Connie Huffman has been connected to Blount Memorial Hospital since she was born there 56 years ago. She is currently the president and COO of the Blount Memorial Hospital Foundation, as well as a leader within her community.

"I don't see a division between working for the hospital and working in the community. To me, it's all one because it's Blount County," Huffman said.

She's the recipient of Knox.biz's 2022 Health Care Heroes award for community outreach.

A medical career in her backyard

Huffman started her career as a file clerk for a pediatrics group in high school. Along with Dr. Tim Thurston and Dion Hunt, Huffman helped form the Foothills Pediatrics Center.

Her role was an important one. She helped them switch the group to computers, ushering the group into the digital age. She continued with the pediatrics group until 1997 when it merged with the Knoxville Pediatrics Association.

As she prepared to move to Knoxville, Huffman was instead offered a position at Blount Memorial Hospital.

"So I started my career in the medical staff office," Huffman said. "And then I got … my bachelor's and the hospital paid for my bachelor's and my master's. So I've been home ever since."

She's going on 25 years working for Blount Memorial, a community-owned hospital founded in 1937.

When she started at Blount Memorial, Huffman was a physician liaison for the medical staff office. She helped connect the other offices together to work toward improving the hospital as a whole. She worked while obtaining her master's degree, eventually becoming the director of the medical staff office in 2004.

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The hospital CEO at the time, Joe Dawson, offered her a position as an assistant administrator. She turned it down three times, stating she would accept the position only if she was able to continue working closely with doctors and patients. She accepted the fourth offer in 2005.

"I have done physician recruiting, I've been responsible for the medical staff office, the physician practices, … dietary, safety, guest services. I've had a lot of different roles over 25 years," Huffman said.

She was an assistant administrator for 16 years until March. She is still the president and COO of the Blount Memorial Hospital Foundation, a role that she adopted in 2017.

The foundation was created in 1989 to help patients in the hospital acquire the care and assistance they need. As the sole member of the foundation, the hospital receives all of the money raised and donated to use on equipment and patient costs.

"Last year, we provided over $43 million in uncompensated medical care," Huffman said. "So for those patients … we buy clothing, we provide food, prescriptions, oxygen. That's what our foundation does for our patients."

The foundation was especially helpful during the COVID-19 pandemic in getting ventilators, testing and grants to keep the hospital running. Even as the pandemic took a toll on hospitals, Huffman said Blount County united during this crisis.

"I think during COVID-19, it even made us stronger," Huffman said. "Because we wanted to come together and not only take care of our community, but we wanted to take care of each other. And our community put their arms around us and hugged us. I mean, they brought food, they sent food, they sent cards and letters."

With everything she's done, she's always worked for the community around her. She cited two aspects of her work as her proudest accomplishments: starting Foothills Pediatrics and visiting patients in the hospital.

"And then while at the hospital, one of the things that I did with guest services is I visited patients," Huffman said. "I miss that, but being able to be with a family or a patient and being a friend or listening here. It's hard to talk about."

That aspect of the job is what got her into the medical field almost 40 years ago.

"I just, I love helping people," Huffman said.

Leading in and outside the hospital

Her community outreach extends outside the hospital as well. She's on the board for Leadership Blount as the special events chair. She's a VIP with the Blount Chamber and has helped with the local Boys and Girls Club, Red Cross and the New Hope Children's Advocacy Center.

But her love for Blount County and the hospital is what drives her and inspires others. That's what the president of Chroma Manufacturing Brenda Sellers saw in Huffman. They met each other through their community work, as they both received nominations for a Blount County Athena Leader Award.

"She did a lot of community service with the Chamber and Leadership Blount, and just any type charity event she was at and represented the hospital and she was just real passionate," Sellers said.

Huffman hopes to continue helping and working with the hospital, even as Blount County grows and changes.

"Any way they'll have me," Huffman said. "Blount County is growing and we're changing. We're getting new people in here, businesses and individuals. I'm excited to see the future of our hospital in our community."

Reflecting on her 25 years with the hospital, Huffman had only one thing to say.

"I guess just that I've made a difference. A positive difference."

With changing times and hardships like a global pandemic, Huffman continues to help her community. Her work shows how one person can make a difference within a larger entity.

"It’s all about the people, my Blount Memorial Family," Huffman said. "Blount Memorial is truly a wonderful place to work. Our staff provides excellent, quality care and it takes all of us – not just our awesome clinical staff but our hundreds and hundreds of non-clinical employees. It takes a village and I’m super proud of my Blount Memorial village."

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Health Care Heroes: Connie Huffman, Blount Memorial Hospital