Steve, Dan and Patricia are invaluable leaders for Dartmouth Health during a transformational juncture in healthcare, statewide and nationally.
Joanne M. Conroy, MDTwo members of Dartmouth Health leadership and a Dartmouth Health member hospital board member were honored at the New Hampshire Hospital Association’s (NHHA) annual meeting earlier this week. Chief strategy officer Stephen J. LeBlanc, chief financial officer Daniel P. Jantzen, and Valley Regional Hospital board vice chair Patricia Putnam are among the 2025 recipients of NHHA’s Awards of Excellence.
LeBlanc was recognized with the James A. Hamilton Founder’s Award, NHHA’s highest honor, recognizing outstanding service to healthcare on behalf of the people of New Hampshire. NHHA selected LeBlanc for this award for his leadership in the creation of the New England Alliance for Health, carrying out Dartmouth Health’s commitment to rural health delivery, and leading Dartmouth Health’s involvement in payment reform efforts, going back to the creation of an Accountable Care Organization that allowed other Granite State hospitals to participate and learn from Dartmouth Health’s ACO experience.
Jantzen received NHHA’s President’s Award for making an exceptional contribution directly to NHHA, playing an active role in furthering the purposes of NHHA, and adding maximum value to the field of healthcare. NHHA highlighted Jantzen’s contributions during its work with the state to achieve a new agreement for the Medicaid Enhancement Tax/Disproportionate Share Program. Jantzen was part of a small group that met daily to craft a mutually acceptable agreement for the state and local hospitals.
Putnam was recognized with the Outstanding Trustee of the Year Award, which is presented to a trustee of a NHHA member institution who demonstrates exemplary hospital trusteeship, and who serves as an example to encourage others in the pursuit of excellence in hospital governance. Putnam was instrumental in guiding Valley Regional’s successful affiliation with Dartmouth Health and remains an active member of the community, committed to ensuring sustainability, affordability and access to care for small and underserved communities in the Claremont area.
“Steve, Dan and Patricia are invaluable leaders for Dartmouth Health during a transformational juncture in healthcare, statewide and nationally,” said Dartmouth Health CEO and president Joanne M. Conroy, MD. “They each bring a unique set of skills to their roles and share a commitment to always acting in the best interest of our patients and the health of our communities, now and into the future. I’m proud to call them colleagues and thrilled that NHHA has celebrated their contributions to healthcare in New Hampshire.”
“We are honored to be able to celebrate the true heart of healthcare: the tireless dedication and bold leadership of our award recipients,” said NHHA president Steve Ahnen. “They represent the gold standard for elevating patient care, championing innovation and deepening the vital trust between our hospitals and the communities we are privileged to serve.”
About Valley Regional Hospital
Valley Regional Hospital, a Dartmouth Health member, has been serving the needs of Sullivan County, NH, for more than 130 years. Evolving with the needs of its community, Valley Regional is a federally- designated critical access hospital with services that include 21-bed inpatient suites and a progressive care unit, 24/7 emergency department, urgent care, lab, rehabilitation services, and imaging. Valley Regional also offers a breadth of outpatient services including primary care, cardiac and pulmonary therapy, behavioral health services, orthopaedics, podiatry, oncology and infusion services, women’s health, and Dartmouth Health Children’s pediatric care. Learn more at vrh.org.
About Dartmouth Health
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire’s only academic health system and largest private employer, serves patients across New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,300 providers in nearly every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH. Its network of hospitals, outpatient centers, clinics and home care facilities, spans a broad geographical area. Year after year, DHMC is named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is consistently recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, northern New England’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers and one of less than than 60 total nationally; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes the state’s only children’s hospital (Children’s Hospital at DHMC/CHaD) and more than 20 locations around the region; eight member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, Claremont, Hampstead, and New London, NH, and Windsor and Bennington, VT; Dartmouth Health Home Care; Dartmouth Health Connected Care Center for Telehealth, serving patients as far away as Texas; and more than 30 primary and multi-specialty clinics across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its partnership with Dartmouth College, Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine and the White River Junction VA Medical Center, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials with international impact. Dartmouth Health and its more than 16,000 employees are committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in the communities it serves and to providing every patient with exceptional, state-of-the-art, personalized care. Learn more at dartmouth-health.org.