4 Come Join the Party at VacaValley — Page 6 1 … Ch e c k My N o r t h B a y , Y o u r E mp l o y e e P o r t a l , f o r Ne ws i n R e al T i m e … 08.16.17 Adding Final Touches on ED Remodel Unit 1700 Has All New Look See UPDATE, Page 9 Unit 1700 at North- Bay Medical Center has reopened with a fresh new look and four additional patient rooms. The unit was closed for refurbishing on See UNIT, Page 7 Rhonda Martin, AVP of Nursing Operations, examines a wall unit in a newly remodeled patient room. Construction on Phase I of the NorthBay Medical Center Emergency Department expansion project is almost complete. The first phase transforms the old 7,000-square- foot hospital lobby into a new ED waiting, registration and patient care area. You will recognize the same large windows that formerly framed the lobby incorporated into the design. Movement through this part of the ED is clockwise, with patients finding the triage room just past the registration area. Next come large patient examination rooms and the nurses’ station. Two exam rooms will have curtains rather than The old lobby of NorthBay Medical Center will soon open as part of an expanded Emergency Department. This photo shows the new waiting room on the left and registration counters on the right. At the back is the hallway between the Welcome Pavilion and the hospital. solid doors. A new addition to the ED is a psychiatric holding room, com- plete with padded walls and breakaway fixtures. INSIDE New Hires 2 Leaders Selected 3 Recipe Winner 4 Hospice Honors 5 RN Loan Changes 6 Donate for Schools Doc Talk Coming 10 Respiratory Tests 11 Open Enrollment 12 8
Transcript
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Come Jointhe Party
at VacaValley— Page 6
1
…Check My NorthBay, Your Employee Portal, for News in
Real Tim
e…08.16.17
Adding Final Touches on
ED Remodel
Unit 1700 HasAll New Look
See UPDATE, Page 9
Unit 1700 at North-Bay Medical Center has reopened with a fresh new look and four additional patient rooms.
The unit was closed for refurbishing on
See UNIT, Page 7Rhonda Martin, AVP of Nursing Operations, examines a wall unit in a newly remodeled patient room.
Construction on Phase I of the NorthBay Medical Center Emergency Department expansion project is almost complete. The first phase transforms the old 7,000-square-foot hospital lobby into a new ED waiting, registration and patient care area. You will recognize the same large windows that formerly framed the lobby incorporated into the design.
Movement through this part of the ED is clockwise, with patients finding the triage room just past the registration area.
Next come large patient examination rooms and the nurses’ station. Two exam rooms will have curtains rather than
The old lobby of NorthBay Medical Center will soon open as part of an expanded Emergency Department. This photo shows the new waiting room on the left and registration counters on the right. At the back is the hallway between the Welcome Pavilion and the hospital.
‘Talk of NorthBay ’ to Host Toastmasters CompetitionTalk of NorthBay Toastmasters Club will play
host to the Toastmasters District 39, Area 41 and 43 Humorous Speech and Evaluation Contests on Sept. 7.
Toastmasters International is a nonprofit edu-cational organization that teaches public speak-ing and leadership skills through a worldwide network of clubs.
The contest will be held from 6:15 to 9:30 p.m. at the NorthBay Healthcare Administration Center, 4500 Business Center Drive.
A potluck will begin at 6:15 p.m. with the contests set to begin at 7 p.m.
The public is welcome to attend.
Sign Up for Bike RideNorthBay Healthcare’s 6th Annual Ride to
Defeat Diabetes (R2D2) is Sunday, Sept. 10, and pre-registraton is now open, featuring a lower cost than waiting to sign up on event day.
The 10-mile ride is $15 for those ages 13 and up; it is free for children age 12 and under. There is a $45 registration fee for the 25-mile ride, and the 60-mile ride registration fee is $70. T-shirts, a raffle ticket, lunch and refreshments will be provided for registered riders.
Two NorthBay Healthcare employees will join the 2017-18 Leadership Today program sponsored by two local chambers of commerce, following in the footsteps of more than 20 other NorthBay Healthcare employees who have graduated the program in the past decade.
