News Briefs Around Sentara 

Network: May 2009
Members of the Team

Commitments to Customer Service
The following customer service stories recognize just a few of the exceptional employees who work at Sentara Healthcare. Read their stories to find out what their commitments are all about.

-- Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital
A man whose wife died after a series of hospitalizations recognized the entire staff of Stepdown Unit 2 East, along with Dr. Greg Warth and the food services staff for making the patient’s stay "bearable" for the patient and her family. The letter cites a special meal prepared for the patient and her husband that turned out to be their last meal together. One excerpt from the letter reads, “The staff was positive, friendly, responsive to the needs of my wife and they never stopped smiling … They are a fantastic group of professionals.” He goes on to write, “Hats off to Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital for creating such a personal experience for my family.”

-- Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center
A patient recently discharged from Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center wrote a letter to the editor of the Virginia Gazette, praising everyone from the person who checked him into the hospital Emergency Department to the Environmental Services Department staff, to the Home Care nurses who provided him care after discharge. His letter said he had worked in a hospital for 18 years and, “I know the difference between mediocre, good and excellent care, and I would rate Sentara care as superior care.”

-- Sentara Leigh Hospital
Public Radio talk host Cathy Lewis of "HearSay" recently offered on-air praise to the Radiology Department staff at Sentara Leigh Hospital when they helped Lewis iron out a scheduling glitch. Charlotte “T” Turner, CT Tech, was singled out among the staff. Turner was 30 minutes beyond her quitting time with her coat on her arm when she realized someone in the waiting room was having a problem. Without knowing that Cathy Lewis is a radio personality, she put down her coat and took the time to work out the issue before going home. She made sure all of the appropriate tests were scheduled and would be done in the proper order and also accompanied Lewis to the appropriate areas to have the tests completed. Other radiology staff members note that Turner does this routinely, with a smile, and credits her team when things go well.

-- Sentara Norfolk General Hospital
Safety and Security officer James Kallok retrieved a surgery patient’s motorized wheelchair from a waiting room and discovered a mangled tire that made it less than maneuverable. He engaged James Green of BioMedical Services for repairs and Kallok paid for a new tire out of his own pocket before delivering a spruced-up wheelchair back to the patient’s room. Kallok was reimbursed after his supervisors heard what he had done for the patient.

Sentara Norfolk General Hospital staff transport a Nightingale Air Ambulance patient during the drill.

Hospital Disaster Training Exercise Held
In ongoing compliance with The Joint Commission requirements for disaster preparedness, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, Sentara CarePlex Hospital, and Sentara Port Warwick participated in a regional disaster drill on March 11. The training exercise, which simulated a shooting incident at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, involved patients being taken to Sentara CarePlex Hospital, Sentara Port Warwick, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital as well as Riverside Regional Medical Center.

The drill involved triage of patients, opening the hospitals and CNU campus family centers, communicating between the hospitals and CNU regarding victim location and family reunification. Valuable lessons were learned regarding communicating with the public and the process of patient identification and tracking from the scene of a mass casualty incident to multiple health care facilities. All hospitals opened their hospital command centers and activated their emergency operations plans to respond to the simulated incident.

Virginia Beach Police Department “Every 15 Minutes” Program Held
On March 10, students from Tallwood High School in Virginia Beach visited Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital to witness the Virginia Beach Police Deparment’s “Every 15 Minutes Drinking and Driving Program.” Participants witnessed the gruesome aftermath of a drunk driving crash. It was staged by the “Every 15 Minutes” program in which Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital participates.

Sentara Nightingale Air Ambulance picked up one victim at the "scene" while others went to the hospital by ground. Participants witnessed a LifeNet Health staff member ask a parent to consider organ donation and a classmate’s mother ‘identified’ her daughter in the morgue. Teenagers wept. Thanks to the Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital Emergency Department director Linda Baker and her staff for providing a meaningful experience that just might save a teen's life.

Sentara Norfolk General Hospital is Recognized With Magnet Resolution
Sentara Norfolk General Hospital was recognized at the General Assembly Meeting in Richmond on February 23 for obtaining Magnet status. JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 913 offered February 16, 2009, commended three hospitals in the Commonwealth: Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, Winchester Medical Center, and Bon Secours St. Mary's Hospital, each having achieved recognition as Magnet Healthcare Organizations from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

The Magnet Recognition Program®  speaks to a supportive culture for nursing and strong teamwork across disciplines. Sentara Norfolk General Hospital was awarded Magnet status in December 2008. It’s the first hospital in Hampton Roads to achieve Magnet. Less than 5 percent of U.S. hospitals have it. Every Sentara Norfolk General Hospital team member contributed to earning this national honor.

Attaining the Magnet credential required submission of written evidence that Sentara Norfolk General Hospital met 164 standards of the Magnet program, followed by a three-day site visit during which three appraisers interviewed hundreds of nurses and talked with patients, physicians and other staff to verify the accuracy of the written evidence. In addition to clarifying evidence, the appraisers who visited Sentara Norfolk General Hospital noted five exemplars in which the hospital exceeded requirements for Magnet, including: culture of safety, community service, teamwork, nurses as teachers and ethical decision making. Congratulations on this great achievement!
Read the press release. 

'Donate Life' Program Celebrated
Sentara Norfolk General Hospital Safety and Security team leader James Helton, who is also a kidney recipient from a deceased donor in Kentucky, raised a ‘Donate Life’ flag in front of the hospital on April 1 to mark the beginning of Donate Life month. “It was an honor for me to raise that flag,” Helton says. “I was given a second chance to live life to the fullest,” James Helton says. The flag was flown daily throughout April and then for a week each time a deceased donor offers organs for transplant. Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital also flew the flag in April and dedicated a butterfly sculpture to be displayed in the lobby as a reminder that organ and tissue donation saves and enhances lives.  Sentara Obici Hospital along with Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center also participated in flying the flag in April to recognize 'Donate Life' month.

Sentara Brand Guidelines Revised
Sentara has recently revised its brand guidelines for print and electronic communication and all marketing materials to include a standardized, disciplined approach to the use of the corporate logo, colors, type fonts and other brand factors presented to the public. The guidelines also apply to the signatures and tag lines that are applied in Sentara e-mails. Sentara employees are encouraged to visit WaveNet to learn how these guidelines affect you. Visit WaveNet, and search brand.

Reach Out and Read To Youth
Sentara Medical Group offices including Williamsburg Pediatric, Adolescent and Sports Medicine in New Town and Medical Center Family Physicians on the Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center campus recently participated in the "Reach Out and Read" program. The program encourages growth and development by supplying new books to young patients at well-baby check-ups. Barnes and Noble booksellers in New Town hosted the Reach out and Read program in February. Special thanks to Virginia Sweeney and JC Konier from Sentara Medical Group who participated in the event by reading to children. 

 Father — Son Surgical Team Returns from Honduras

(L-R) Jordan Jacobs, MD, and Jonathan Jacobs, MD.

For the past seven years, two Sentara Leigh Hospital staff members have donated time and expertise in rural Honduras to care for indigent children.

Jonathan Jacobs, MD, and Surgical Nurse Patricia Weeks have traveled with the International Hospital for Children-sponsored plastic surgical team to participate in humanitarian missions to this Central American impoverished area.

This year’s journey was special. Dr. Jacobs’ son, Jordan, a plastic surgical resident at NYU, accompanied them on the trip. It was their first time operating together as a father/son duo. Along with another surgeon, nurse anesthetists and an anesthesiologist, the team cared for more than 70 children with facial and palatal clefts, genitourinary deformities, burn scar contractures and other maladies.

For more information, visit the International Hospital for Children Web site.