Volume 1, Issue 8 - December 22, 2008

Recognition

A Gift of Thanks

The Appalachian Outreach Program’s Christmas Partners Project once again made the holiday brighter for families and individuals in need throughout eastern Kentucky.

To thank the employees of Saint Joseph Hospital, Saint Joseph East, Saint Joseph - Berea and Saint Joseph - Mount Sterling who generously partnered with the program to provide clothing, food, toys and other needed gifts, Appalachian Outreach Program team members Rose Rexroat, Barbara Baumgardner, Jeanie Lawson and Sister Joan Wilson, SCN, made a Christmas gift in employees’ names to the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth to further the missions in Belize, India, Nepal, Botswana and the U.S.

Tremendous Generosity

Flaget Memorial Hospital departments sponsored 19 families and 52 children for Christmas this year. Employees' tremendous generosity throughout Thanksgiving with the food drive and the Christmas families have helped many people in the community during these times of economic uncertainty. Thanks for bringing Christ’s light to others.

Saint Joseph - Martin's annual food drive collected 1,980 items for the local food pantry to help make those who are not as blessed have a brighter Christmas and feel God’s love. Employees also demonstrated their generosity by providing Christmas gifts to 119 children in need through this year's Christmas Angel Project and helping 436 children have a happier Christmas through Saint Joseph - Martin's toy distribution program. Additionally, the mission committee shared an early Christmas with 16 residents at the Big Sandy Abuse Shelter, bringing toys for children, personal items and toiletries, and donating all things necessary for a nice Christmas dinner.

Saint Joseph - London employees held fundraisers and made donations to benefit "Shop with a Cop" this holiday season. With the hospital matching the funds raised, $4,000 was provided to this wonderful organization. On Dec. 13, 40 area children enjoyed shopping with the local police officers for new clothing and toys for Christmas.

Volunteers Donate STAXI Wheelchairs

Volunteer Services at Saint Joseph Hospital purchased 10 new STAXI wheelchairs: five for the information desk at Saint Joseph Hospital and five for the information desk in Building C of the Saint Joseph Office Park. Volunteer Lillian Bryan donated one of the 10 chairs. In total, this donation was more than $9,800.

STAXI is the leading wheelchair alternative in the nation. The chairs are built tough for busy facilities and patients are delighted with their comfort and adaptability for all body types/sizes. The chairs are "stackable," using 1/3 the space of wheelchairs. Because they don't fold up and patients can't push themselves, they are hard to steal.

In addition to nurses, admitting staff and volunteers escorting patients in the new chairs, visitors are welcome to use the chairs to transport family members around the hospital. More STAXI wheelchairs may be purchased in the future after this initial trial run.

Jamine Hamner (left), coordinator of volunteer services, and volunteers Lorraine Bowen, Bess Tharp and Judy Albrecht (president of the Volunteer Guild) unveiled the new wheelchairs at Saint Joseph Hospital.

Top Stories

• A Healthy New Year
• Our 7 Official Holidays
• Advent Reflection
• Holiday Snapshots
• Decorating Contest Winners

Wellness Opportunities

Get Healthy in the New Year

Quit for Life
Kick your tobacco habit in the New Year. Saint Joseph Health System employees can enroll for free by calling 1.866.QUIT.4.LIFE (866.784.8454) or visiting QuitNow.net. Call your human resources office if you have any questions about this new benefit.

Bardstown
Trim Down, Bardstown!
Community-wide weight-loss drive that involves weigh-ins, education and prizes
Registration day is Jan. 29; 9-week program
Flaget Immediate Care Clinic
Call 502.350.5583

Cooper/Clayton
13-week program to quit smoking
Begins Jan. 7
Mondays, 5:30-6:30 p.m.
Flaget Health Connection
Free; call 502.348.7010

Lexington
Body Recall
Physical fitness program for all ages
Saint Joseph Healthy Living Center
Mon./Wed./Fri.
9:30-10:30 a.m. at North Lexington YMCA
1:30-2:30 p.m. at Beaumont YMCA
Cost is $85; call 859.219.0530

Cooper/Clayton
13-week program to quit smoking
Starts Jan. 6
Tuesdays, 5:30-6:30 p.m.
Saint Joseph Office Park, Building D
Free; call 859.219.0530

Gym Memberships
SJH/SJE employees can join at a discounted rate: $24.99 per month
Urban Active Gym, Corner of Palumbo/Man O’ War
Call Jerame Ricks at 859.396.5901

Diabetes Session
Risk factors/living with diabetes
Saint Joseph Healthy Living Center
Feb. 12, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Beaumont YMCA
Call 859.219.0530

London
Weight Watchers
Thursdays at Noon
Saint Joseph - London
Chapel Classroom
Call 606.330.3137

