around uch - University of Colorado Hospital

Through June 8, 2009
Volume 2 • Issue 24
A
round UCH:
A round-up of goings-on, big and
small, in and around the hospital
Med Benefits
Enrollment
Deadline Looms
Annual employee medical benefits enrollment
for Fiscal Year 2010 ends May 29. Enroll online
at http://hub.uch.edu/benefits_payroll/enroll-inyour-employee-benefits.aspx. Employees who do
nothing will be re-enrolled in the same plan at the
same coverage levels as in 2009. However, those
who wish to enroll dependents ages 19 to 25 and
those who participate in Health Savings Accounts
must reenroll online.
In addition, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services requires that employees enrolling
dependents must provide their dependents’
Social Security numbers.
Human Resources will have informational
tables set up May 28 in the Courtyard Café
from 7:00 to 8:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Further questions? Contact HR through its website http://hub.uch.edu/benefits_payroll/medical-benefitplans.aspx, the HR Call Center (720-848-6800), or by e-mail ([email protected]).
Continued
Through June 8, 2009
Volume 2 • Issue 24
Talk to the Prez
Got a burning question about life at the hospital? UCH
President and CEO Bruce Schroffel will hold two informal discussion sessions with employees Thursday, May 28,
at 7:30 a.m. and Thursday, June 11, at 4:30 p.m. in Room
2007/2133 of the Anschutz Inpatient Pavilion.
CeDAR Names
Quarterly Service
Award Winner
The Center for Dependency, Addiction and
Rehabilitation (CeDAR) named Martha Porras
of Environmental Services its Quarterly Service
Award winner. Porras received a plaque May 8
from CeDAR executive director Frank Lisnow
and Environmental Services manager John Pham.
“Martha is very service oriented, steady, stable and pleasant,” noted Winnie
Moll, Lisnow’s administrative assistant. “She’s done extra tasks, like cleaning
our Colonel’s Row houses when requested to do so.”
CeDAR Quarterly Service Award winner
Martha Porras with John Pham (left)
and Frank Lisnow.
Continued
Through June 8, 2009
Volume 2 • Issue 24
Sterile Processing
Employee Wins
President’s Award
James Jones, lead technician for the hospital’s Sterile Processing
Department, received a President’s Award for “Amazing Service”
during a May 15 presentation in the Anschutz Inpatient Pavilion.
Vice President of Human Resources Darryl Varnado presented the
award (top right); Lynn Parton, manager of Sterile Processing, and
Katherine Halverson-Carpenter, director of Perioperative Services,
also made remarks.
In nominating Jones for the award, colleague Therese Moler wrote,
“Recently we have had numerous days where surgeons with the same
specialty are scheduled to perform the same or similar
procedures in different rooms at the same time. This
causes a shortage of sterilized instrument trays for those
procedures.
“As soon as James becomes aware of this situation,”
Moler added, “he notifies the team and personally takes
responsibility for those instruments when they come
down from the operating rooms, making sure they are clean, reassembled, and sterilized, if time permits, before they are needed for
the next case.”
Moler also praised Jones’ open approach to his job. “[He] welcomes
communication about what surgeries are being performed in the operating rooms, what instruments are needed for the day, what conflicts
are anticipated for instruments, and offers solutions, if possible,” she
noted. “If he is aware of a potential problem, he notifies the necessary
personnel so a proactive approach can be taken.”
A large number of Jones’ colleagues turned out to congratulate him and enjoy refreshments afterward.
Continued
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Volume 2 • Issue 24
Hospital Continues Community Service
University of Colorado Hospital, The Children’s Hospital, University of Colorado Denver and the
Fitzsimons Redevelopment Authority joined forces once again May 13 to assist students at nearby
Montview and Paris elementary schools in Aurora.
Chris Comer, UCH special and community events coordinator, said volunteers from the organizations
delivered a total of 850 “wellness bags” to the schools, which then distributed them to students May 20
as a send-off to summer vacation. Students went home with band aid dispensers, lip balm, sunscreen,
wellness coloring books, granola bars, flash light key chains and pens.
