Volume 11
Issue 26
December 23, 2016
PRESBYbulletin Penn Presbyterian Medical Center
50 Years of Employee Recognition at PPMC Penn Presbyterian Medical Center honored its longest serving employees late last month at the 50th Annual Employee Recognition Ceremony, a formal lunch and party at the Inn at Penn. The afternoon kicked off with playful mocktails and a chance for Presby long-timers to mingle. Groups of the coworkers, determined by how long they’ve worked at PPMC, were pulled away one at a time for photos. As lunch began and everyone took their seats, the group packed the ballroom and Michele Volpe, CEO of PPMC, offered a warm welcome address to begin the reception. PPMC leaders individually recognized each PPMC employee who has reached important milestones in their tenure at the hospital. First honored were the employees who just hit five years at Presby, then 10 and 15 years and further milestones in 5 year increments. The leaders also reflected on fun facts and pop culture moments from the year each group started work at PPMC. For the group of 15 year veterans, for instance, the price of gas was $1.46 per gallon, and notable movies dating back to those who started in 1976 – now celebrating 40 years of service – included “Rocky” and “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.”
The stars of the afternoon came from that group: Eric Smith and David Scott were each honored for their four decades of dedicated work as members of the Penn Presbyterian team. Scott has worked in several areas of Penn Presbyterian during his lengthy career. After starting as a member of the grounds crew, he took a position in dietary services and went on to work for environmental services and as an OR tech before joining the respiratory care department in 2004 as their loyal equipment tech. Coworkers say Smith, a radiology technician, is a true professional, always going the extra mile to ensure the best experience for his patients. Back when he was training students, his patience shined as guided them not only to sharpen only their skills as radiology techs, but to also let them make their own mistakes and to think outside of the box when solving problems. Margorie Michele, chief human resources officer for PPMC, closed the program with a message of gratitude and highlighted the significant contributions that the honorees have made to Presby over the years. Nearly 200 PPMC employees and managers attended the ceremony.
STROKE PROGRAM EARNS RECERTIFICATION, AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE
MS Bike Team UPHS/PENN – Pedaling to the Top! Congratulations to all of our 2016 UPHS/PENN MS Society City to Shore Bike Ride participants and their supporters for making the 2016 ride one of our most successful to date! Team UPHS/PENN set a new participation record again this year, with 397 riders raising more than $259,000. Team UPHS/PENN won the following awards after another amazing and tremendously successful year: • Top Fundraising Team • Largest Corporate Team • $100,000 Club The team also had 64 riders who achieved “VIP” status by raising more than $1,000, including six team members who raised more than $5,000. Penn Medicine’s Gary Crooks, MD, was the UPHS/PENN top fundraiser, raising an astounding $29,743, coming in fourth in overall fundraising out of more than 7,000 riders.
VIPS: $5,000 OR MORE IN FUNDRAISING: • Gary Crooks, MD -- $29,743 • Clyde Markowitz, MD -- $13,523 • Robert Bacall -- $9,016 • Eric Greenblatt, MD -- $6,958 • Suzanne Brown -- $5,040 • Nancy Pomilio -- $5,003
The Penn Presbyterian Medical Center Primary Stroke Program recently received recertification from the Joint Commission at their biennial site survey. The recertification continues the hospital’s status as a Disease Specific Primary Stroke Center, meaning it meets guidelines for excellence set for them by the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American Stroke Association (ASA). Not only was the PPMC program recertified, the team has also been awarded the 2016 Get With The Guidelines Gold Plus Target Stroke Honor Roll Elite award for exceptional stroke care. Karrima Owens, MSN, ACNS-BC, the program’s coordinator and co-chair of the UPHS Stroke Steering Committee, said the award recognized the team’s excellence and commitment toward the stroke patient population and the achievement of remarkable “door-to-needle” times. Door-to-needle time is the time from when a patient enters the Emergency department to when they are treated with the clot-busting drug tPA, or tissue plasminogen activator, the national standard in stroke care. “Because 1.9 million neurons are dying every minute, as shown by a recent study, in patients whose strokes are left untreated it’s vitally important we are able to treat these patients with tPA as quickly as possible,” Owens said. Owens said that they will be working hard to decrease their door-to-needle times even more and obtain the highest AHA award level of Gold Plus Target Stroke Honor Roll Elite-Plus which recognizes hospitals who obtain door-to-needle times within 45 minutes in 50 percent of acute ischemic stroke patients treated with IV t-PA.
Contact Us: Paul Foster | paul.foster@uphs.upenn.edu | http://news.pennmedicine.org/inside/presbybulletin/