Case managers are detectives, advocates and diplomats. Sometimes, they are travel agents.
When a medically complex patient needed to be transferred to a specialist who performed their first surgery in Georgia, Morgan Delaney, lead case assistant for inpatient clinical case management at Carle Foundation Hospital, worked tenaciously until the patient was safely transferred.
“Morgan just never took no for an answer in this situation and does the same in her daily work,” Jessica Coakley, BSN, CCM (Certified Case Manager), manager of Inpatient Clinical Case Management at Carle Foundation Hospital, said. “She really took the reins in this case, continued to ask questions and got what we needed for the patient.”
Carle Health team members move mountains for patients and the healthcare system celebrates them with Way to Be! awards. Each quarter, Carle Health recognizes team members who live the system’s Values of Excellence, Integrity, Inclusivity, Compassion and Accountability, as well as Leaders and Teams who embrace all the Values.
Delaney earned the latest quarterly Way to Be! award for Excellence. Her story and those of all seven Carle Health quarterly Way to Be! winners follow:
EXCELLENCE
Morgan Delaney, lead case assistant for Inpatient Clinical Case Management at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana
Nurses, social workers and case assistants who work in case management focus on safe discharge planning for patients.
Delaney was asked to assist with prior authorization through Medicare to transport a medically complex patient by air to Georgia for surgery that isn’t performed at Carle Foundation Hospital.
She spoke with many people, who told her that Medicare couldn’t provide prior authorization. Then she called the transfer center at the Georgia hospital, explained what was needed and connected with an air flight team. She got the documentation from the doctor and the flight was approved that night.
“Morgan had an itinerary in hand in under two hours of making phone calls,” Coakley said. “Morgan goes above the call of duty in her role as a lead case assistant. This day, she made mountains move for a patient.”
ACCOUNTABILITY
Brooklyn Gidley, MLS (ASCP), medical lab scientist at Carle Mattoon on Hurst
Brooklyn Gidley, medical lab scientist at Carle Mattoon on Hurst, was performing a quality control task that required her to run a lab test on five random patients’ specimens. She discovered an alert value on one patient. That meant the patient could be at risk for pancreatitis, kidney disease or gallstones.
Gidley couldn’t post the result to the patient’s chart without an order from the provider’s office. She called the provider’s office and explained the situation several times until she received the order, entered and reported the alert value.
“If there is a chance that this result could help find the source of their symptoms and lead to treatment and relief, I want to make that happen,” Gidley said.
“Her dedication to ensuring this patient’s result was entered in the medical record is an example of her thoroughness in everything she does,” Kim Peters, RN, BSN, patient care manager for the Carle Health South Region, said.
COMPASSION
Sarah Philpott, RN, BSN, outpatient care management nurse for Carle Health in Mattoon and Tuscola
When a patient and their spouse didn’t want palliative care to manage the patient’s pain, Sarah Philpott, RN, BSN, outpatient care management nurse in Mattoon and Tuscola, knew there must be more to the story.
She politely persisted and discovered they had a misunderstanding of palliative care based on what they saw in a television drama. She explained the facts, resolved the patient’s and spouse’s concerns, and they agreed to palliative care. That brought relief to the couple and pain reduction to the patient.
“This was a patient I was reaching out to from time to time, and every time I talked with them, pain would be mentioned,” Philpott said. “I knew there was an opportunity to bridge a (knowledge) gap, so I continued to broach the subject. I wanted to get the patient the help they needed.”
“Sarah is a strong patient advocate and consistently goes above to support our patients,” Dawn Finch, RN, BSN, supervisor for care management for the Carle Health East Region, said.
INTEGRITY
Mariela Cruz, patient services representative (PSR) at Carle at The Riverfront in Danville
A person was at Carle at The Riverfront to schedule an appointment for a cardiology consultation and possible heart monitor placement but was not yet a patient of the cardiology clinic.
As Mariela Cruz, a patient services representative, worked with the person to schedule a consultation and establish herself with the office, she told Cruz that she felt dizzy and hot and her pulse appeared to be elevated.
Cruz informed nurses, who assessed the person and got a provider, who determined that the person may be having a pulmonary embolus (sudden blockage in a lung artery). The person was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where she was treated.
“If it had not been for Mariela noticing the patient needed help and going above and beyond, the patient could have been sent on her way without the necessary triage and treatment, and there could have been a delay in care,” Jennifer Todd, RN, Carle at The Riverfront cardiology, said.
INCLUSIVITY
Yolanda “Yogi” Fields, healthcare tech (HCT) at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana
For some Carle Foundation Hospital patients, Yolanda “Yogi” Fields is their ticket home.
