We are thankful for all our health care heroes. Here’s a summary of shout outs featured in the Daily Updates from May 1-7 and two of our favorite videos from the past week:
Thank you to these and ALL of our awesome UofL Health team members who are doing extraordinary things during this time of crisis:
May 1
- I would like to recognize the ULP OB/GYN sonographers for the dedication they have shown to their patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- I would like to recognize Dr. Neil Barry, Invasive Interventional Cardiology fellow. I work in the cardiovascular lab & our area is beginning training to help with the covid patients. Most of us in my area are not ICU trained & Dr. Barry has taken time out of his already busy schedule to teach us some basics on ICU drips as well as trouble shooting critical patients. I have learned so much listening to Dr. Barry, he explains things in a manner that allows us to absorb the information. Dr. Barry has always been a pleasure to work with & is wondering with his patients & families. I would like to thank him for everything that he does.
- Shawn Heilman and the amazing Supply Chain team she leads at Mary & Elizabeth Hospital have gone above and beyond the call of duty. They have worked tirelessly to get us PPE plus they always deliver “service with a smile” even while juggling the Premier ERP conversion on top of all that they already do. Shawn was our facility “leader of the year” a few years ago and for good reason. We’re fortunate to have her and her team looking out for us.
- I would like to give a huge SHOUT OUT to Mary & Elizabeths EVS. They have worked very hard in keeping staff and patients in a clean environment during this time. Working harder by cleaning more frequently and even providing our CCU (COVID) ICU with an EVS cart so that staff can clean their patient rooms when timing is fit. Thank you for all your hard work and dedication. It is very appreciated.
May 4
- KUDOS and shout out to the ICU/CCU for the amazing team work with proning and providing patient care during the high acuity. Amazing and awesome teamwork!
- I want to give a shout out to all of the Frazier Outpatient Therapy Departments. Many of the outpatient therapists are working all hours of the day to cover screening tables at various locations as well as giving ancillary help to the nursing floors within Frazier Rehab. Also, there are several therapists who volunteered to be cross trained to assist in the hospitals for extra help for the therapy departments. Way to go Frazier Outpatient Team!
- I’d like to give a ’shout out’ to all the nurses on 5 Core and 7west ICU at ULH, who have worked tirelessly to take care of extremely sick patients with COVID. They have put themselves on the very frontline and done so with such enthusiasm and a sense of team spirit. Watching them take care of these truly sick patients and work so well as a team has been one of the good things to come out of such a difficult time. They deserve all the recognition in the world for what they’re doing, and they should know they are appreciated!! They are of course led by their wonderful managers Jenny May and Marcy Shelby who have been integral to leading the teams, and ensuring excellent care in very stressful situations. Thank you for all you’re doing!
- I’d also like to pay a special mention to the Neuroanesthesia doctors who selflessly volunteered to manage all the intubations for patients with COVID-19. This includes Dr. Akca, Dr Latif, Dr Chen, Dr Lenhardt and Dr. Businger along with their residents. They have been integral to the ICU team and put them self in very high risk situations to take care of these patients- its greatly appreciated. Thank you!
May 5
- I would like to give Kimberly Mitchell the Director at UofL Peace a shout out. She’s been so helpful to the staff and the managers at Peace. She goes beyond what is expected of a leader to help others. She’s been a rock for so many employees throughout this pandemic by helping to calm the fears of others. She has truly been an asset to us at this time. We just want to say THANK YOU and we appreciate all that you do!
- I want to thank all of the phlebotomist throughout the system. Most of the time, phlebs are forgotten when it comes to recognizing the bedside heroes. But for the lab, you are our heroes! Thank you for working through all the changes that have come with caring for possible COVID-19 and confirmed COVID-19 patients. We will get through this, together!
- I want to shout out Ted in Central Supply for making sure that everyone gets PPE among other supplies that may be in short supply all across the county right now. Here before some of us get out of bed in the morning and the last one to leave after a very long work day. Thanks not only to Ted but the procurement tech’s that work under him. Kudos to their entire department.
- I wanted to take a moment to give a shout out to the UofL Health- Jewish Hospital VAD department. The VAD outpatient coordinator and VAD/Transplant social worker team have teamed up to move the inperson VAD support group to a virtual environment to provide much needed support to our VAD population. Our first virtual support group is planned to meet on April 30th. The VAD team has worked very diligently in creative ways to provide the support and care our patients need. I am very proud to be a part of such an amazing team.
