Maya Angelou
, American author, actress, screenwriter, dancer, and civil rights activist, once said,
"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
National CNA Week is June 18-24, 2020.
CHCS is so very fortunate to have certified nursing assistants working in our hospitals, long-term care facilities, and in home health. CNAs live out Angelou's quote each and every day they work. They often do the forgotten, ever-important tasks that bring love and compassion to our work, such as bathing, dressing, and feeding our patients and residents. It is in these simple task that the patients often experience the greatest impact on how someone made them feel.
We often receive remarks about how the care was so kind and compassionate. The CNAs at CHCS should be one of the focal points of these comments, as they are the ones at the bedside with the patients and residents the most.
The CNA is the eyes, ears, and touch of care when the nurse cannot be at the bedside. When a resident or patient's well-being changes, the CNA usually notices first. We would not be successful without the CNAs involved in our care delivery.
So, we offer a tribute to CNAs to thank them for all the care they give our patients and residents, day in and day out. You truly are some of our most important superheroes of healthcare!
—
Mindy Olberding, Chief Nursing Officer
Skills fair
CNA skills fairs are in progress at CHCS.
CNAs must attend this event annually. Skills fair attendees receive "assignments" on the hospital learning system, plus complete hands-on demonstrations of certain clinical tasks. Clinical competencies that CNAs must successfully pass include transferring patients with lift devices, obtaining an EKG, and the many aspects of providing care for a post-operative patient. See photos below for EKG and post-operative care training sessions.
Learning the most current nursing practices ensures that our CNAs provide the gold standard of quality care and safety to our patients and residents.
—
Nancy Willert, RN, Education Coordinator
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KDHE updates travel-related quarantine guidelines
Travel to
Alabama, Arizona, or Arkansas on or after June 17
and travel to Maryland on or after May 12 require a 14-day quarantine. International travel or cruise ship travel on or after March 15 also remain on the list of guidelines.
The CHCS Associate COVID-19 Daily Symptom Log and Screening Tool has been updated accordingly.
View the updated form
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3D-printed swabs
As reported in a recent Zoom meeting for associates,
CHCS is working with Kansas State University to produce nasopharyngeal swabs required for COVID-19 testing using 3D printing technology.
The swabs continue to be in short supply from vendors, so if this process produces a satisfactory product, the effort will help solve one of our supply problems.
Dr. Jungkwun Kim, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, is donating his time to the swab project. After printing, Dr. Kim, also known as JK, cleans, dries, and disinfects each swab through exposure to UV light. Swabs are packaged and sterilized by the CHCS surgery staff in Onaga. (In the photo above right, finished swabs stand in the printer form in JK's lab.)
CHCS clinics are testing and evaluating the swabs now.
JK will finish a print run of approximately 2,000 swabs when CHCS approves.
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Mask models
Right: CHCS received a shipment of 1,000 Level 1 masks last week
through a collaboration between former Kansas Governor Jeff Colyer, MD, and executives from Wanxiang America, a US-Chinese company with more than a dozen automotive parts plants in the U.S. We were one of 60 Kansas hospitals to receive masks from this effort.
Below: One of Kristi Hutfles's home health patients made a bag of cute masks to share with Community HomeHealth staff.
Nurses enjoyed showing off their new masks, and Gayla Schober's grandson Hunter (son of Debbie Schober, who works at Eastridge), also modeled a mask. Hunter had an appointment last week and wore one of the donated masks. He was careful to make sure to wear a shirt to match!
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The need for blood is urgent, and Community Blood Center is here TODAY!
If you meant to sign up for an appointment but didn't get around to it, a few walk-in slots may be available. Check with staff in the Walsh Room before 2:00 p.m.
Thank you to all who are giving blood today!
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In June, we take time to celebrate our fathers. June is also Men’s Health Month, so it’s a perfect time to encourage your dad and other men in your life to get a checkup.
Men are much less likely to schedule regular wellness visits, but checkups are important because many health problems can be prevented or treated with early diagnosis.
Dr. Marcus Weiser recently took time to answer a few questions about men’s health.
Click the button below to read the article, or visit
www.chcsks.org/blog
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IT + paramedic + fitness = Leah Zwonitzer
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Many associates do amazing things outside of their position at CHCS. This is the first in an occasional series of profiles to help us learn more about the great people who work here.
Leah Zwonitzer is a clinical application support analyst in our IT department.
Leah said the job is acting as a go-between from nursing and medical staff and our electronic health record systems (Cerner and PointClick Care). Leah conducts troubleshooting; helps with builds, order set changes, documentation within charts, and workflow changes; and trains new hires in using the systems.
In addition, Leah teaches Advanced Care Life Support, first aid, and other classes in our communities and to our associates.
Leah is also a paramedic for Jackson County EMS
and is scheduled for about 72 hours a month (every Wednesday from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. plus a 24-hour shift every third Saturday).
Paramedics are highest EMS certification followed by EMT-A (Advanced), and then EMT.
Here's a quick Q&A with Leah to help us learn more about working as a paramedic.
Q: What are your duties, and how did you train? How much ongoing training is required?
