Heidi Y. Campini and Whit Whitman have joined the North-

Bay Healthcare Foundation board of directors for three-year terms, effec-tive January, 2019.

“Heidi has been a longtime sup-porter of NorthBay Healthcare, along with her late hus-band, Jim Lawrenz, who was serving as chairman of the board at the time of his passing in July, 2013,” said Dennis Landis, chairman

4

Dr. Yangis Medical

Director for‘Reach Out and Read’

— Page 3

INSIDE

1

…Check My NorthBay, Your Employee Portal, for News in

Real Tim

e…1.30.19

New Kitchen Filled with

Bells, Whistles

While not all kitchen equipment has been installed, enough has to reveal a much larger workspace for Nutrition Services staff to prepare an array of foods.

What’s Cooking?

New Hires 2Military Honor for Nurse 5 Nurses Set Their Agenda 8Hiring for North Wing 11Open That Bottle 12Don’t Miss Open Staff 13

See DIRECTORS, Page 13See KITCHEN, Page 14

FoundationAnnouncesTwo NewDirectors

NorthBay Nurses to Go GrayIt’s official with all the

votes on scrub colors counted: graphite for nurses, navy blue for respiratory therapists, and dark teal for CNAs and techs.

This is part of a staff-led effort to choose professional

attire befitting a Magnet-desig-nated, Mayo Clinic Care Network member health system. These work groups will now join oth-ers in wearing color-coordinated work clothes.

Hungry to find out what’s cooking in the North Wing’s new cafeteria? While the menu is not set yet, one thing is certain: “There’s sure to be more of ev-erything than before,” according to Mike Baldwin of Kitchen Professionals, the

See COLORS, Page 15

Heidi Campini

WhitWhitman

2

TO REMEMBERDATES

IN THE NEWSPEOPLE

LETTERS

DATES

PEOPLE

NEW FACESWELCOMEWELCOME

LETTERS

Tina BrazilPractice Manager Womens HealthGateway Medical Office Building

Jeanne DennisExecutive DirectorHome Health, Hospice, Adult Day CenterGreen Valley Health Plaza

Natalie HeckamanClinic Resource LVNNeurosurgeryGateway Medical Office Building

Sandra LacayoClinic SupervisorVacaville Center for Primary Care

Adam MaceDirectorHeart & Vascular ServicesGateway Medical Office Building

Tiffany MurdockAssistant Vice PresidentInpatient Case ManagementNorthBay Medical Center

Ashley RobinsonMedical AssistantAmbulatory Float PoolHilborn Administration Center

Samantha ShahinUnit ClerkUnit 1600NorthBay Medical Center

Cierra SotoASC Registered NurseAmbulatory Surgery CenterVacaville

Paul TambiniMedical Social WorkerSocial ServicesNorthBay Medical Center

Roxanne VillalpandoPatient Services Rep.Green Valley Center for Primary CareGreen Valley Health Plaza

Bill Hawn, former president of NorthBay Health Advantage, passed away on Jan. 14, 2019.

“Bill made tremendous contributions to NorthBay,” recalled Margy Walbolt, former vice president of Ambulatory Services. “He was the champion of bricks and mortar and helped NorthBay achieve a visual presence in both Fairfield and Vacaville. He was also the early pro-ponent of physician relations and recruitment, which laid a valuable foundation for NorthBay’s growth.”

Bill came to NorthBay in 1986, to assume a newly created posi-tion — president of NorthBay Health Advantage — at the encouragement of then-President and CEO Gary Passama.

“I first met Bill in the 1970s when he was at Berkeley’s Alta Bates Hospital and I was across town at Herrick Hospital,” Gary recalled. “Bill had great experience there in developing new services. By the mid-1980s NorthBay Health Advantage was created to develop new outpatient services and manage our real estate assets. We needed a president to oversee this new entity and I decided I needed a ‘Bill Hawn’ type. Quite by accident Bill and I were on the same flight to Los Angeles one day and I told him I needed someone like him. He surprised me by expressing interest and we soon reached agreement.”

During the next 20 years, Bill became instrumental in changing the face of the Fairfield campus, including managing construction of the Gateway Medical Building, the Solano Diagnostics building and, in 1992, the Phase I addition to NorthBay Medical Center. In Vacaville, he supervised construction of the VacaValley Health Plaza.

