Employee Recognition

Employee Recognition

2009 Employee of the Year

Jim Riley, RN, Cardiac/Telemetry

• Jim’s No. 1 goal at work is patient safety.
• He is knowledgeable and extremely helpful.
• Jim works hard and makes frequent rounds resulting in greater patient satisfaction.
• He is a very kind person with a positive and friendly personality.
• Jim is respectful to all of our patients and is highly respected by his co-workers.
• He listens to the concerns of our patients and provides excellent nursing care.
• Jim is always willing to assist others and often says encouraging words to his co-workers.
• He is one of the best charge nurses that I have ever worked with.

Anh Le, Housekeeping, and valued Valley employee for nearly 21 years. Here’s what Anh’s co-workers (25 nominators!) said about her:

• Anh is thorough, prompt and diligent. The quality of her work is outstanding.
• She has an exceptionally positive attitude. She’s very friendly and is always smiling. She is contagiously happy.
• Anh shows compassion for patients and family members on a daily basis. She cares a great deal about our patients and takes time to identify herself and acknowledge them.
• She is a dedicated employee who works to make the patient’s stay as comfortable as possible.
• Anh works diligently to make others’ jobs as easy as possible. She is willing to help out with anything that is asked of her.
• She provides patients with smiles of encouragement to raise their spirits while performing her primary duty of keeping patients’ rooms clean, comfortable and safe.

 

Marie Nason, Information Technology, and valued Valley employee for almost five years. Here’s what Marie’s nominators said about her:

• Marie is very customer-focused and is extremely responsive to her customers’ needs.
• She has excellent communication and organizational skills. No matter how many balls she may be juggling, she never drops a one. 
• Marie doesn’t stop until the task at hand is complete. She will follow the project through to the end and works diligently to complete it.
• She is always someone we trust. She works hard to complete projects and is dedicated to helping resolve issues for her customers as quickly as possible.
• Marie has the ability to see the big picture and understands how one little piece of technology can greatly impact business. 
• Her work is exceptional. She ensures her work is complete and accurate and doesn’t take shortcuts.

Elizabeth Thorsett, RN, The Joint Center, and valued Valley employee for 22 years. Here’s what Elizabeth’s nominators said about her:

• Elizabeth has excellent nursing skills and provides outstanding care. Patients and families always come first
• Her compassion is sincere. She cares for patients as if they were her own mother. She is known for making time to talk with patients beyond giving her usual great care to them.
• Elizabeth’s teamwork and positive attitude are impressive. She’s a delight to work with and never seems to have an “off” day.
•  Elizabeth is competent, friendly and energetic. She is always a pleasure to be around.
•  She offers to help or just jumps in when she sees a hand is needed. She’s the number one team player in the Joint Center – no question!
• She is truly admired as both a person and an RN. 
• Elizabeth exemplifies Valley Values and is an outstanding employee.

Lisa Albiar, Clinic Operations Coordinator, Lake Sawyer Primary Care Clinic, and valued Valley employee for five years. Here’s what Lisa’s nominators said about her:

• Lisa provides excellent customer service. She has the unique gift of being able to listen and convey compassion even when delivering messages that patients may not want to hear.
• The staff and providers at Lake Sawyer love working with Lisa and hold her in the highest esteem. Her work is always meticulous and she is an excellent resource and trainer for staff.
•  Lisa has been instrumental in developing and redesigning work processes at Lake Sawyer over the last two years. 
• She is a very hard worker and her incredible work ethic is admirable.
•  Lisa is always creative, positive and fun has an incredible amount of patience.
• She is a terrific team player and is a great role model for staff!
• Lisa is simply the best – whatever she does, she does well. She lives Valley Values and is an outstanding employee!

Maria Alcazar, Kent Primary Care Clinic, and valued Valley employee for two years. Here’s what Maria’s nominators said about her:

• Maria is very efficient and innovative, always thinking of ways to do things better.She is always chipping in to help team members. She is proactive in her approach and helps others without being asked.
• Maria goes above and beyond doing everything she can to meet patients’ needs and provide excellent patient care to each and every person.
• She goes the extra mile with our patients, walking them to the lab, to their cars and even meeting them outside with a wheelchair if needed. Patients really appreciate her.
• Maria always has a positive attitude, even when there are difficult days or difficult tasks.
• She has done an exceptional job with the transfer to electronic medical records. She immediately transformed the space to accommodate the change in equipment and patient flow.
• She is proactive, confident and resourceful and sets an example for others.
• Maria exemplifies Valley Values and is an outstanding employee!

