Week of October 10, 2022
Distribution of new employee ID badges begins today. Many of you have spoken up about your concerns regarding safety, and we want to ensure we are creating a safe workplace. This is a suggestion that we have heard from employees across the system and we want to make it known that we hear you and value your voice and your privacy. Now, employees across the system will have new badges that align with these tighter safety protocols. You can read more about this initiative here.
Kaizen: Continuous Change
At the heart of Daily Management is the opportunity to make daily, continuous changes to improve our units and patient experiences. In fact, there’s a word in Japanese that means “continuous change” — Kaizen. Kaizen Events are also a tool we use to make process improvements across the hospitals. Many of your colleagues have been on a Kaizen team or have a unit or department that has benefitted from the findings of a Kaizen. Watch the video below to hear their stories.
This is the final week that we will give away a Space Cowboys jersey to 20 employees who view this week's video. The contest closes Sunday. Good luck and thank you to everyone who has participated.
Welcome Andrea Apple as System Director, Marketing & Communications
Please welcome Andrea Apple as System Director, Marketing & Communications.
In this role, she is responsible for ensuring HMSL and other community hospitals align strategically with our corporate partners in marketing and communication efforts. Andrea previously held this title for the North Region (West, Willowbrook and The Woodlands) and will now oversee the South Region campuses (Sugar Land, Clear Lake and Baytown).
She will also be responsible for hiring the new marketing manager for HMSL, a position vacated by Kaelyn Bujnoch when she was promoted to Director of Community Relations and Strategic Partnerships in August.
You can read more about Andrea's career here. She will round at Sugar Land regularly, so please give her a warm welcome when you see her!
Welcome New Physicians
HMSL is excited to welcome new physicians to our campus. Dr. Alessandra Falk is a foot and ankle surgeon with Houston Methodist Orthopedic and Sports Medicine at Sugar Land. Dr. Bailey LeConte is an ear, nose and throat specialist with Houston Methodist ENT Specialists at Sugar Land. Please welcome them as you see them!
I CARE in Action Week 2
Join CEO Chris Siebenaler and other HMSL colleagues this Friday, October 14, at the Houston Food Bank for I CARE in Action Week! We will inspect and sort food items that come from supermarkets and other stores to ensure they meet quality and food safety standards. Click here to find a volunteer slot. Thank you for your commitment to our community.
Employee Mammograms
HM is dedicated to the wellbeing of all employees. Part of taking care of your physical health is routine screenings like mammograms. Our Breast Care Center has dedicated two days in November to employee mammograms. Visit the tables outside Main Starbucks on Oct. 11 from 6:45 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and on Oct. 14 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. to schedule.
Town Center Events
HMSL has a partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2022 with Sugar Land Town Square. There are a number of marketing activations that you can view right now and more at these following events:
- October 14 – Garth Brooks tribute concert
- October 21 – Poison tribute concert
- October 28 – R&B concert
- October 29 – Dia de los Muertos family event
HEB Gift Cards Coming Soon
Dr. Marc Boom recently announced that all employees will receive a $500 gift card to HEB to assist with current inflation. Distribution will begin the week of October 24. Stay tuned for details on how they will be distributed. Read Dr. Boom's President's Letter here.
Navigate Your Career
Are you ready to start moving your career forward at Houston Methodist? If so, join your fellow employees and system leaders for Career Day 2022 as they share tips for building a successful career within our organization. Join us Tuesday, October 18 in Brazos B&C or join virtually. Click here for more information.
International Fashion Parade Returns
The International Fashion Parade returns for the fall! Just like the one held in May, participants will dress in their cultural attire that represents their country. Employees must notify their manager that they'd like to participate. The deadline to sign up is October 30. Click here to learn how to register.
October is Physical Therapy Month. The footprint our PTs have across campus and other HMSL facilities, like Sienna and Alianna, is remarkable. It's also Emergency Nurses Week. More than 80 individuals serve HMSL in this challenging capacity. We are thankful for all these employees do to serve our hospital. Read more about these celebrations and others this month by clicking here.
Convenience Corner: Alexa Hacks
From playing music, to setting up a routine, acting as a security device or keeping up with your favorite sports teams, popular voice assistant devices, like Apple’s Siri, Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, help make everyday tasks easier and more fun! Our team members share more of their favorite uses of these devices.
Employee: Rashna Barge, Project Director – Administration
“If you've got a tune stuck in your head and you know some of the words, try singing them to Alexa. Alexa may recognize the song and offer to play the version you actually want!”
Employee: Kaelyn Bujnoch, Director – Internal Communications & Strategic Partnerships
“You can get a healthy tip from Houston Methodist's experts every day via your Google or Alexa device! From nutrition and exercise advice, to signs it might be time to see a doctor, just say 'Hey, Google, talk to Houston Methodist On Health' or 'Alexa, enable Houston Methodist flash briefing', followed by 'Alexa, what's my Flash Briefing?''
If you have a trick, shortcut, skill, or novelty method that you use to make your life easier and more convenient – please share it with us by emailing Rashna Barge.
Pandemic and Outbreak Resources
COVID-19 Pandemic
As local COVID-19 numbers continue to stabilize, we are moving to system-wide reporting of case numbers in the e-newsletter. Click here for the latest statistics.
Monkeypox Outbreak
Click here to see the Clinical Resource Guide for clinical guidance on the response to the monkeypox outbreak.
PATIENT COMPLIMENTS
Childbirth Center Patient: "My labor and delivery nurse, Mary, and my post partum care nurse, Catalina, were both amazing! My delivery at this hospital was easy and a great overall experience."
Main 4 West Patient: "I'm a little concerned that my feedback won't be taken seriously because my responses were so overwhelmingly positive that you might think I just marked the responses just to get it done and out of the way. Let me assure you: the care you provided was as close to perfect as I can imagine, and, being from New York, I know the difference. Thank you again!"
Sienna ED Patient: "I really wish I remembered the nurse's name, but she was so pleasant and so attentive to my daughter. That made it so comfortable waiting for doctor to show up. I'm grateful that I was able to encounter her."
IMPORTANT DATES
Monday, October 10: Meet the BLS Renewal Skills Manikin. Across from Main Pavilion Starbucks. 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Tuesday, October 11: Voter registration deadline for November elections
Tuesday, October 11: Sign-up event for Employee Mammograms. Visit the table across from Main Pavilion Starbucks. 6:45 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. Mammograms to be held in November. More information here.
Friday, October 14: Sign-up event for Employee Mammograms. Visit the table across from Main Pavilion Starbucks. 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Mammograms to be held in November. More information here.
Tuesday, October 18: Houston Methodist Career Day 2022. Join us in Brazos B&C or join virtually. Times vary. More information here.
Wednesday, October 26: Employee Opinion Survey closes
Saturday, October 29: Walk to End Alzheimer's. 8:00 a.m. Join Team HMSL here.
JUST FOR FUN DATES
ALDS Schedule:
Game 1: Tuesday, Oct. 11
Game 2: Thursday, Oct. 13
Game 3: Saturday, Oct. 15
Game 4: Sunday, Oct. 16
Game 5: Monday, Oct. 17
Bye Week
Saturday, October 15: Titans of R&B, Smart Financial Centre
Friday, October 14: Hocus Pocus Pops ft. Houston Symphony, Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
JOKE OF THE WEEK
Why didn't the skeleton go to prom? He had no body to go with.