Andrea Keogh, IDD (intellectual and developmental disabilities) and pediatric program manager at Evergreen, specializes in serving our patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Andrea joined team Evergreen in October of 2021, and began her role as IDD and pediatric program manager in February of 2024.
Andrea was one of the team members we gained when services for individuals with IDD at People, Inc’s Elmwood Health Center were merged into Evergreen’s location at 800 Hertel Avenue in 2021. This collaboration between People, Inc and Evergreen has let us better serve our IDD patients by colocating People, Inc’s services, like rehabilitative health services, counseling, and People First Mobility, with Evergreen’s medical and supportive services for people with disabilities.
Though she’s only been with Evergreen for a few years, Andrea draws on 30 years of experience in serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Her first position out of college, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology, was a group home position with People, Inc.
Within a few months she began working as a medical liaison, assisting group home individuals with their medical appointments, ordering medications, and ensuring their medical paperwork met New York State regulations.
Andrea moved up to a management position within People, Inc, and assisted the team with opening a new Medically Frail group home, where she served as program manager and ran day-today operations. She then moved on to a care coordinator position, where she stayed for 18 years until becoming a part of team Evergreen through the merger with People, Inc.
Andrea embodies our values of providing unconditionally affirming care, especially to disabled
communities who have historically fallen through the cracks of the healthcare system. Read on for a glimpse into Andrea’s work, in her own words.
What services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities does Evergreen provide? At our 800 Hertel Avenue location, we serve patients with disabilities with all functioning levels: those who are verbal and non-verbal; and those who live independently, in supportive apartments, 24-hour staff group homes, or with their loved ones. We also serve adult and pediatric patients from the general population at this location.
We provide medical case management to help patients with and without disabilities get connected to the medical and supportive services they need, like referrals to medical specialists, transportation and housing assistance, or at-home care coordination.
We help patients with disabilities address factors that impact their health, wellness, and access to services – for example, we complete transportation forms that let individuals with disabilities access the NFTA’s Paratransit Access Line service, Medicaid Cab Services or Senior Van services.
Finally, our providers at 800 Hertel Avenue are trained in providing culturally appropriate, respectful and affirming primary and specialty care to folks with intellectual and developmental disabilities. We are so lucky to have Dr. Aronica, Dr. Zambron and Dr. Blymire. These three providers are certified to assess the capacity of patients with IDD for guardianship and to sign health care proxies.
What does a typical work day look like for you? Every day is different! The first thing I like to do each day is look at our triages: messages from staff requesting assistance as they connect patients with services like transportation, mental health care, or crisis intervention. Triage messages on a given day
might include helping patients with adult and child protective concerns, helping patients find Durable Medical Equipment providers that are covered by their insurance, helping patients obtain OPWDD (Office of People with Developmental Disabilities) services and benefits, or connecting patients with home aid services, mental health providers, or medical specialists.
Each day I support our team of medical case managers and providers as they see patients, follow up on referrals, and schedule transportation. I plan the day by looking at our providers’ schedules and making sure they have the information needed to assist each patient.
As a part of Evergreen’s leadership, I attend management and operational meetings, and am a member of the organization’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Guiding Coalition.
I’ve started a new Employee Resource Group called Embrace, Empower, Include, where we have discussions around how we can all best support disabled communities. I represent Evergreen at events geared toward our IDD and pediatric populations, like school health fairs, Developmental Disability Day events, and the Disability Pride Festival.
I also attend meetings with Cerebral Palsy of WNY, a group of several agencies in New York State that serve the IDD population. We fight for access to services for this specialized population, as well as for optimal billing for the agencies that serve them.
Why is it important to provide services specifically for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities? The disabled community has been historically marginalized by the healthcare system, and individuals with disabilities don’t always get the specialized and respectful care they need.
People with disabilities often face multiple co-morbidities and may need to see several specialists.
I believe that training providers and support staff to communicate with patients in a supportive, kind manner is imperative.
Individuals with disabilities may need help with documentation in order to meet state regulations, and not a lot of clinics are willing to take the extra time. Without the proper documentation, people with IDD are in danger of losing their services, like respite, group home, day program, and at-home aid services. This is why our providers are dedicated to meeting the specific needs of individuals with IDD in an affirming environment.
