April 2024 Connections

PEDRO

Torres is Evergreen's Harm Reduction coordinator, a simple three-word job title that describes an incredibly important role. As is often the case at Evergreen, Pedro says there's no such thing as a typical work day. "My role varies from day to day." Pedro is responsible for internal referrals such as substance use counseling, mental health, primary care, and care coordination, and talks about referrals for detox or inpatient services with patients when needed. He also works with other departments including Security and Facilities to ensure a secure, welcoming environment at the Drop-In Center. "I start my day by making sure our patients have a safe haven they can come to and feel at home."

Pedro coordinates a full schedule of groups and events at the Drop-In Center, such as My Story Telling on Mondays, Art Therapy on Wednesdays and Movie Friday on - wait for it - Fridays. He then distributes the schedule as a monthly calendar to the Center for Behavioral Health.

The Drop-In Center provides vital services to our patients, offering basic living needs such as laundry and shower facilities. "Sometimes we're their only source of food for the day," notes Pedro. "As we identify their needs, we often realize we need to help them through referrals to different programs and services throughout Evergreen. I'm dedicated to helping patients get their needs met, even if it means going outside standard hours to get them food or clothing."

Pedro says the judgement and stigma aimed at people who use drugs are challenges in this work. "We're a judgement-free environment, here to help them get to where they need

to be. We always meet them where they're at and always treat them with the utmost respect. Sometimes a patient may not want the extra help we try to provide, which is okay. We worry about them day to day and let them know we're here if they need us."

Pedro says it's satisfying to help patients overcome obstacles and make positive changes in their lives. "We have a patient with numerous challenges, such as homelessness and a language barrier. We were able to get his immediate needs met and link him to the services he needs. He has since entered into detox and reports feeling much better. He's ready to continue his journey to recovery. People don’t always realize what we see on a daily basis with our population. We go above and beyond what we need to do to help serve them."

Evergreen culture, particularly the Harm Reduction Model, plays a big role in this success. "Our culture is very welcoming. We treat everyone, whether it's patients or coworkers, with unconditional love. The Harm Reduction Model is the base point of our department. We're meeting people where they are at, instead of setting unattainable goals. Everyone has long term goals, but sometimes they seem impossible to reach. We look at Harm Reduction as a 'daily goal' as in, what can we do for patients to help get them through the day? Then we adjust these daily goals to meet their needs."

Pedro was born in New York City, "But I grew up in Puerto Rico until I was 22 years old." Pedro moved back to New York looking for a change with substance use issues of his own.

"I had no education and couldn’t speak English. I was judged everywhere I went with my appearance of someone who uses drugs. My wife had left me and I hit bottom. That's when I realized that I needed to change for the better. I was not returning to Puerto Rico, no, I

I'M COMPLETELY COMMITTED TO THIS POPULATION

- Pedro Torres

was determined to not return. That's when I surrendered myself to God and asked Him to help me. That’s the reason my licence plate is “BAK2DTOP”. I went back to school and finished my degree, and I learned English. After that, the rest is history. I can proudly say I got my family back. I have 3 beautiful children, 4 granddaughters, and a beautiful wife who has been by my side since 1985. I came to Evergreen because I was looking for the answers I needed and I wanted to continue doing Care Coordination. I started working on the Health Home Plus Program in Care Coordination with HIV and substance use patients. Right away I identified with the population and got right to work. I didn't want to leave Care Coordination but I saw the Harm Reduction coordinator position and knew it was where I was supposed to be. I fell in love with Harm Reduction when I attended the conference that was held here in October of 2022. I knew then I was going to be in the right department. I'm going to continue to complete this work as long as I am 100 percent. I'm completely committed to this population."

"Staff and peers are the most important ingredient in any Harm Reduction program," said Emma Fabian, AVP of Harm Reduction. "We're so lucky at Evergreen- each team member has really unique strengths. Pedro is a prime example. Since he has joined the team, the Drop-In Center has been a consistent, safe, and reliable area of the organization."

We couldn't agree more. Thank you, Pedro, for all you do for our patients!

The Buffalo Sabres hosted the 4th annual Pride Night in March. Pride Night "aims to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community and reinforce our commitment to building an inclusive fanbase." Photos courtesy of the Pride Center.

The leadership at Community Access Services is dedicated to fostering an environment that acknowledges hard work. Quarterly an employee who has exhibited a commitment to achieving the essential functions of their role, provides satisfactory customer service and contributes to the efficient functioning of the team is chosen to be the CAS Champion.

