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R O S E B U R G VA H E A LT H C A R E S Y S T E M / / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7THE RELAYROSEBURG EUGENE BROOKINGS NORTH BEND"The only limit to yourimpact is yourimagination andLTCI zero findings!Congratulations to the Community Living Center (CLC) Staff who had asuccessful Long Term Care Institute survey with no clinical findings. This is anamazing achievement, please help us congratulate and celebrate our CLC’ssuccess.commitment." -Anthony RobbinsIN THIS ISSUEQUEST Project UpdateVeteran PerspectiveStand Down 2017Employee SpotlightService SpotlightChest DeepPain in the LifeHelping HondurasNew EmployeesBirthdaysProject Healing WatersUpcoming EventsPhoto Credit: Shanon GoodwinCatch a Star Winners
ROSEBURG VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEMProjectGoals and AccomplishmentsCommittee StructureJun 2016—(open)Decrease staff hours spent in meetings by 25% by 9/30/16.Finalizing new structure, schedule, training, and documentation.PACT Same Day AccessNov 2016—Sep 2017Improve same day access for primary care patients from 67% to 100% by 12/31/2016.Goal met for same day access.SATP ProgrammingNov 2016—(open)Increase utilization of all levels of substance abuse treatment and decrease overreliance on RRTP.Team testing processes in preparation for new building.PTSD ProgrammingNov 2016—(open)Increase utilization of all levels of PTSD treatment and decrease in over-reliance onRRTP.Team testing processes in preparation for new building.AdmissionsJan 2017—(open)Decrease time from decision to admit to patient’s arrival on the unit by 20% by4/30/17.Pending final protocols for APU.Improve transitional to permanent housing, Veteran employment at exit of program,Transitional Housing Program and Veteran non-employed income.Mar 2017—(open)Pending final data.HUD/VASH ProgramMar 2017—Aug 2017Serve all eligible Veterans through an efficient, formalized process to lead to 100%lease up rate by 9/30/17.Increased percentage of chronically homeless in VASH program.HCHV OutreachMar 2017—(open)Increase engagement of unsheltered to 80% and improve staff morale and patientsatisfaction by end of FY2017.Testing changes and gathering data.Improve employees responding to survey and employee satisfaction by 25% byCulture of Safety and Respect 6/30/17.Mar 2017—(open)Finalizing policy revision. Improvement in 3 of 4 metrics.HR Hiring ProcessApr 2017—Sep 2017Reduce the time from Position Management Committee (PMC) approval to job postingfrom 45 days to 12 days by 7/31/17.Average number of days from PMC approval to job posting down 6 days.Supervisor TrainingApr 2017—(open)100% of all new and current supervisors complete training within 1 year to improvethe quality of management and supervisor Training.Finalizing implementation (target go-live 10/15/17).Communication TechnologyMay 2017—(open)Optimize set-up for all main conference rooms for Roseburg VA Health Care System.Met target for optimizing main conference rooms (at least one per site).Quality CommunicationMay 2017—(open)Increase staff knowledge of improvements by 25% by 8/31/17.Pending final data.ACSC HospitalizationsJun 2017—(open)Decrease hospitalizations for heart failure.Testing changes.Med. Rec. (APU/RRTP)Jun 2017—(open)Discharge summary medication list will match the discharge medication list withgreater than 90% compliance by September 1, 2017Testing changes.OCTOBER 20172
ROSEBURG VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEMto all the staff who participated infacility Lean improvement projects in FY2017!KAREN ALLDREDGETROY ALLENERIN ANDERSON-FORTIERKATHLEEN BACHRYAN BAKERELI BAKERSIMONE BALLBERTA BALLIDON BARNHARTSTEVEN BENTLEYDEEANNA BIERMANMICHAEL BLANCHARDSTEVEN BLUMDEAN BONNEYDAWN BRACKENJAMES BRANNDANA BRICEMATTHEW BRICKAJULIE BROWNMICHAEL BROWNRAYMOND BRUSSGLENN BURKSCHRISTY BURSONBILAL CHAUDHRYTAHER CHRISTENSENMARSHA CLARICSTEPHANIE CLENDENINEVELYN COBLECECILIA COOKPAUL COOKDONNA CRAWFORDDAVID CURLANDCHRIS CURRYJASON DADODANELL DAILEYKATHRYN DAILEYLINDA DALEYSTACIA DAVISDELMER DAVISGEMA