1. society
2. welfare
3. healthcare

2015 BENEFITS
OPEN ENROLLMENT
NOW
How to Enroll?
11/17
At any computer with internet, go to: www.mainehealth.bswift.
com & follow the steps. Computers are available in Human
Resources (HR) if you do not have access to one.
Want details?
View a presentation with all of the 2015 benefits information
explained at: www.brainshark.com/tw/MH2015OE.
Active Open Enrollment!
• If you want coverage effective 1/1/15 you MUST go to
www.mainehealth.bswift.com and ENROLL by 11/17!
• If you DO NOT want coverage for 2015 you MUST go to
www.mainehealth.bswift.com and WAIVE by 11/17!
• There is NO automatic re-enrollment.
• After enrolling, print the confirmation page and/or email it
to yourself.
PTO Cash Out
Hourly (non-exempt) employees wishing to cash out Paid Time
Off (PTO) in 2015 need to complete the PTO Cash-out form and
return it to HR by 11/17. The form is available on the Intranet or
in the HR Offices. Questions? 283-7260 (Option 5).
NO EXCEPTIONS! If you don’t enroll,
you won’t have benefits for 2015.
Questions?
The experts at the HR Solution
Center are prepared to assist you:
PHONE 661-4000 • EMAIL HRSolutions@mainehealth.org
November 2014
EMPLOYEE FLU
VACCINE UPDATE
11/30 is the deadline to get vaccinated or
decline. Employees who don’t comply
will be subject to disciplinary action in
accordance with applicable SMHC Human
Resources policies. FMI call: 283-7669
UPCOMING DATES:
Sanford >> Learning Center
Friday, 11/7 7am-noon
Biddeford >> WorkWell
Tuesday, 11/11 noon-3pm
Thursday, 11/13 7-11:30am
Off-site staff, check with
your manager to
determine the best option
for getting your flu shot.
NEW! JOIN US:
EMPLOYEE ACTIVITY
COMMITTEE AT SMHC
Do you have specific ideas or interest in
helping to build camaraderie and plan fun
events? Then join the new Employee
Activity Committee!
The first meeting will be at the Sanford
Medical Center (Founders Room) on
Wednesday, December 3 from 9–10am.
We will also set up a conference call for
those of you who can’t make the trip to
Sanford.
Please get permission from your manager,
and contact co-chairs Kim or Missy to join
the committee.
✴ Kim LaChance (207) 490-7322
✴ Missy Nadeau (207) 283-7225
Vol. 1, No. 11
Straight Talk:
Looking Forward--After
Checking the Rearview Mirror
On September 30 we ended our 2014
fiscal year, and we are now one month
into our new fiscal year. Looking back at
FY14 it is clear that, despite a number of
daunting challenges (can you say “comEd McGeachey
puter conversion?”), this organization had
President & CEO
a very successful year, and I want to thank
each of you for your contribution.
The Founding of SMHC. First and foremost, on January 1
we-you, me, and everyone associated with SMHC-founded a
new healthcare organization that is the future of healthcare
in York County: Southern Maine Health Care. After over a year
of planning and preparations, we transformed two unique
healthcare systems into one. This transition was amazingly
smooth. Our name, logo, medical staff, our very identity
changed overnight, and although we all understand that it
will take more than a new logo to feel “together as one,” I
have been touched by our entire team’s common dedication
to SMHC’s high standard of Excellence. Always.
The IT Conversion. About 60 days after the merger, we
undertook a major conversion necessary to align our
computer systems. The IT team gave 150% and I am so
thankful for their dedication, and that of all our staff and
physicians. While the conversion has been extremely difficult,
the extraordinary commitment of SMHC staff and physicians
has been incredibly impressive and effective. I can’t thank you
enough.
Quality and Access. In FY14, SMHC achieved top LeapFrog
status and joint commission accreditations, advanced Patient
Centered Medical Home, developed a new palliative care
program, initiated a new Patient Experience focus, expanded
our community health programs, opened a new medical
office building, and added 12 new physicians and 10 Nurse
Practitioners and Physician Assistants- just some of the many
quality and access outcomes of which we can be very proud.