Davon Brown is this quarter's CAS Champion. Davon is a health educator. He works under the HIV/STD/HCV Prevention and Related Services for Men and HIV Positive Men within Communities of Color program. Davon provides rapid HIV testing and linkage and navigation assistance to individuals in the priority population. Service linkages include but are not limited to: primary and specialty care, behavioral health, prevention services, and patient education. These are all resources that every person should have the opportunity to access when in need. Davon is approaching a year of service with CAS and he has contributed to service delivery in an impactful way, increasing the program's testing outcomes. Davon has committed to achieving his target projections monthly and ensuring that the clients he serves' needs are met. Davon has shown, time and time again, that he is willing to help in any and all capacities of work here at CAS. Davon often takes lead for CAS events, preparing testing spaces and gathering needed supplies. He is a dedicated and diligent worker. Additionally, Davon can be counted on to be uplifting and personable with his teammates. Davon is always sure to check in with everyone daily to see how their day is going. His hard work is very much appreciated and noticed by his colleagues, and we thank him for all he does here at CAS.

- Kimberly Brown

Mark your calendar! The submission deadline for the May 2024 issue of Connections is Friday, April 19. Be sure to get your content in before the deadline to guarantee placement. Kids, pets, vacations, recipes -we want to share it all with Team Evergreen! Email EvergreenConnections via Outlook.

PATIENT

experience is always a top priority at Evergreen, but especially so in April as we celebrate Patient Experience Week (PXW). PXW highlights what patient experience is, why it's so important, and what we do to make sure it's as good as possible for everyone we serve. Let's start with a definition, provided by Collin Ranney, Evergreen's patient experience manager: "Patient experience is the sum of all interactions, shaped by an organization's culture, that influence patient perceptions across the continuum of care."

Providing a positive patient experience to every person, every time is more than just the right thing to do. It's good business. Positive patient experience improves our reputation in the community, creates positive word of mouth, and leads to stronger patient loyalty, all of which are critical for an organization to survive and flourish.

Evergreen collects feedback from patients in a variety of ways, including comment cards, social media, patient advisory groups, an annual survey, and direct comments or complaints. In 2023, a total of 2,271 responses were collected from all patient feedback sources. This information helps us identify areas for improvement or needs that are not being met. It also allows us to strengthen areas where we're already doing a good job.

According to feedback collected in 2023:

- 94 percent of our patients would recommend Evergreen to other people

- 96 percent of our patients rated their overall patient experience as above average

- 94 percent of our patients feel they are welcomed by staff

Collin notes that Evergreen focuses on five main pillars of patient experience: health

equity, loyalty, reputation, engagement, and support (we'll be taking a closer look at these five pillars in upcoming issues of Connections).

Patient feedback is a critical part of the quality process. Scores, comments (negative and positive) and suggestions are all taken very seriously by leadership. Suggestions especially help us make changes to meet the ever-changing needs of the communities we serve. For example, patient feedback has led directly to the following changes:

- Therapy dog

- Parking garage validation

- Online scheduling for select appointment types

- Tiger Text communication system

- Pantry walk-in hours

- CHB walk-in program for same day access to suboxone and other medications

- Formation of Patient, Family & Caregiving Advisory Committee

- and many more! This issue features photos of Evergreen staff matched with actual patient quotes. Watch for more of these images on Rise screens, Blink, and social media during PXWeek (April 29 - May 3), as well as in upcoming issues of Connections.

APRIL 29 - MAY 3

Publisher/Layout

John Carocci

Copy Editors

Jean Conway

Kristy Mangel

Contributors

Eric Poniatowski

Christopher Cline

Andy Kiener

Taylor Blake

Kelly Craig

Maria Cruz

Connections is the official monthly newsletter for employees and board members of Evergreen Health and its affilliates, the Pride Center of Western New York and Community Access Services. You can submit photos, comments or a "hello" via Outlook at Evergreen Connections.

Join the Fun Collective Resource Group to pick up trash and remove debris in the neighborhoods we work in! RSVP to Evergreen Training and Development to sign up for a half hour time slot with supervisor approval.