DELOS-DIAZKIMBERLY DIABLELADONNA DONALDSONJERROLD DUSHAWNORA DUVALMANI EHTESHAMIOCTOBER 2017JULIO ESPINARAMONETTE FERNANDESANDREW FIELMANANTHONY FISCHERPAUL FLEMINGDIXIE FOWLERCARRIE FRYBARBARA GALBRAITHERIC GARCIASEAN GARDNERDALE GAUDIONORBERT GERONDALECURT GERRITSENSUSAN GIBBSANTHONY GLASSMANJAMIE GOBERSHANON GOODWINAMANDA GORDONBRANDI GOREMELISSA GREENMARGO GUTHRIETONYA HALLSHERRY HAMMETTREGINA HANEYSUZANNE HANSLERROBERT HARDENJONATHAN HARKNESSTERRE HARLANDLANE HARRISJAMES HAYDAVID HEAVIRLANDRYAN HECKKELLEY HICKMANKACI HICKOXHEATHER HOLSTONCORY HOOVERMERRY HORNREICHPAMELLA HOWARDJESSICA HUFFMANROSE HUNTHEATHER HURSTZACH HURSTLINDA JACOBSENCYNTHIA JOHNSONKYANA JONESVERN JORGENSENNICOLE KASALCARMEN KENDALLCARLENE KENNEDYSANDRA KIDDMATT KIPPNICHOLAS LAFATAJENNIFER LEWISEMILY LEWISKEITH LEWISJUSTIN LINDSEYBRENDA LONGORIASTEPHANIE LOWRYJAMES MARCROFT-CLARKSANDY MARKERTKARL MARTINRICHARD MCKIMCHARITY MCSPERITTKELLY MEADJENNIFER MEHLHOFFCHRISTINE MELVINJESSIE METCALFKRISTIN MEYERJANET MEYERROBERT MOFFITTMARY MONROEAMANDA MORROWSHANNON MUNNPATRICIA MURPHYGEORGE MURRMARY NAGYDANIEL NEALBRYAN NESTRIPKESEIGRID NIXONHEATHER NORRISJULIE NORTONSHARON OGLEDAVID ONESLAGERMATTHEW PAINTERNOREEN PALMCOOKABBY PARKERNICHOLAS PASZKIETKATHLEEN PATTONROCKY PHILLIPSMARIA PINIMCKENZIE PITTMANLESA POTTERWENDY POWELLROBERTA RAELSONRATNABALI RANJANKARI RHODEROSEMARY RICHARDSAMANDA RIGSBYJULIE RODGERSSTEPHANIE RODRIGUEZKATHARINE ROMANMATTHEW ROSENBLUMELIZABETH RUEGGSUSAN RUNDLEDAN RUPEBRITTANY RYANMARIAN SCHMALTZMARIA SCHNAUTZBERNARD SCOTTLORINDA SCOTTLINDA SHINNAUTUMN SHRUMJAMES SHULFERROBERT SKINNERAUSTIN SLATEJANET SOTOSUSAN STARKESHAWNA STATZERBRADFORD STEELEWILLIAM STELLARJAMIE SUMSTINESARAH TEETERSTEPHEN THARPHEIDI THOMPSONCYNTHIA TOOMEYMITCH TROTTERMICHELLE TROXELAMANDA UNRAUCAROLYN WARRENFLETCHER WATSONANDREW WATSONRICHARD WEBERRANDY WELNETZLESA WHEELERJASON WILCOXJASON WILLETTJANIS WILSONSTEPHANY WOODRALAMBER ZELLER3
ROSEBURG VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEMBy: Sandra KiddIt was early afternoon on a cloudy October day when Ihad the privilege of sitting down with Alfred LeeBennett, who has always gone by Lee, to talk abouthis life and his perceptions of Roseburg VA Hospital.Lee is a soft-spoken,unassuming, 81-yearold gentleman whocurrently resides in theRiver House, atransitional care unit atRoseburg VA MedicalCenter (RVAMC),where he receiveshospice care. When Iarrived, his room wasdimly light, with somewindow shades pulledPhoto credit: Sandra Kidddown and some not,making for a warm and inviting environment. Iinterrupted Lee’s Family Feud episode that wasplaying on a large screen TV at one end of the room,but he didn’t mind and muted the TV. I had barelystarted to ask him questions when he said, “You goingto put me in the paper? Why?” I asked if that wasokay with him and he said, “I guess. Ain’t nothing towrite about.” I am happy to say, he was mistaken.Lee was born in 1936 in Independence, KS, after hismother and full-blooded Cherokee grandmother fledtheir home near Ft. Cobb, OK during the Dust Bowl.OCTOBER 2017Lee said, “They left because they couldn’t seenothing. Couldn’t eat. Didn’t have groceries. Nowater. All you breath is air and dirt. It killed theanimals and everything. If they didn’t get out, theydied.” Lee stopped then to point out a framedphoto near his bed. The sepia-toned photographwas that of his 18-year old beautiful mother, longsince passed. It stood next to another framedpicture of a handsome young man in uniform,which was Lee back in the day; more on that later.That was only the first hardship in Lee’s young life.At the age of ten, Lee had to quit school in thesecond grade and go towork in the oil fields, on aroust-a-bout crewcleaning tanks andpainting pumps, to helpsupport his family. Hisfather had gotten tangledup in barbed wire whileriding a horse; developinggangrene in his leg, whichhad to be amputatedthree times, going highereach time. Ten-year-oldLee also got his legaldriver’s license, since the vehicles then were allmanual and needed two feet to operate.Having gained a work ethic at such a young age,Lee decided to join the Army at the age of 16. Heserved honorably during the Korean War from1952 to 1955. Once he was out, he began to drivecommercial semi-trucks and didn’t stop driving for47 years; operating over six million miles with noaccidents. Now that’s impressive! He has beendriving since he was ten, after all.continued on next page.4