Leadership Today is a joint program of the Vacaville and Fairfield-Suisun chambers of commerce and is sponsored by NorthBay Healthcare.
Each chamber gets to approve nominations of 12 participants in the annual program.
Fairfield-Suisun Chamber of Commerce accepted Chris Matthews, NorthBay Healthcare’s director of real estate; while the Vacaville Chamber of Commerce approved Lori Yeager, manager of NorthBay Health at Home.
The pair will attend monthly classes starting this fall, learn management styles and techniques, meet community shareholders and learn about community issues before graduating in May.
The Seeds
to Grow
Jennifer Dodini, weekend administrative coordinator, shows off packets of seeds that NorthBay Healthcare provided to her Master Gardener’s organization to hand out at presentations. Lettuce seeds came courtesy of Nutrition Services, with a recipe, and Plains Coreopsis flower seeds came via Hospice & Bereavement.
Stacy Andersen, executive assistant with NorthBay
Healthcare Public Affairs, hands out sunscreen and fans during
National Neighborhood Night Out on the Rocky Hill Trail in Vacaville Aug. 2. The items were a big hit, given the temperatures that day
reached into the 100s.NorthBay partnered with the
Vacaville Boys and Girls Club and the Vacaville Police Department’s
Reach Program for teens to sponsor the event.
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Recipe WinnerRevealed Liveon Facebook
The Facebook Live event also featured two NorthBay registered dietitians, Laura Hitt and Melinda Scholten, who helped announce the theme for the September recipe contest: diabetes-friendly cooking.
Solano County has the highest
rate of diabetes in the nine Bay Area counties and is among the top 10 counties with high rates in the state.
The pair talked about healthy cooking and shared ideas for how to make recipes healthier.
The diabetes theme for September contest coincides with the annual Ride to Defeat Diabetes (R2D2), which is set for Sept. 10. It will feature three routes for bike riders of all levels: a 10-mile ride, a 25-mile ride and a 60-mile ride. The event raises funds for the NorthBay Center for Diabetes & Endocrinology. To sign up, visit NorthBay.org/r2d2.
The Facebook Live video can be found on the NorthBay Facebook page: Facebook.com/NorthBayHealthcare, along with many other NorthBay-related posts. Please visit and share or comment.
1 chopped head iceberg lettuce1 lightly-grilled sliced red bell pepper1/2 large sliced sweet onion, carmelized1/2 pound fresh shrimp, heated to pink2/3 c. chopped macadamia nuts (or other nuts)1/4 c. sliced fresh coconut or sliced candied coconut
Carmelize the onion and heat the shrimp until pink. Cool down hot ingredients, mix all together and serve with a poppy seed salad dressing.
LESLIE’S SHRIMP SALAD
Here is the recipe by Leslie McGee, Infection Preventionist
VacaValley Hospital Nutrition Services Manager Kerry Harris and (left to right) Registered Dietitians Laura Hitt and Melinda Scholten talk about diabetes-friendly cooking and the hospital cafe recipe contest during a Facebook Live video stream.
Leslie McGee, Infection Preventionist, is the winner of NorthBay Healthcare’s August recipe contest at the VacaValley Hospital Café.
Leslie’s recipe for Shrimp Salad was selected for its simplicity and taste, said Kerry
Harris, manager of Nutrition Services at NorthBay VacaValley
Hospital.For her winning
entry, Leslie receives a free meal at the café and will see her recipe featured on the café menu every Wednesday in August.
The announcement of the winning recipe was made Tuesday during a Facebook Live event on the NorthBay Facebook page.
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Leaders from NorthBay Hospice & Bereavement have been asked to speak at a couple of major conferences coming up soon, according to Ed Lowe, executive director of NorthBay Health at Home, Hospice & Bereavement, Palliative Care Program and the NorthBay Alzheimer’s Program.
In October, Eileen Smith, manager of business solutions and operations; Tara Sharifzadeh, financial account representative for Health at Home and Hospice; and Yonja Arnold, learning and performance specialist for Human Resources, will speak at the Cerner Healthcare Conference 2017 in Kansas City.
Eileen and the team will discuss how well we have integrated the use of Cerner HomeWorks/RoadNotes.
