Congratulations to the AdventHealth Avista Service Standard Award Winners

At AdventHealth Avista, every moment is propelled with purpose. Our team members are the heartbeat of our mission, dedicated to providing exceptional care.

Recently, we had the opportunity to acknowledge the recipients of our service standards awards this year. In the process, we also recognized all of you who work each day to create a safe and high-quality experience for our patients.

Our four service standard award winners are:

New Life Birth Center – Keep Me Safe

On August 22, I was in labor with our 7th child. With three sons and three daughters at home, this baby was our “tiebreaker”, and we were all excited to discover if we had a boy or a girl. At the end of labor, when we were so close to meeting our baby, our midwife decided she needed to have the OB in our room to help make some decisions. Our baby was not tolerating labor well, and Dr. Balstad tried to avoid a c-section until it was inevitable. She was kind and decisive as we moved to the OR. Our nurses, Miranda and Jean, were such a comfort to me as I was so scared to deliver our baby this way. Miranda stayed close to me and held my hand.  Megan, my CRNA was the last face I saw as she reassured me and quickly sedated me so that Dr. Balstad could quickly save my baby. While I was unconscious, my husband tells me that he entered the OR just after our baby boy was born. The surgical team had delivered him in mere minutes, discovering that the umbilical cord had been wrapped around him several times.  Their expertise and decisiveness saved my boy.  It was then that I began to bleed excessively, and the surgical team turned their attention to saving my life. A code white, and then a mass blood transfusion alert was paged overhead. The nursing supervisor Kellee, and the blood bank team were able to expedite the process and get the blood I so desperately needed to the OR. Dr. Balstad and the surgical team worked for hours to stop the bleeding and replace all my lost blood. While Miranda circulated during the surgery, she checked in on my husband several times. She prayed with him and brought him comfort during one of our darkest hours. While in the ICU, the nurse supervisor Sharon, moved mountains to bring my newborn to my room so I could tearfully meet, hold and kiss him. The postpartum nurses took exceptional care of us; our nurse, Kathy, even brought us candles for a hospital food date night once we found ourselves alone at the end of the day. Over the next couple of days, while I recovered in the hospital, several members of the team came to see me. I felt so loved and cared for by these exceptional professionals who “just wanted to see me alive with my baby”. Several cried with me, answered my questions, and let me process all that happened. I felt like family. 

The New Life Center team was an instrument used by the Lord to quite literally save my life. The expertise and compassion I experienced made all the difference for me and my family, and we are forever grateful. 

Sue Garrison, House Supervisor – Make it Easy

Sue Garrison is always willing to help. She fills in a relief charge, precepts new nurses and even has cross-trained to work as a house supervisor. She has a great attitude and is always willing to help! She is willing to help her patients by taking time with them and listening to their concerns. She is willing to help her fellow team members by helping with their patient load when they are busy, and she always does it with a smile on her face! She serves as the Epic champion and is always communicating the new items she learns about with the team. She communicates in multiple ways by sending emails and posting information on the unit. She is a flu shot champion and goes around the hospital on night shift administering the flu vaccine to team members helping us stay safe and healthy. She is a PEP champion and offers to help anyone who is working in the PEP program. She goes above her bedside role to make things easy for her team members. 

Donna Wilson, Care Management – Love Me

Donna is incredibly caring and compassionate about the patients and families she works with. As a case manager, Donna always makes time to listen to patients and their families. Donna makes sure that patients and families are informed and supported through the entire discharge planning process. She is detail-oriented and thoughtful, understanding the many nuances of making an effective post-acute care plan. Donna acts with grace and compassion towards all when barriers and challenges come up. Donna is also wonderful to work with, she is willing to support her team, has trained numerous new CMs and has vast knowledge and has made invaluable connections doing this work.

ASC – Own It

The Avista ASC is an extended department of AdventHealth Avista, yet it is located off campus, nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. The staff there are known for their excellent skill set and self-motivated work ethics. This staff owns it, with almost perfect attendance records and years of education for their facility. They don’t complain about the long hours and their motto is we are all done where we are done. They help each other with every task without being asked or assigned. They are self-sufficient and own everything they do. They all treat the patient as if they were a family member, and their dedication to the surgeons is extraordinary. The center is used to being isolated as we are located away from Avista, yet they show their Avista pride daily through the multiple years of service they hold. This team comes together continuously to get the job done.  They will drive to other entities to get supplies. They have come in on days off to help others.  They will cover shifts at the hospital to help their surgeons' flow go smoothly. The dedication is remarkable. Recently, the center had a leadership change due to retirement and a front desk change, and the center never skipped a beat with workflow processes and efficiencies. This staff is selfless and self-sufficient in running the operations on their own. The patient surveys speak highly about the quality of the entire staff! 

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