ROSEBURG VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM.continued from previous page: Veteran PerspectiveLiving in Klamath Falls, OR, Lee has been a patient ofRVAMC for more than 20 years. He came to the RiverHouse in August 2017 and will stay here receiving endof life care. When asked how he feels about RoseburgVA he said, “It’s fabulous. The people are super. Idon’t know what I’d do without it. It’s a nice place,with nice people and they are really devoted.” Hespends his time watching TV or doing puzzles, asevidenced by the unfinished puzzle on a table belowthe TV. If he could be doing anything else, he said he“would go back to work driving truck, but not long-haul anymore, maybe a local belly-dumper job.For now, Lee will enjoy the great food they serveand can’t think of anything he would change here.Before I left, Lee said, “This is the greatest place tobe in the world. I’d take this over a public hospital.It’s nicer, and the staff bends over backward foryou. It’s just excellent.” I tried to get him to tellme who his favorite staff members are, but hesaid, “There are no favorites. Love them all!”Cemetery Services, Vet Center, Tools 4 Vets, Love ofPaws, Elks Lodge (Donated a grill, and clothing to theVA, and provided all of the music, food, and beveragesfor the event.), and Local National Guard Unit.RVAHCS would like to thank everyone who came tosupport our Veterans at this years Stand Down, held atour main campus. A total of 195 Veterans were servedat the Stand Down, to include 60 homeless Veterans.That is an increase from last year, which saw 105 totalVeterans served, to include 38 homeless Veterans.Community Partners in attendance included: UCAN –our SSVF Partner Douglas County Housing Authority,Department of Human Services, Fish Food Pantry, DHS –Veteran Child SupportServices Representative,Legal Aid Services,Neighborworks, UmpquaWorksource, DVOP South,Coast Business EducationCouncil, UCC VeteranService Officer, DMV,Spectrum Orthotics, ADAPT,Social SecurityAdministration, USDA, Transportation SecurityAdministration, Red Cross, Salvation Army, ODVAWomen’s Program, ODVA LBGTQ, HIV Alliance, NationalOCTOBER 2017VA Services that were present and offered informationand assistance: Nursing, Dental, Optometry, OIF/OEF/OND, Homeless Program, MST Coordinator, Women’sHealth, Suicide Prevention, Vocational Rehab,Community Supported Employment Coordinator,Hospice/Palliative Care, Chaplain Services, andHIV/HEP C Coordinator. Valuable planning andoperational support was provided by VA NursingLeadership, VA Police,FMS, Laundry,Volunteer Services,and IT.Click here for morephotos.Photo Credit: Shanon Goodwin5
ROSEBURG VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEMBy: Sandra KiddFor the past five years, Tom Evans has been a truckdriver making deliveries for the Food and NutritionService at Roseburg VA Medical Center (RVAMC). Tomwas born in New York state but was raised in GrantsPass, OR, where a lot of his family still resides. Beforesettling in Southern Oregon, Tom spent three years inthe Army in the 31V MOS, radio repair and operator.Traveling often with infantry units, he spent time inSouth Korea on the DMZ, Ft. Rucker, Alabama, and inHonduras.When Tom joined the VA as a delivery driver, he washoping it would only be temporary until he couldmove into an engineering tech position, to utilize histwo-year engineering degree. However, Tom hasenjoyed his time with Food and Nutrition saying, “Itallows me to have one-on-one time with the patients.”The Veterans are always happy to see him, and hegoes out of his way to make sure he learns everyone’sfirst names.Some may know Tom’s wife, Donna, a 20-yearRoseburg VA employee and Lead Medical RecordsTechnician. Tom and Donna have been married forseven years