1. society
2. welfare
3. healthcare
4. hospital

Fall 2014 Issue
CONNECTI NS
Missouri Health Care
xecutive Assistants’ Newsletter
Letter from the President
Connecting Missouri Health Care Executive Assistants together.
Charlotte Sulltrop’s Vision for MHCEA
While it is important to obtain members, retention is equally important. Listening to what our members say about
MHCEA is the key to retention. Also, understanding our member’s expectations; are we meeting their expectations and
as an organization how do we enhance them? It is important that our membership stays engaged. This can be as simple
as sending us your ideas, the websites or links you use on a routine basis to help with your job and/or participating on
committees, authoring articles, and providing tricks of the trade to enhance or simplify our jobs.
Our goal was to find a tool that would encourage informal feedback from you. That communication tool is a
“membership survey” which will be e-mailed to everyone in early October. Your feedback is important, please participate.
There is no “one size fits all” approach so we are encouraging each District to develop new and exciting activities to
actively engage members and share those activities with the entire MHCEA membership.
I look forward to working with the all our Committees; Education, Website/Newsletter, Membership, and Conference
Planning as they continue to develop strong educational programs to provide information for our professional growth.
Committees are establishing their initial meetings and progress reports will be given at a later
date.
The glorious season of Fall is on its way. What is the happiest thought that comes to mind when
you hear the word Fall? For me, its soft blankets and warm soup. Enjoy this mild summer, autumn is on its way!
Charlotte Sulltrop,
MHCEA President
New President Highlight
Tell us a little about yourself.
I’m a professional executive assistant with 40+ years of health care experience. My health care
experience has included Executive Assistant to the Chief Executive Officers of MercyWashington and Mercy-St. Louis (23 years), Missouri Baptist – St. Louis (5 years) and Medicus
Management Services for the last 12 years.
What inspires you?
People and their stories. I love talking and listening to people and hearing about their life’s journey. We can learn so much from each other.
Inside This Issue
What are your hobbies?
Reading (especially autobiographies and the classics);
golf, cooking
Letter from the President & Highlight
1
2014 Annual MHCEA Conference
2
District Updates
2
Why MHCEA?
I have been a member of MHCEA since its inception. MHCEA
members amaze me with their display of professionalism, commitment and passion to the health care industry. Who wouldn’t want to
be a member of this inspiring group of super stars?
Education, Tips and Tricks
3
Welcome New Members
3
AHCAP Update
3
New Committee Chairs & Board Members
4
Darla Shipman, Assistant to the President | MHA | PO Box 60 | Jefferson City, MO 65102
(573) 893-3700, ext. 1332 - dshipman@mail.mhanet.com
MHCEA 2014 Annual Conference
Save the Date:
2015 MHCEA Conference
March 26 & 27
This past Spring, MHCEA held its annual conference May 8 & 9 at the beautiful Camden on the
Lake Resort in Lake Ozark, Missouri. Once again, Gini Courter of Triad Consulting provided
the members with two amazing pre-conference sessions on Outlook Tips & Tricks and Word for
Power Users. As always, Gini's great sense of humor made the learning easy and fun.
Thursday evening District meetings were held followed by a welcome/social hour that allowed
our members to network, renew old friendships and make new ones. The evening ended with a
wonderful dinner at the resort.
Friday began with the annual business meeting. Then Herb Kuhn, President and CEO of MHA,
gave an update on current issues. Kim Hodous, the kitchen table CEO, presented on communication, social networking, leadership and work/life balance. Hodous was a fireball of energy and
enthusiasm.
This year, MHCEA chose Women 2 Women in Osage Beach as its charitable organization.
Woman 2 Woman is a faith-based, non-profit mentoring, education and referral organization
serving women in Camden, Morgan and Miller counties. Thank you to all who donated clothing
items and money. We raised a total of $940 for the Chelsea Hoemeyer Memorial Scholarship
Fund. The fund assists with
scholarships, GEDs or
eyeglasses.
If you were unable to join us this past Spring, please
mark your calendars for March 26 & 27, 2015 for the
13th Annual Conference held again at the popular Camden on the Lake Resort. It is sure to be a great event!
