Judith Burgis to Receive Outstanding Medical Executive Award

Edward J. Ill Excellence in Medicine Association Announces 2008 Awardees

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Lawrenceville, NJ – Paul J. Hirsch, MD, Chairman of the Edward J. Ill Excellence in Medicine Association, announced that Judith Burgis of Matawan, NJ, will receive an Outstanding Medical Executive Award. The award will be presented at the Edward J. Ill Excellence in Medicine Awards™ ceremony on May 7 at the Hyatt Regency Princeton.

The Outstanding Medical Executive Award is presented to an executive in a medically related organization or field who is usually, but not necessarily, a layperson and who has demonstrated exceptional leadership in the enhancement of patient care and medical practice in New Jersey. Judith Burgis is the senior vice president for Corporate Services at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH). Her current executive functions include strategic planning, government affairs and technology assessment. A 600-bed academic medical center, RWJUH is the principal teaching hospital for UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

Ms. Burgis has more than 30 years of management experience in corporate and healthcare settings. She has been long concerned about New Jersey’s reputation for healthcare as a corridor state sandwiched between Philadelphia and New York City and is a passionate advocate for patients. Ms. Burgis and the RWJUH team have been credited for gaining state approvals to provide services not previously available in central New Jersey and for reducing out-of-state patient migration.

“It is our honor to recognize Judith Burgis as a top healthcare leader in our state,” stated Dr. Hirsch. “Her commitment to improving healthcare access for New Jersey citizens has had an enormous impact on all of us.”

The other 2008 awardees include:

The Excellence in Medicine Awards are named after Edward J. Ill, MD, a New Jersey physician who was a pioneer in promoting continuing education in ways that set the national standard.  To register for the event or to learn more about the awards, contact the Edward J. Ill Excellence in Medicine Association at 609-803-2350 or visit www.EJIawards.org. Profits from this year’s event will be donated to Hunterdon County Medication Access Partnership. The awards program is sponsored by MDAdvantage Insurance Company of New Jersey, a leading provider of medical professional liability insurance in New Jersey.

About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital

Selected as one of four hospitals nationwide to offer the world's first self-contained implantable artificial heart, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.rwjuh.edu) is a 600-bed academic medical center and the principal hospital of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, NJ. Robert Wood Johnson is an innovative leader in advancing state-of-the-art care in medicine. Its Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, and women's and children's care including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children's Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.bmsch.org). The hospital is also a Level 1 Trauma Center and serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness.

The hospital has earned significant national recognition for clinical quality and patient safety. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is ranked among the top 50 hospitals in the nation for both heart and heart surgery and respiratory disorders, according to U.S.News & World Report's 2008 ranking of "America's Best Hospitals." The American College of Surgeons' Commission on Cancer has rated Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital among the nation's best comprehensive cancer centers. The Leapfrog Group rated Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital as one of the 50 exceptional U.S. hospitals, as published in Consumers Digest magazine. Harvard University researchers, in a study commissioned by The Commonwealth Fund, identified Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital as one of the top 10 hospitals in the nation for clinical quality. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is also a recipient of the prestigious Magnet Award for Nursing Excellence for more than 10 consecutive years.


Top of Page return to top of page