LVHN Colleagues Recognized in NEPA Business Journal Top 25 Women in Business

Two Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) colleagues have been recognized by the Northeast Pennsylvania Business Journal as among the Top 25 Women in Business. Tammy Torres, DNP, RN, President, Lehigh Valley Hospital (LVH)–Hazleton, and Rachel Ward, with Lehigh Valley Physician Group (LVPG)–Steamtown, were honored for making an impact and being proven leaders in health care and their communities. LVHN is proud to celebrate these women for their career accomplishments.

Torres was named President of LVH–Hazleton in 2023. Prior to joining LVHN, she served as CEO of Salem Medical Center and in several other executive leadership positions in New Jersey and Philadelphia.

Torres was featured in Main Line Today magazine’s article “The Main Line’s Healthcare Heroes Going Above and Beyond.” Among her many career highlights, in 2021 she was named as one of the Best 50 Women in Business by NJBIZ Celebrating New Jersey’s Women of Influence. She also received the Puerto Rican Action Committee of Southern New Jersey 2017 Hispanic Lifetime Achievement Award in appreciation for her dedicated service to the Hispanic community.

A community-minded individual, Torres is a member of the Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Hazleton Alliance for Progress Board of Directors and Bloomsburg University Advisory Board.

Ward attended Scranton Preparatory High School and a received a bachelor's degree in biology and a master's in health administration from the University of Scranton.

She began working at Delta Medix in high school, where her mother was employed as a licensed practical nurse. She became an LVHN colleague when Delta Medix was acquired by LVPG in 2021.

Ward is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) of Eastern Pennsylvania and was the recipient of the 2024 Daniel J. West Jr. Early Careerist Award from ACHE. 

For the last two years she has led the Angel Tree gift program at LVPG–Steamtown, which provides Christmas presents to more than 100 children who attend Head Start programs in the Scranton area. Ward also volunteers with LVPG for local events such as health fairs, La Festa Italiana and food drives.