Contributed by: Stephanie Buker & Pat Muenster
District Updates
District 2 — A meeting for District 2 will be held late September/early October, 2014. Our host will be Judy Small with Western Missouri
Medical Center. Judy will give the group a tour of several completed construction projects as well as give a brief overview of different
initiatives the facility is working on. Afterwards, we will discuss several matters for our district. Submitted by: Sonia Thomas
District 3 We had great representation from the District 3 members at the 2014 Spring conference.
New officers were elected. Seven new members were welcomed. A challenge was offered to
District 3 members to put $1 aside a week to donate to the charity of choice next year. The challenge
is offered to all MHCEA members at the overall business meeting. Our fall meeting will be held in
Hannibal. Submitted by: Pam Dorman
District 4 A meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday October 14, at Hacienda Restaurant.
Submitted by: Pat Muenster
District 5 Here in southwest Missouri, District 5 held two meetings in 2014. Two primary agenda items at each meeting are geared to
education on various topics and a charity of choice is selected for each meeting. Our group would encourage all districts to have one of
your own members share Tips and Tricks at your meetings as we always have lively discussions to follow. It is amazing how the little
steps we share can help another.
As individuals, we strive for professionalism to do great things and make work life smooth for those we work for and work with. Attending
district meetings is the best way to meet our great pool of professionals, whom we can call upon at any given moment for help and support.
Submitted by: Dorothy Brucks
District 6 A meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 24, at Perry County Memorial Hospital. Submitted by: Jennifer Street
Bring More Laughter to Your Day.
People who laugh heartily on a regular basis have lower standing blood pressure
than the average person. Laughter decreases stress hormones and increases infection fighting antibodies. It increases, heart rate and pulse.
Page 2
Education, Tips and Tricks
Welcome New Members
10 Phrases that Should Be Banned from the Work- Tabetha Bodewitz, St. Louis VA Medical Center
Kelley Bolton, CoxHealth
place Forever
Are there specific words and phrases that career-minded managers should avoid at all costs? Yes indeed! says Darlene Price,
author of the book Well Said! Presentations and Conversations
That Get Results. She offers 10 phrases that you should never
utter. To successfully communicate, says Price
(www.wellsaid.com), you have to learn to present yourself and
your message effectively. You’ve got to know your audience
members and tailor your content to meet their needs. And you’ve
got to be sincere, natural, enthusiastic and passionate, maintain
good eye contact, and be calm and polite. AND, you need to
learn that there are specific words and phrases that are certain to
cause damage. If you want to maximize your success as you
climb the career ladder and avoid slipping, here are Price’s top 10
phrases to stop using in the workplace.
1. "I can’t do that" or "That’s impossible" or "That can’t be
done."
2. "You should have …" or "You could have …" or You
ought to have …”
3. "That’s not my job" or "I don’t get paid enough for this"
or "That’s not my problem."
4. "I may be wrong, but …" or “This may be a dumb question, but …" or "I’m not sure about this, but …" or ‘This
may be a silly idea, but …"
5. "I’ll try."
6. "I think …"
7. “… don’t you think?” and “… isn’t it?” and “… OK?”
8. “I don’t have time for this right now” or “I don’t have time
to talk to you right now.”
9. “… but …” Simply replace the word “But” with “And.”
10. “He’s a jerk” or “She’s lazy” or “They’re stupid” or “I
hate my job” or “This company stinks.”
Click on the link below for the full article which elaborates on
each of the 10 phrases to avoid. http://
hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/2014/07/14/10-phrases-that-should-bebanned-from-the-workplace-forever/
HR Management by Stephen Bruce, PhD, PHR, Monday, July
14th, 2014
Kerri Brewer, Mercy Health
Christina Brotzman, North Kansas City Hospital
Stephanie Buker, Missouri Hospital Association
Candice Carver, BJC HealthCare
Paula Coons, Hannibal Regional Medical Group
Betty Dier, Royal Oaks Hospital
Sherry Diggs, St. Luke's Hospital
Kim Evans, Truman Medical Centers Inc.
Charla Eversole, Truman Medical Centers Inc.
