At WVU Medicine's flagship hospital, J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, Ms. Garrasi was promoted to the role of enterprise director of emergency management and business continuity in 2023.
MORGANTOWN, WV, February 26, 2024 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Elizabeth M. Garrasi, MS, CHEP, CEDP, has been included in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
Prior to entering the health care sector with a focus on emergency management, Ms. Garrasi began her career in another public service sector: law enforcement. Upon graduating from Taylor University with a Bachelor of Arts in public relations, she stepped into the role of sheriff's deputy in Grant County, Indiana. For over five years, she performed various tasks, including working as a crisis hostage negotiator; received specialized training in sexual assault and fatal crash investigations; managed the local law enforcement's social media outreach; and ran the information technology operations at the patrol site to ensure the officers had the necessary technology and equipment at their disposal. She created the school safety program and served as the sheriff's department safety liaison to the Grant County school systems. While working as a sheriff's deputy, Elizabeth simultaneously served as a campus police officer for Indiana Wesleyan University.
Following her time in that role, she transitioned into health care and became an administrative director at Marion General Hospital, a position in which she gained valuable knowledge about the health care system. She oversaw the hospital security department, emergency management and emergency medical dispatch. During her time at Marion General Hospital, she worked to transition the security department to a full-fledged hospital police department. Subsequently, she joined Crothall Healthcare, first as an operations manager and then as a system patient experience manager.
In providing contracted support services to several different hospitals, Ms. Garrasi gained a full view of health care and the intricacies of the systems. During the pandemic, she rediscovered her passion for emergency management preparedness in hospitals, which led her to secure a job at West Virginia University Hospitals in 2020. While starting in her new role, she simultaneously pursued a Master of Science in communication and leadership from Purdue University, which she earned in 2021.
At WVU Medicine's flagship hospital, J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, Ms. Garrasi first served as the director of emergency management program, a position she held up until she was promoted to the role of enterprise director of emergency management and business continuity in 2023. Building on the progress of her predecessors, Elizabeth was instrumental in systematizing the emergency management program. In reflecting on her success in achieving this long sought-after goal for the organization, Ms. Garrasi credits the partnership, collaboration, and data she was able to build over the course of several years as well as the strong support from executive leadership and colleagues she received.
Ms. Garrasi is proud of this achievement, as it demonstrates the organization recognizes emergency management as an essential part of hospital operations and has provided validation for the efforts of those at other hospitals. Driven by her passion for emergency management, particularly in the health care sector, her next goal is to advance further in her profession and address the gap that currently exists between initial job training and the job itself for first responders and health care first receivers. In being aware of the emotional and psychological trauma that comes with these occupations, Ms. Garrasi's aim is to connect first responders and health care first receivers with the necessary resources, support, and networks they need to maintain their own health and wellbeing on the job.
As a result of her involvement in the field and her subsequent roles and responsibilities, she holds membership with the Association of Healthcare Emergency Preparedness Professionals (AHEPP) and the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety. Furthermore, Ms. Garrasi has received several emergency medical certifications: she is a certified health care emergency professional and a certified emergency disaster professional via the International Board for Certification Services and Management, and a certified health care emergency manager through AHEPP.
In all she has achieved, Ms. Garrasi credits her success to the exceptional leaders and mentors who believed in her, guided her, and offered constructive feedback, encouragement, and support as she transitioned into and gained experience in her management career in the health care sector. Moreover, she acknowledges the constant support of her husband and her siblings, both of whom have consistently encouraged her to continue her journey toward advancing her career and education. Outside of her career focus and responsibilities, Ms. Garrasi is an avid WVU sports fan, enjoys exploring the West Virginia State Park System and actively supports many charitable causes and local fundraisers.
About Marquis Who's Who®:
Since 1899, when A. N. Marquis printed the First Edition of Who's Who in America®, Marquis Who's Who® has chronicled the lives of the most accomplished individuals and innovators from every significant field of endeavor, including politics, business, medicine, law, education, art, religion and entertainment. Marquis celebrates its 125th anniversary in 2023, and Who's Who in America® remains an essential biographical source for thousands of researchers, journalists, librarians and executive search firms around the world. Marquis® publications may be visited at the official Marquis Who's Who® website at www.marquiswhoswho.com.
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