“NorthBay’s quest to build new and modern facilities began un-

Former NorthBay Exec Leaves Lasting Legacy

01.31.19 Spend or donate your Gift Certificate02.01.19 Open Staff, VacaValley Hospital Café, 8 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m. 02.12.19 Retirement Plan Meetings, GVAC Room 16002.13.19 Retirement Plan Meetings, VacaValley Health Plaza, Suite 29002.14.19 Retirement Plan Meetings, NorthBay Health Plaza, Suite 20402.23.19 Open That Bottle Night, Yin Ranch, Vacaville03.02.19 Celebration of Life for Art DeNio, GVAC03.07.19 Internal/External Job Fair for 2 North, GVAC05.03.19 Spine and Concussion Conference, GVAC05.18.19 Solano Wine & Food Jubilee, Harbison Event Center, Nut Tree07.19.19 NorthBay Guild Golf Classic, Eagle Vines

Bill Hawn

See LEGACY, Page 4

3

Program’s First Medical Director

NorthBay Health-care Pediatrician Judy Yang, D.O., points out color-ful characters in a book she presented to 1-year-old pa-tient Aryo Delfo-roush. Mom Mahsa Moallempour says her son just loves the books that have come from Dr. Yang. A long-time ‘Reach Out and Read’ champi-on and trainer, Dr. Yang was named the program’s medical director in November during the Solano County Library’s Founda-tion’s Authors Luncheon.

Dr. Yang Heads ‘Reach Out and Read’NorthBay Healthcare Pediatri-

cian Judy Yang, D.O., knows that when a doctor speaks, parents listen.

That’s why she’s committed to using her powers of persuasion to get parents — and eventually their children — reading. And as Solano County’s first-ever medi-cal director for the local Reach Out and Read (ROAR) program, she has the platform to do just that.

“Evidence shows that parents take the message of reading regularly with their children more seriously if their child’s physician gives them that message,” she said.

Dr. Yang was first trained in 2003 to be a ROAR provider while doing her pediatric resi-dency at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. When she joined NorthBay Healthcare in 2008, she became a ROAR physician trainer, teaching all NorthBay pediatricians, as well as colleagues at David Grant Medical Center and Northbay Pediatrics.

The Solano County program actually began in 1999 with two clinics. Now 13 medical of-fices participate, including all of NorthBay Healthcare’s Center for Primary Care facilities.

“The rates at which we give out books at NorthBay is consis-tently high,” said Dr. Yang. “The feedback from parents and pedi-atric patients is always positive. We hear things like, ‘She LOVES the book you gave her last time, it’s her favorite!’”

More than 270,000 books have been given out by the Solano program since it started in 1999, according to Cherelyn Ellington-Hunt, Literacy Pro-gram Manager for Solano County Library. NorthBay, she notes, has contributed $7,500 a year to purchase books for the three NorthBay primary care offices.

“Parents want the best for their children,” said Cherelyn. “When a parent gets information from a doctor who is a trusted resource and authority on how to keep their child healthy and happy in a way they can see and understand ... they are more likely to follow through. That’s why having the book come from a doctor is so important.”

Teresa Lavell, literacy program assistant, agrees.

“The true power of this pro-gram is the medical provider taking time to empower parents to be their child’s first teacher,” she said.

She believes that Dr. Yang’s involvement as the program’s first medical director will be sig-nificant.

“There can be a real discon-nect between library staff and the medical community,” said Teresa. “Dr. Yang will provide a needed bridge between us that will give us insight we need to support our Reach Out and Read doctors and nurses better, so they can in turn advocate for literacy in the best way possible.”

4

Watch the Live Stream

AnimationIndustryHonors

Adam BurkeNorthBay Healthcare Founda-

tion Board Member Adam Burke, who lost his battle with lung cancer Oct. 8, 2018, will be hon-ored with the June Foray Award at the 46th Annual Annie Awards ceremony Feb. 2 at University of California, Los Angeles.

The prestigious award rec-ognizes Adam’s significant and benevolent impact on the art and the industry of animation.

Adam was an illustrator for Pixar Films and worked on a number of classic Pixar films in-cluding, Ratatouille, The Incredi-bles, Cars, WALL-E, Toy Story 3, Up and Incredibles 2.

Adam’s wife, Kim, a NorthBay Guild volunteer, and his sons Aiden and Zach will accept the

award on his behalf. The award is named after June Foray, a voice actress who was best note for the voices of such animated charac-ters as Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Lucifer from Disney’s Cinderella and Cindy Lou Who, from the classic, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”

Adam got his start in anima-tion in the 1990s, working with industry icons Don Bluth, on Thumbelina and A Troll in Central

Park; with Richard Rich, on The Swan Prin-cess and its sequels; and for Warner Bros. on Space Jam. He also did character animation on several DreamWorks features, including Spirit in Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron and Miguel in The Road to El Do-rado.

When not illustrating, he coordinated special visits and screenings

for patients of Children’s Hospital.

As a Foundation board mem-ber, he served as Solano Wine & Food Jubilee Silent Auction chair for 2018, and donated several private Pixar studio tours to the Live Auction at Open That Bottle Night, a fundraising event for NorthBay Hospice & Bereave-ment.

The awards ceremony will be live streamed on Feb. 2. View it at https://annieawards.org. The ceremony begins at 7 p.m.

Legacy Left by Former Exec ... (From Page 2)

der Bill’s direction and we have certainly come a long way,” added Deborah Sugiyama, for-mer NorthBay Healthcare Group president.