“Cerner has acknowledged that we have done a great job
of integrating and optimizing their Electronic Medical Record and ancillary products within our home health and hospice processes,” said Ed. “We are a reference site for new and existing Cerner HomeWorks customers and have hosted several conference calls as well as site visitations to address both overall processes as well as specific areas of functionality.”
Then in February of 2018, Ed will be a presenter at the Home Care & Hospice Summit in Las Vegas. He will speak on a panel that is addressing opportunities in alternative payment models. The session will explore how to prepare for new models and adapt your operations to be successful.
And, in a final bit of good news, Ed learned in July that he was chosen to serve a three-year term on the board of the
Many Honors for Hospice TeamChosen to Represent
NorthBay Healthcare has scheduled three dates for its fifth annual Supervisor/Lead Conference in August, September and October, announced Bob Armijo, Human Resources Services Manager for Employee Relations.
The focus will be a presentation by Steve Scheier, based on his book, “Do More Good. Better.” The same workshop is being offered on Aug. 28, Sept. 29 and Oct. 18 at the Green Valley Administration Center.
“In a nutshell, it’s about decision clarity, a new way of thinking for leaders at all levels,” said Bob. “It’s a process and a set of activities designed to clarify decision-making in a nonprofit
organization.” The method has been created to harness the
energy and passion of employees, to make employee empowerment a reality, he explained.
“By applying and maintaining the use of the Deci-sion Clarity practice, the benefits reaped will be to attract a diverse and talented staff, stronger commit-ment, faster and more effective decision-making and improved collaboration, and engaged staff.”
Participants can sign in via Cornerstone.NorthBay takes leadership training seriously, said
Bob, and continues to offer training opportunities for all employees in leadership positions because they are modeling leadership at the operational level.
California Association for Health Services at Home (CAHSAH). The organization promotes quality home care as an essential component in the health care continuum and provides members valuable resources and information.
His selection came after a competitive ballot that included a Southern California administrator for Kaiser Permanente among the candidates.
“I am honored to have been selected by my home health and hospice peers in California to serve on the CAHSAH board and represent NorthBay Health at Home and Hospice,” said Ed. “I am looking forward to the next three years as we address the numerous revisions and changes to the home health and hospice benefits that Medicare and Medi-Cal are proposing.”
‘Do More Good. Better.’ Focus of NorthBay Supervisor/Lead Conference
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NorthBay VacaValley Hospital turns 30 this year and to celebrate, a special reception has been planned for 1 p.m. Wednes-day, Aug. 23, in the hospital café.
Employees are welcome to at-tend the reception, enjoy refresh-ments and toast the future.
Included in the festivities will be a salute to 22 pioneers who were with NorthBay Healthcare when the hospital opened its doors in 1987, and who are still with our organization today, although some in different roles and in different facilities.
“We wish to honor these health care profes-
sionals for their unending dedication to NorthBay and the people we serve,” said Aimee Brewer,
president of NorthBay Healthcare Group. “It speaks volumes that they’ve spent 30 years with us, and in some cases, even more.”
In addition, a special art project will be unveiled that showcases the hospital’s
past, present and future. After its dedication, it will be placed in poster frames in the hallway between 1-West and Diagnostic Imaging on the first floor.
A special gift and cake will be given to all in at-tendance, and also handed out during later shifts.
Join in VacaValley’s 30th Celebration Aug. 23
A loan repayment program for nurses continu-ing their education has been suspended while NorthBay leaders remodel it.
For the past 13 years, NorthBay has encour-aged our nursing staff to seek BSN or advanced nursing degrees by paying out more than $3.5 million in loan repayments. Enrollment in the pro-gram has grown dramatically, as have the costs associated with it. Unfortunately, the program has reached the point where it is no longer fiscally sustainable for NorthBay.
“Given the current turmoil in national health-care policy, the uncertainty of Medicaid’s future, and growing resistance and reduction in reim-bursement from payers, we need to step back and determine the best way to cost effectively meet the educational needs of our nurses — as well as non-nursing staff,” explained Ken McCollum, vice president of Human Resources.