Sheri Gregory, Heartland Regional Medical Center
Shaunda Hamilton, Landmark Hospital of Columbia
Tammi Hanks, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Stephanie Hayes, The Rehab. Institute of St. Louis
Katy Howell, Bootheel Counseling Services
Gloria Jones, St. Anthony's Medical Center
Nena Kallenbach, University of Missouri Health Care
Jennifer Keel, Mercy Hospital Springfield
Mary Jane Leverich, Children's Mercy Hosp. & Clinics
Mary Lewis, Phelps County Regional Medical Center
Tammy Litz, SSM DePaul Health Center
Sue Ludwig, SoutheastHEALTH
Laura Martin, North Kansas City Hospital
Maureen Matz, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
Jenny Mills, Fitzgibbon Hospital
Damarys Moore, Barnes-Jewish Hospital
Melody Morris, John J. Pershing VA Medical Center
Angela Nations, Iron County Medical Center
Shauna Pierce, Two Rivers Behavioral Health System
Kim Reno, Frauenshuh HealthCare Real Estate Solutions
Mary Rhoads, University of Missouri Health Care
Gloria Robbins, Mercy East Region
Emily Royal, Hannibal Regional Healthcare System
Sarah Sellers, Missouri Foundation for Health
Wanda Thurman, Mercy Hospital St. Louis
Shelley Wellen, Mercy East Region
Dawnita Whittington, Heartland Regional Med. Center
Jennifer Wilkins, Mercy Hospital Jefferson
Darla Wilt, Audrain Medical Center
Plan to participate in the MHCEA Webinar
How to Deal Effectively with Generational Differences in the Work Place
Noon to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, October 29, 2014
To register go to www.mhanet.com
Page 3
AHCAP—Association for Healthcare Administrative Professionals
AHCAP is a not-for-profit healthcare organization dedicated to executive assistants, administrative
assistants, and other professionals supporting healthcare management.
Feature: Lisa Featherston, AHCAP President
Congratulations to our very own Lisa Featherston. Effective August 1, Lisa began her term as President
of the Association for Healthcare Administrative Professionals (ACHAP). Lisa has been an active member in both MHCEA and AHCAP and is very passionate about helping each organization provide opportunities for her fellow health care administrative professionals to strengthen their knowledge they utilize
on a daily basis. She also noted that connecting with her colleagues in Missouri as well as across the
U.S. has proven to be a very valuable benefit of both her memberships: MHCEA for the past 12 years
and AHCAP for the past 18 years. Lisa was very happy to report that MHCEA is very well represented in AHCAP and many
of the other state associations seek Darla’s guidance when it comes to building successful state organizations.
Lisa just returned from the AHCAP 2014 Educational Conference held in Clearwater Beach, Florida; A Clearer V ision to
Guide Your Growth. With close to 100 attendees, there was representation from 35 states, including Hawaii, and the District
of Columbia. Featherston stated it was one of the better AHCAP’s conferences she has attended; but then again, she indicated she says that every year after conference! This year’s agenda included Microsoft Office 2010 tips and tricks, personality
tests, communication skills, a personal safety/self defense session as well as opportunities to reconnect with old friends and
make new ones! As MHCEA does, AHCAP adopts a charity to support each year; this year’s benefactor was ConKerr Cancer. Attendees were able to sew pillowcases to donate to Childrens’ Hospitals who in turn give them children who are battling Cancer. Within a short period of time, 35 pillowcases were sewn and $500 was donated.
Lisa is very much looking forward to her term in office. Her platform: Sustainability. Her deep concern for the overall financial stability in health care carries over to AHCAP. Health care institutions, as they try to find ways to deal with the financial challenges in health care today, tend to reduce travel budgets. With reduced or cut travel budgets, many members are
not able to travel to AHCAP’s Annual Conference. She is challenging the AHCAP Board and Committee leaders to assist
her in building AHCAP’s member benefits to ensure all members stay engaged in the organization throughout the year. She
was quick to note that AHCAP offers free Webinars throughout the year for their members, has member forums for open dialogue on the AHCAP website and offers the cHAP exam, just to mention a few benefits.
Mark your calendar for next year’s conference which is being held in Colorado Springs July 15-17, 2015. Lisa is hopeful that
many more of her MHCEA colleagues are able to join AHCAP to take advantage of the educational conference as well as the
other benefits AHCAP offers.
Lisa is currently the Executive Assistant to the President of Mercy Hospital, St. Louis and has worked for Mercy for 26 years.
