PLEASANT GAP – Susan Hartman, chief executive officer of HealthSouth Nittany Valley Rehabilitation Hospital, has been named to serve on the board of directors of the Rehabilitation and Community Providers Association (RCPA), a new association that will be among the largest state health and human services trade groups in the nation.
“This really is a landmark moment for the provider community,” said RCPA president and chief executive officer Richard Edley, Ph.D. “We’re really fortunate to have someone with Susan Hartman’s skills and experience to help guide us as we head into this new era of service and advocacy.”
Hartman joined HealthSouth in 1994 and has worked in rehabilitation since 1990. Prior to her current position as CEO, she held regional responsibilities for HealthSouth in the area of business development. Hartman is also the chair of the Medical Division Committee for RCPA, and a member of the Hospital Association of Pennsylvania (HAP).
She holds a Bachelor’s degree from Elizabethtown College and a Master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University. Hartman also serves on the board of directors of Centre Volunteers in Medicine.
RCPA was created by a merger between the Pennsylvania Association of Rehabilitation Facilities (PARF) and the Pennsylvania Community Providers Association (PCPA). Members of the two organizations met separately and voted unanimously to approve the merger, which took effect July 1. The two associations, which share a long history of cooperation and partnerships, began exploring the merger in 2009.
As a single entity, RCPA will continue the associations’ joint missions to enhance advocacy, education, project support, public information and policy development for the benefit of individuals with mental health and intellectual disabilities, addictive diseases and rehabilitation needs, and expand networking and training for association members.
Founded in 1972, PCPA is a statewide association that promotes a community-based, responsive and viable system of agencies providing quality services for individuals receiving mental health, intellectual disability, addictive disease and other related human services. PCPA represents more than 225 community-based agencies that provide mental health, intellectual and developmental disability, and substance use disorder services for children and adults. Members operate in all 67 counties and serve more than 1 million Pennsylvanians per year.
Since 1969, PARF has been actively working to improve the availability, accessibility and quality of rehabilitation services for individuals with disabilities. With more than 90 members in Pennsylvania, PARF’s facilities serve individuals with physical, mental, social and/or emotional disabilities. PARF members offer services and programs that include medical, psychological, social, residential, educational, vocational, and employment rehabilitation.
For more information about the groups, visit www.paproviders.org.