2019 Joseph A. Lindenmayer Employee of the Year Award

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1 Name: Jaclyn Borrelli Years of Service: 4 years Jaclyn Borrelli is an Occupational Therapist in our Inpatient Therapy Department. Jaclyn has been with Gaylord since November 2014 and was nominated by a patient s family member. The family member states, Jaclyn works as a team. She could handle the stubborn days with Paul when he felt discouraged. Her can do attitude always got him moving in the right direction. Paul loved his team and had complete confidence in Jaclyn. We will be forever grateful for their tenacity that allowed Paul to realize he could recover from a very traumatic experience. Jaclyn s supervisor, Anne Walczak states, It is with pleasure that I recommend Jackie Borrelli for the ICARE nomination this quarter. She has been an occupational therapist under my supervision for 4 years. She was a student intern at Gaylord prior to this. She is currently a level 2 Clinical coordinator for occupational therapy, which involves setting up student fieldworks, visits and job shadow opportunities. Jackie continuously seeks opportunities to learn and teach, both through conferences, career fairs, volunteer opportunities, and numerous committees at Gaylord. She has taken on a team leader role while another staff member was out and was very successful with this. She has recently completed a presentation for the admissions department at a local hospital, discussing services available at Gaylord. She trains new staff monthly for safety with transfers and is responsible for coordinating the therapy portion of nursing validation days on an annual basis. She recently has become certified in pulsed lavage with suction for wound care. Jackie consistently takes on diagnoses which are unfamiliar to gain knowledge in the treatment of patients across all areas. She has grown in so many ways since her student days and is now a leader and resource of other staff members. It is with pleasure that I support her nomination for the ICARE quarterly.

2 Name: Meghan Chiaraluce Years of Service: 11 years Meghan Chiaraluce is an Occupational Therapist Team Leader in our Inpatient Therapy Department and has been with Gaylord since August Meghan was nominated by a patient. The patient stated, Meghan is exceptionally conscientious, faithful, funny and yet always takes her position seriously and with the patients best interest in mind. Meghan provided excellent treatment for me during both of my stays at Gaylord. During my first stay, in from December 2016 to February 2017, they brought me from a wheelchairbound patient dependent on Hoyer lifts to a walking, dancing (she now knows how to waltz, swing and tango), active human being who could continue with normal life again. During my second stay after back surgery in February 2018, I insisted on having the same team and they fine-tuned me, while we continued with the dance lessons. I cannot speak highly enough of Meghan and will always remember her with great affection and admiration. She, more than anybody else at Gaylord, brought me back to life, and I and my wife will be eternally grateful. to her patients and she holds herself to a high standard. Meghan continually challenges herself and is always seeking opportunities to improve and learn. She is a Level 3 therapist in the role of the Neurological Vision Program Coordinator. Meghan very successfully coordinates this program and she is an excellent resource in the area of vision. As part of this role Meghan has provided education to the department on the treatment of neurologic vision impairments including how to incorporate our newest piece of equipment, the BITS. She has developed vision competencies for the department and she has educated acute care hospitals in regards to our vision services. On top of being our vision specialist Meghan is the Lyman 2 team leader and is known throughout the hospital as a resource in the area of spinal cord injury. She is a highly respected clinician and is often sought out for advice and mentorship. Meghan s supervisor, Lori Vickers states; I am very pleased to support the nomination of Meghan Chiaraluce for employee of the quarter. Meghan is a wonderful example of the ICARE values in action. She is a highly skilled clinician who is dedicated to providing excellent care