He added, “Our program had two critical goals when it was created in 2004: attract the best and brightest candidates and retain these employees so we achieve a return on the investment North-Bay made in individual nurses. Sadly, only one of those two goals is being met.”
While it is useful in the recruitment of nurses, the program has not proven to increase nurse retention. In fact, the retention of nurses in the program has proven to be less than that of nurses who have not participated in the program.
The average tenure of RNs who have left North-Bay after participating in the loan repayment program is only 3.6 years. Average tenure of all NorthBay RNs is 5.48 years, by comparison. Of
Changes to RN Education Loan Repayment Programthe nurses choosing to leave NorthBay after complet-ing their last loan payment, 51 percent left within two months or less.
“We want to develop an education assistance pro-gram that is fiscally responsible in difficult financial times, one that invests in nurses and other staff who want to continue their education in service to North-Bay, and one that rewards employees for loyalty and long tenure at NorthBay,” according to Konard Jones, president and CEO. “A remodeled educational assis-tance program must have that result.”
Steeply rising costs and the number of staff in-terested in reimbursement spurred these immediate actions:
• The RN Student Loan Repayment program will close to new enrollment, effective Sept. 1, 2017.
• We will, of course, continue to honor all loan repayment agreements for those employees already enrolled in the loan repayment program and those enrolled in a BSN or advanced degree program by Sept. 1. Nurses who have enrolled in an approved BSN program with the expectation of participating in the RN Student Loan Repayment program when their degree has been conferred will be permitted to participate in the program. Otherwise, no new loan agreements or additional loan agreements will be permitted. Changes in terms and conditions of exist-ing loans will continue to be approved, provided the changes do not increase the amount of the loan to be repaid by NorthBay.
• We have already begun the process of redesigning our educational assistance programs to meet the intended goals with the financial resources
See RN LOAN, Page 7
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RN Loan...(from page 6)
June 26.Environmentally friendly
materials were used to create the bright and shiny unit, according to Eric VanPelt, project manager. The walls were refinished and repainted and there is a new, easy-to-clean floor.
Inside each room, computer terminals hang on the wall, eliminating the need for mobile computer stations. Vital signs machines are also mounted on the wall, making the rooms much more spacious. Unit 1700 now has 17 patient rooms.
Work has now begun on Unit 1600, followed by Unit 1800.
“We are taking advantage of the typical slowdown of census during the summer months to complete this work, but realize that interruptions to routine operations may occur,” said Rhonda Martin, R.N., assistant vice president of Nursing Operations. “The interruptions will be kept to a minimum
available and hope to have a replacement program ready by early next year.
Konard concluded, “This is not a change we make lightly. It surely will raise concerns and spur some questions. Until we design a new program, do not hesitate to pose your questions to Donna Dabeck or Diane Urbano in Human Resources.”
and will be announced in advance. Please be patient as we work to improve the environment in which we provide care to our patients.”
As each unit closes patient care will be consolidated to the remaining two acute care wings at NorthBay Medical Center, the acute care units at VacaValley Hospital and, if need be, to overflow into the ICU and/or MBU as appropriate, Rhonda explained.
Communications and updates will be delivered to all users regarding each phase and any potential impact.
Watch FYI for future an-nouncements.
Unit 1700 ...(from Page 1)
Unit 1700 (left) is ready for patients after a summer refurbishing that includes new floors, paint and equipment. Below, Eric VanPelt, project manager, and Rhonda Martin, assistant vice president of Nursing Operations, examine one of the new rooms.
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Help NorthBay Fill the Ambulance
wipes; tissues; pencils; scissors; composition notebooks; wide-ruled binder paper; individual pencil sharpeners with caps; con-struction paper; large Post-Its; small whiteboards; glue sticks and dry erase erasers.
“Our goal is to get all the supplies we can into the hands of children by the end of August,” said Jane.
Volunteers are welcome to help with the collections and de-liveries to the schools. Call Jane at 646-3137 for information.
It’s not too late to bring your cash donation or school supplies to one of three drop-off spots on NorthBay Healthcare campuses through this Friday.
It’s all part of a Fill-the-Ambulance fundraiser to help students at Padan and Fairview elementary schools go back to school.
