Adventist Health and Rideout Honors July 2024 BE Award Recipients

The BE award recognizes associates who exemplify Adventist Health "BE" statements (Be Love, Be a Force for Food, Be a Mission Owner, Be Welcoming, Be Curious, Be Brilliant). All Adventist Health and Rideout associates at the hospital, outpatient clinics and skilled nursing facility are eligible for nomination.

BE Award Recipient:Rosa Sanchez Ramirez
Department:3 West
Submitted by:Esther Thomas
BE Statement:Be a Mission Owner

From Co-Worker: I am writing to recommend Rosa, our certified nursing assistant, for the 'Be a Mission Owner' award. I have nothing but positive things to say about Rosa. She stands out, going above and beyond for her patients and 3 West. She makes 3 West look good!

She has many talents that she freely gives to the cause by promoting health, wholeness, and hope. She excels in communication, advocating for patient's needs and concerns. She personally welcomes visitors and family in such a gracious way. She can help with the language barrier for Spanish and Punjabi language. She updates the board and starts the day off by making the patient feel cared for and safe.

Her brilliance is appreciated because she can collect information, perform an assessment, and evaluate various components. She developed a plan of care document that supported the shared governance committee. Her suggestions were granted and now used on other units throughout the hospital.

I have trusted her critical thinking skills and followed up with her concerns. I had a patient who was very restless and at risk for self-harm. She noticed that the patient had not urinated much throughout the day. She suggested that we bladder scan the patient instead of giving her a sedative. The bladder scanner noted 1,000mls in the bladder. I quickly obtained a Foley Catheter order. She stayed and assisted with care of the patient. Her diligence to follow through to the end of care shows her advocation for the nurse and patient care.

Today, she was doing her ordinary routine vital signs and noticed the patient's abdominal nephrostomy drain. She was willing to empty the bag and wanted to correctly document the output. She is not afraid to be more involved in-patient care. I love her curious spirit and intuition that accurately pinpoints an issue and appropriately communicates the concern to the nurse. Recently, I saw that she advocated for a patient who was bleeding more than usual. She saw and comprehended the critical situation and immediately let the care nurse know. This patient felt safe with her supporting, calming, presence. The doctor, rapid response nurse, and charge nurse appreciated her quick assessment and communication.

I can't be silent! I must shout it from the mountain tops; let's honor whom honor is due. When I have the privilege to work with Rosa, my days are blessed.

BE Award Recipient:Pamela Garigliano
Department:Gridley Primary Care
Submitted by:Julie Buck
BE Statement:Be Welcoming

From Co-Worker: Pam works the front desk at our Gridley Primary Care clinic. She is the first face that patients see when they walk in the door. She always has a smile on her face, greets each person by their first name if she knows it, takes the time to ask them how they are feeling and just makes everyone feel at ease as soon as they enter the clinic. There have been days when I know she hasn't felt well, but the patients entering the clinic would never know that.

BE Award Recipient:Liz Bustamante
Department:General/Bariatric Surgery
Submitted by:Gayle Ott
BE Statement:Be Brilliant

From Co-Worker: I’ve worked with Liz for almost a year since joining the AHRO Bariatric Team in 2023, and every day I marvel at the outstanding quality of her work, her attention to detail and dedication to every patient she has contact with. More than anything, Liz fulfills the role of Be Brilliant.

Liz works hard every single day, often spending hours on the phone with a multitude of health insurances and untangling the convoluted web of authorizations and requirements that must be met prior to surgery.

As part of her role, Liz calls every patient to schedule them for surgery and explain the pre-op process and instructions. She is a veritable encyclopedia of knowledge when it comes to educating patients on bariatric diets and day-of surgery instructions. Bariatric patients have very specific pre-op dietary needs, and she will go over each detail with them until she is sure they understand.

She is sincere, welcoming, and patients will often share their fears about their impending surgery with her. Liz will never rush a patient, listening, reassuring them, and always taking the time to answer every single question they have. She will not hang up the phone until the patient is happy.

She is a great resource to our General Surgery Clinic, and there are days I’m sure things would fall apart without her. She routinely shows initiative and works closely with – and is respected by – all the general surgeons in the clinic.

Liz also sees the value in celebrating her co-workers and when there is a birthday or special occasion, will stay late on her own time to decorate so there is a wonderful surprise awaiting that person the next morning. She will also frequently coordinate pot-lucks or lunch catering to ensure the day for that person is special.