“Bill also had a legacy role in starting several programs that continue today at NorthBay,” added Brett Johnson, president of NorthBay Healthcare Founda-tion. “He has been credited with launching NorthBay’s Alzheimer’s

programs.“But, he is probably best re-

membered for his role, with his friend Mark Sievers, serving as one of the founders of the Solano Wine & Food Jubilee, to support NorthBay Hospice & Bereave-ment.”

“Bill was a visionary leader in the area of Alzheimer’s care,” noted Bridgit Strachan, former vice president of Quality and

Professional Support Services. “He identified a great need in the community for a stimulating and safe environment for those with dementia and respite for family members and care providers, so he developed the Adult Day Cen-ter. It created a home-like en-vironment for its clients using a curriculum that stimulated brain function, and it became a model used by other organizations.”

Adam Burke illustrates Jack-Jack, a character from The Incredibles and Incredibles 2, during a NorthBay management team meeting in December 2017.

5

MilitaryBlood

Runs in theFamily

Nursing Director to beHonorary Commander

When Tracey Clifton, R.N., director of medical/surgical services at NorthBay Healthcare is inducted as an honorary com-mander at Travis Air Force Base next month, it will be another in a long line of military achieve-ments for her family.

For starters, Tracey joined the Air Force in 1994, after gradu-ating from nursing school. Her first duty was at Travis Air Force Base, where she spent five years at David Grant Medical Center in the medical-surgical division and worked as a preceptor with the nursing transition program.

After she separated from the Air Force, she continued to work at David Grant, as manager of civilian nurses, before joining NorthBay Healthcare in 2002.

Of her four children — two boys and two girls — she knew her younger son, Connor, 20, wanted to join the military; he had talked about it his whole life, she said. But it was her older son, Cody, 22, who surprised her by joining the Marines.

“He wanted to get married, and would eventually like to get into law enforcement. He started talking to a recruiter last year, and then next thing we know,

he’s reporting for boot camp in San Diego,” she said. He’s now in military police school in Missouri.

Connor earned his associate’s degree in criminal justice and then signed up with the Navy, where he’s a Seaman/Hospital man based at Whiting Field Naval Air Station in Milton, Fla. His goal is to one day be attached to a Marines unit as a medic.

Although neither pursued the Air Force, she thinks her experi-ence definitely influenced them.

“I think they heard me say how my military experience gave me a good foundation for life and leadership skills,” she said.

Although she’s familiar Travis Air Force Base and David Grant Medical Center, she’s excited to see how much has changed in

the last 16 years. She is one of about two dozen

community leaders selected to pair up with a commander at Tra-vis Air Force Base. She has been partnered with Lt. Col. Beth Dion, commander of the 60th Inpatient Operations Squadron.

The honorary commander’s program was developed to en-courage and exchange ideas, experiences, and friendships between key members of the civilian community and the base’s military community.

NorthBay has long participated in the program. In the past, President and CEO Konard Jones and NorthBay Healthcare Group President Aimee Brewer have both served as honorary com-manders.

Tracey Clifton, R.N., holds portraits of her boys, Connor (left) and Cody.

6

Getting to the Heart of the Matter

‘Auto Enroll’ Ensuresthe Best Benefit

Elisa Jang, R.N., clinical nurse specialist, Translational Research with NorthBay and JoAnn Mun-ski , R.N., director of Nursing Education and Clinical Practice Development, teamed up earlier this month to share strategies on nursing shared governance with other health care providers in the Mayo Clinic Care Network.

The pair were one of two member hospital presenters of a

webinar titled “Sharing our Jour-ney — Strategies to Shape and Sustain Nursing Shared Gover-nance.” The entire webinar was recorded and the video can be viewed on ShareSpace at: http://sharespace/departments/hos-pital/nursing/nursingeducation/SitePages/Home.aspx

During the webinar Elisa and JoAnn described fundamental skills needed to be a produc-

tive officer and member of a shared leadership council. They discussed the essential role that communication plays in shared governance, identified ways to support the maturation of shared leadership and nurse-led deci-sion making, and discussed the challenges of sustaining shared leadership and the importance of mentors and growing clinical nurses as leaders.

NorthBay Team Offers Mayo Clinic Care Network Webinar

Cardiothoracic surgeon Keith Allen, M.D., discusses cardiovascular dis-ease with a group of residents at Paradise Valley Estates, a retirement community in Fairfield. The good news is that cardiovascular disease is on the decline in the United States, he told the audience. But to keep it on the decline, everyone needs to be mindful of things like maintaining a healthy weight, eating healthy and exercising. Dr. Allen will reprise his presentation at a couple of Doc Talk Live events coming in March. The first will be 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 6 at the Green Valley Administration Center. The second will be at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 7 at the VacaValley Wellness Center Conference Center. For more information, call (707) 646-3280.

NorthBay Healthcare is encouraging em-ployees to receive the maximum benefit in the organization’s 403b savings plan by au-tomatically enrolling every employee at the level maximizing matching funds available.

