Jerry D. Larson has been elected president of the Western Washington Fair Association. Other officers include: Gary F. Gonter, vice president; Michael D. Nelson, secretary; David R. Campbell, treasurer; and Kent R. Hojem, CEO.

Olympia Downtown Association has elected officers for 2012. They include: Tracy Knostman, West Coast Bank, president; Jeanne Carras, Bonaventure, past president and treasurer; Jerry Farmer, 94.5 ROXY Radio, vice president; and Jane Offutt, Frost & Co., secretary.

Washington State Health Care Authority will make its final move as part of its merger with the state Medicaid Purchasing Administration on Feb. 21 when it relocates its remaining Lacey staff to Olympia.

The HCA office at 676 Woodland Square Loop in Lacey will close at 3 p.m. Feb. 17. On Feb. 21, the HCA will provide all customer services from HCA's headquarters at Cherry Street Plaza, 626 8th Ave. SE, Olympia. The move will not affect post office box mailing addresses used by HCA customers. Toll-free numbers for the agency's programs will not change, however, individual staff numbers will change.

The affiliation between Providence Health & Services and Swedish Health Services is official. While the organizations' names and brands will not be changing and patients won't see any difference in how they access care, by working together, Providence and Swedish can reduce costs and increase quality and access for patients.

Both health systems also will be maintaining their individual identities and heritage. Providence will retain its Catholic identity and name, and Swedish will retain its name and will remain non-religious.

The Washington State Department of Health has revoked or suspended the licenses, certifications or registrations of the following South Sound health care providers.

Mason County

In December, the Chemical Dependency Professional Program indefinitely suspended the credential of Steven Michael Dorland. Dorland failed to comply with a previous agreement.

The Washington State Department of Health has taken disciplinary actions or withdrawn charges against the following South Sound health care providers.

Lewis County

In December, the Nursing Assistant Program denied the application of registered nursing assistant applicant Lisa J. Sipe. She was convicted of child molestation.

The Washington State Health Care Authority, the legislature, Office of the Insurance Commissioner and the federal government have completed 
changes in law, administrative rules and State Plan Amendments that will provide 
some additional long-term care insurance options for individuals planning for their future care needs.
 
Similar forms of the Washington State Long-Term Care Partnership, which was approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Dec. 27, 
have already been adopted by a number of other states as authorized in 2005 federal Deficit Reduction legislation. The partnership applies to services provided at home, 
in a community setting or in an institution.

Joyce McDonald has been elected chair of the Pierce County Council. She represents District 2. Rick Talbert, who represents District 5 was named vice chair and Dick Muri, who represents District 6, was chose to serve as executive pro teem for a fourth consecutive year.

Mike Davis CSI, CDT, AACE, has joined Rush Commercial as business development manager/chief estimator. He has 26 years of design-build construction experience and has taught construction management at the post-secondary level.

U.S. HealthWorks has acquired Pacific Walk-In Clinic at 3928 Pacific Ave. SW, Lacey.

The acquisition brings the number of U.S. HealthWorks operated medical centers in Washington to 18 and increases the number of centers and worksite locations to 174 nationwide. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Tacoma-based MultiCare Health System and Franciscan Health System are among of the best-performing and most efficient health organizations in the United States, according to IMS Health.

MultiCare is No. 10 and Franciscan is No. 18 on the Top 100 Integrated Health Networks list.

The Thomson Reuters 100 Top Hospitals: Health System Benchmarks has named Providence Health & Services among the top 20 percent of best-performing systems in the country.

Providence was recognized for saving more lives, better long-term outcomes, better adherence to accepted care protocols and patient-safety standards, shorter hospital stays, higher patient-satisfaction scores and fewer patient complications.