3 Name: Christina Drogkaris Department: Human Resources Years of Service: 2 years Christina Drogkaris is the Benefits Administrator in the Human Resources Department. Christina has been an employee of Gaylord Hospital since 2016 and was nominated by an employee. The employee states, Although Christina has only been at Gaylord two years, she has really made a positive impact. Christina is the go-to person in Human Resources who is always willing to go above and beyond to help employees with their benefits or even if it s just to listen to an employee s personal problem. She is quick to respond and makes sure to follow-up. She treats everyone she encounters with compassion and respect. She takes the time to get to know employees to make them feel comfortable. Her smile and positive attitude just lights up a room. Every time she walks through the halls of the hospital there is always someone stopping to thank her for helping them. We are very fortunate to have a person like Christina at Gaylord. Christina s supervisor, Wally Harper states, I can t say enough about Christina s work ethic and ownership of her work. And she does it with the most pleasant and helpful demeanor imaginable. She takes personal responsibility for assigned functions and is always willing to help others in need. This includes department staff as well as Gaylord employees and managers. She has taken on extra work as the department consolidated staffing with never a complaint, always with a willingness to get things done, and done right. Her upbeat, can-do, will-do attitude is an example for all. Christina is the model for customer service, not just HR customer service. She greets every visitor with an engaging smile and listens to their issue or need. She takes whatever next steps are necessary to assist the customer with eager urgency and ensures the customer is satisfied with the result. If she can t resolve the issue, she finds the right person and hands off effectively, again ensuring the issue gets resolved or the customer gets the answer they need. Christina runs the Gaylord Wellness Council which provides guidance and practical wellness strategies for Gaylord employees to practice healthy life activities. She leads this group made up of Gaylord staff, ConnectiCare representatives and insurance broker representatives. Under her leadership, the Wellness Council provides feedback on how our medical plan is used and perceived and is a helpful sounding board for plan design changes. Continued on next page

4 FirstQuarter Nominees Christina Continued Compliance is an important aspect of the Benefits Administration function that Christina manages for Gaylord. She ensures the integrity of our plans, reporting, communication and service to our employees. She is accountable for her work and and is not afraid to challenge a plan or direction in a professional, objective manner to achieve the best outcome for Gaylord and our staff. Christina advocates for staff on all manner of issues relating to benefits yet caries out the final plan as finally decided. Integrity can be described as, what you do when no one is looking. I have the utmost trust that Christina is always acting as an owner with unquestionable integrity. She is a model Gaylord employee and I whole heartedly endorse her nomination for employee of the quarter.

5 Name: BJ Palumbo Years of Service: 4 years BJ Palumbo is a COTA in our Inpatient Therapy Department. BJ has been with Gaylord since November 2014 and was nominated by a patient s family member and a patient he treated. The first family member states, BJ was my mom s name so hearing my OT was named BJ was amazing. BJ is truly outstanding. He approaches therapy with kindness, compassion and humor. He is down to earth and really knows how to tune into a patient and adjust minute to minute. He is like your best coach. He encourages, pushes, recognizes accomplishments and always wants the best for you. We were so blessed to have BJ on our team. The patient states, The person I recommend is my OT person which is BJ. He made sure to keep me motivated each day moving me in the morning to keep me going. He never stopped caring and letting me know that I was going great even when I had some setbacks. BJ was right there with me to press past the pain to get to the healing. He was always there on my case in a loving way to let me know he wouldn t stop until I was well. I can t thank BJ enough and say job well done. I will always be grateful to BJ. patients treatment with kindness, compassion and humor, creating a positive and focused environment for the patients he serves. He expects the patients to put in the work, but provides encouragement and adaptive strategies to facilitate their goal completion. BJ also is co-leader of the SCI Support Group held at Gaylord monthly and assists with set up and gathering patients to attend. In addition, he has been recognized by other staff members outside of therapy for his helpfulness in all aspects of getting patients where they need to go and assuring that their needs are being met, whether it s setting up tables, assisting with adaptive equipment or just making patients feel more comfortable, he is always available to help. BJ volunteers at the Orange County Fair every year and volunteers at the Gaylord Gauntlet assisting the team members with disabilities through the course. He strives to learn and is working on multiple committees in the department at this time. He has presented at the SCI specialist course and was the driving force behind the fabrication of the Gaylord Corn Hole game, which proudly displays the Gaylord logo. I fully support this nomination. BJ s Supervisor, Anne Walczak states, As BJ Palumbo s supervisor since November of 2014, it is no surprise to me that he was nominated by 2 patients. He approaches every