[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 172 (Monday, November 30, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1672-E1673]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      IN RECOGNITION OF SUE CURRIN

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JACKIE SPEIER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 30, 2015

  Ms. SPEIER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Sue Currin for her 34 years 
of exemplary service at San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma 
Center, the last six years as Chief Executive Officer. Ms. Currin has 
dedicated her life and career to providing every member of our 
community with quality health care.
  Thanks to Ms. Currin's innovative and steadfast leadership, San 
Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center today is the sole provider 
of trauma and emergency psychiatric care for the City and County of San 
Francisco serving a diverse patient population and offering a wide 
spectrum of inpatient and outpatient services. The medical center 
serves about 100,000 patients a year and provides 20 percent of the 
city's inpatient care.
  Ms. Currin secured $6 million in grant funding for a nursing 
internship program, a medication error reduction project, patient 
safety initiatives, and a transportation from hospital to home program. 
She was also essential in developing the Acute Care for the Elderly 
unit. That unit improves patient outcomes and satisfaction while 
shortening hospital stays and reducing nursing home admissions. 
Additional major achievements were the development of the first 
Palliative Care Program for San Francisco's underserved and the Lean 
Management System at the hospital. And most recently, Ms. Currin 
succeeded in starting construction of an acute care building that is 
expected to open in the spring of 2016. This new facility will be 
equipped with the most advanced technology that will give every San 
Franciscan access to the best available healthcare. It will truly be an 
example of a state-of-the-art 21st century hospital and an enduring 
reminder of all the amazing work she has done.
  I deeply admire Sue Currin's perseverance, vision and dedication to 
others. She started at General Hospital as a student nurse in 1975 and 
rose through the ranks of staff nurse, nurse educator, Director of 
Staff Development and Quality Management, Chief Nursing Officer/Chief 
Operating Officer and finally CEO.

[[Page E1673]]

She also worked at Kaiser Permanente for three years where she was 
responsible for quality management, medical staff services, infection 
control, medical record, member services and risk management over four 
medical centers. Quality control is part of Ms. Currin's DNA and 
inactivity alien to her character.
  While Ms. Currin held one of the most demanding jobs in the health 
care profession, she made time to serve on several boards and 
committees, including the Hospital Councils of San Francisco and 
Northern and Central California, the American Hospital Association, the 
California Association of Public Hospitals, America's Essential 
Hospitals Education Committee and CareForce. As you can see from this 
list, Ms. Currin invented multitasking.
  As the daughter of a military family Sue Currin grew up traveling the 
world. After her older brother was born in Japan, her parents were 
transferred to Hamilton Air Force Base in California where she was 
born. The family then moved to France where her sister was born. From 
there it was back to the U.S., Illinois and again California. She 
attended American River Community College, Tacoma Community College in 
Washington, graduated with a BA in Science in Nursing from San 
Francisco State University and then with a Master's of Science in 
Nursing from the University of California, San Francisco.
  She and her husband of 34 years, Manny Ungson, have two successful 
and wonderful sons, Justin and Adam Currin Ungson. In her well-deserved 
retirement, Ms. Currin will finally have more time to quilt and to cook 
with her family, her favorite pastimes.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to rise with me to 
honor Sue Currin, an outstanding hospital leader who has shaped the 
health care landscape of San Francisco and the Bay Area. Her tireless 
efforts to improve the lives of others and her contributions to the 
city will be felt for decades to come.

                          ____________________