“These students definitely left school with resources for staying safe and having something to keep as a
reminder of all the good things that are happening for them,” said Bobby Quinn, secretary for Aurora
Public Schools.
Service for Families Suffering Loss
The hospital will hold a memorial service May 30 for families who have suffered a perinatal loss. Andrea
Mitrovka, RN, perinatal loss coordinator and clinical nurse in the hospital’s Birth Center, said all families have received an invitation to the service. Decedent Affairs coordinator Susan Lawrence, she added,
will provide a souvenir based on dragonflies, the service’s theme.
The service will be conducted in English and Spanish, Mitrovka said. “For our families that don’t have
memories of their infant, this is a chance to remember,” she noted. The hospital has hosted the service
since 1989, she added.
Location: Nighthorse Campbell Native Health Building, 13055 E. 17th Ave. Time: 1:30 p.m. Light refreshments will be served.
Continued
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Volume 2 • Issue 24
UPI Breaks Ground on New Home
University Physicians, Inc. (UPI), the organization that represents some 1,200 physicians who
treat patients at University of Colorado Hospital, has broken ground on a new office site. UPI
has sold the building it presently occupies, at Colfax Avenue and Wheeling Street, to the Veterans
Administration, which plans a future move to the Anschutz Medical Campus.
A six-story, 195,000-square-foot, multitenant office building will be constructed at Montview
Boulevard and Victor Street, in the Colorado Science + Technology Park, and will house roughly
335 UPI employees. Construction is slated for completion by August 2010, according to a press
release from the developer, Minneapolis-based Opus Northwest LLC.
Artists’ rendering of new UPI building, scheduled for completion next August. Courtesy Opus Northwest LLC.
Continued
Through June 8, 2009
Volume 2 • Issue 24
Long-time
UCH Employee Honored
by Industry Group
Naomi Odems, medical records supervisor for Health Information Management at UCH, received a “Lifetime Achievement” award May 14 from
the Colorado Health Information Management Association (CHIMA).
The ceremony was held at the Denver Sheraton West Hotel.
Odems, who was nominated for
the award by UCH colleague Molly
Dufour, is a 48-year employee of the
hospital.
Health Information
Management’s
Naomi Odems.
Odems is also a long-time member of
CHIMA, the state association of the
American Health Information Management Association, which includes
50,000 professionals nationwide. The
Colorado association has about 600
members.
“I’m grateful and thankful for the nomination and award,” said Odems, who
received a surprise when her director
of more than 30 years drove down from
South Dakota to attend the ceremony.
Odems with Sarah Banish, past president of
the Colorado Health Information Management
Association.
Continued
Through June 8, 2009
Volume 2 • Issue 24
Ride to Benefit
Transplant
Donation
Help save lives by joining Team Transplant’s effort to raise money and support for organ and tissue donation at the
Elephant Rock Cycling Festival Sunday,
June 7. The ride will start at the Douglas County Fairgrounds in Castle Rock,
Colorado.
Team Transplant is the creation of the
American Transplant Foundation, a
Denver-based nonprofit organization
dedicated to saving the lives of the more
than 100,000 people in the United States
who are waiting for a lifesaving organ
transplant. The team of transplant
recipients, living donors, donor family members and supporters will ride
7-, 32-, 62-, and 100-mile road courses
and a 25-mile off-road course to prove
that both recipients and living donors
can lead healthy, active lives.
To join, donate or raise $50 and pay any applicable
course registration fees. Team members will be entered into a raffle and will enjoy smoothies,
milkshakes, and massages after the ride.
Learn more and join Team Transplant by visiting http://www.AmericanTransplantFoundation.org/
or call 303-757-0959.
Continued
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Volume 2 • Issue 24
Campus Hosts Race
in Support of Lung
Cancer Research
Nearly 700 people gathered on the Anschutz Medical
Campus May 16 for the 5K Gift of Life and Breath race.
The event raised some $17,000 to support the Gary L. and
Thelissa Zollinger Early Detection of Lung Cancer Endowment,
which supports lung cancer research at the University of Colorado
Cancer Center (UCCC).