Beginning in January, and repeating each year, all staff contributing at a lower level will be automatically enrolled at a level maximizing available matching funds, ac-cording to Diane Urbano, HR director.

“The auto enroll process is an indus-try standard, designed to assist staff in maximizing available matching funds, thus enhancing their retirement accounts,” said Diane. “Most employees will appreciate the process, as they have not yet made the changes on their own. They will not need to take any further action.”

Employees who are not interested in increasing their contributions to attain the maximum matching funds can opt out each year by completing an “Opt Out” form and returning it to Human Resources.

Have questions? Just call Diane at (707) 646-3313.

7

Celebration,Book to Honor

Memory ofArt DeNio

NorthBay Healthcare is host-ing a special remembrance event at the Green Valley Administra-tion Center at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 2, in memory of NorthBay Healthcare Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Art DeNio, who died suddenly Dec. 3.

It follows a family celebration that was held Jan. 19 in El Cer-rito.

Art joined NorthBay Health-care as its Chief Financial Officer in 2001.

During his 30-plus-year career in healthcare financial manage-ment, he has worked as a CFO, a consultant, a lecturer and an auditor.

He has worked at both private and public hospitals, in urban and rural markets.

He held senior financial man-agement positions at VHA Con-sulting Services and with a “Big 8” public accounting firm.

He graduated with honors from Occidental College in Los Angeles in 1968, and received his master’s degree in business administration from the Whar-ton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1971. He is a Fellow of the Healthcare Financial Management Association and a member of the American Insti-tute of CPAs.

Art was a visiting lecturer at the University of California,

Berkeley, Graduate School of Public Health, and on the faculty of the Extended Education divi-sion of the Graduate Program in Health Services Administration at St. Mary’s College in Moraga.

He is survived by his wife, Madeline, son J.R.; daughter-in-law Jamie; and two grandchil-dren, A.J. and Addison.

Art had been instrumental in strategic planning at NorthBay, helping to secure funds for nu-merous building projects, includ-ing the current three-story wing and the Emergency Department expansion, the surgery center and much more.

NorthBay plans to publish a book with photos of Art, inter-spersed with remembrances.

Photos gathered so far on ShareSpace show everything from retirement celebrations to adopt-a-school events, includ-ing one at Fairview Elementary School in which Art dressed up as a Jack-in-the-box and popped out to surprise the students. He can be seen goofing around at

employee appreciation meals, and participating in Patient Fi-nancial Services events.

Employees are welcome to send a paragraph of no more than 500 characters, describing a favorite memory or explaining what Art meant to them. Dead-line to submit a photo or story is Feb. 11 to RememberingArt@northbay.org.

“We plan to present this to the family, and we may be able to order a book for you as well if you are interested,” said Elnora Cameron, president of NorthBay Healthcare Advantage and vice president of Strategic Develop-ment. “When we know what the price will be, we will let you know so you can place an order with us,” she said.

NorthBay Healthcare has also established the Art DeNio and DeNio Family Endowment Fund, and it will provide compassion-ate care for those in need, in perpetuity, as a way of honoring Art, according to Brett Johnson, president, NorthBay Healthcare Foundation.

NorthBay Health-care Chief Financial Officer Art DeNio passed out high-fives at the Fairview Elementa-ry School shoe give-away.

8

New Agenda Set for Shared Governance

This is the third in a series of blogs written by Valerie Valentin, R.N., who works at NorthBay VacaValley Hospital and is the communications of-ficer for Shared Governance. You’ll also find it online on My NorthBay, your employee portal. — Editor.

By Valerie Valentin

Happy New Year, NorthBay! Hope everyone is stuffed from all the holiday feasts and refreshed to start the new year right!

The Shared Governance Leadership team already got a head start on their resolution in December, by formulating a new 2019 Shared Governance agenda.

What an exciting year we have come up with so far! Every year the leadership team develops a new theme for the upcom-ing Shared Governance year. Throughout the year, we cre-ate activities and presentations that follow this theme. This year our theme will focus on cultivat-ing leadership development and providing the “building blocks of Shared Governance.”

And what better way to pres-ent this theme by first introduc-ing “US” — the super, awesome Shared Governance Leadership Team!

WHAT DO WE DO?The leadership team per-

forms leadership rounding for the Department Based Councils and Goal Directed Workgroups during Shared Governance day.

During rounding, the team helps in facilitating discussions, mediates/intervenes on issues and mitigates if necessary. We’re there to provide support and re-sources to the Nursing Congress as well as provide activities to

keep us all inspired to do what we do to best — care for our patients! (and ourselves too, of course!)

WHO ARE WE? Advisor: Elisa Jang, R.N.

Elisa is a Clinical Nurse Special-ist in Translational Research from the Nursing Education Depart-ment.

The advisor is a non-elect-ed position. Elisa oversees the Shared Governance Structure and process. Elisa provides leadership and support to the leadership team. She provides the “core and glue” to the team. You can’t miss her at Shared Governance — she’s the one with a line of people in front of her asking questions!

