A St. Anthony Regional Hospital nurse with more than 47 years of experience will be honored next week by the Iowa Association for Healthcare Quality (IAHQ). Barb Toohey, RN, BSN and MSHSA, will receive the 2021 Quality Professional Award at the IAHQ annual conference. This award is presented to members who have demonstrated the characteristics of commitment, dedication, passion and enthusiasm for the healthcare quality profession. Nominations are made by co-workers, supervisors or other IAHQ members. “Barb has been an invaluable source of knowledge and experience for St. Anthony, as well as the community as a whole,” says St. Anthony President and CEO, Ed Smith. “This award affirms the tireless work and effort that she has always put into her endeavors and we’re very proud of her.” Toohey was named St. Anthony Director of Quality Assurance in 2011 and then Vice President of Quality in June of 2019. During her nursing career, she has worked in obstetrics, quality and risk management, school and public health nursing, hospice and cardiac care and workman’s compensation case management. She started at St. Anthony in 1976, but left in 1996 when her husband, Tim Toohey, took a position in eastern Iowa. The family returned in 2009 and she became St. Anthony’s Director of Home Health, Hospice and Public Health. She is also active in the Carroll community, serving as secretary/treasurer of the district Iowa Association for Healthcare Quality for the past four years and is the current chair of the Board of Directors for New Hope in Carroll.