Diabetes Sessions
Newly diagnosed/those with diabetes
2nd and 4th Thursdays
Employee Cafeteria
Times to be announced
Free; call 606.330.3137

Cooper/Clayton
13-week program to quit smoking
Begins Jan. 13
Tuesdays, 3:00 p.m.
Laurel County Health Department
Call 606.330.3137

Martin
Cooper/Clayton
13-week program to quit smoking
Starts Jan. 13
Tuesdays, 3:00 p.m.
Registration closes Jan. 20
Saint Joseph - Martin
Community Health Education Dept.
Free; call 606.285.6692

Weight Watchers
12-week series
Begins Jan. 6 at noon
Tuesdays, 12:30 p.m./Weigh-ins at noon
Saint Joseph - Martin
Community Health Education Dept.
Registration closes Jan. 13
Call 606.285.6692

Announcements

Don't Forget to Provide Consent for Online W-2s

Beginning late January 2009, your 2008 and all future W-2s will be available online. To receive your W-2 online, go to the My Pay tab of HR/Payroll Connection, and click the link from the W-2 box on the lower right side. You will need to give consent to receive your W-2 online. Once you provide consent, your W-2 will no longer be mailed to your home. It will be possible to print your W-2. If you do not provide consent before Jan. 19, 2009, you will receive a copy of your W-2 in the mail and view your W-2 online in late January. This applies to all hospitals except Saint Joseph - Mount Sterling.

SJHS Recognizes 7 Holidays Under New PTO System

Under the new PTO system, Saint Joseph Health System now recognizes seven official holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Please note that Martin Luther King Jr. Day is an official holiday beginning in 2009 and replaces the optional President’s Day celebrated in previous years. Employees working in clinical areas on these holidays will receive holiday differential pay. Non-clinical offices will be closed on those days. Employees will take a PTO day on these holidays if their offices are closed or they are not scheduled to work.

Donate Your Old Computer in Lexington

Volunteer services at Saint Joseph Hospital/Saint Joseph East/Saint Joseph - Jessamine is in need of computers. They would like to have two desktop computers and two monitors. The only requirement is the computers must be able to access the Internet. If you have an old computer you would like to donate, please contact the volunteer office at 859.313.1290.

Support Each Other in Prayer in London

Beginning in January 2009, the pastoral care department at Saint Joseph - London will offer weekly “holding in prayer” services for a specific department for that week. One department will be featured each week of the year. Employees are invited to join in praying for their co-workers on Tuesdays from 10:00 until 10:15 a.m. in the Chapel. The department to be featured will be listed in the Daily Line-Up each Monday. If you cannot come to the Chapel at this time, try to take time during your day to pray for your fellow employees.

Advent

An Advent Reflection
By Sister Barbara Jean Franklin, ASC

A marquee in front of a church reads: “The fate of the world rested on the response of a teenage girl.” We know the girl and we know her response, but the profundity of the statement gives us pause. When the angel Gabriel greets Mary he calls her “Full of Grace.” It would be easy to dismiss this greeting as an isolated piece of human history. The event of the Annunciation is in essence a particular event. However, the angel Gabriel could greet each of us in a similar manner. To be human is, in the most profound sense, to live by grace, God’s presence in our hearts and in our midst.

Our Advent journey both collectively and individually has been marked by our efforts to be alert to the many blessings that are present in our everyday lives. It has challenged us to prepare the way of the Lord and thus to reflect God’s presence in our midst. This week we celebrate Christmas. We welcome anew Emmanuel—God with us, among us, between us—bringing healing, justice and peace. The richness of this Christmas Grace is in proportion to our efforts to connect with God and with each other on this journey.

This week we are invited to be grateful to those persons among us whose very lives speak so clearly that they are “full of grace.” We need to be grateful, too, for those who remind us that we are each “full of grace.” Living grace-filled lives is a struggle and many times there may seem to be more evidence to the contrary. At those times it is good to remember that it’s okay to be human—Christ became human, too. Grace enters into the definition of what it means to be human. Grace is God’s power in us healing our spirits, enriching our faith and leading us to loving acts for and with each other.

So, while at a particular moment in human history the future of the world hung on the answer of a girl, today it rests with those who know what it means to be “full of grace.”

Holiday Snapshots

Christmas Meal in London

Carmel Hensley and Stacey Faulkner took a break from the cath lab to enjoy Saint Joseph - London's annual employee Christmas meal.

Chef Terry, Mossie Truitt and Alan Cassidy, from food & nutrition services, paused from food prep to make a memory of this year's Christmas meal at
Saint Joseph - London.

Angela Pennington and Kim White from human resources enjoyed traveling to the main hospital to visit with everyone during the annual Christmas meal at
Saint Joseph - London.

