Congratulations to our nine November Constellation Award recipients, Taylor Annarino, Logan Peepels, Jacquelyn Verhotz, George Bohlen, Dennis Swihart, Kristie Tolliver-Koogler, Jennifer Denlinger, Heather Halcomb, and Gloria Jackson!
The Constellation Award recognizes strong teams that come together to serve patients and each other. They demonstrate a calling to care, live the organization’s values, and show exceptional performance as defined by Kettering Health’s Standards of Behavior.
Continue reading to see why Taylor, Logan, Jacquelyn, George, Dennis, Kristie, Jennifer, Heather, and Gloria were chosen as recipients of this award.
Jacquelyn Verhotz, Logan Peepels, and Taylor Annarino – Kettering Health Troy
“There was a Kettering Health Troy employee who was new to the community, just had a car accident, and found himself without a house key one night. Not knowing what to do, or where to find a safe place to sleep, he opted to spend the night in the hospital. Logan found him asleep in the massage chairs, and assisted him by taking him to the ED to have a bed made up to sleep in. Jacquie helped him the next morning by taking him to retrieve his house key, and Taylor covered the house phone for Jacquie. These three employees went above and beyond to show this new employee kindness and compassion when he was overwhelmed and scared. I know the kindness they showed him is the culture of Kettering Health and it is one of the main reasons I am very happy here and hope to spend a very long time working along great people like these three! Our organization is very blessed to have such caring staff members who spread our values into the community, even when they’re not ‘on the clock.'”
Dennis Swihart, Kristie Tolliver-Koogler, and George Bohlen – Kettering Network Services
“The first week of September one of our departments was given notice that we had to close in 30 days because our lease was not going to be extended. This task seemed initially insurmountable. We had started to put in move tickets for hardware and Kristie reached out to me via Teams. I had a quick call with Kristie and George. Their can-do attitude was the turning point for our attitude and optimism regarding this clinic. The team of George, Kristie, and Dennis have made this transition very smooth. We have moved computers as clinicians find their new homes and there has been nothing but support from this team. The optimism, can-do, willingness to help, and stress-alleviation that this team provided was the stepping stone for my team’s success in closing a clinic with 300 active patients in 30 days. Without this team, we would have struggled, and the patients would have struggled. IS and Materials really make it possible for patient care to happen.”
Jennifer Denlinger, Gloria Jackson, and Heather Halcomb – Kettering Physician Network
“Heather, Jennifer, and Gloria are front office staff members. We had an incident in which a gentleman passing by our office had a medical emergency. Thinking our building might be an emergency room or urgent care, he pulled in. He explained to them he was extremely short of breath, had a recently fallen off a cliff, was feeling lightheaded and dizzy, and had a history of a collapsed lung. They immediately sprang into action. Heather took his information, Jennifer called 911, and Gloria alerted clinical staff to the situation. Because of their quick action and teamwork, the patient was stabilized by clinical staff until EMS arrived. He was transported to a local hospital where he was admitted for several days and had to undergo surgery. They each exhibited the characterizations in which we as Kettering Health employees live by–trustworthy, innovative, caring, competent, and collaborative. They showed that the Kettering Health emblem on our building is the sign for a safe haven for anyone in need of medical services whether they are a patient of ours or not. They were innovative in quickly adapting to a scary situation, remaining calm, and making sure they covered all the bases quickly to ensure the gentleman was taken care of. They showed how caring they were by staying with the patient, asking questions, offering to contact loved ones, and ensuring his vehicle would be safe in our parking lot. They exhibited competence by springing into action and delegating tasks. They embodied collaboration by working as a team to make all the appropriate alerts to staff and EMS, while reassuring the patients in the waiting room. The front office staff is often the first interaction with our office, and we have such an amazing team to make that first impression and to set the tone for those cared for by our team.”