If Padan and Fairview sound familiar, it’s because they are the two schools NorthBay adopts every December for our Adopt-a-School program. Padan in Vacaville and Fairview in Fairfield are Title 1 schools, meaning they serve a low-income population and have a high population of English-language learners.
“We’re trying to make it as easy as possible for any employ-ee who wants to contribute,” said Jane Hilliard, director of Volun-teer Services. “You can even drop off a donation at the Guild gift shops in either hospital any time during that week, or to any Guild member you encounter.”
No time to shop for bargains? Cash donations are also wel-come. Make your check out to NorthBay Healthcare Foundation and put “Fill-the-Ambulance” in the memo field.
Remaining collection dates are:
Today, Aug. 16: Vacaville’s Center for Primary Care, aka Nut Tree North, will see the ambu-lance parked out front between 12:30 and 1:30 p.m.
Thursday, Aug. 17: North-Bay VacaValley Hospital will be the stop for all employees on
the VacaValley campus. Walk over from the Wellness Center, the VacaValley Health Plaza or the NorthBay Surgery Center at VacaValley to drop off between 9:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Friday, Aug. 18: North-Bay Medical Center will see the ambulance parked outside the Welcome Pavilion from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and will be the drop-off spot for employees in the hospi-tal, the Gateway Medical Build-ing, the Annex, Penn Tab and the NorthBay Health Plaza.
Yonja Arnold (center) donates back-to-school items to NorthBay Healthcare Foundation financial analyst Tim Johnson and intern Sadie Johnstone as part of the Fill the Ambulance effort that began Monday at the Green Valley Administration Center.
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Once patients complete their ED care, they continue traveling-clockwise to the discharge area, which has another waiting room.
During the next few weeks, the finishing touches are being made to the new addition. The crew is painting the walls and installing flooring throughout the building. Surgical and exam lights have been installed and casework is underway.
Once construction is complete, there will be a 30-day move-in period before the unit is open to the public.
Ambulances will still use their regular entrance when arriving with patients.
When Phase I opens, the mid-section of the ED will be closed for remodeling.
It’s time to move it, move it! Everything is going on sale at Secondhand Rose Thriftique, now that
the shop is closing on Sept. 30, said Jane Hilliard, director of Volunteer Services.
Bargain-hunters will find that all household and décor items are 50 percent off and all clothing will be reduced by 50 percent beginning Aug. 21. Jewelry is half-off starting Aug. 28. Store fixtures will go on sale Sept. 1. Everything in the entire store will be reduced to 75 percent off starting Sept. 4, and after Sept. 18, whatever is left will be just $1.
The last day the Thrifique will accept donations is on Aug. 31, Jane noted.
Store hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. For information, call 451-0462.
Bargains Galore at Secondhand Rose Thriftique
Update...(Continued from Page 1)
The registration window is the first place patients stop when they enter at the southside entrance. The area has been built with bullet-resistant doors and windows.
Patient care areas in the ED expansion (above) are fitted with cabinets in preparation for 30 days of move-in activity.
DPR Superintendent Cody Bartley (left) and Eric VanPelt, NorthBay Medical Center project manager, examine the ceiling work in the new ED lobby. Hard Hat updates can be found on NorthBay.org.
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Still Timeto Sign Up
for EBP EventThere is still time to
register for NorthBay Healthcare’s 4th Annual Evidence-Based Practice & Nursing Research Symposium.
The symposium is open to all health care professionals who are interested in exploring the challenge of delivering evidence-based care and attempting to keep pace with the latest recommendations for excellence in clinical practice.
Elisa Jang, RN, clinical nurse specialist, Translational Research with NorthBay, said the event, scheduled for Friday, Aug. 25, at the Green Valley Administration Center, will feature an “exciting agenda filled with EBP pearls!” including interactive skill-building workshops.
“Participants will have the opportunity to hear about EBP initiatives, Quality Improvement/New Innovation projects, and research studies that are being done at other organizations,” Elisa said. And the symposium will also feature a special panel presentation on how to sustain EBP in one’s organization.