May 6
- The patients that are at the Peace Hospital are fragile upon admit and at this time it is even more important for them to be addressed holistically. I want to shout out about the importance of the Art Therapist role and the wonderful job they are doing for their clients.
- I want to give a tremendous “SHOUT OUT” to Deanna Gagel for keeping our PCP office at JMA running smoothly when our manager is out juggling two offices. She has been handling the majority of the telehealth scheduling to keep our patients safe along with her own stack of daily duties. She keeps everything together, handles any issues with ease and has the humor to keep our spirits up. I appreciate all she does to keep our front line afloat. Thank you Deanna and We WILL get through this together.
- I want to give a “SHOUT OUT” to Brittany Abney; she has gone above and beyond during this time of crisis, as have so many of my co-workers at JMA. However, she not only is medical assistant to our wonderful Dr. Nguyen who herself has been treating ill patients daily and battling against this pandemic, but she has helped pick up the slack from where our office has furloughed employees in other areas. She helps do check-in/ front desk and helps answer phones between patients to allow others to take their breaks/lunches. She is a mother of two wonderful girls whom she has been home schooling and doing therapy with, on top of all the other stresses life has brought us these days. She wears many hats and just wanted to shout out my appreciation for her and for all she does to keep our front line sane.
- I would like to give a shout out to Melissa Ford in the cafeteria/food services. I have been doing staff temperature checks for a month and she is consistently one of the sweetest, friendliest employees I look forward to seeing each time. She has even offered to buy us a coffee and bring it to us before clocking in for her shift. I am so thankful to have made her acquaintance and I guarantee she shows the same courtesy to our guests and all her coworkers.
May 7
- I wanted to give a shout out to the staff at University Hospital, specifically the Covid units and all staff members that work with Covid patients. This afternoon, I had the privilege to speak to our recovered Covid positive patient before she left our facility to go to rehab. This patient was with us a month and went to all the Covid units for the various levels of care. During my conversation, she wanted me to tell everyone how thankful she was for saving her life. I want to share the praise she stated in our conversation. She appreciated the ER staff in providing swift care as they recognized quickly that she was ill. She wanted to thank the 8 south nurse who held her hand as she was being upgraded to the ICU because the nurse knew that she was scared. She wanted to thank all of the ICU nurses, respiratory therapists and physicians , even though she doesn’t remember them all, for all of the hard work they put into saving her life. She wanted to thank the nurses that were in her room when she was just starting to wake up and realizing what she had been through the past three weeks. She wanted to thank ALL staff that spent an extra ten minutes in her room to talk to her. She knew that there were other patients that needed help but that staff just sat there, lending an ear, as they knew she just needed to talk. She stated that she could have easily become depressed being confined to the room but it was the staff at U of L that kept her spirits up and motivated her to get better. “Without the compassion and hard work that everyone has put into my care, I know that I would not be here sitting and talking with you.” Right there, this is why we do what we do. To make a difference in this patient’s life will be something that all of us in the units will never forget. This patient’s story is U of L Hospital providing the exceptional care to our patients.
- I’d like to give Karen Elble at ULP Sleep a shout out. Through this whole Corona Virus outbreak, she has always remained the one person who stayed consistent, trustworthy, dependable and reliable. Thanks for all you do Karen!
- Jennifer Stern, Nurse Manager – 1 East (behavioral health isolation unit), Kim Mitchell, Kristina Koeppl, Sherri Boggs, Aundrea Lewis, Yvunka Berry & Sheronda Jones-Stewart – these leaders and many others ensure our patients & employees are safe & in clean environments. They lead with courage, passion & perseverance. We are so lucky to have them at Peace Hospital!
- I would like to recognize Terrilyn Green and the others involved with scheduling and managing the screening sites/temperature tables at the entrances. It was something that was not precedented before and they did a great job setting these up. I also know Terrilyn has been diligent about recognizing those who are working the tables and arranged breakfast for the workers today! Also wanted to thank those who are working the tables as well for their continued efforts to keep patients and staff safe during this time.
Are you seeing co-workers turn into health care heroes during this time of crisis? Give them a “shout out” so we can all recognize their extraordinary actions. Simply email marketing@uoflhealth.org with their name, department and how they are making a difference. Be sure to note “Shout Out” in the subject line.