and enjoy their eight grandchildren. Theyrecently bought a ski boat and love to take their familyto Ben Irving Reservoir. When they aren’t out boating,Tom spends his time being a handy-man, saying he “isvery good at everything” he puts his mind to.Tom and Donna have invested a lot of money intotheir shared passion for decorating their yard for theholidays. For Halloween this year, they have added anew scary clown that will be holding their candy bowlof mini candy bars. Tom said they are well known inthe neighborhood for their great decorations andadded, “It is fun for the kids. They love it and comeback year after year.”Photo Credit: Sandra KiddWhen it comes to Christmas decorations, we aretalkingClarkGriswold(from theclassicmovieTom’s philosophy is that our patients are Veterans just NationalLampoon’slike he is, so he treats them like he would like to beChristmastreated if he were the patient. That is one of the bestVacation)things about this VA hospital according to Tom wholevel ofsays, “It is a family-oriented hospital, our Veterans arelightingtreated like family.“happening.Additionally, Tom said his, “co-workers are also likeThey havefamily. Everyone gets along well.” He wanted tohad torecognize Sheila Pettibone and Joe Kicinski inincorporatespecial outlets to handle the volume of electricityparticular for being outstanding supervisors and feelslike they should be the role models for all supervisors. required for their lights and yard ornaments. So, if youneed some holiday spirit, drive by their house off CharHis biggest pet peeves about RVAMC is the lack ofStreet in Green. Tom says you can’t miss which houseparking and improper drainage in some areas, bothis his.issues that show his engineering background.OCTOBER 20176
ROSEBURG VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEMBy: Sandra KiddWe have all seen the housekeepers working aroundcampus or have moved offices with their assistance,but how much do we really know about them? Irecently sat down with Laura Bustos, HousekeepingAide Supervisor, to find out more aboutEnvironmental Management Service (EMS).EMS is broken up into smaller sections thatencompass housekeeping, laundry, interior design,and hazmat and RMW (regulated medical waste)disposal. Most EMS employees work from theRoseburg VA Medical Center (RVAMC) campus, withanother handful working at the Eugene Health CareCenter (HCC).HousekeepingRoseburg Campus – Building 58Eugene Campus – Room 1D201Housekeepers make up the bulk of the staff in EMS.These folks manage the entire environment insidethe hospital and most the other buildings on campus.They focus on cleanliness, disinfecting, functionality,and furniture. Housekeepers are the ones who set upthe patient rooms, move and store office furniture,perform specialized cleaning in places such asoperating rooms (OR), Gastro-Intestinal Clinic (GI),and sterile processing (SPS) areas, and play a vitalrole in the cleaning and preparation of new buildings.Although Eugene HCC is mostly cleaned throughcontract housekeepers, the critical areas, such as OR,GI, and SPS, are still cleaned by our EMS staff.LaundryRoseburg Campus – Building 11Laundry handles all textiles for the hospital. They alsoOCTOBER 2017take care of all textiles for Eugene HCC and WhiteCity’s Southern Oregon Rehabilitation Center andClinics. The laundry facility recently finished anextensive renovation that included getting all newlaundry machines.Interior DesignRVAHCS has not had an interior designer on staff for awhile, but they would be responsible for the interioraesthetics of our buildings, to include wayfinding andsignage.Hazmat & RMW DisposalRoseburg Campus – Building 71This individual, Robert Dacanay – who has over 40years of Federal service, takes care of pharmaceuticalwaste, sharps, infectious material, batteries, andother chemicals and hazardous waste, ensuringproper handling and disposal. He also works closelywith GEMS (Green Environmental ManagementSystem).Hours of Operation: Day shift runs from 7:00am to3:30pm, seven days a week. Evening shift runs from3:00pm to 11:30pm, Monday through Friday.However, they have housekeepers on-call outside ofregular duty hours, making them available 24 hours aday / 7 day a week / 365 day a year.continued on next dry1149(36 filled)11Interior Design100Hazmat & RMWDisposal11007
