Ilona Van Boven, technical director for Steinberg Diagnostic Medical Imaging (SDMI), was recently named Healthcare Humanitarian of Southern Nevada by Nevada Business Magazine. She received this prestigious award at the 12th annual Healthcare Heroes Awards Ceremony on August 30th.

Healthcare Heroes was established to recognize excellence and outstanding service in nine categories: Humanitarian, Administrator, Care Provider, Educator, Community Partner, Volunteer, Innovator, Non-Profit, Physician, and Lifetime Achievement.

According to Dr. David Steinberg, CEO and founding partner, SDMI, Van Boven is SDMI’s shining star, a gem who flies under the radar, never seeking praise or recognition for her work or the compassion she shows patients and staff every-single-day. “Lona is the soul of SDMI, providing the extra spark of humanity that makes SDMI stand out amongst healthcare organizations. She always speaks with patients and goes the extra mile to make them feel comfortable, whether picking them up for an appointment, taking them home or comforting them in a time of extreme anxiety or aggravation. She has an exceptional relationship with our staff and has always maintained the highest ethical considerations for everything we do at SDMI. A 30-plus year employee of SDMI Lona is a testimony to the goodness that exists in healthcare, and I am delighted she was recognized with this honor.”

Lona is not only a healthcare hero but the star of SDMI’s Every Patient is a VIP video. View the YouTube video here: https://youtu.be/4jgUTW5nvB0.

Other Nevada Business Healthcare Heroes from the Las Vegas Medical District were: Educator: Dr. Douglas Fraser, MD, UMC; Community Partner:Mayor Carolyn Goodman, city of Las Vegas; Innovator: Dr. Le Hua, MD, Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health; Non-Profit: Dr. Meena Vohra, MD, Children’s Hospital of Nevada at UMC and Lifetime Achievement: Dr. Carolyn Yucha, PhD, RN, University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Nursing.

Photo: Ilona Van Boven receiving her award from Nevada Business; photo by Chris Tucker; courtesy of Nevada Business.