Submitted by: Claudia Geile
AHCAP Upcoming Webinar
Writing Rules and Etiquette for the 21st Century
Date – November 12, 2014
Time – 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter – Presented by Lynn Gaertner-Johnston, Syntax Training
Click here to register for this webinar.
What sunshine is to flowers,
smiles are to humanity.
These are but trifles,
to be sure;
but, scattered along life's pathway,
the good they do is inconceivable.
~Joseph Addison
Page 4
MHCEA is your membership group. Please forward your thoughts, ideas, comments and suggestions to the appropriate committee. (See list below.) Also, you are encouraged to contact the committee chair if you would like to join a committee. Below is a
summary of the MHCEA Committees and their responsibilities.
Bylaws Committee — The Bylaws Committee shall be responsible for reviewing the Bylaws annually and making recommendations to the Board
of Directors and membership.
Conference Committee — The Conference Committee shall be responsible for the annual meeting. The committee shall be chaired by presidentelect and at least one member from each district shall be on the committee.
Education Committee — The Education Committee shall be responsible for planning MHCEA webinars.
Membership Committee — The Membership Committee shall be responsible for the recruitment of members to the society.
Nominating Committee — The Nominating Committee shall be responsible for making nominations for the office of president-elect and at-large
trustees. The committee shall consist of the president, past president, a member of the Board of Directors and three members of the society who
are not members of the board.
Website/Newsletter Committee — The Education Committee shall be responsible for creating the MHCEA Newsletter and suggesting ideas for
the MHCEA website.
2014-2015 MHCEA Committee Chairs
Bylaws Committee
Cathy Molder
417/328-6501
cmolde@citizensmemorial.com
Education Committee
Kyna Powers
314/989-2924
kyna_powers@ssmhc.com
Nominating Committee
Charlotte Sulltrop
636/728-2218
csulltrop@radpartner.com
Conference Committee
Kathy Rigger
417/269-3108
kathleen.rigger@coxhealth.com
Membership Committee
Cathy Boschert
314/344-7208
cathy_boschert@ssmhc.com
Website/Newsletter Committee
Dorothy Brucks
417/875-3462
dorothy.brucks@coxhealth.com
2014-2015 MHCEA Board of Directors
Board Officers:
Charlotte Sulltrop (President)
Assistant to the President
Medicus Management Services, LLC
16091 Swingley Ridge Rd., Ste. 100
Chesterfield, MO 63017-2056
636/728-2218
csulltrop@radpartner.com
(2013-2016)
New 2014 Board Members:
Sonia R. Thomas (District 2)
Executive Administrative Assistant
Saint Luke's East Hospital
100 N.E. Saint Luke's Boulevard
Lees Summit, MO 64086-6000
816/347-4835
srthomas@saint-lukes.org
(Term expires 2016)
Jennifer Street (District 6)
Executive Assistant to the
Regional Executive Officer
Southeast Missouri Mental Health Center
1010 West Columbia Street
Farmington, MO 63640-2902
573/218-6701
jennifer.street@dmh.mo.gov
(Term expires 2016)
Darcy Adams (Past President)
Administrative Assistant
Heartland Health
5325 Faraon Street
St. Joseph, MO 64506-3488
816/271-7066
darcy.adams@mymlc.com
(2012-2015)
Pat Muenster (District 4)
738 Thayer Court
Dardenne Prairie, MO 63368
314/402-5642
pamuenster1228@gmail.com
(Term expires 2016)
Judy Small (At-Large Member)
Executive Assistant to CEO
Western Missouri Medical Center
403 Burkarth Road
Warrensburg, MO 64093-3101
660/262-7493
jsmall@wmmc.com
(Term expires 2016)
Kathy Rigger (President Elect)
Executive Assistant
CoxHealth
3850 South National, Suite 500
Springfield, MO 65807-5292
417/269-3108
kathleen.rigger@coxhealth.com
(Term expires 2017)
Mandi Jordan (District 5)
Executive Assistant
Nevada Regional Medical Center
The complete MHCEA Board of Directors list
800 South Ash Street
is located on the MHCEA Website.
Nevada, MO 64772-3223
417/448-2457
www.MHCEA.com
mjordan@nrmchealth.com
Email Sheila.james@mymlc.com for login
(Term expires 2015)
support
Page 5