Administrative Support Specialist: Leah Kuchta. Leah is also the administrative support specialist for the Nursing Educa-

tion Depart-ment.

This po-sition is a non-elected position. Leah oversees all logistical aspects of Shared Gover-nance such as coordinating

meeting details, handouts, etc. She also manages the files on S: Drive and Sharespace. Basi-cally, Leah is our “Go-To-Gal” for everything! You can catch her infectious smile and humor at the

welcome table every Shared Gov-ernance day!

Communication Officer: Valerie Valentin, R.N. Valerie is a Clin III in Clinical Informatics at Vacavalley One West.

This is an elected position and serves a two-year term. Valerie coordi-nates with the Communica-tion Liaisons of each Depart-ment Based Council and Goal-Directed Workgroup to ensure in-formation is effectively shared within the organization. She also publishes the Shared Governance Communication Newsletter and FYI: The Scoop on Shared Gov-ernance. She is the “social media person” of the team! Watch out: She might hunt you down for a picture!

Chair: Lisa Torgerson, R.N. Lisa is a nursing education spe-cialist from the Nursing Education Department.

This is an elected position and serves a two-year term. Lisa

facilitates the Coordinating Council meet-ing on the day of Shared Governance. The Coordinat-ing Council comprises all of the chairs and advi-sors for the

Department Based Council and Goal-Directed Workgroup. Lisa

See SHARED, Page 14

9

leads the meeting discussions and assures all members have an opportunity to participate in shared governance congress meetings. You can catch Lisa getting the congress rallied up in the morning announcements with her contagious energy! She is our “cheerleader” during Shared Governance!

Co-Chair: Stephanie Wilson, R.N. Stephanie is a Clin II at VacaValley Emergency Department.

This is an elected position and serves a two-year term. Stephanie facilitates the Coordinating Council meeting on the second Tuesday of each month. She works in collaboration with the chair (Lisa) in leading meetings and preparing agendas and activities for Shared Governance. She assumes responsibility of the position in the absence of the chair. Stephanie is the newbie to the leadership team. She was recently elected for the 2019-21 term. We are excited for all the new ideas she comes up with for the upcoming year!

So, if you are a wild card or a brand-new member, make sure to come by and say hello to us! We would be more than happy to welcome you into the Shared Governance family! We look forward to “building” another amazing year at Shared Governance! Have a Shared Governance question? Email Valerie at vvalentin@NorthBay.org and she’ll try to incorporate the answer into a future blog.

Shared ... (From Page 8)

Shelter Inc. will assume operation of a 208-bed emer-gency shelter on Beck Avenue in Fairfield, the former Mission Solano center, on Feb. 1.

The new operator will provide emergency hous-ing to individuals and families with accommodations including dormitories, family-sized rooms, and sepa-rate apartment-style units. The shelter includes a dining hall and recreational areas for all ages.

Shelter Solano Inc. was selected at the Jan. 15 meeting of the Fairfield City Council to oversee the 3.5-acre facility.

“We are confident that our 32 years of experience operating homeless programs will provide the neces-sary qualifications to successfully operate this vital community resource that will serve Solano County. As homelessness continues to be a regional issue, ef-

fective and sustainable pro-grams need to be available to people in all cities and coun-ties,” said John Ekstrom, CEO of Shelter Inc.

NorthBay Healthcare, along with Partnership HealthPlan, Kaiser Permanente and Sutter Health, invested temporary funding to keep open the doors of the shelter during a difficult transition. The goal was to ensure homeless patients leaving our hos-pitals find housing, follow-up health care, basic necessities, respite care if needed, and whatever wrap-around services are available.

Public entities, including local cities and Solano County Health & Social Services also contributed to the transition. Financially troubled Mission Solano will cease to exist following the transition next month.

Homeless Shelter Changes Operator

Special Deal forNew Train Riders

Solano HealthcareSystems Invest Funds

Have you always wanted to use the Capitol Corridor train to get to work, but didn’t know if you could make the commute happen?

Now you can give it a try for a great price, thanks to Solano Mobility.

For $20, you receive 10 rides on the Capitol Corridor, plus Lyft connections for free. Just call Solano Mobility at (800) 535-6883 to sign up or for more information. Passes are good for 45 days.

There are train stations in Vacaville-Fairfield, Berkeley, Davis, Emeryville, Fremont-Centerville, Hayward, Marti-nez, Oakland, Richmond, Rocklin, Ros-eville, San Francisco and Sacramento.

The Suisun-Fairfield stop is at 177 Main Street in Suisun. The Vacaville stop is at 4921 Vanden Road.

In addition, Capitol Corridor offers transit transfers that allow you to ride connecting buses and light rail free of charge in some locations.

If the train is not for you, but you’re interested in carpooling to work, Solano Mobility can help. Just sign up online https://commuterinfo.net.