Nichole Lessard, Children’s Therapy,and valued Valley employee for 2 1/2 years. Here’s what Nichole’s nominators said about her: 

• The quality of Nichole’s work is exemplary. She consistently puts 100% into everything she does.
• She demonstrates a calm and compassionate demeanor around patients, families, coworkers and visitors. She makes every effort to accommodate a family’s schedule and to provide the best family-centered care possible.
• Nichole has an extensive network of colleagues and knowledge of resources within the community. She established a substantial list of community resources for our families.
• She is not only respectful to her fellow colleagues, patients and families; she has also gained the respect of her peers and everyone around her. She exudes professionalism and is an example for all.
• Nichole is always open to talk with her colleagues, provide much-needed advice or constructive feedback. She has boosted morale with creative incentive programs that boost team cohesiveness.
• Her innovative ideas have been utilized and appreciated by all members of our team. 
• Nichole is an excellent example of how a VMC employee adheres to National Patient Safety Goals and HIPAA compliance. 

Diana Diaz, Patient Service Representative, North Benson Urgent Care, and valued Valley Employee for two years. Here’s what her nominators said about her: 

• Diana consistently demonstrates quality in all she does. Her work is done accurately, efficiently and promptly.
• She is a great team player who is always willing to assist others without being asked. If there is a job that needs to be done, she is the first to volunteer.
• Diana has the unique ability to find the positive qualities in tasks and people.
• She is known for her compassion and is incredibly kind to patients. She takes the time ensure that all of their questions are answered and needs are met.
• Diana is very dependable, hardworking and honest.
• She is always very respectful to peers, patients, and leaders. She always has a smile and is consistently polite, upbeat and friendly. 
• Diana is a great example of Valley Values and is a wonderful candidate for Employee of the Month!

Lisa Toner, Outcomes Managementand valued Valley employee for 8 ½ years. Here’s what Lisa’s nominators said about her: 

• Lisa’s attention to detail is thorough and complete. She ensures that staff receives timely and up-to-date information.
• She always stops what she is doing to listen and understand how she can help. She takes calls from families and vendors with unfailing kindness and professionalism.
• Lisa is very patient in interactions with staff, teaching them as she goes.
• She exemplifies teamwork in committee meetings and performance improvement teams.
• Lisa maintains the highest standards of patient safety on the units and is pivotal in ensuring we make referrals for safe discharge services.
• She is truly the glue that keeps discharge planning efficient and providing such high quality service to our patients.
• Lisa embodies Valley Values. She is always kind, compassionate and of service to her team and to patients, families and vendors. She is well-deserving of this honor!

Rebecca Busic, PSR, Covington Primary Care, and valued Valley employee for three years. Here’s what Rebecca’s nominators said about her: 

• Compassion and customer service are Rebecca’s greatest strengths.
• She is a great listener and has a warm smile for everyone she greets.
• Rebecca has outstanding interpersonal communication skills.
• She is respectful in all interactions and remains calm and relaxed even in difficult situations.
• Rebecca’s is an ideal employee, and her commitment to excellence is always present. 
• She understands our systems and works hard to create a successful healthcare experience for each patient.
• Rebecca is committed to her team and is extremely reliable. 

Anna Tauscher, Food Management and Nutrition Services, and valued Valley employee for nearly 32 years. Here’s what Anna’s nominators said about her: 

• Anna does whatever it takes to exceed a patient’s expectations and is always professional and courteous with our patients.
• She sets an example of exceptional treatment toward others, including patients, coworkers, management and more.
• Anna is known to have great working relationships and follows through on all commitments.
• She was instrumental in ensuring a successful room service roll-out; Anna displayed and taught others the remarkable customer service her department is known for.
• Anna is a long-time, model employee; she provides consistent, high-quality service to patients.
• She goes above and beyond in providing exemplary customer service, including assisting in coordinating a wedding anniversary dinner for a could who was able to celebrate their 50th at VMC.

Rocky Jorgensen, Ergonomic Educator, Work Conditioning, and valued Valley team member for almost 1 ½ years. Here’s what his nominators said about him: 

• Rocky is a “shining star” who brings a positive attitude to Valley Medical Center each day.
• He has the ability to train our staff on lifting equipment with his expertise and patience.
• Rocky recently welcomed the challenges that Valley faced while preparing for the H1N1 safety precautions.
• He is always willing to step forward with open arms and take on additional responsibilities. 
• Rocky volunteers and gives an awesome presentation at Valley’s “Take Your Child to Work Day,” educating children about our various safety procedures.
• He was extremely flexible and accommodating throughout the Fit Testing of our staff in preparation of the H1N1 flu.

Nick Baisch, Ergonomic Educator, Work Conditioning, and valued Valley team member for one year. Here’s what his nominators said about him:

• Nick is an outstanding team member who has worked extremely hard to improve the safety of our staff members.
• He is gentle and caring, especially to those families who are experiencing anxiety and stress.
• Nick is an excellent communicator with our staff, our patients and their families.
• He continuously receives positive comments from our staff and patients alike.
• Nick was instrumental in implementing the new Safe Patient Handling Guidelines for our staff.
• He provides a high quality of service to our patients and staff.
• Nick was a vital part in revising our safety procedures, resulting in a 70 percent reduction in staff injuries from handling patients.
• He brings professionalism and exudes great confidence in his work at Valley Medical center.