Hospital board appoints two new members.

Melissa Fuehring

Hospital board appoints two new members.

LUDINGTON — The Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital board approved the nominations of two new members at its meeting October 2, announced Ken Rocco, board chairman.

Rich VandenHeuvel of Pere Marquette Township and Melissa Fuehring of Mears joined the hospital board, filling new terms for longtime board members Al Deering and Dr. Allan Nelson, who served the Ludington Hospital board for 14 years and 29 years, respectively.

  We are very pleased to welcome Melissa and Rich to the Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital board,” said Rocco. “With their extensive health care backgrounds, both will bring in-depth knowledge and experience to the board. We’re fortunate to have recruited members with their level of expertise.”

  Fuehring holds a master’s degree in nursing and has clinical experience in emergency medicine, intensive care, radiology, special procedures laboratory, outpatient surgery and hospice case management. She has also maintained the finances and personnel records for Fuehring Farms, LLC in Mears. She is currently employed as an instructor with West Shore Educational Service District and resides in Mears with her husband, Dwight, and their two children.

Rich VandenHeuvel

VandenHeuvel holds a master’s degree in social work and is a principal at Health Management Associates, an independent national research and consulting firm specializing in publicly funded health care. Prior to his work as a consultant, he was CEO of a public behavioral health managed care organization and prior to that served as executive director of West Michigan Community Mental Health System in Ludington. He is a Pere Marquette Township resident, where he lives with his wife, Stephanie Wagner, and their two children.

  “In addition to welcoming our two new members, we don’t want to lose sight of saying thank you to Al Deering and Dr. Allan Nelson, who have served collectively nearly 45 years on this board,” said Randy Kelley, president of Spectrum Health Ludington Hospital. “We are very grateful for their time, expertise and dedication to serving their respective communities in this way.”

  Deering, who lives in Scottville, served as board chair, board vice chair and governance chair during his 14-year tenure on the board of Ludington Hospital. During his tenure, he also served on multiple committees including the Strategic Task Force Committee which made the recommendation to join the Spectrum Health system. Deering, as board chair at the time, led the hospital through its integration with Spectrum Health. Nelson, who lives in Summit Township, also served on the Strategic Task Force Committee, as well as the Governance Committee. Nelson has been a member of the active medical staff for 38 years.

  In other board news, two members recently became graduates of the Michigan Health and Hospital Association Excellence in Governance Fellowship. Rocco and Jim Scatena, board treasurer, were two of 11 board trustees throughout Michigan who graduated from the nine-month MHA program. The fellowship  focuses on enhancing board member knowledge, skills and value with in-depth coverage of topics including principles of effective governance, the board’s role in quality and safety efforts, the interdependence of physician, executive and board leadership in a changing healthcare environment, and applying skills to evaluate healthcare models and strategies.