DEPARTMENT SPOTLIGHT EMPLOYEE HEALTH
Back Row: Juanita Russell, Deborah J Martinez, Joseph McCarty, Ronnie Jaimes, Raine Soret, Ruby Washington, and Cindy MacClean; Front Row: Celia Berryman, Katherine Pugh, Adriana Hatch, Nancy Ohlenburger, Jacquelyn Henderson, Leslie Towner, and Geri Hall From flu shots, to fit testing, to workplace injuries, the employee health nurses at Methodist Healthcare specialize in identifying risk and caring for our employees. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this team took on an elevated role to support and care for our staff in ways they never have before. “I remember being on the phone with an employee who was driving to the ER with very severe symptoms of COVID-19. They asked me if they were going to die. That was heartbreaking, because I felt like there was nothing I could do,” said Leslie Towner, RN, Employee Health Nurse at Methodist Hospital | Northeast. “I wanted to be there to hold their hand and to comfort them. I could only be on the phone to talk them through it. That was hard.”
Want to feature your department? We'd love to learn more about you! Please email MethodistCommunications@ MHSHealth.com to request to be featured in the next issue.
Leslie said some employees have come back after recovering from COVID-19 to thank her. She said they have cried together remembering the scary moments of uncertainty and knowing 28 | Methodist Magazine
this crisis has brought them closer together. Then they get back to doing what they do – caring for others. Leslie said this last year has definitely stretched the team to their limits, but that it has always been a very rewarding job. The employee health nurses are charged with giving annual flu vaccines, maintaining shot records, providing drug screenings and pre-employment immunization records, and respirator fit testing. They are also case managers for employees involved in work injuries like needle sticks, blood and body fluid exposures, or TB exposures. Employee Health nurses run the Healthy Work Environment at each facility where they have staff train and educate their own department peers on employee safety and keep their environment and workplace safe. Employee Health’s main responsibility is keeping the employees safe. Reminder: Don’t come to work sick. Let your employee health nurse know if you have a fever or other symptoms. See your PCP for care. Thank you for helping maintain a safe place for our staff, patients and visitors.
