Bernadene “Bernie” Dochnahl of Renton has been appointed to Valley Medical Center’s new Board of Trustees by UW Medicine.
Dochnahl will serve as a community trustee appointed from within the medical center’s service area. Her six-year term will begin Oct. 17. Previously, she served as a commissioner for Valley Medical Center from 1991 to 1993.
UW Medicine formed a new board of trustees to provide oversight for Valley Medical Center and its clinics as part of a strategic alliance formed between UW Medicine and Valley Medical Center on July 1.
“The board has an important role in ensuring that Valley Medical Center continues its long tradition of providing preeminent care and is well poised for the future,” said Dr. Paul G. Ramsey, CEO, UW Medicine. “The strategic alliance provides exciting opportunities to pursue important initiatives that will benefit patients and the community. Our shared commitment to providing outstanding clinical care with an emphasis on patient safety and service will further support our mission to improve the health of the public and enhance our ability to provide national leadership for healthcare reform.”
Dochnahl joins three other trustees appointed so far by UW Medicine, chair Lisa Jensen, vice chair Peter Evans and Johnese Spisso, Chief Health System Officer for UW Medicine Health System.
Also serving on the 13-member trustees’ board are the five elected hospital district commissioners, Sue Bowman, Carolyn Parnell, Don Jacobson, Dr. Aaron Heide and Anthony Hemstad.
Five other trustees remain to be appointed to the Valley trustees board.
“I am pleased to welcome Bernie Dochnahl to the board,” said Jensen of Newcastle. “She brings a wealth of experience as a leader in the South King County business community in addition to her work in healthcare and community leadership on various boards.”
Dochnahl manages and develops commercial properties in Renton and Kent. She has also held executive positions at Puget Sound Energy and Global Partnerships, a non-profit micro-lending organization. In addition, she led the healthcare reform agency under Gov. Mike Lowry in the 1990s.
She has served on the Harborview Medical Center board of trustees since 2006. Other community leadership positions include: chair, board of trustees, Mutual of Enumclaw Property and Casualty Insurance Company; former vice chair, Washington State Health Insurance Pool; and Legislative Committee, Renton Chamber of Commerce.
Dochnahl graduated magna cum laude in accounting from the University of Washington Business School.