ROSEBURG VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM.continued from previous page: EMS Service SpotlightBy Federal law, all employees hired into EMS must beVeterans, with rare exception. This creates a uniqueworking environment, with comradery like what isfound in the armed forces, that other services in theVA may not experience. It is a long-standing rumorthat getting a job in EMS is one of the best ways forVeterans to gain employment with the VA because ofthis policy.EMS duties cover a wide range of tasks, but theydon’t do everything. This is evidenced by the types ofEMS staff at an end of summer BBQ—September 2017requests they get, per Laura, “People think we doeverything. They see us around a lot and assume wedo it all.” Most often they get confused with FacilityManagement Service (FMS). Requests for plumbing,fans, electrical, or anything outside will be referredto FMS. The confusion may stem from the fact thatEMS used to report under FMS, but were made aseparate service earlier this year.Often times when a housekeeper is assigned to anarea, they start to become an integral part of thatareas staff and are considered part of their crew.When they are on leave, they are missed, andemployees are often sad when their housekeeperleaves or is re-assigned.The Veterans also appreciates EMS and everythingthey do. EMS staff really care about our Veterans andcare about doing an excellent job. This may beOCTOBER 2017because this is also their health care facility, beingVeterans themselves. They can easily putthemselves in the shoes of the patient or visitor,which often translates into impeccable work.Laura has enjoyed the nearly two years that she hasworked in this service saying, “The guys are great. Ireally love working in EMS. I couldn’t ask for betteremployees.” It should be pointed out that whenLaura says “guys” she mostly means it. Laura is oneof only two permanent female employees in EMSright now, the other one is Margaret Flagor. Mosteveryone will tell you, even the otherPhoto credit: Shanon Goodwinhousekeepers, that Margaret is the besthousekeeper we have, hands down.EMS gets positive feedback regularly, says Laura,who adds that inspectors always “remark how cleanour facility is.” They recently received a specialcontribution award for the hard work they put intothe grand opening of the new Brookings clinic. Andthe staff consistently receive Catch a Star forms forthe excellent work they individually do.One thing that Laura would like to see change is theway some people treat our housekeepers.Occasionally, they encounter rude and criticalpeople or feel like they are being looked down upondue to their position. But, like Laura says, “Thehospital would not be open without EMS staff doingtheir jobs.” Next time you them around campus,show your appreciation for all of their hard work.8
ROSEBURG VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEMBy: Shanon GoodwinAs the flood waters receded across the city ofHouston, TX the evidence was clear thatimmense help was needed to help the destroyedcity recover. On the weekend of August 26thTexas was hit with its most powerful hurricaneover 50 years. With over 30 inches of rainfallover 48 hours the city was devastated. As thestormed faded into yesterday thousands ofresidents were left homeless and their livesturned upside down in just a few days. After thestorm was gone recovery efforts and aid beganalmost immediately to deal with the state ofemergency.Carrie Lynn Frye is a Registered Nurse (RN) ofseven years and works with the Roseburg VAHealth Care System. Just a few short monthsprior to H
Pending final protocols for APU. Transitional Housing Program Mar 2017—(open) Improve transitional to permanent housing, Veteran employment at exit of program, and Veteran non-employed income. Pending final data. HUD/VASH Program Mar 2017—Aug 2017 Serve all eligible Veterans
