Network: February/March 2009
Members of the Team
Tobacco Free Initiative Now Systemwide
With the switch of the Sentara Norfolk General Hospital campus to tobacco free on January 1, 2009, all Sentara facilities system wide have now adopted the Tobacco Free Environment Initiative. Another January 2009 milestone: Team members at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital celebrated their first anniversary of working on a tobacco free campus. Sentara employees have embraced this effort and helped facilitate smooth transitions as they strive to live the Sentara mission and improve health every day. For information on tobacco cessation programs, visit
WaveNet or call 1-800-SENTARA or 1-800 QUIT NOW.
Sentara eCare® Health Network Update: Sentara Leigh Hospital Celebrates First Launch Anniversary In February, team members from Sentara Leigh Hospital marked one year since the 2008 implementation of the
Sentara eCare® Health Network on their campus. “We’ve had a good first year and a lot of lessons learned,” said Jay Vergara, project manager for nursing at Sentara Leigh Hospital. “We’ve been pleased to lead the way for the system, and we’re committed to helping staff from other Sentara hospitals prepare to go live. We’ve invited staff to come to Leigh and shadow a team member so they can see Sentara eCare® live in action. It is great. It helps us catch potential medication errors and enables us to see a patient’s chart electronically from wherever we are. That is a real benefit.”
Sentara eCare® RN Staffing Incentive Program Sentara staff members from numerous facilities have been participating in the Sentara eCare® RN Staffing Incentive Program. Through the program, RNs travel to other Sentara hospitals to cover extra shifts so that their colleagues on the nursing staff may attend training sessions. To learn more employees may visit
WaveNet.
Sentara eCare® Launches Continue Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital and Sentara Bayside Hospital already have Sentara eCare® in place. Upcoming Sentara hospitals to go live with include:
-- Sentara Norfolk General Hospital – March 28
-- Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center – August 2009
-- Sentara CarePlex Hospital/Sentara Port Warwick – October 2009
-- Sentara Obici Hospital – 2010
2008 Retrospective:
Sentara has had some notable achievements during 2008. A great measure of Sentara’s success is due to the hard work and dedication of its 15,000 employees who are committed to the core values that make Sentara a successful health system. Congratulations to all on achieving these milestones:
-- Employer of Choice® – Sentara is named an
Employer of Choice®, earning one of the highest employer scores ever given by Employer of Choice®, Inc. This places Sentara within the top 10 percent of health care systems in the country for its dedication to its employees, leadership, culture and best practices.
-- CIO 100 Award –
CIO magazine, a leading information technology industry publication, recognized Sentara Healthcare with its CIO-100, an annual award recognizing innovative organizations that use information technology effectively to create business value.
-- Top 100 Integrated Health Systems - Sentara
ranked 5th in the SDI (formerly known as Verispan) listing of the top 100 integrated health care networks in the nation.
SDI, a health care data and consulting company, lists its top 100 rankings each year in
Modern Healthcare magazine. Sentara has been ranked among the nation’s top providers all 11 years of the survey. (And, we just learned that we
ranked fourth on the 2009 list; it’s a great way to begin the New Year.)
-- Sentara Norfolk General Hospital Magnet Designation – Sentara Norfolk General Hospital is the first hospital in southeastern Virginia to be named a
Magnet Hospital by the
American Nurses Credentialing Center. Less than 5 percent of U.S. hospitals have earned this credential. This designation recognizes excellence in nursing and teamwork among all hospital staff.
-- Market Growth – Optima Health moved into several new markets this year. Medical transport is now also operating in Charlottesville and Petersburg. Sentara Home Care Services is now in Charlottesville and Covington, with other growth opportunities on the horizon. Sentara Princess Anne Hospital broke ground in southern Virginia Beach as did Sentara St. Luke’s in Suffolk. Sentara BelleHarbour opened in North Suffolk and Sentara opened new outpatient facilities in Gloucester and Williamsburg.
-- Sentara Lives the Mission – Beginning January 1, 2009, all Sentara campuses are tobacco free and thus helping Sentara employees live its mission: “We improve health every day.”
-- Providing Aid During Area Tornado – Sentara Obici Hospital’s Emergency Department performed commendably in the aftermath of the
April 2008 tornado, with Sentara Obici’s Ambulatory Surgery Center serving as the operations center for the recovery effort. Sentara’s HOPE (Helping Overcome Personal Emergency) Fund helped fellow employees put their lives back together after devastating personal losses.