She is always willing to roll up her sleeves, step up and help. No matter how busy she is, she is always willing to listen and troubleshoot issues. She is extremely competent, knowledgeable and the go-to for the entire clinic whenever anyone has a question. Recently our entire AHRO bariatric surgery team participated in the Sutter Buttes Spirit 5K/10K Run and Liz personally made T-shirts for each of us. A few days before the race, she fell ill but still finished the last few shirts, including some for patients who were participating. She not only finished the shirts, but personally hand-delivered them at the race, even though she was clearly still not feeling her best, and then stayed to cheer the team on. Liz is an incredible resource and generally knows everything going on with patients, insurance policies, scheduling and the myriad of craziness in between. She is a tremendous asset to our team, and we could not do without her. So many of Liz’s efforts and achievements fly under the radar and are not always noticed, which is why I would love to see her recognized for the incredibly valuable employee that she is and why I am nominating her for a Be Award.

BE Award Recipient:Dr. Avneet Kahlon
Department:Rapid Response Hospitalist
Submitted by:Jeanie Chung
BE Statement:Be a Force for Good & Be Love

From Co-Worker: I wanted to write this nomination for a specific event that occurred during a night shift, in which I was covering as the rapid response nurse. Oftentimes, night shift’s job is defined as "putting out the fires" and to keep the patient going until the primary team comes on during days for any further interventions. And oftentimes, patients just need a small intervention and stabilize. However, there are instances when patients have condition changes that require more than just "putting out the fire" and need significant involvement and, in this case, end of life care. I wanted to nominate Dr. Kahlon for his interventions and his priority on this patient's care. And he does this all while managing ER admissions and being on call for 3 other floors.

The patient I'm referring to was end of life. Conversations had been had by the primary team about her plan of care and prognosis. Even ICU was involved. The patient was somewhat stable at shift change. Towards the middle of the night, she started acutely decompensating. The interventions that were put into place on day shift were no longer effective and were causing patient discomfort and distress. Multiple conversations were had with Dr. Kahlon and another physician. The family needed to know that the patient is no longer responding to therapy. We were at a crossroads and needed to proceed with end of life or more aggressive interventions. The patient had clearly stated her desire for "selective treatment". Throughout our conversations, Dr. Kahlon’s priority was to respect the patient's end of life wishes. He expressed concern for her comfort. He could have just "put out the fire" with small interventions to keep her going until that magical 0700 hour. But he didn't. With many admissions pending in ER and other house calls, he took time to go into her chart and call the family. He spoke to the patient's daughter and updated her on the patient's condition. He encouraged her to come visit because no one should die alone. And family should spend the last minutes with their loved ones. He spent I don't know how much time with the family answering questions and the questions were quite varied and involved. He involved the intensivist in the family discussion, and we were finally able to proceed with comfort care. Dr. Kahlon really went out his way to ensure that the patient's final wishes were carried out and that she would not suffer at the end of her life. So, kudos for Dr. Kahlon for being a Force for Good and Being Love.

BE Award Recipient:Belinda Elias
Department:Labor & Delivery
Submitted by:Esther Corbett
BE Statement:Be a Force for Good

From Co-Worker: Extraordinary... that is a perfect word to describe Belinda!

Belinda is one of the most organized, talented, creative, knowledgeable, funny, and patient people you'll ever meet. Belinda has been an employee for over 20 years. During this time, she has served as a mentor and valuable resource to many throughout the hospital, including myself in the past few years. Belinda has many responsibilities, most of which are done "behind the scenes' and aren't always given the recognition they deserve. One of those responsibilities include Belinda striving to create a safe, healthy, and positive working environment for her staff. During Nurses Week, Belinda organized a daily menu of themed treats and snacks, ensuring night shift was taken care of too by involving the night shift CCs. She also had fun shirts made for all the nurses along with the other CCs. Belinda also strives to create a safe and healthy environment for our L&D patients. She recently played an integral role in bringing a potentially life-saving device to our unit which has been used several times with excellent results. Belinda deserves to be recognized for her hard work and dedication to our hospital. Thank you for all you do, Belinda... it's a lot!

BE Award Recipient:Archer Gee
Department:Facilities
Submitted by:Brittnee Drawver
BE Statement:Be a Mission Owner

From Co-Worker: Archer is consistently owning his position; he goes above and beyond his job duties even if things are not in his scope of work. I witnessed him cleaning where the trash compactor sits, he had a shop vacuum, among other things cleaning this area, and preventing trash and other liquids from going down the storm drain. Over the years I have witnessed him cleaning and organizing the central plant making it easier of the team for day-to-day tasks. We are lucky to have Archer as a part of the AHRO team.