Fields, a healthcare tech (HCT), runs the hospital’s hospitality lounge near the North Star Café entrance. For patients discharged from the hospital and waiting for rides, Fields provides comfort, snacks, beverages and conversation. For patients waiting more than two hours, Fields will arrange for a meal. For patients who need rides, she has a supply of tokens and passes provided by Case Management to pay for bus rides and Uber Health transport.
“One of the biggest things she does is collect clothes so patients don’t have to leave the hospital in scrubs,” Mike Barnes, manager of clinical support services at Carle Foundation Hospital, said. “For people without shelter, Yogi makes sure they have clothes to go home with them.”
TEAM
Carle Richland Memorial Hospital Information Technology Team, Olney
Healthfest is an annual community event co-hosted by Carle Richland Memorial Hospital and Olney Central College on the college campus. Carle Richland offers free or discounted health screenings, lab testing and wellness information. The event couldn’t happen without a variety of Carle Richland teams, including Information Technology.
“IT support is essential because our Patient Access and Laboratory teams need a dependable, secure connection to Epic (the Carle Health unified health record system) in order to register patients and process lab work on-site,” Caitlyn Wingert, Patient Access manager at Carle Richland, said. “From reconfiguring labs to coordinating with the event center to test equipment, they (the Carle Richland IT team) handled every technical detail with precision and care. Their proactive planning and tireless support ensured that our teams could focus on serving patients and the community without a hitch.”
“I’m incredibly proud of the IT team’s work supporting Healthfest,” Tim Gillespie, IT director for the Olney Service Area, said. “The teamwork and attention to detail ensure everything runs smoothly behind the scenes. It’s rewarding to know that our work helps support an event that promotes wellness, connection and community.”
LEADER
Rick Nichols, Security and Guest Relations manager for the Carle Health West Region
Rick Nichols has worked with his team to create an environment of helpfulness, open communication and appreciation.
“We are not just co-workers or employees to Rick; we matter to him,” Samantha Johnson, identification badge access control specialist at Carle Health Methodist Hospital, Peoria, said.
“Having an open-door policy is more than just having your door open,” Nichols said. “It’s having open ears, speaking with understanding and providing direction without judgment. As a leader, you need to see and understand each problem from the eye of the person involved.” Nichols wants his team to flourish and grow in knowledge and responsibilities.
Join our team
Would you like to work for an organization that does whatever needs to be done to serve its patients and celebrates its team members who do just that? If so, find it here.
When a medically complex patient needed to be transferred to a specialist who performed their first surgery in Georgia, Morgan Delaney, lead case assistant for inpatient clinical case management at Carle Foundation Hospital, worked tenaciously until the patient was safely transferred.
“Morgan just never took no for an answer in this situation and does the same in her daily work,” Jessica Coakley, BSN, CCM (Certified Case Manager), manager of Inpatient Clinical Case Management at Carle Foundation Hospital, said. “She really took the reins in this case, continued to ask questions and got what we needed for the patient.”
Carle Health team members move mountains for patients and the healthcare system celebrates them with Way to Be! awards. Each quarter, Carle Health recognizes team members who live the system’s Values of Excellence, Integrity, Inclusivity, Compassion and Accountability, as well as Leaders and Teams who embrace all the Values.
Delaney earned the latest quarterly Way to Be! award for Excellence. Her story and those of all seven Carle Health quarterly Way to Be! winners follow:
EXCELLENCE
Morgan Delaney, lead case assistant for Inpatient Clinical Case Management at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana
Nurses, social workers and case assistants who work in case management focus on safe discharge planning for patients.
Delaney was asked to assist with prior authorization through Medicare to transport a medically complex patient by air to Georgia for surgery that isn’t performed at Carle Foundation Hospital.
She spoke with many people, who told her that Medicare couldn’t provide prior authorization. Then she called the transfer center at the Georgia hospital, explained what was needed and connected with an air flight team. She got the documentation from the doctor and the flight was approved that night.
“Morgan had an itinerary in hand in under two hours of making phone calls,” Coakley said. “Morgan goes above the call of duty in her role as a lead case assistant. This day, she made mountains move for a patient.”
ACCOUNTABILITY
Brooklyn Gidley, MLS (ASCP), medical lab scientist at Carle Mattoon on Hurst
Brooklyn Gidley, medical lab scientist at Carle Mattoon on Hurst, was performing a quality control task that required her to run a lab test on five random patients’ specimens. She discovered an alert value on one patient. That meant the patient could be at risk for pancreatitis, kidney disease or gallstones.
Gidley couldn’t post the result to the patient’s chart without an order from the provider’s office. She called the provider’s office and explained the situation several times until she received the order, entered and reported the alert value.
“If there is a chance that this result could help find the source of their symptoms and lead to treatment and relief, I want to make that happen,” Gidley said.
“Her dedication to ensuring this patient’s result was entered in the medical record is an example of her thoroughness in everything she does,” Kim Peters, RN, BSN, patient care manager for the Carle Health South Region, said.
