ALTON, IL -- Dr. Erik Stabell is the 2012 recipient of Alton Memorial Hospital’s prestigious Chairman’s Award.

Dr. Stabell, a hospitalist and partner with Midwest Acute Care who has been on staff at AMH since 1997, received the award recently before friends and peers at the hospital’s annual Physician’s Appreciation Dinner at Lewis and Clark Community College. Ken Balsters, chairman of the hospital’s board of directors, presented the award.

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“Dr. Stabell is certainly very deserving,” Balsters said. “His compassion and clinical skills inspire confidence, and bring comfort to patients and their families.

“This is always a great honor for a doctor since nominations come from their peers along with hospital employees who work together every day to improve the health of the communities we serve. Each of the nominated physicians is a well respected member of the AMH team. On behalf of the board of directors and staff, I thank each of them for their commitment.”

Dr. Erik Stabell, right, accepts Alton Memorial Hospital’s 2012 Chairman’s Award from Ken Balsters, chairman of the AMH board of directors.    PHOTO BY PETE BASOLA

Nominations for Dr. Stabell included comments such as “one of the best clinicians I’ve ever met,” “a healer,” “scholarly and brings the latest in research and evidence-based medicine to the bedside,” “a devoted family man and father,” “wise, soft-spoken, humble and always approachable,” and “a true team player who brings all who work with him to a higher level.”

“I was surprised and honored to be this year’s recipient,” Dr. Stabell said. “We all work hard to improve the health of the people and communities that we serve, and any one of my colleagues would be worthy of the award.”

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Dr. Stabell, 57, is a Godfrey resident and has been in practice at Midwest Acute Care Consultants since 2001. Originally from Connecticut, he earned his medical degree from Rush Medical College in Chicago in 1983 before a residency in Internal Medicine at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s in Chicago (1983-86) and a fellowship in Infectious Disease at Washington University in St. Louis (1990-95). He also served as a flight surgeon for the U.S. Air Force at Edwards Air Force Base in California from 1987-90. He is certified in Infectious Disease by the American Board of Internal Medicine.

“I also want to recognize the non-physician employees at Alton Memorial Hospital who work hard for our patients and make the doctor’s lives a little easier,” Dr. Stabell said. “Each and every one of the nurses, therapists, patient care techs, lab techs and clerical staff, as well as specialized personnel in radiology, cardiology, neurology, respiratory therapy, dietary therapy, social service, chaplain’s office and other fields are absolutely indispensable to the complex nature of modern hospital medicine. My thanks go out to all of them.”

Balsters said the hospital board received numerous nominations for this year’s award. The Chairman’s Award publicly acknowledges a member of the Alton Memorial Hospital medical staff for the contributions the physician makes to the hospital and community, active participation in hospital and medical staff departmental affairs, and the promotion and practice of outstanding customer service with hospital patients and staff.

Dr. Stabell’s work with AMH includes serving as chairman of the Medical Information/Infection/Pharmacy Committee since 1998; a member of the Medical Executive Committee since 2011; and vice president of the medical staff since 2011.

Dr. Stabell says that the medical profession is changing rapidly. One of the recent challenges the AMH medical staff is facing is the introduction of computerized physician order entry (CPOE). Alton Memorial was the first BJC community hospital to adopt CPOE.

“I commend the doctors and the hospital administrative staff for taking on this challenge,” Dr. Stabell said. “I hope that our experience will translate into successful launches of CPOE at other community hospitals in the BJC system. Computers offer tremendous potential for improving the quality and safety of patient care. We all look forward to the day when computers are seamlessly integrated, allowing physicians to implement the best practices available for each individual while maintaining the human touch that is so important to the healing process.”

“Dr. Stabell is highly respected by all members of the patient care team at Alton Memorial Hospital,” said Dave Braasch, president of AMH. “His many contributions, dedication and commitment over the years confirm this recognition.”

Previous recipients of the Chairman’s Award are Leo Green, MD; Daniel Platt, MD; David Riedel, MD; Kathie Wuellner, MD; Edward Cornell, MD; Edward Harrow,

MD; Maudie Miller, MD; Robert Hamilton, MD; Edward Ragsdale, MD; Laurance Monckton, MD; Thomas Ryan, MD; Mark Allendorph, MD; John Hoelscher, MD; David Burnside, MD; Charles Schranck, MD; Randall Rogalsky, MD; and Salvador Lo Bianco, MD.

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