November 30, 2021
Hi Team –
I hope each and every one of you enjoyed a safe and relaxing Thanksgiving holiday, filled with family, friends, food and an opportunity to pause and reflect on the many blessings in your life. To our team members and physicians who worked during the holiday weekend…a BIG THANK YOU for your dedicated service to our patients and community! And Happy Hanukkah to everyone observing the Jewish faith’s sacred eight-day winter celebration which began this past Sunday and continues through Monday, December 6.
COVID Updates
As we now begin our second holiday season in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are again experiencing the unpredictable nature of this virus with the emergence of yet another variant, Omicron – the latest “variant of concern” which is spreading across the globe. Nationally, while new COVID cases decreased by 22% week-over-week, COVID-related hospitalizations rose 5% during the same timeframe. Closer to home, the region’s R-factor - indicating the ratio of new COVID infections from existing cases – has continued above 1.0, meaning transmission of the virus is increasing across Greater Cincinnati. And here at TriHealth, our COVID inpatient census has steadily risen in recent weeks, now regularly more than 90 inpatients in our hospitals (see sidebar) at any given time. In spite of these worrisome developments, we continue to take every step possible to care for those in need while accelerating the pandemic-ending work of achieving herd immunity through vaccination. With recent FDA approval, TriHealth has vaccinated more than 1,000 patients between the ages of 5-11 in just a few short weeks – a population that was previously unable to be vaccinated - and we continue to administer first and second doses and boosters to protect our patients, team members and community.
Engagement Survey Action Planning & Next Steps
Building a highly engaged culture where team members most want to work, where physicians most want to practice, and where patients increasingly choose to receive their care is foundational to our work of Getting Healthcare Right at TriHealth. As shared earlier this month, despite the many challenges brought on by this fourth Delta-fueled wave – including historic industry-wide staffing challenges, unexpected vaccine hesitancy, and overwhelming COVID fatigue - we decided to conduct our annual engagement and Culture of Safety survey in August largely because of those challenges and the toll they have taken on our system and people. In the past few weeks, we’ve taken a deeper dive into your feedback and survey findings to fully understand what is going well at TriHealth and where we have opportunities to improve.
The good news is that our team members and physicians have affirmed that our culture of caring and service is strong even as we have managed through the many COVID hardships and challenges of this global pandemic. As an example:
- Nearly 80% of respondents indicated they feel appropriately involved in decisions that impact their work
- Almost 80% of respondents reported they are proud to be a part of the TriHealth team
- And, 70% of respondents said they see a clear link between their work and our organizational objectives!
The survey results also told us that key to our team member and physician engagement is the high level of trust and respect that exists for fellow team members, physicians and leaders, with 85% of respondents indicating their leaders treat them and others with respect.
But there are important improvement opportunities that, not surprisingly, center around workplace wellbeing and the physical, mental, and emotional toll this prolonged pandemic has had on all of us over the past 22 months. The good news is that we recognized these challenges early in the pandemic and have already launched a number of initiatives and programs to address workplace wellness, including the Team Member Resource Center, onsite and mobile wellness resources, expanded Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offerings, and the PTO “Relax & Refresh” gift for team members to take additional time off to disconnect and recharge. And to ensure we retain our dedicated team members and also attract “more than our fair share of” new talent to TriHealth, we’ve introduced bold initiatives such as the COVID HEROES and SERVE Thank You bonuses, compensation market adjustments for the hardest-to-fill roles, and unique partnerships with local clinical colleges.
And thanks to your feedback and suggestions, we are now taking steps to streamline and improve our engagement survey action planning process. You told us that in the past making real progress on your survey feedback could be cumbersome and complicated – too much “red tape” which delayed solutions from being put into practice. So, building on our Culture of Safety principles of rapid improvement and focusing on the root cause of an issue, each department and team will begin utilizing a simplified process to get meaningful solutions into place quicker and more effectively. Leaders will work with their teams to select one local-level issue which the leader and their team agree to focus on. Leaders and team members will then develop two action items to create change and make necessary improvements. And central to this process, leaders and team members will utilize a feedback loop on their two selected actions in order to monitor, evaluate and, if needed, adjust these actions to ensure that we are achieving meaningful improvement.
Season of Gratitude: Order Your Special TriHealth Jacket Today!
The holiday season is a time of celebration, reflection and looking forward to the New Year ahead. But at its core, it is also a time for gratitude and giving thanks. And that is why I want to take this opportunity to share my deepest thanks and appreciation to each and every one of our team members, physicians and leaders for all you’ve done over the past two years to overcome every challenge of this pandemic, while never losing sight of our sacred mission of service and caring. So, a BIG thank you for your courage, resiliency, and selflessness in service to our patients and community at their time of greatest need!
As a tangible way to show our appreciation to you, I’m excited to share that every TriHealth team member and physician will be provided as a very special gift this holiday season – a really cool custom-embroidered TriHealth jacket. I hope this memorable gift will represent to you all we have accomplished together for our patients, our community, and one another in not just navigating this pandemic, but in continuing our transformative work to Get Healthcare Right for all those we serve! And let’s wear these jackets PROUDLY – One Team, TriHealth Strong!!!
Click this link to place your order, but don’t wait long as orders must be placed by Friday, December 10. You can choose either a full-zip jacket or a quarter-zip jacket in black or gray. Speak with your leader for more details.
As we begin the Christmas holiday season, I want you to know that YOU bring our mission to life through the TriHealth Way, one patient at a time and in so many special and extraordinary ways, and I have never been more proud to work beside such a talented, dedicated team.
Overall Rating:
Comments:
Thank you
Posted by: Team Member on December 07, 2021
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Thank you! The jackets look great, with pockets to boot!
Posted by: Dana Price on December 03, 2021
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Thank you!
Posted by: Patricia Dennis on December 03, 2021
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Thank you
Posted by: Nancy Henson on December 02, 2021
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Thank you so much for the appreciation you show towards Team Members. Have a blessed holiday
Posted by: Carol Mayborg on December 02, 2021
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Thank you so much for the jacket! Proud to be working at TriHealth! Truly appreciate the kindness and generosity.
Posted by: Sanjita Kothari on December 01, 2021
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Thank you so much for the Jacket. Your generosity is appreciated.
Posted by: Sherri Gabbard on December 01, 2021
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Thank you Mark for your words of encouragement and the thoughtful gifts. It has truly lifted my spirits and made me feel appreciated by Trihealth!
Posted by: Christine Lipps-zierden on December 01, 2021
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Hello, I would like to thank everyone involved in the generous jacket gifts and also would like to ask which date is the last date to order. I see on Mark's Weekly Update that it's Friday, December 10; but on the link it say says that orders are being collected through December 3rd, 2021. Could you please clarify? Thank you again!
Posted by: Giorgia Lopez on November 30, 2021
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