10

Vacaville Chamber Guests‘Wake Up’ to HealthSpring

NorthBay Healthcare is seeking a few good women to help lead Solano County Girls on the Run teams this spring.

This is the fourth year that NorthBay has partnered with Girls on the Run, a nonprofit organization that seeks to promote self-es-teem and good health in elementary school-aged girls.

Girls on the Run Napa & Solano is a local nonprofit council of Girls on the Run Inter-

national. The goal this year is to recruit life coaches to be based at school sites in Napa and Solano counties. Deadline to apply is Feb. 22.

Life coaches share their experiences as they co-lead 8

to 15 girls for 75 minutes once or twice a week for 10 weeks. Women are needed who enjoy being with elementary school girls and leading fun life skill games and facilitating girl-driven life discussions. Life coaches are encouraged to attend one of two training days to receive all the materials needed.

Life Coach Training sessions will be of-fered from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in Napa County on Feb. 16 and on Saturday, Feb. 23, at the NorthBay Healthcare Green Valley Administration Center, 4500 Business Center Drive in Fairfield.

The program curriculum focuses on teaching girls to identify their unique quali-ties, accept praise, and recognize the contri-butions and strengths of others — all while training to run a 5K.

The practices are typically twice a week after school, around 2:30 p.m., with the first one scheduled the week of March 4. The program culminates with a 5k run at Solano Community College on May 11.

If you are interested in becoming a vol-unteer or have questions, please call Public Affairs at 646-3303 or visit www.GOTRNa-paSolano.org for more information.

Girls on the RunNeed Life Coaches

from NorthBay

Fresh fruit, muffins and

overnight oatmeal were

among the healthy breakfast

options (right) offered up during

the latest Wake Up Vacaville

morning mixer with the Vacaville

Chamber of Commerce at HealthSpring

Fitness.

HealthSpring Fitness played host to the latest Wake Up Vacaville morning mixer with the Va-caville Cham-ber of Com-merce. Visitors gathered in the lobby of the center (at left and below) to visit and chat before taking tours.

11

First Job Fair Puts Out Call for 2 North

An internal job fair for future positions on NorthBay Medi-cal Center’s 2 North drew curi-ous employees from throughout NorthBay on Jan. 15, where they got a glimpse into what awaits.

Jim Bollig, senior director, periop services; Elizabeth Scott Paulson, clinical manager, acute services; and Donna Dabeck, manager, talent acquisition, greeted employees and answered questions about the hiring pro-cess, invited them to fill out an application and asked them to include a 500-word paragraph describing how they would inte-grate Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) and new tech-nologies into their practice while working on the new wing.

They also answered questions about the floor’s new technology, including the “getwell network,” which will be integrated into each room’s 43-inch interactive “white board” television screen to enhance the patient experience. Newly admitted patients will receive a customized welcome on the screen, can view short edu-cational segments based on their medical conditions, watch televi-sion shows and movies, listen to the radio or play games on the screens. They can also use the network to order their meals, page their nurse and receive care plan updates.

Nurses working on 2 North will be trained to use CareAware Connect devices. These android-based phones, selected by the Shared Governance Council, will be used by nurses to communi-cate directly with physicians to

receive HIPAA-compliant mes-sages, scan bar codes on medica-tions and take pictures of wounds and dressings.

The floor will have four nurses’ stations with sit/stand desks, two Omnicell stations, bedside com-puters and lifts in every room, and three large charting rooms.

“We are building a brand-new team of more than 40, including nurses, CNAs and unit clerks,” Jim explained. “Our first group will go through an orientation

and then lead the next group of hires through ori-entation. Since some of the new team members may have never worked with each other before, we’re also planning to hold some social events so everyone can get to know each other.”

Another job fair for exter-nal and all-NorthBay internal candidates is set for March 7 at Green Valley Administra-tion Center. Panel interviews will be held the following week, offers will be made and training scheduled.

The bulk of training will take place in July, with recruits splitting their time between their old positions and their new ones to minimize impact on the de-partments and units they are leaving.

In all, more than 30 nurses will be hired, to fill slots on 2 North and to backfill positions vacated by the transfers.

Questions? Call Jim at ext. 5280, Elizabeth at ext. 5269, or Donna at ext. 3322.

Elizabeth Scott Paulson (left) and Jim Bollig (right) explain 2 North’s technologies.

Jim answers questions posed by Nina Bailey.

Hiring Process Has Begun for Wing

12

Open That Bottle Thanks SponsorsIt has always been a grand

way to say “thank you for your support,” but this year it gets kicked up a notch, and if you want to get in on the fun, time is running out.

It’s Open That Bottle Night, an elegant precursor to the 32nd annual Solano Wine & Food Jubi-lee. The invitation-only gala will be held on Feb. 23 at Yin Ranch in Vacaville, and this larger and exclusive venue should give guests more room to move about and socialize.

