Volume 16, Issue 9 Vital Signs EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH page 2 Let s Go Hiking! page 3
employee of the month Karlee Kerr Short Work Bio Karlee Kerr has a diverse background of clinical and public health skills/qualities in her role as a Registered Dietitian- Nutritionist. She provides nutrition services at all CBHA sites and participates in evening and weekend activities to promote wellness and prevention. Why She Won In nominating Karlee for EOTM, supervisor Leo Gaeta said that Karlee walks around with a smile and is full of energy. Anyone who encounters Karlee at a CBHA clinic would agree. Karlee is always willing to take a walk-in patient if a patient is in need of a consultation. She places a strong focus on making her interventions practical and patient centered. She does home visits to get a better understanding of patient circumstances and needs. In addition, Karlee regularly provides education sessions during department in-service meetings to help other staff learn and understand nutrition and how it plays an important part in good health. Karlee is an active team member on CBHA s Quality Improvement Team (QIT). She is also very involved with CBHA s healthy weight management and lifestyles via the Optifast weight loss program. The Scoop Karlee said she was really surprised when she found out she had been chosen EOTM. I consider the people I work with to be the true heroes and the ones deserving recognition, she said. We all work together as a unit and I couldn t be the EOTM without my great team here at CBHA. Karlee does feel honored and is happy and grateful to come to work every day. When asked what her favorite thing about working at CBHA is, she is quick to reply: I don t even see it as a job! I get to come to work here and it is a privilege! I really do love it! Karlee manages to reserve energy to help out on the family farm with her husband Taylor. She also likes to water and snow ski. I did a lot of water skiing this past summer and am looking forward to skiing in the snow this winter. Karlee took advantage of CBHA s golf corporate sponsorship this past summer. She also likes to run. 10K runs are my favorite! Karlee has a small gym in her home which allows her to exercise before coming to work and states You have to practice what you teach! 2 Vital Signs
New challenges out NOW! Questions: Devyn Lynch Ext. 8109 Congrats! You reached level 1! Santos Perez Paige Garcia Crisol Martinez Everyln Garcia Gaytan Lucia Vivar Ponce Claudia Castillo Magali Garcia Kelly Carlson Congrats! You reached level 2! Genaro Jimenez Mayra Sanchez Navid Ramirez Juanita Garza Ruby Garcia Aries Gomez Maria Garcia Matthew Walker Antelia Landa Norma Torres Enereida Acevedo Gym Bag or $25 Gift Card to Anytime Fitness & Raffle for 5 $100 Gift Cards 3 Vital Signs $50 Amazon Gift Card or CBHA Windbreaker & Raffle for workout gear sets valued at $250! Wellness Day Off & Raffle for $500 Gift Card!
Dulcye Feild - 12 years @ cbha Dulcye s employment at CBHA began in August, 2004. Her title was Clinic Manager. Even though clinic managers are trained to work at all CBHA clinics, Dulcye spent most of her time at OFC because 14th Avenue Medical Center had just been merged into CBHA and additional help was needed. She worked in that capacity for about five years before accepting the newly created position of Quality Coordinator. Greg was aware of the push being made nationwide toward managing quality in health care, Dulcye said. Before coming to CBHA, I had worked in quality at the processing plants so it was a natural progression for me. She later became Director of Quality remaining there until being named to her current position of Chief Operating Officer. The emphasis on quality has been the biggest change Dulcye has seen since joining CBHA in 2004. There wasn t even a quality department when I first came no benchmarks, nothing that could measure quality. Now it s grown to where it is the basis for grants we write, government programs, mission, and basically, everything we do. She has seen the organization change and grow with the addition of new services. Quality is woven into all aspects of care for our patients. Dulcye attributes her longevity at CBHA to the fact that she likes it here. Her growing up years were spent on a farm outside of Connell where she went through the North Franklin School District. This area is home to me. My husband, Tracey, and I moved here right after we got married and we have been here ever since. I have been very happy at CBHA. We have great staff to work with; there s always somebody who brightens your day whether they mean to or not. Dulcye pauses for a moment when asked about her perceptions of life in the new clinic. It s going to be a big change, she said. I think it s going to be great. The clinic will be beautiful; all the staff that we already have will be there so how could it not be wonderful! She sees it as a positive thing for the community and for CBHA. I m looking forward to it. Outside of work, Dulcye is involved with family activities. She and Tracey have two children, son Avery and daughter Chelsea. Both are on the swim team during the summer and participate in sports and school activities during the rest of the year. We keep busy keeping up with them, she said. Dulcye is also an avid reader; she is committed to a healthy life style and enjoys physical exercise. 4 Vital Signs
D.I.M.E. AWARD Driven Individual Modeling Excellence Congratulations MariaElena Sanchez I am nominating MariaElena Sanchez. I feel that she is very kind, very positive and I really admire her for that and her high quality for volunteering to do more than we should for any patient in our clinic. For example, this past weekend she volunteered to drive a patient to Portland for an emergency surgery. Connell Eye Care did everything possible to get the patient help but unfortunately we had no help from surgeons in Tri Cities or near Spokane Eye Care clinics. This particular patient had recently come from Mexico, spoke no English and had no way to get to Portland, that is why she volunteered. Thank you MariaElena for your going above and beyond your standard job duties. Nominated By: Navid Fregoso & Enereida Acevedo How to Nominate: The D.I.M.E. Award is a peer nomination from anyone in Patient Benefits, Registration, Finance, or the Billing Department. This is an opportunity to recognize your peers who are continuously striving for excellence. 5 Vital Signs Criteria for selecting a D.I.M.E. Quality: Excellence in Patient Care Displays a good spirit of service, cooperation and professionalism. Uses personal initiative and creativity to solve unusual problems. Service: Exceptional Service Displays teamwork through cooperation between multiple departments. Serves as a mentor to new staff. Positive attitude and or behavior admired and valued by peers. Producing work of exceptionally high quality under a tight deadline. People: Dedicated People Individual who is reliable and demonstrates dedication to their job. Volunteering and/or assisting onunassigned projects while maintaining own workload. Going above and beyond standard job duties, while performing other roles in the department. Finance: Financial Strength Secure CBHA s Financial Future Emphasize cost containment through efficient operations growth volume growth. Drive clinical growth by improving access and service to families and providers.
Staff Recognition Notes from grateful patients... I just wanted to take a minute to say how much I like the Connell Clinic and love having Jaeniffer Kaiser as my medical provider. She is very knowledgeable, listens and educates me as to what I can do to help myself with my medical care. As long as you employ her I am NEVER leaving! Satisfied Patient Jaeniffer Kaiser, ARNP has been my primary care provider for several years and I love her as a provider. As long as she works at CBHA I will continue to be a patient here. I am so grateful for the care she provides. Satisfied Patient Dental Assistant of the Month Congratulations, Crisol Martinez 6 Vital Signs