The theme for the symposium is “Building an Evidence-Based Practice Culture on the Frontline” and the keynote speaker is Cynthia Bautista, an associate professor at the Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies at Fairfield University in Fairfield, Conn.
For more information and to register for the symposium, visit NorthBay.org/symposium.
Journey Through GriefEight-Week Course Coming
High school sports are gearing up for the fall season and with that comes the risk of concus-sions. Surgeon J. Peter Zopfi, D.O., will answer questions about concussion during the next #Our-DocTalk chat on the NorthBay Healthcare Facebook page, which is set for 3:30 p.m. on Aug. 23.
#OurDocTalk, is a series of live half-hour Facebook chats designed to connect NorthBay doctors with the community to answer questions on a variety of health issues. Interested follow-ers who visit NorthBay’s Facebook page (Facebook.com/NorthBay-Healthcare) will be able to post their questions and comments or send them via Facebook Mes-senger, and the doctor will reply. Questions can also be submit-
Have a question about con-cussion that you would like answered? NorthBay welcomes and encourages visitors to its Facebook page to submit ques-tions in advance. To protect personal medi-cal information, followers who submit questions are asked pose to them in a more general way. For example, instead of writing “I have …,” write “ I know someone who has ...” or “What if a person has …”
Grief is a heavy burden that no one should feel they need to lift alone, as people who attend NorthBay Healthcare’s eight-week “Journey through Grief” class will learn.
More than 200 people have found solace and support through the class since it started four years ago, according to Linda Pribble, NorthBay Hospice Volunteer & Bereavement coordinator.
The class focuses on healing and learning about grief, and is facilitated by Barbara Bean Runyon, a Vacaville grief therapist. It is offered free of charge.
“The class provides tools that help people in their grieving process,” explained Nanci Petullo, a NorthBay Hospice &
Bereavement volunteer who assists Barbara Bean Runyon. “The people in our groups have called it their ‘safe’ place. I have seen our groups come together — bond — and really support each other. Here they find out that they are not alone, and that they are ‘not going crazy.’”
The next session begins September 5 in Fairfield and is hosted by the NorthBay Bereavement Center. Each participant must have three months of bereavement before registering for the class, which will run from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at 4520 Business Center Drive, Suite 110.
This session will run through October 24, and the class is limited to 15 people. To reserve a space, call (707) 646-3517.
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Do you ever feel like you need a break? Like you could use a massage?
Now you can get both, thanks to a generous offer from NorthBay HealthSpring Fitness.
Starting in August, HealthSpring’s massage therapy staff will offer some great discounts to all NorthBay Healthcare employees.
If an employee is already a member of HealthSpring, they will receive 15 percent off the current member rates. If they are not a member, they will receive the current HealthSpring member rate.
Massage styles include Swedish, deep tissue, sports massage and trigger point/myofascial. Check out the website at HealthSpringFitness.org/massage for rates.
Good Rate for MassagesRespiratory Fit Testing SlatedAnnual Respiratory Fit Testing for all employees who
enter isolation rooms is scheduled through August.The compliance date for this condition of employ-
ment is Oct. 31. Anyone who does not come to a clinic will need to
visit Occupational Health for fit testing prior to that date. If you have questions about the test, please call Employee Health at 646-4699.
VacaValley Wellness Center, Room 15011020 Nut Tree Road, Vacaville
Aug. 21, Aug. 24, Aug. 30.NorthBay Health Plaza, Room 2031101 B. Gale Wilson Blvd., Fairfield
Aug. 16, Aug. 23NorthBay Medical Center, Medical Staff Office
Conference Room1200 B. Gale Wilson Blvd., Fairfield, Aug. 31
All clinics are 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 to 4:30 p.m.
A group of students at Suisun Valley School had the honor on Aug. 9 of cutting the ribbon on a new outdoor kitchen next to the campus gardens, along with a long-anticipated parking lot for faculty, staff and parents.
The freshly striped lot is the result of school bonds (Measure J) approved by the voters, but the outdoor kitchen and new irri-gation for the garden upgrade is a project of NorthBay Healthcare, PG&E and Assemblymember Jim Frazier.