The event serves as a way for NorthBay Healthcare Foundation to recognize and thank those who have agreed to become sponsors of the Solano Wine & Food Jubi-lee, starting at $1,500 and up to $20,000. The Jubilee is Solano County’s largest fundraiser and it is a benefit for NorthBay Hospice & Bereavement. This year’s Jubi-lee will be held May 18 at the Nut Tree’s Harbison Event Center.

There is still time to become a sponsor, that not only guaran-tees seats at Open That Bottle Night, but also VIP tickets to the Jubilee itself. For information, contact Susan Cianci, NorthBay Healthcare Foundation program coordinator, at scianci@NorthBay.org, or call (707) 646-3131 for details.

Open That Bottle Night — ini-tially created by wine columnists from the Wall Street Journal — has become an internationally recognized celebration held on the last Saturday in February. It’s a time for friends and family to come together to share memo-ries and that one bottle of wine that might otherwise have been considered too special to open.

The evening gets under way at 5 p.m. with hors d’oeuvres and wine tasting. Later, guests will be seated for a four-course meal,

prepared by Elaine Bell Catering of Napa, well-known for offer-ing a creative collection of locally grown organic foods.

After dessert, auctioneer Joe Gates kicks off a live auction that features such things as vacations to exotic locales, an instant Wine & Food Jubilee wine cellar, highly sought-after tours and luxury suite tickets to sporting events, among other items.

For more information about the Jubilee, go to www.North-BayC2C.org.

Help the Guild by Returning Blue Transport ChairsSpot a blue Transport Chair

randomly parked around North-Bay Medical Center campus without a patient in it? You can help the Guild in a huge way just by letting them know where it is, and they’ll come retrieve it.

Just dial a volunteer at exten-

sion 3120, and an automated system will answer, explained Jane Hilliard, director of Volun-teer Services.

“Ask for a NorthBay floor volunteer, and if there is one on duty, you can ask them to come pick it up.”

Even though the Guild recently

bought additional chairs, they are still in high demand.

“We need them desperately in the Welcome Pavilion, since this is our main access point for patients,” she added. “Just letting us know where these blue chairs are will save us hours spent hunting for them every day.”

Open That Bottle Night guests offer a toast to good health, good friends and a good cause as part of the fundraising night’s festivities.

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Final SessionsSet on Friday Mark your

calendars with these Open Staff dates and times:

Wednes-day, Jan. 30: Hilborn Administra-tion Building, Conference Room 229AB, at 10 a.m.

Friday, Feb. 1, VacaValley Hospital Cafe Conference Room, at 8 a.m., 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Always a Meeting Near You

Open Staff meetings for 2019 are under way this week, where employees are hearing from NorthBay Healthcare President and CEO Konard Jones about what lies ahead for the year.

One more day of meetings is set for Friday, Feb. 1 in the VacaValley Hospital café conference room.

During “NorthBay: The New You,” Konard pro-vides a construction update on NorthBay Medical Center’s new North wing and how after months of hustle and bustle the Emergency Department is getting close to normal again.

OpEx progress, as well as the latest financial performance numbers, are on the agenda, as is how NorthBay plans to fill the chief financial offi-cer position vacated by the unexpected passing of Art DeNio in December.

Konard wants to ensure employees have the opportunity to ask questions, even if they can’t attend. If you have questions, send them through Interoffice Mail or by email to Diane Barney in Public Relations, at dbarney@northbay.org, and they will be answered in the Feb. 13 FYI.

As always, a video synopsis of the open staff discussion will be available on the employee portal, posted several days after the last session, for those who were not able to attend.

The last set of Open Staff sessions are planned for 8 a.m., 10 a.m., and 1 p.m. Friday at the Vaca-Valley Hospital Café Conference Room.

Directors ...(From Page 1)of the NorthBay Healthcare Foundation board. “Over the years, Heidi has worked tirelessly to support NorthBay through dona-tion of her time and treasure, and we look forward to having her join us as an official member of the Foundation team.”

Whit Whitman retired from the Air Force as commander of the 708th Military Airlift Squadron after a 21-year career. He’s been on the Vacaville Unified School District board of directors since 2009, is past president of the Vacaville Library Commission and is also a retired airline pilot. He was named Vacaville Chamber of Commerce’s Public Servant of the Year in 2017.

“Whit and his wife, Laura, have supported NorthBay for many years. We look forward to having him serve as an ambassador for NorthBay through his community involvement,” Dennis said.

“NorthBay and our community are fortunate to have such generous and committed leaders who are willing to help the Foundation maintain momentum as the fundraising arm of NorthBay Healthcare,” said Brett Johnson, president of NorthBay Healthcare Foundation. “Their work and vision helps us continue to provide advanced medicine and compassionate care to our families, friends and neighbors in Solano County.”

It’s a Great Timefor Swim Lessons

With temperatures in the 40s, 50s and 60s, most people aren’t thinking about swim classes — which makes now the perfect time to sign up for private or group les-sons in our indoor heated pool.