Mason General Hospital & Family of Clinics has named its medical officers and appointed its chiefs of service for 2012. Officers include: Kevin  J. Roscoe M.D., board-certified in radiology, chief of staff; Dean E. Gushee M.D., board-certified in emergency medicine, assistant chief of staff; Albert Michael Keep M.D., board-certified in family medicine, secretary;  and Timothy J. Weber M.D., board-certified in family medicine, past chief of staff. Clinical chief of service department heads include: Anesthesia – Deborah A. Hartley CRNA;  Intensive Care Unit – Mark L. Schlauderaff M.D.;  Emergency Services – Dean E. Gushee M.D.;  Infant and Children's Services – Maria Rowena Carreon Ramirez M.D.;  Laboratory Services – J. Michael Odell M.D.;  Medical/Surgical – Christopher W. Penoyar D.O.;  Nutritional Services – Douglas F. Lindahl D.O.;  Obstetrics – Nkemdilium Nwosa M.D.;  Physical Therapy – Frederick J. Davis M.D.;  Respiratory Therapy – Douglas F. Lindahl D.O.;  Surgery – Eldie L. Cruz M.D.;  and Radiology – Kevin  J. Roscoe M.D.

Public Hospital District No. 1, the governing body of Mason General Hospital & Family of Clinics – MGH Ankle & Foot, MGH Eye Clinic, MGH Family Health, MGH Shelton Orthopedics, MGH Surgery Clinic, Mountain View Women's Health Clinic, Oakland Bay Pediatrics and Shelton Family Medicine has elected officers for its 2012 Board of Hospital Commissioners. Nancy Trucksess of Shelton was selected as president. Scott Hilburn of Shelton is secretary and Don Wilson of Potlatch is a trustee.

The Health Care Authority says five health plans have been evaluated and qualified as 
apparently successful bidders on 2012-13 contracts that will provide managed care for more than 700,000 Medicaid clients 
and Basic Health subscribers in Washington.

The health plans, all managed care organizations, are Amerigroup, Community Health Plan of Washington, Coordinated Care Corp., Molina Healthcare of Washington and UnitedHealthcare Community Plan.

Sound Physicians has reached agreements with two Covenant Health Systems hospitals in Maine to provide hospitalist services.

The Tacoma-based company will provide 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week inpatient medical coverage in partnership with community providers at St. Mary's Regional Medical Center, a 233-bed acute care hospital serving the Androscoggin County area, and St. Joseph Hospital, a 112-bed acute care facility serving Bangor and surrounding communities.

The Washington State Department of Health has taken disciplinary actions or withdrawn charges against the following South Sound health care providers.

Lewis County

In December, the Nursing Commission charged registered nurse Michelle I. Eskridge with unprofessional conduct. She allegedly failed to document administration of medication to a patient and failed to follow the medication orders for the patient.

Visiting Angels of Tacoma has been recognized as "Best of Home Care," for the second consecutive year by Home Care Pulse.

The designation is awarded to the top 25 percent of agencies in client and employee satisfaction scores and identifies agencies in the private duty home care industry that demonstrate a passion for providing the highest quality service to their clients, as well as their employees.

The Department of Labor & Industries has adopted the Hazardous Drugs rule, designed to protect Washington health care workers from exposure to chemotherapy drugs and other hazardous drugs.

The rule was adopted in response to a bill passed last year that required L&I to enact protections consistent with, but not exceeding, recommendations in the 2004 report by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and a 2010 update of that report.

Patients' health is now in their hands, thanks to a new mobile app from MultiCare.

The free MyChart app – which lets patients access medical records, ask their doctors questions, review test results and more – is available for iPhone and Android mobile devices, the Tacoma-based nonprofit health system announced Tuesday.

Donna Downing has joined Windermere Professional Partners as managing broker of the DuPont office. She has experience in residential real estate and property management.

Douglas Stamp has joined South Sound Family & Sports Medicine. He is a certified physician assistant and previously worked Tumwater Family Practice. Stamp has a bachelor's degree from Western Washington University and went on to PA school at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. He is board certified by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants and is a member of the American Academy of Physician Assistants and the Washington Academy of Physician Assistants.

The Washington State Department of Health has taken disciplinary actions or withdrawn charges against the following South Sound health care providers.

Lewis County

In December, the Nursing Commission charged registered nurse Lindsay C. Watson with unprofessional conduct. She allegedly used heroin while on duty. She was convicted of possession of a controlled substance (heroin) on two occasions, physical control of a vehicle under the influence, and possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine).

The Washington State Department of Health has revoked or suspended the licenses, certifications, or registrations of the following South Sound health care providers.

Pierce County

In December, the secretary of health ordered Barry Bakker to permanently cease and desist in any and all conduct constituting practice as a dentist or denturist in Washington unless Bakker has the proper license or meets an exemption.