Cost and Value. Due in large part to expenses and issues
related to the conversion, as well as a general national down
turn in demand for elective healthcare services, SMHC ended
the year without the operating margin we expected to
achieve. Even so, we made a $1 million annual investment to
ensure pay parity among our staff and our board approved
the wage and salary increase for FY15 based on our overall
strong results of FY14 and the confidence in our team’s ability
to reach our operating margin goal for FY15. Each year we
meet new unexpected challenges (can you say, ”Ebola?”) and
our ability to work together as a team, support each other,
and maintain our focus on our patients and the health of our
communities is what makes us successful. Thank you for an
excellent FY14, and here’s to an even better year ahead!
Best regards,
2
You Rock!
Rock Stars
Marc Bergeron, Quality & Patient Safety
Excellence, Integrity, Collaboration, Stewardship
Marc always steps in to help the
team when it’s needed. He set up
a conference phone for a meeting
he wasn’t even attending when
the team was short-handed. Marc
consistently assists the Infection
Preventionists in their surveillance of infections when they are
not able to be present.
Lan Tai-Neveux, Emergency Services
Compassion, Excellence, Integrity, Collaboration
A patient with complications
post-op abdominal surgery (at
another hospital) went to the
Sanford ED. She was in pain,
uncomfortable, frustrated, and
scared. Lan was professional,
attentive, compassionate, and
provided quality care.
Sarah Wooldridge, Pain Management
Compassion, Excellence, Integrity, Collaboration
Every day Sarah continually
goes above and beyond to make
sure patients are helped as soon
as possible. She has implemented
a new phone system that has reduced the number of complaints
from 2-3 weekly to none in over
two months!
S
potlight:
MHC Superstars!
Congrats to the the Newton Center
for receiving a deficiency free annual
CMS/State survey result. This is very
difficult to achieve and is a testimony
to the high quality level of care provided to our community. Thank you to
the Newton Center staff along with
Maintenance, Nutritional Services
and Environmental Services.
Amazing teamwork!
Need to Know
Info: POLST Forms
Starting November 1, the Physician
Ordered Life Sustaining Treatment
(POLST) forms will be scanned into
Meditech under RISK/LEGAL-Advance
Directives instead of “Other Reports.”
FMI/Questions: Kathy Dietz, 283-7324
Nice to Know
Info:Lean Tip
THE HR OFFICES IN SANFORD HAVE MOVED!
The Sanford Human Resources (HR) office is now located on the 1st
floor of the hospital building. In addition, there is a waiting room where
employees can access a computer to complete Open Enrollment,
WOW!, WebMD and the intranet for forms and SMHC policies.
The office hours are: Monday-Thursday, 8am-4pm.
There will be a different HR person each day with the schedule being:
Monday
Cathy Greenwood
Tuesday
Joe Seger
Wednesday Yvonne McAllister
Thursday
Susan Latorre
To schedule an appointment to meet with your HR Partner please call
(207) 283-7260 (option 5).
With Biddeford-based phones, you
can now use the direct seven-digit
number WITHOUT dialing “9” to call
Maine Medical Center!
· This only applies to numbers that
begin with: 662-xxxx, 396-7xxx, and
396-8xxx.
· For these numbers you do NOT need
to dial a ‘9’ before the phone number.
ONLY the seven digits of the phone
number are needed.
· These calls can still be dialed using a 9,
but it results in per-minute toll charges
as a long-distance call.
· This does NOT currently apply to
Sanford-based phones.
What are the benefits?
· Save time—so easy and convenient!
Other HR News:
· The Occupational Health Nurse, Stacy Ford, will be on site in Sanford
· Save money—when using the direct
on Monday and Friday! Stacy’s office hours are 8am – 4pm.
seven-digit extension to connect to
· There is a new Employee Health Services FAX number: (207) 662-1588. the Maine Medical Center phone lines
specified above the calls are routed
over a private network and we do NOT
incur the additional per-minute toll
charges!