Cancer Center’s Ross Camidge addresses
race crowd.
About 50 volunteers from campus security, UCCC and University of Colorado Denver also participated. Ross Camidge,
MD, PhD, clinical director of UCCC’s Lung Cancer program,
was on hand to lend support and address the crowd.
Lung cancer patient Bob Cassou, a patient
of Lung Cancer program clinical director
Ross Camidge, with family at Gift of Life
and Breath race
Continued
Through June 8, 2009
Volume 2 • Issue 24
One-on-One Nutrition
Assistance
University of Colorado Hospital is offering
outpatient nutrition classes and one-on-one
consultations with a dietitian. Classes include “Heart Healthy Diet 101” and “Weight
Loss 101.”
Location: Internal Medicine Practice, 5th
floor of the Anschutz Outpatient Pavilion:
Times: Heart Health, 1st Wednesday of each
month from 3 to 4 p.m.; Weight Loss, 3rd
Wednesday of each month from 3 to 4 p.m.
Cost: $15, paid directly by the patient.
To schedule: 720-848-1090.
Free Retirement Planning Consultations
Hospital employees can
schedule one-on-one retirement planning sessions with
investment representatives
from Fidelity and TIAACREF throughout June. “It’s
an opportunity to take full
advantage of the hospital’s
great retirement options,”
says Human Resources benefits representative Maura
Weiler. See RSVP number and meeting times in table above. More information: Weiler at 86829
or [email protected].
Continued
Through June 8, 2009
Volume 2 • Issue 24
Discounts for Employees
Human Resources reminds UCH staffers that the Employee Discount Web
site is available through the HUB. Take advantage of special pricing from
banks, computer vendors, fitness sites, daycare providers and more.
To access the site, go to http://hub.uch.edu/benefits_payroll/employeediscounts/index.aspx. (From the HUB main page, click Benefits & Payroll,
then Employee Discounts).
The offerings may change without notice, so check back frequently; Human Resources also notes that
the hospital is not responsible for any vendor issues that may arise.
Clinical Informatics Presentation
at UCD
The “top 10 clinical informatics topics” will be on
the table June 11 when the Colorado Healthcare
Information Management and Systems Society (CHIMSS) presents a lecture by Michael G.
Kahn MD, PhD, associate professor of Pediatric
Epidemiology at The Children’s Hospital and
co-director of the Colorado Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute at the University of
Colorado Denver.
Dr. Kahn will present new research studies and key
events he believes will shape the future of health care,
then participate in a discussion about the impact of
these issues.
The event is free for CHIMSS members; dinner and
drinks are provided. Time: 6:00-8:00 p.m. Location:
UCD Education 2 North Building, Room P28-1304.
Through June 8, 2009
Volume 2 • Issue 24
Celebrate Survivorship
In recognition of National Cancer Survivors Day® June
7, the University of Colorado Cancer Center will hold its
own survivorship celebration June 4 from 6:00 p.m. to
7:30 p.m. on the first floor of the Anschutz Outpatient
Pavilion.
The event, titled “Hope Grows: a Celebration of Survivorship,” will be held in conjunction with the Lilly
Oncology on Canvas traveling art exhibit and the “Expressions of a Cancer Journey” exhibit, which displays
original artwork by Cancer Center patients (see story in
this issue).
The evening will include cancer survivors speaking about
their artwork, what it means to them and what they have
learned about survivorship, according to Kristin Leonardi-Warren, RN, ND, the Cancer Center’s program
manager for Patient Support/Survivorship. An exhibit viewing and refreshments will follow, along with
work on a community collage project that will be displayed in the Cancer Center when it is completed.
Burn Unit Joins Columbine
Remembrance
The hospital’s Burn/Trauma ICU
provided a burn prevention booth
May 9 at Columbine Community
Day at Columbine High School in
Littleton. The event included a car
show, basketball tournament and
“kiddie carnival.”
Burn unit staffers Katie
Fuenning (left) and Teresa
Guerrini at burn prevention booth at Columbine
High School May 10.
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