President Barack Obama will thank the Emory Healthcare team today during a visit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) next door to Emory, according to an all-Emory Healthcare (EHC) email from EHC President and CEO John Fox.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest confirmed earlier this week in a press conference that Obama will take a moment today to “thank the scientists, doctors and health care workers who are helping those affected by [Ebola] at home and around the world.”
In his all-EHC email, Fox took a moment to congratulate the EHC team’s commitment and willingness to help patients in need.
“Over the past few weeks, our brand has been tested,” Fox wrote.
“While our decision to care for the American medical volunteers who contracted Ebola was made years ago as part of our Care Transformation Model, it was met with a mix of emotions – some fear, admiration, pride and respect. As we rode the public reaction waves, one thing was for certain: We do not waver on our mission to care for those in need.”
Fox wrote that even when EHC thought that their “time in the spotlight had reached a crescendo,” they now will be publicly acknowledged and thanked in person by the President.
Fox added that although only a limited group of EHC staff will be able to meet the President, the team involved with caring for the Ebola patients is “much larger than the group attending tomorrow’s visit.”
He noted that EHC will have more time to recognize the members of the team and “express our gratitude in the near future.”
Upon Obama’s arrival in Atlanta, he will also be briefed on the Ebola outbreak in West Africa and a respiratory illness that has recently been reported in several states throughout the Midwest, according to CBS News.
The president will continue his southeastern U.S. trip when he leaves Atlanta Tuesday night to head to Tampa, Florida, where he will meet with military leaders at the U.S. Central Command to discuss the state of the ISIS campaign, according to CBS News.
The last time the President was in the Atlanta area he delivered the commencement address at Morehouse College in 2013.
–By Dustin Slade, News Editor
Atlanta Hawks Beat Writer |
Dustin is a senior from Miami, FL in the Goizueta Business School studying strategy & management consulting and finance. He joined the Wheel’s editorial board in the spring of his freshman year and spent the next two years helping lead and shape the news team. Outside of the Wheel, Dustin is also a member of Zeta Beta Tau fraternity and an avid South Florida sports fan… even without LeBron James.