3
T
H
G
U
ON
CA
C
!
A
R
E
AM
Employee Vendor Fair
Halloween Cookies
YUM!
Books Are
Fun Door
Prize
Winners!
Pumpkin Decorating Contest
at 46 Barra Rd!
Making Strides Against
Breast Cancer!
4
SPOOKY FUN!
5
PROFILE: Quality and Patient Safety
Number of Staff: 16
What and where are the services provided to
co-workers, patients, and families?
The team is responsible for the following areas of quality and
patient safety:
· Nursing and medical staff quality
· Accreditation, regulation and licensing requirements
· Infection prevention and control
· Corporate compliance
· Risk management and legal concerns
· Patient safety activities
· Patient experience, complaints and grievances
· Operational Excellence and lean daily management activities
· Accountable Care activities
How does the Quality team contribute to the
mission and values of SMHC?
The Safety team sponsors the work of SMHC through collaboration by coaching others on high performance. They introduce
and recommend evidence-based best practices to facilitate and
sustain performance improvements. They are responsible for
providing routine communication of necessary data and other
information to staff, leaders and the Board of Trustees for timely
response and enhanced compliance. Last but not least, Safety
assists in measuring and reporting on SMHC
quality scores to ensure and encourage
Excellence. Always. care.
DID YOU KNOW?
SMHC is responsible for a vast amount of
licensing and accreditation standards, as well
as the monitoring and reporting of many
different quality measures.
For example, there are:
· 1,200 pages of Joint Commission and
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Rules
and Regulations that guide the care that
SMHC provides.
· 120 units, departments and offices with 604
providers on Medical Staff who are responsible for delivering the care to our patients.
· over 881 different quality measures (plus
another 250+ patient experience metrics)
that reflect the care we deliver.
· over 110 different sources of data that
results in these different measures.
· 450,000+ results of data between Sanford
and Biddeford that Quality monitors and
reports to the organization.
Colleague Deadline: November 21 • Next Release Date: December 5
This newsletter is published the first Friday of each month. Please direct articles and requests to Editor Diana
Arnold at 283-7922 or via e-mail at mdarnold@smhc.org.
If you wish to have your name removed from our mailing list, please write to us at:
Southern Maine Health Care, Community Relations | 1 Medical Center Drive | Biddeford, ME 04005
6
LIVE UNITED
SMHC’s United Way Campaign has officially
kicked-off. Our special events throughout the
year have raised almost $12,000 to date! You
should have received your pledge sheet from
your manager or as an attachment in Ed’s
recent email. If you have given in the past,
thank you very much. If not, won’t you please
consider donating this year?
Any amount is greatly appreciated.
Ed and his wife, Shirley, have challenged us by
adding an additional $1 to their pledge for each
employee who gives to the United Way this year,
who did not give last year!
Our goal is to reach 25% participation of
SMHC employees. You can give a one-time
donation or spread out your gift through
payroll deduction. All who donate by
November 14th will go into a raffle to
win (4) 4 hours of paid time off!
The United Way is York County’s one organization that has the ability to bring resources
together to help local children and adults
who are facing a critical need – be it lack of
food or shelter or longer term personal issues.
You can make a real difference by supporting
the United Way’s efforts!
More Information: Missy Nadeau, 283-7225.
Bake sales to benefit the United Way were
held recently at the Sanford and Biddeford
Medical Centers. These events raised $970 for
the United Way! Thank you to all the bakers
and sweet-tooth buyers out there who made
these events such a success!
SMHC Events
Auxiliary Wreath Sale
Now-November 14
All Locations
Proceeds benefit the SMHC Eldercare
Services Activities Fund. The 24” mixed
evergreen wreaths are only $20! Each
wreath is handmade with balsam and
includes a red bow, two pine cones and
three sets of red berries. Cash, checks,
and payroll deduction will be accepted.