A Wednesday, May 15: Downtown Buffalo

Any Half Hour 11AM – 2PM

A Friday, June 7: Bailey

Any Half Hour 11AM – 2PM

A Friday, June 28: Evergreen Lofts

Any Half Hour 11:30AM – 1PM

A Hunt Group is a set of extensions that reach many people in one program area. Hunt Groups make finding departments and programs easier and increase the likelihood that our patients will be connected to a live person, rather than voicemail. Here's what you need to know about Hunt Groups at Evergreen:

What happens when you call a Hunt Group? The four-digit number rings a group of extensions simultaneously in a program area until the caller is connected. When should I use a Hunt Group? If you need to transfer a patient call to a program area, such as Mental Health Counseling, Care Coordination, etc. you should always dial a Hunt Group. Why should I use a Hunt Group? Dialing a Hunt Group greatly increases the chances of connecting callers to a live person when you transfer a call. If you dial an individual’s number, one person will have to handle a high number of calls. The chance of a call going to voicemail is high, due to the person being in a meeting, out of the office, with a patient or on another call. When we transfer to a Hunt Group, it will ring multiple people and increase the chance of connecting the caller to a live person. Why shouldn’t I give out my own extension to a patient? Giving your direct extension to a patient can create various problems. If you are out of the office and the caller needs a service, no one would know or be able to help them until you check your voicemail upon return. You may want the caller to use your extension one time for a specific reason, but the caller could use it for numerous future calls that have nothing to do with you, causing confusion and unnecessary wait time for the patient as well as increase your own workload. It's best to tell them your name (first and last), your department, and location. The operators will check with you directly before transferring the call or they will utilize the appropriate Hunt Group if they cannot reach you.

A list of the Hunt Groups is available on Blink in the Hub under Telephone Systems. If you'd like to know more, need to make changes to a Hunt Group or discuss adding a new one, use the TDX ticketing system.

Abigail Borrelli April 1

Yhandisha Lobley-Thrist April 2

Alfred Santiago ...................................... April 2

Chelsea Coyne April 2

Rosemary Roche April 3

Lyndsey Vanderwerf-Kelly ................... April 5

Cynthia Garcia April 5

Laurie Matson April 7

Dale Kingston April 7

Kristen Abers April 8

El Jaramillo April 8

Julie Rapp April 9

Jennifer Torres ...................................... April 10

Kelly Craig April 11

Chelest Ponzo April 12

Nicole Dommer ..................................... April 13

Lashariee Wright April 13

Renee Hartson April 13

Matthew Iwanski-Jackson .................. April 15

Maureen Chijioke April 15

Amanda Dietz April 16

Michael Key April 17

John Argo April 17

Maria LoTempio April 17

Dawn Ventola April 17

Kristen Bechdel ..................................... April 19

Kandess Casiano April 20

Shontell Keith April 21

Kimberly Harding .................................. April 23

Alexander Chesley April 23

Jeante Fitzsimmons April 24

Marielena Quiros ................................... April 25

Elijah Jimerson April 25

Jamie Keuck

Carinne Medley

David Pena

Jamie Saucier

April 29

April 29

April 30

April 30

Student Loan & Public Service

Loan Forgiveness Presentation (virtual)

Wednesday, April 10 | 12:30–1pm

Learn about student loan repayment, public service loan forgiveness, and resources available through Neighborhood Legal Services. There will an opportunity to ask questions during the training. Register on Evergreen University.

Neighborhood Legal Services can help student loan borrowers determine the best repayment plan, and access loan forgiveness, cancellation, and discharge programs. The organization offers free, unbiased, one-on-one counseling to help borrowers take control of their debt and maintain financial health. If you have questions, contact Evergreen Training and Development.

CPR/AED (in

person)

Friday, May 3 | 1–4pm, Evergreen Commons Sanctuary

Please confirm with your job description if CPR/AED is required for your job. A CPR/AED certification must be renewed every two years.

Sign up on Evergreen University by April 19. If you have questions,

Brazen-Faced Varlets presented an all-female version of Hamlet. The production featured Stefanie Warnick as Hamlet and Heather Fangsrud in multiple roles as Francisco, gravedigger, Osric, and Voltemand. Speaking of multiple roles, Stefanie was also the artistic director for the production and choreographed the fights, while Heather served as technical director and set designer. "It’s always a joy to get to act alongside Heather, even if the play (Hamlet) is rather dark and depressing," said Stefanie. Maria Cruz shared the top row of photos from one of the performances. The bottom row of photos were taken by Jay Rosado, courtesy of Brazen-Faced Varlets.