Why is Disability Pride important? I spoke to one of our patients this week who is on the board for the Disability Pride Festival, and she said it perfectly: she sees herself as someone who empowers others. People with disabilities don’t always have a voice: they are still fighting for marriage equality, as people with disabilities who get married could lose their services or benefits like transportation, accessible housing, and opportunities to work with or without accommodations.
People with disabilities vote, they work, they live in our community and want to be included. They want to go to school and college. They want all the same freedoms that everyone has and deserves.
This year was my second year representing Evergreen at the Buffalo Pride Disability Festival at Canalside.
Note: this profile by Jean Conway is reprinted from the the Evergreen Blog.
EVERGREEN'S
annual Patient Experience Week is an opportunity to focus on patient satisfaction. Last month we examined loyalty and reputation, one of the five pillars of patient experience. This month we look at the fifth and final pillar: assessment tools. Collin Ranney, patient experience manager at Evergreen, says that assessment tools help us ensure that patients' point of view, perspective, and experience are not only heard, but also integrated into the service and quality improvements engineered to ensure high-quality, patient-centered care. This collaboration with patients leads to services that truly meet their needs, and empowers them to be active participants in their own health. Evergreen uses a variety of assessment tools to gain patient feedback:
A Patient Pulse is an electronic, direct-to-patient survey platform. Surveys are tailored to each department and sent via text or email following an appointment. A dashboard consolidates each response for quick access to patient experience, patient satisfaction, and clinical quality. Surveys go out on a continuous basis and allow open communication with patients, providing specific answer selections as well as free text responses.
A Comment Cards provide an opportunity to provide feedback and advice to help ensure quality care. 24 comment card boxes are located throughout all Evergreen locations.
A Patient Experience Surveys measure Evergreen’s patient experience indicators across both the agency and in different centers/departments. An agency-wide patient experience
survey is conducted annually. These surveys are distributed in a variety of ways, including: online/electronic (Jotform) with QR codes, hard copies, social media promotion, employee encouragement, patient portal messaging, text messaging, on-site signage, and rise screens.
A Direct Feedback and Complaints are addressed in collaboration with appropriate staff, managers, and corporate compliance to mediate and resolve patient concerns and problems. This direct feedback is typically provided by phone and face-to-face interaction between the patient and patient experience manager.
A Patient Advisory Groups such as Evergreen’s long-standing Partners Group provide an opportunity for patients to provide valuable feedback, help reimagine services, and suggest changes. Another group, the Patient, Family & Caregiver Advisory Committee was established in 2023 to include representatives from Evergreen’s pediatric and developmentally and intellectually disabled populations. The Drug User Health Coalition is a resource group for current and former people who use drugs. This monthly meeting allows members opportunities to connect with each other, share experiences and work to bring about meaningful change. For many, this sense of purpose is instrumental in each member’s own path to a healthier future.
Watch for more about Patient Experience at Evergreen in future issues of Connections!
Publisher/Layout
John Carocci
Copy
Editors
Jean Conway
Kristy Mangel
Maggie Carrig
Contributors
Eric Poniatowski
Melissa Delgado
Christopher Cline
Andy Kiener
Collin Ranney
Stephanie Vroman-Goodrich
Connections is the official monthly newsletter for employees and board members of Evergreen Health and its affilliates, the Pride Center of Western New York and Community Access Services. You can submit photos, comments or a "hello" via Outlook at Evergreen Connections.
The Information Systems team gathered for its annual picnic. Thank you to Andy Kiener for the photos!
The THRIVE Wellness team practices what they preach!
Helen Graves has been with Evergreen for 3 years and is the health & wellness counselor in THRIVE. In May, Helen completed her first half-marathon! Helen says, “I've always loved distance running and my goal since high school has been to run a half- or full-marathon. Several months prior to signing up I was doing shorter races (5,8,10k) so I finally decided to just sign up for the Buffalo Marathon. During health education groups I'm always preaching to my patients the importance of exercise and self-care for prevention and management of chronic disease so I figured I should put that into practice. It's been a little joke we share of what I may be up to over the weekend between running, sky diving, going to Darien Lake and other things they find crazy, but I love sharing my experiences with them!”