Sharon Hershberger, public affairs, and Linda Lawson, CPR center, found out they have the same great taste in sweaters at the annual Christmas meal at
Saint Joseph - London.

Reverend Ronald Lindsey graced employees with some holiday piano music during the Christmas meal at Saint Joseph - London.

Ginna Dempsey, president of Saint Joseph - London, made rounds to view the various decorations on the day of the Christmas meal; here, she posed in the cardiothoracic unit's "Candy Cane Lane."

Helping the Homeless in London

Staff from the intensive care unit at Saint Joseph - London helped serve the evening meal at the local homeless shelter and brought presents for the residents. Pictured, from left, are Kelly Helton, Tyler Marcum (hidden), Jeanetta Marcum, Cassidy Hubbard, Cailen Wattenbarger, Brittney Sergent, Dr. Kamran Mahmood and Ruth Morgan.

Christmas Parade in Berea

Shepherd Trevor Dees, son of Saint Joseph - Berea employees Junior and shepherdess Kristy Dees, checked on Gracie Lou, the family's goat. Trevor's dad, Junior, helped build the float, which depicted a manger scene, that Saint Joseph - Berea entered in the Berea Chamber of Commerce's Twilight Christmas parade. Out of good manners, Gracie Lou wore a diaper to the event.

Saint Joseph - Berea employees Samantha Flannery, Melissa Gentry and Patty Sturt (front) were bundled up underneath their shepherd costumes on the Christmas float. As they braved the cold temperature and wind, a lovely snow fell on the
living creche.

Christmas Families Project in Berea

Above, left: Pat Patton, Elena Baker and Carmel Jones packed food boxes for the Saint Joseph - Berea managers' Christmas Families Project.

Above, right: Carina Christopher and Victor McCane packed a holiday food box for an elderly low-income Berean. Saint Joseph - Berea managers donated foods, assembled boxes with turkeys, stuffing mix, etc. — everything needed for a wholesome holiday dinner — and delivered the boxes to needy elders in
the community.

A Christmas Donation in Berea

Members of the Madison County Extension Homemakers Club delivered hand-crafted "care bears" to the emergency department at Saint Joseph - Berea as gifts for young patients.

Management Council Christmas in Martin

Royalty became part of Saint Joseph - Martin when (left to right) Jeff Robinson was crowned Prince of CHI Connect, Debi Bentley as Princess of CHI Connect and Chris Dye as King of CHI Connect at the management council's Christmas party.

Olive Martin, quality & risk management, and Von Stacy (front), laboratory, admired the snow globes they received for being among this year's top performers at Saint Joseph - Martin.

Bill Montgomery, CRNA; Von Stacy, laboratory; Teresa Bailey, rural health clinics' nurse manager; and Samantha Stratton, nutrition services, enjoyed a light moment during the "fun" awards ceremony at the Saint Joseph - Martin management council's Christmas party.

These Saint Joseph - Martin managers are all smiles as they celebrated the "fun" awards at the management council's Christmas party. Left to right are Jeff Robinson, materials management; Judy Parsons, pastoral care; Ruth Shelton, patient financial services; Pat Bentley, health information; Olive Martin, quality & risk management; Melinda Stumbo, emergency services; and Mary Little, med/surg.

Christmas Service in Lexington

Children from the Saint Joseph Children's Center reenacted the birth of Jesus at Saint Joseph East's Christmas service. Thanks to Judy Donohue for taking
the photo.

Christmas Parade in Mount Sterling

On December 8, the annual Christmas parade was held in downtown Mount Sterling. Saint Joseph - Mount Sterling's float, the Polar Express, won first place in the commercial division.

Christmas Open House in Mount Sterling

Left to right, Janet Neal, Kathy Arnett, Annette Ison and Janelle Pugh enjoyed a festive and delicious Christmas meal prepared by the dietary staff of Saint Joseph - Mount Sterling.

Decorating Contest Winners!

Saint Joseph East:
1st Place: CCH (Welcome to Who-Ville; Thanks to Judy Donohue for taking the photo)
2nd Place: Administration
3rd Place: Communications and Nursery/NICU tied

Saint Joseph - Berea:
1st Place: Radiology (Winter Wonderland)
2nd Place: Lab
3rd Place: Housekeeping

Saint Joseph - Mount Sterling:
1st Place: Dietary (pictured)
2nd & 3rd Place: Outpatient Surgery and Med/Surg tied

Saint Joseph - London:
1st Place: Human Resources (Each hallway window and/or office was decorated with different Main Street shops/businesses and items were borrowed to represent their "store" window.)
2nd Place: Radiology
3rd Place: Cardiothoracic Unit (CTU)

Saint Joseph Hospital:
1st Place: Patient Access/Admitting (pictured)
2nd Place: Quality
3rd Place: CCH