NorthBay Vice President of Public Affairs Steve Huddleston was presented a certificate of ap-preciation during the ceremony, which was followed by a tour of the garden and outdoor kitchen.
“This is another way we cre-ate a healthy community going beyond the walls of our hospitals and our medical offices,” Steve
explained. “Healthy eating keeps the doctor away, they say. So that is what the garden program does.”
Mayor Harry Price welcomed the crowd of parents, business and civic leaders who attended the event, praising the school as a shining example of the good work being done in the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District.
Principal Jas Wright thanked NorthBay for its support of the outdoor kitchen, where students
will be able to clean and eat the fruits — and vegetables — of their labor in the adjacent gar-den. In addition to the science and practical farming elements students learn through working in the garden, the kitchen pro-vides more opportunity to teach about nutrition and preparing food, she said.
NorthBay Healthcare nutrition staff will be visiting the campus to show students how to best prepare the vegetables they grow and to lecture on good eating habits.
Healthy Eating is Promoted atSuisun School NorthBay
HealthcareVice Presidentof PublicAffairs SteveHuddlestonand SuisunValley SchoolPrincipalJas Wrightcelebrate thenew outdoor kitchen and improvements to the school gardens.
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TO REMEMBERDATES
IN THE NEWSPEOPLE
LETTERS
DATES
PEOPLE
NEW FACESWELCOMEWELCOME
LETTERS
08.23.17 VacaValley Hospital’s 30th anniversary party, 1 p.m., cafe08.25.17 EBP Nursing Research Symposium, GVAC09.04.17 Labor Day holiday09.05.17 Retirement Plan Meetings — GVAC Room 15409.06.17 Retirement Plan Meetings — VVHP Suite 29009.07.17 Retirement Plan Meetings — Penn Tab lobby09.10.17 Ride to Defeat Diabetes, VacaValley Hospital campus
Bowling is back! The North-Bay Healthcare Winter Bowling League starts Monday night, Sept. 11, at Stars Bowling and Recreation Center, 155 Browns Valley Pkwy, in Vacaville.
Bowling start at 6:30 p.m., but bowlers should arrive at 6 p.m. for the pre-game warm-up.
The cost will be no more than $17 per person, per bowl-ing night. Teams will bowl three games per night.
Teams are comprised of four people, one of which must be a NorthBay employee. Bowlers must be 18 years of age or a family member.
If you do not have a team, please contact Mary Rinne at [email protected], she will help put you in touch with a team needing bowlers or help you cre-ate a new team. All teams need to submit their member names and contact phone numbers, team name and team captain’s name to Mary or John Magno at [email protected], no later than Aug. 18.
Bowling League Starts Next Month
So What’s Open Enrollment, Anyway?It’s nearly Open Enrollment
season, that magical time of year — usually between August and December — when most people can sign up for health insurance and other benefit programs. It affects people signing up for Medicare, job-based health in-surance and individual market health insurance.
Although employers can schedule open enrollment any time of year, most schedule it in the fall, so new coverage begins on Jan. 1.
That means that as a North-
Bay Healthcare employee, you are likely to get asked questions about insurance choices, coverage options and how to pick a doc-tor from patients, family, friends and neighbors.
Don’t despair, help is here. You’ll find it by visiting NorthBay.org and search-ing for “Ask Kelly FAQ.” It’s your one-stop shop for get-ting answers to questions such as “What is an HMO? A PPO?” and “Does NorthBay accept Medicare?”
You can click on “Health Plans and Insurance” for an up-to-date list on what health plans are accepted and consider NorthBay “in-network.”
And if all else fails, you can ask Kelly Rhoads-Poston, our health plan spe-cialist, at (707) 646-3280.
She can not only help navigate the insurance landscape, but she’s also good at helping folks choose a NorthBay primary care physician who can best meet their needs.
“For the first time in several years, NorthBay Healthcare is an option for CalPERS employees who choose WHA for their health
insurance,” said Kelly. “The CalPERS WHA rates are very close to Kaiser’s, so be sure to let friends and family who have been waiting for an affordable alternative know.”
Watch FYI for details of NorthBay Healthcare’s own Open Enrollment opportunities, which are typically in October and offered by Human Resources.
