Bill Hunter, Medical Director, Open Door Community Health Centers
Nominated by:
Allan Katz, Executive Director, Community Health Alliance of Humboldt-Del Norte
Edward O'Neil, Ph.D, MPA, FAAN, Director and Professor, Center for the Health Professions, University of California, San Francisco
Bobbie Wunsch, Partner and Health Care Consultant, Pacific Health Consulting Group
Martin Love, CEO, Humboldt Del Norte IPA

Bill Hunter has significantly contributed to the advancement of Rural Health in California by providing direct care to patients; by implementing solutions to access, including telemedicine at Open Door Community Health Centers; and by sharing what he has learned with others across the state.

There are of course many individual clinicians that would be very deserving of this award and Bill is among them. The critical question is what distinguishes Bill from his colleagues in a way that would merit his receiving the award. Bill has been a member of our CHCF leadership program since 2006 and this has given me an opportunity to not only get to know him, but also contrast him with other leaders in the field.  Sponsored by CHCF, the Program is administered by The Center for the Health Professions at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Through seminars and other activities, fellows receive training in leadership and business skills in this two-year part-time fellowship. 

As the Medical Director of Open Door Community Health Centers since 1998, Bill entered the Program committed to providing access to care to vulnerable populations in Humboldt and Del Norte Counties.  Bill immediately applied the information and skills that he learned in the fellowship to his work at Open Door.  His fellowship project was to use technology to increase rural access to care.

While Bill’s project was ambitious and he encountered obstacles along the way, he used creative approaches to overcome resistance.  Staging "mock" visits to train providers in the telemedicine was one strategy used to promote acceptance of the new technology.  Establishing a school-based virtual clinic in one of the remote sites was another project success.  Under his leadership, Bill’s team also identified elements of primary care visits that were not well suited to telemedicine.  Bill’s project resulted in establishing an after hours clinic that sees approximately 50 patients per week for urgent care.  Over a year, this will result in 2600 additional visits.  Open Door Community Health Center sites are now connected with high quality video imaging equipment.

What makes Bill Hunter different is how he approaches the leadership tasks. He is dedicated and hard working, many are. But he adds to this a brand of creativity and inclusiveness that brings new energy and perspective to the work of expanding access and improving quality. He is a tireless advocate for these goals, but his work and leadership is never tedious. Always, with every encounter, I have found him to be optimistic and enthusiastic about his work and the prospects of improving people’s lives.

Article posted on 1/6/08