Lessons are available for all ages, from 6 months to adult. What’s more, NorthBay Health-Spring Fitness has a healthy discount for all employees and employee family members who are not currently members of the facility.

For more information about classes, schedules and cost, email John Zdankus at John.Zdankus@northbay.org.

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Southern California-based group that helped design not only this new space, but also the NorthBay Medical Center Café remodel in 2014 and a recent remodel of the VacaValley Hospital café. “In the North Wing, there will be more seating — maybe six to seven times the number of seats — and more fresh-cooked food choices, because the grill area is more than double what was available before,” Mike noted.

“With previous remodels, we had to work with lim-ited footprints, but with this brand-new space we were able to create a larger, very functional kitch-en from scratch.”

Cooks in the North Wing kitchen can prepare food on a grill, char-broiler and griddle. Food can either be cooked to or-der, or selected from a “grab and go” section. Hot soups and such can be dished up from a steam

table and sand-wiches and other chilled items will be available from a cold table.

Windows cover one whole wall of the dining area, opening up the room to natural light and

a view to outside seating. Micro-waves in the dining area will be available for guests and employ-ees to warm up their own food.

Nutrition Services employees

Kitchen... (From Page 1)

will prepare menu items using all the latest amenities, Mike added. “The refrigerators and freez-ers offer more cold storage than was available before,” and tilting kettles will make it easier on staff to stir up soups, for example.

Kitchen equipment should all be installed by the end of Janu-ary, he added.

The health department is ex-pected to perform inspections in late spring and then staff will be trained. First meals to be served in late July or early August.

Cooks will be able to prepare a variety of hot foods using a grill, char-broiler and griddle (left). Once completely installed, diners will slide trays along the line (below) to make selections from freshly cooked hot items, cold foods from a chill table or a grab and go section.

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Upcoming Educational Opportunities

Colors ... (From Page 1)

The new dress code officially takes effect June 1.

This most recent effort started in 2017, according to Traci Dun-can, vice president and Chief Nursing Officer, when a Shared Governance workgroup was con-vened to answer the question: “What is professional attire within Patient Care Services at North-Bay?”

After an extensive literature review and a consultation with the Patient Family Advisory Council, a Cornerstone survey was sent to 1,155 employees and 889 responded, an impressive 92 percent response rate.

The majority agreed that scrub tops and bottoms — of the same color — were preferred for a professional look.

The next task at hand was to ask nurses to select which color of scrubs they preferred. The majority chose graphite, or char-coal gray, with 44.8 percent of

the 631 respondents. There were 10 choices offered.

Respiratory therapists selected navy and CNAs/Techs selected the color “Bahama,” or a dark teal shade, for their scrubs.

To make the transition easier for staff, NorthBay Healthcare Foundation has collaborated with a scrub vendor, CareWear, to provide a special purchase offer. Employees can purchase two sets of scrubs in their job classifica-tion-designated color and receive a third set free. The offer is valid for a maximum of two free sets

when four are purchased, and represents a 33 percent discount. The offer is available through March 31.

Employees can purchase the discounted scrubs either at the CareWear sales scheduled in February and March, or online. Just use your employee number to get the discount, noted Jane Hilliard, director of Volunteer Services. Payroll deduction is also available.

For questions about purchas-ing scrubs through CareWear, contact Jane at ext. 3137.

At a recent CareWear scrub sale, ICU nurse Linda Gonza-lez peruses the selection of graphite-colored scrubs she and other nurses will be wearing as part of a new dress code that takes effect June 1.

Educational opportunities abound at NorthBay Healthcare and there are many chances to upgrade skills, sharpen old ones or fulfill training that applies to conditions of employment.

Check Cornerstone for infor-mation and the latest updates about classes. Class availability is subject to change, and some classes are job/role dependent.

Orientation Week — Starts Feb. 4

Code Blue — Feb. 4ICU Meeting & Skills Day —

Feb. 5, 6 TeamSTEPPS — Feb. 5

Harassment, Bullying & Sensitivity Awareness Pre-ventions — Feb. 5 Policy Stat — Feb. 5, 6, 12, 13, 29

StrataJazz Capital Budget — Feb. 7

Cardiac Monitoring — Feb. 8, 11, 12

Chemotherapy and Biother-apy — Feb. 11

Procedural Sedation — Feb. 11

EBP Fellowship — Feb. 12Initial Pediatric Asthma

Standardized Procedure — Feb. 13

Lead Selection & ST Seg-ment Monitoring — Feb. 14

Fit for Duty — Feb. 14Utilizing the Library Re-

source Center — Feb. 15Calm Effectiveness — Feb.

19Wage and Hour — Feb. 19Hiring Right at NorthBay —

Feb. 19Career Workshop — Feb. 20TNCC — Feb. 20Microsoft PowerPoint I —

Feb. 20Microsoft Excel I — Feb. 20Positive Labor Relations —

Feb. 20

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