COMPASSION
Sarah Philpott, RN, BSN, outpatient care management nurse for Carle Health in Mattoon and Tuscola
When a patient and their spouse didn’t want palliative care to manage the patient’s pain, Sarah Philpott, RN, BSN, outpatient care management nurse in Mattoon and Tuscola, knew there must be more to the story.
She politely persisted and discovered they had a misunderstanding of palliative care based on what they saw in a television drama. She explained the facts, resolved the patient’s and spouse’s concerns, and they agreed to palliative care. That brought relief to the couple and pain reduction to the patient.
“This was a patient I was reaching out to from time to time, and every time I talked with them, pain would be mentioned,” Philpott said. “I knew there was an opportunity to bridge a (knowledge) gap, so I continued to broach the subject. I wanted to get the patient the help they needed.”
“Sarah is a strong patient advocate and consistently goes above to support our patients,” Dawn Finch, RN, BSN, supervisor for care management for the Carle Health East Region, said.
INTEGRITY
Mariela Cruz, patient services representative (PSR) at Carle at The Riverfront in Danville
A person was at Carle at The Riverfront to schedule an appointment for a cardiology consultation and possible heart monitor placement but was not yet a patient of the cardiology clinic.
As Mariela Cruz, a patient services representative, worked with the person to schedule a consultation and establish herself with the office, she told Cruz that she felt dizzy and hot and her pulse appeared to be elevated.
Cruz informed nurses, who assessed the person and got a provider, who determined that the person may be having a pulmonary embolus (sudden blockage in a lung artery). The person was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where she was treated.
“If it had not been for Mariela noticing the patient needed help and going above and beyond, the patient could have been sent on her way without the necessary triage and treatment, and there could have been a delay in care,” Jennifer Todd, RN, Carle at The Riverfront cardiology, said.
INCLUSIVITY
Yolanda “Yogi” Fields, healthcare tech (HCT) at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana
For some Carle Foundation Hospital patients, Yolanda “Yogi” Fields is their ticket home.
Fields, a healthcare tech (HCT), runs the hospital’s hospitality lounge near the North Star Café entrance. For patients discharged from the hospital and waiting for rides, Fields provides comfort, snacks, beverages and conversation. For patients waiting more than two hours, Fields will arrange for a meal. For patients who need rides, she has a supply of tokens and passes provided by Case Management to pay for bus rides and Uber Health transport.
“One of the biggest things she does is collect clothes so patients don’t have to leave the hospital in scrubs,” Mike Barnes, manager of clinical support services at Carle Foundation Hospital, said. “For people without shelter, Yogi makes sure they have clothes to go home with them.”
TEAM
Carle Richland Memorial Hospital Information Technology Team, Olney
Healthfest is an annual community event co-hosted by Carle Richland Memorial Hospital and Olney Central College on the college campus. Carle Richland offers free or discounted health screenings, lab testing and wellness information. The event couldn’t happen without a variety of Carle Richland teams, including Information Technology.
“IT support is essential because our Patient Access and Laboratory teams need a dependable, secure connection to Epic (the Carle Health unified health record system) in order to register patients and process lab work on-site,” Caitlyn Wingert, Patient Access manager at Carle Richland, said. “From reconfiguring labs to coordinating with the event center to test equipment, they (the Carle Richland IT team) handled every technical detail with precision and care. Their proactive planning and tireless support ensured that our teams could focus on serving patients and the community without a hitch.”
“I’m incredibly proud of the IT team’s work supporting Healthfest,” Tim Gillespie, IT director for the Olney Service Area, said. “The teamwork and attention to detail ensure everything runs smoothly behind the scenes. It’s rewarding to know that our work helps support an event that promotes wellness, connection and community.”
LEADER
Rick Nichols, Security and Guest Relations manager for the Carle Health West Region
Rick Nichols has worked with his team to create an environment of helpfulness, open communication and appreciation.
“We are not just co-workers or employees to Rick; we matter to him,” Samantha Johnson, identification badge access control specialist at Carle Health Methodist Hospital, Peoria, said.
“Having an open-door policy is more than just having your door open,” Nichols said. “It’s having open ears, speaking with understanding and providing direction without judgment. As a leader, you need to see and understand each problem from the eye of the person involved.” Nichols wants his team to flourish and grow in knowledge and responsibilities.
Join our team
Would you like to work for an organization that does whatever needs to be done to serve its patients and celebrates its team members who do just that? If so, find it here.
Categories: Culture of Quality
Tags: Access, cardiology, Care, CATR, CFH, Culture, Experience, hospitality, IT, lab, Management, Mattoon, Methodist, outpatient, palliative, Patient, Richland, security, tech, Tuscola, Values