James Thompson just celebrated 10 years at Evergreen! He's the director of health and wellness. This includes overseeing THRIVE Wellness, our Nutrition Health Education grant, and our food pantry. James is a competitive cyclist and this summer competed in the Pan American Masters Games, where he won the age 35-39 category race. He’s been racing for 15 years and is at the highest level of amateur cycling and competes in races all over the Northeast. He’s also the president of the Buffalo Bicycling Club and organizes local and regional races to develop new racers in the region. James says: “The focus on training and nutrition that goes into my cycling informs my perspective as a health educator, where if I can identify one main behavior that I can get someone to do consistently and habitually, that can have a great compounding effect down the road on improving their health.”
THRIVE is located on the 4th floor of our Elmwood location. Patients of Evergreen primary and specialty care or Medication for Addiction Treatment (MAT) at any location are eligible to enroll and participate. The THRIVE team uses the stages of change model to work with patients to create appropriate and achievable health goals as well as providing holistic and supportive care. We offer group and individual health education, art therapy, guided imagery, acupuncture, yoga, chair massage, assisted stretching, reiki, cooking demonstrations, and more. To refer a patient, complete a referral form for THRIVE Wellness in Medent. - Stephanie Vroman-Goodrich
By centralizing communication, we ensure patient needs are promptly and properly addressed. Evergreen's phone operators serve as the first point of contact for patients, facilitating efficient communication and directing them to the appropriate staff, services, or department. They provide important information, streamline communication, and improve overall patient satisfaction by adding a personal and responsive touch to patient interactions. Providing our main numbers 716-847-2441 (Evergreen Health), 716-852-5969 (CAS) or 716-852-7743 (Pride Center) instead of giving out direct phone extensions to patients is important. The risks of sharing direct extensions include:
l Delayed crisis response: If a patient in crisis contacts a staff member who is unavailable or on vacation, their needs might not be addressed promptly.
l Missed communications: Voicemails left by patients could be overlooked if not handled directly.
l Interruptions for staff: Direct calls can disrupt staff, reducing their efficiency and focus on patient care.
l Bypassing communication protocols: Direct extensions can bypass established protocols meant to ensure calls are appropriately triaged and documented. Centralized communication helps ensure that patient calls are appropriately screened and routed, maintaining efficiency. So, utilize Evergreen’s skilled phone operators and don’t give out your personal extension to patients. The operators can quickly and easily be reached by pressing option 1 when calling our main number. Many of our operators are also bilingual to be able to assist both our English and Spanish-speaking patients.
Shaquana Zeigler-Davis August 1
Fathia Ali .............................................. August 2
Emily McGorry August 2
Andrew Anderson August 6
Suzanne Lambie August 8
Raymond Stover August 9
Reginald Washington August 10
Elizabeth Danwin August 10
Jonathan Puma .................................. August 11
Melissa Gulino August 13
Christine Baczkiewicz ....................... August 13
Becky Siuta August 14
Austin Keller August 14
Carolee Corbitt August 14
LeAnna Shanks August 14
Kelly Thompson ................................. August 16
Michael Godzala August 17
Amy Usiak ............................................ August 17
Sara Nieves August 18
Jamie Zynda August 18
Hannah Bischoping August 19
Michael Ludwick August 20
Magali Maldonado ............................. August 21
Megan Mogavero August 22
Tiera Rogers ........................................ August 22
Barbara Aviles August 23
Lydia Ruiz August 23
Asha Mathis August 24
Joanne Dean August 24
Bradley Allen ....................................... August 25
Quincy Baker August 27
Kristy Drake ......................................... August 28
Patrick Hildenbrandt August 28
Briana Wellenzohn August 29
Kaitlin Madden August 30
Arlene Andrade-Johnson August 30
Penny George ..................................... August 31
Volney Powell August 31
Ko Meh ................................................. August 31
Suzanne Vergo August 31
