

Patti Willis, senior vice president, Strategy and Communications

Patti Willis, senior vice president, Strategy and Communications, has been appointed to the Maryland Rural Health Association Board of Directors.

The Maryland Rural Health Association is a non-profit organization whose mission is to educate and advocate for the optimal health of rural communities and their residents and is made up of rural community members and organizations. Membership is comprised of local health departments, community and regional hospitals, community health centers, area health education centers, health professionals, and community members in rural areas throughout Maryland. Of Maryland’s 24 counties, 18 are considered rural by the state. With a population of over 1.6 million, these rural counties differ greatly from the state’s urban areas.

Willis is a 2000 graduate of Shore Leadership. Active in a variety of community organizations throughout her career, Willis is past president of Easton Rotary a past member of the Boards of Hospice Queen Anne’s (now Compass Regional Hospice) and Talbot Hospice Foundation. She served on the Boards of Directors of Caroline, Talbot and Kent Chambers of Commerce, and is a past chairman of the Board of Talbot County Chamber of Commerce. She is past president of the Maryland Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations and a senior member of the Society of Healthcare Strategy and Market Development. Willis was selected Business Woman of the Year by the Talbot Chamber of Commerce in 2004, was named one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women in 2005 and was named the Mid Shore Woman of Distinction in 2011.

Other new Board members are: Mark Boucot, of Garrett Regional Medical Center; Andrea Mathias, of Worcester County Health Department; and Larry Polsky, of Calvert County Health Department.

Information about the Maryland Rural Health Association maybe found online at www.mdruralhealth.org.