Place your order in person:
11/13, 11:30am-1:30pm Biddeford and Sanford SMHC Cafe’s
Or by calling:
Lee Cote 283-7235 or Joanne Livingston 490-7027.
Asian Silk & Silver
Tuesday, November 11, 9am-4pm
Biddeford Medical Center
Classroom D
Silk scarves, silver jewelry and much
more! Cash, checks, credit cards, and
payroll deduction accepted.
Questions? Call 283-7225.
Books Are Fun Sale
Thursday, November 13, 11am-4pm
Friday, November 14, 7am-3pm
Biddeford Medical Center
Classrooms B&D
There are books for all ages, games,
toys, puzzles, and much more!
Questions? Call 283-7225.
Bag Ali Sale
Monday, November 17, 9am-4pm
Sanford Medical Center
Conference Room
Thursday, November 20, 9:30am-4pm
Friday, November 21, 7am-3:30pm
Biddeford Medical Center
Classrooms B&D
Bags, briefcases, scarves, wallets and more
at great deals. A percentage of the sales
benefit the SMHC Auxiliary.
Questions? Call 490-7322 or 283-7225.
7
What’s Happening
SMHC’s New Sports
Performance Center
in November?
7
The SMHC Sports Performance Center
provides a unique combination of
customized care designed to help
athletes of all ages prevent injuries,
optimize performance and
SMHC
maximize recovery.
Employee Flu Clinic: Sanford Learning Center, 7am-noon.
Free and no appointment needed!
Jeans Day for United Way: Pay $5 to wear jeans to work
with all the funds supporting the United Way.
11
Services include:
Performance
· Sports Physical Therapy
Center
· Sports Medicine
· Strength and Performance Training
· Comprehensive Concussion Management
Employee Flu Clinic: Biddeford WorkWell noon-3pm. Free
and no appointment needed!
Asian Silk & Silver: Biddeford Classroom D, 9am-4pm.
12
The SMHC Sports Performance Center is being staffed
by talented and highly trained professionals led by
Medical Director and SMHC Orthopedic Surgeon David
Johnson, MD:
ACA National Health Insurance Marketplace Info: 5-6pm
community event-open to all. Sanford Conference Room.
· Mike Hersey, PT, SCS, CSCS - Director
· Rick Sirois, MS, LATC, CSCS – Manager and Trainer
· Michelle Nadeau – Patient Service Representative
13
Employee Flu Clinic: Biddeford WorkWell, 7-11:30am. Free
and no appointment needed!
Join us on November 20 for a ribbon cutting ceremony
and Business After Hours event-12 Thornton Ave., Saco.
GREAT-ful for you
Auxiliary Wreath Sale: 11:30am-1:30pm, Sanford and Biddeford SMHC Cafes. FMI 283-7235.
Books Are Fun: Biddeford Classrooms B&D, 11am-4pm.
You are great. And we are grateful--for ALL
of our SMHC team members, EVERY day.
14
This month we celebrate:
Books Are Fun: Biddeford Classrooms B&D, 7am-3pm.
Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness
COPD Awareness
Epilepsy Awareness
Hospice/Palliative Care
Lung Cancer Awareness
Pancreatic Cancer Awareness
Medical-Surgical Nurses
Urology Nurses & Associates
Diabetes Education
Emerging Nurse Leaders
Healthcare Patient Transportation
Medical Staff Services Awareness
Radiologic Technology
Allied Health Professions
Mental Health Wellness
Perioperative Nurses
17
Bag Ali Sale: 9am-4pm in the Sanford Conference Room.
20
Bag Ali Sale: 9:30am-4pm in Biddeford Classroom B&D.
21
Jeans Day for United Way: Pay $5 to wear jeans to work
with all the funds supporting the United Way.
Bag Ali Sale: 7am-3:30pm in Biddeford Classroom B&D.
8