Illinois Department of Public Health Recognizes Dr. Sally Reynolds for Excellence in Pediatric Care

Ron E. Lee, M.D. Pediatric Care Award – Lifetime Achievement

SPRINGFIELD– The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) and the Illinois Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) program is honoring Dr. Sally Reynolds, the Emergency Department Medical Director at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago with a special pediatric care Lifetime Achievement award for her contributions to childhood care.  The Ron W. Lee, M.D. – Excellence in Pediatric Care Awards are given annually by IDPH and EMSC to recognize those dedicated to pediatric emergency care and childhood injury prevention initiatives.  Individuals or organizations can be nominated in one of three award categories - Lifetime Achievement, Clinical Excellence and Community Service.
 
“Dr. Reynolds has devoted her career to improving the outcomes for ill and injured children and their unique emergency medical needs,” said IDPH Director Nirav D. Shah, M.D. J.D.  “Dr. Reynolds’ advocacy for the needs of children and her determination to provide the highest quality emergency care over the past 20 years exemplifies the qualities of a Lifetime Achievement recipient and I am proud to award Dr. Sally Reynolds the Ron W. Lee, M.D. Excellence in Pediatric Care Lifetime Achievement Award.”
 
“Through the years in her role at the hospital, she has worked tirelessly to integrate pediatrics and pediatric initiatives into disaster planning from the local, state and all the way to the federal level,” said Lurie Children’s EMS Coordinator Mary Otting.  “Through her tireless work she has truly changed for the positive, the manner in which we care for children during a disaster.”
 
Steven E. Krug, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine said, “Sally is one of those faculty who teaches beyond the content of what textbooks offer.  She teaches clinical decision making, professionalism, effective communication, and ED (emergency department) flow management.  Perhaps most important, she provides those nuggets of gold that facilitate the consistent and timely recognition of the ill child.  These represent some of those teaching moments that her trainees remember forever.”
 
“Sally has always advocated for the care of children in the ED, developing treatment pathways, and best practices.  She has been the Chairperson of the Disaster Committee and has always advocated for the inclusion of children in any disaster planning,” said Lurie Children’s Associate Director, Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine Susan Fuchs, M.D.
 
Lurie Children’s President and CEO said, “She has created a wonderful legacy of leadership, compassion, and innovation.  As Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship Director, Medical Director of PALS and Senior Medical Student Elective Coordinator, she has left an indelible mark on several generations of emergency medicine trainees.”
 
The Ron W. Lee, MD Excellence in Pediatric Care awards are presented each May.  Dr. Lee was the medical director for the Division of Emergency Medical Services and Highway Safety at IDPH, as well as the director of emergency medicine at Loyola University Medical Center and was instrumental in establishing and fostering the EMSC program in Illinois.  He passed away in 1998.
 
The Illinois EMSC program is a collaborative effort between IDPH and Loyola University Medical Center.  It was established in 1994 to ensure the emergency medical care needs of children are adequately addressed.