A: Duties include management and operation of my ambulance and crew, direct patient care, communication with hospitals and staff, as well as with surrounding first responder agencies and law enforcement. I began my career in EMS with an 8-month EMT course and then went on to complete an 18-month paramedic course, including class time as well as field training. I have also completed a critical care paramedic course that allows me to take care of more critical patients like those on ventilators, balloon pumps, blood transfusions, etc. This allowed me to achieve my flight paramedic status, as I worked on medical helicopter as well. Ongoing training includes the upkeep of my various license additions such as ACLS, PALS, PHTLS, NRP, BLS, KS state license, and my national license. These courses and licenses have to be renewed every two years via a refresher course. My state and national license are renewed by 120 hours of continuing education.
Q: What do you like about the job?
A: I love the job. I developed a like at an early age as my dad did volunteer fire and rescue for many years in Holton. Watching him help people like that was amazing to me. People calling or in need of EMS are often experiencing one of the worst days of their lives, and being able to lend a hand and help them in any way I can gives you a sense of honor. Being able to serve a community in that way is certainly a sense of fulfillment. Plus, EMS scenes are often very complex and even chaotic. People are often critically ill or injured, and having to make time-sensitive treatment decisions appeals to my adrenaline junky side.
Q: What precautions have EMS personnel had to take during COVID-19?
Our dispatchers have been doing their best to get us the most accurate info from the 911 caller; however, we are wearing procedure masks on every call. If COVID is suspected, we then send only one crew member in for direct patient care. We are donning a full Tyvek suit, boot covers, double gloves, goggles, face shield, and N95 masks. The transporting compartment of the rig is then prepared by sealing all cabinets with tape, and any gear not being used for patient care is moved to the outside compartments. Exhaust fans are run for the duration of the transport, and only minimal procedures are completed as far as patient care is concerned. We have to radio ahead and get confirmation that we have an accepting facility before transport begins, and all patients assessed not to be emergent are encouraged to shelter in place and contact their primary care physician. After transport, everything has to be disinfected with Clorox and Lysol as well as a 30-minute black light treatment once we are back in the station.
Q: What do members of the public need to know about how to help EMS in an emergency?
I think the most important thing people can remember when interacting or helping EMS is try to remain calm. This is the most difficult part for these folks, as they are often experiencing the worst day of their lives. Make sure to always stay on the line with the 911 operator, as they are trained to talk you through many things from hemorrhage control to CPR until help arrives. If you are a chronically ill person or have a significant past medical history, make a list of your conditions, medications, and allergies. This makes it easier for us to try and figure out what may be going on with you if you are unresponsive or unable to tell us yourself. Lastly, always yield to emergency vehicles. Slow down, signal, and pull to the right if one is behind you. Getting to the emergency is the most dangerous part of our job.
Q: What else can you tell us about yourself?
I grew up in Onaga and have worked at CHCS since November of 2015. I played basketball for two years at Bethel College, and I am a fitness buff! I like running and lifting weights. I recently got into triathlons, finishing a sprint triathlon (1/4-mile swim, 10-mile bike, 5K run) in Shawnee Mission. I also do 5K and 10K runs such as The Bix in Davenport, Iowa. My adrenaline junky is part of it. The health side of it is that I take care of sick patients all the time, so I don't want to be unhealthy! Because of all the lifting patients and gear as a paramedic, it's easier to do the job as a healthy person.
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Do you know of a CHCS associate who would make a great profile?
Email Sarah at
sarahhancock@chcsks.org
or call extension 5133.
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Celebrate John Fisher's retirement
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John Fisher is retiring from his position as Onaga Maintenance Manager. HIs last day is tomorrow (Friday, June 19)!
John worked for CHCS from August 1998 through April 2005, then returned in early 2008. He has received many well wishes in the last few weeks. Please plan to enjoy a piece of cake in John's honor tomorrow afternoon in Onaga. All will be invited via email; the tentative time is 2:00-3:00 p.m. (Cake will be pre-cut and available in the cafeteria; please follow social distancing guidelines.)
John plans to enjoy retirement by spending lots of time with his family and his cattle.
Thank you and congratulations, John! You will be missed!
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Thank you
Luke Perry, Kelly VanDonge, and Ricky Ware
helped move and arrange equipment last week at the Frankfort Fitness Center.
A moving company transported equipment from the previous Holton location, but it was left in disarray. Andrea Lutz, Rehabilitation and Fitness Manager, said,
"Our maintenance team showed up with smiles on their faces and worked ... and made our department in three hours what I thought would take weeks. Thank you so much for all the help!"
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Welcome
We are happy to have the following associates joining us. Welcome to CHCS!
- Juliana Morgali, dietary aide/cook, St. Marys Manor
- Marissa O'Roke, dietary aide/cook, Eastridge
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Gift Shop: Sale!
Check out many new arrivals
(including patriotic items from Round Top Collection--see photo at right, and thanks to Suzanne Booth for sharing!), shop clearance items, and get 20% off any one regularly priced item (limit 1 per customer). Please follow social distancing guidelines by limiting the number of shoppers to three in the store at a time.
Click on fliers below to expand/download.
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Coffee Shop special
June 22-26
Black & Tan
- Chocolate, white chocolate, and caramel
- 16 oz., $4
- Hot, iced, or frappe
Cherry limeades
(20 oz., $2.25) are available on Fridays after 11:00 a.m.!
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Note: St. Marys menus are changing frequently because of ordering challenges. We will resume publishing menus when we are able. For now, St. Marys menus are available each morning through the Activities chronicle.
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Send items for the E-Connection or for sharing with our broader Facebook audience
to
sarahhancock@chcsks.org
. Please send items by close of business on Tuesdays when possible. Ideas are welcome!
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