The Wright Stuff - Sept. 6

Dear WVU Medicine colleagues,

Happy Tuesday! For those of you who were able to take some time off, I hope you enjoyed that time, whether it was spent with family, friends, or pursuing a passion of yours. For those of you who worked over the long weekend, many thanks, and please be sure to take time for yourself to recharge and reconnect with those who are most important to you. Thanks to the wet weather yesterday, the Wright family had to modify our plans to spend some time outside, so instead we had movie day – always fun when everyone’s home and we can spend some time together.

September’s a big month for WVU Medicine as we count the final days until we open WVU Medicine Children’s Hospital. We’re just under three weeks until the ribbon cutting on Saturday, September 24. So much hard work and effort have gone into the project, and I know many people will spend long hours between now and then making sure everything is ready for the first patient. The moment when we open that new hospital will be a defining one for our organization, and a transformational moment for how we care for children in West Virginia!

I hope you have a great week – as always, drop me a line if you have questions, concerns, or feedback on how we’re doing. I appreciate you and everything you do!

IN OTHER NEWS

Uniontown Hospital Team Members Rally for Local Children

Annually, departments across Uniontown Hospital sponsor specific children for back-to-school supplies, including backpacks, in conjunction with the Uniontown City Mission. Coordinated each year by Cheryl Cesario, CRNP, at the hospital, and Beth Sutton, director of financial access and registration, the supplies are then collected by members of the hospital's community engagement team. They were delivered to the mission during the last week of August. Many thanks to Beth and Cheryl for their leadership and energy, and many thanks to all those at Uniontown Hospital who supported their efforts!

Top Pediatric Neurosurgeon to Join Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute and WVU Medicine Children’s in November

Some exciting news coming out of WVU Medicine Children’s and the WVU Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute! They’ve recruited a new physician leader for our pediatric neurosurgery program.

David Adelson, MD, FACS, FAAP, an internationally recognized pediatric neurosurgeon, was named professor in the West Virginia University School of Medicine Department of Neurosurgery, vice chair of the WVU Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute, and executive director of the WVU Medicine Children’s Neuroscience Center of Excellence.

Dr. Adelson is a world-renowned expert in pediatric neurosurgery with extensive experience in epilepsy surgery, CNS tumors and vascular malformations, and management of brain, spinal cord, and brachial plexus/peripheral nerve injuries.

He will join the WVU Medicine team in late November, after having served as director and chief of pediatric neurosurgery and neuroscience at Barrow Neurological Institute at Phoenix Children’s Hospital since 2009, and as Diane and Bruce Halle Endowed Chair for Children’s Neurosciences. In these roles, Dr. Adelson was instrumental in the development of one of the top pediatric neuroscience programs in the country, now ranked in the top 20 children’s neuroscience programs by US News and World Report.

Prior to joining Phoenix Children’s, he was the A. Leland Albright Professor of Neurosurgery/Pediatric Neurosurgery and vice chairman for research for the Department of Neurological Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh and Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. After earning his undergraduate and medical degrees at Columbia University, he completed his neurosurgical residency at the University of California, Los Angeles, and a fellowship in pediatric neurosurgery at the Children’s Hospital of Boston and Harvard Medical School.

We are truly fortunate to have been able to recruit someone of Dr. Adelson’s stature to lead one of our most critical pediatric programs. As we open our new Children’s Hospital in the next few weeks, he will be a game changer for our ability to care for children who require the most complex neurological surgeries.

Workday Launches with Supply Chain and Finance

Hats off to our supply chain and finance teams, along with the whole Workday Implementation Team, for a successful launch and go-live of Workday’s finance and supply chain modules last week! Zach Kerns, vice president of finance for the eastern region, sent the below picture to the leadership team at Berkeley Medical Center and Jefferson Medical Center to commemorate the moment. 😊 I appreciate everyone’s efforts and hard work on this important project!

Don’t Miss the Sept. 30 Deadline to Complete Wellness Rewards Program Activities and Save on 2023 Per-pay Medical Premiums

WVU Medicine has partnered with Asset Health for the Wellness Rewards Program. The program will provide employees and covered spouses with the tools and resources to better understand their health and to achieve personal wellness goals.

Note: This deadline is not for Barnesville, Harrison, Uniontown, Wheeling, or Princeton hospitals. Employees at these hospitals will receive communication in early 2023 with instructions on what they will need to complete in order to save on their 2023 medical plan premiums.

Everyone can save on their 2023 per-pay medical premiums based upon the Tier level achieved (by employee and covered spouse).

Employees and covered spouses who are currently enrolled in a medical plan should separately register and log in to their own accounts to complete the program by Sept. 30.

The Wellness Rewards Program is designed so that employees can choose activities that they would like to complete, in addition to the required activities. They will earn points toward Tier 1 and Tier 2 levels. Employee and spouse (if applicable) must achieve the same Tier or they will default to the lowest Tier achieved (or no Tier).

• Tier 1 – Earn 1,000 points
  • Earn a partial medical plan premium savings in 2023 by completing the required wellness activities (Tobacco Affidavit and Health Assessment) and save $12.50 for employee only / $25 for employee + spouse per pay ($325/$650 annually).
• Tier 2 – Earn 400 more points (1,400 total points)
  • Earn the full medical plan premium savings in 2023 by completing additional wellness activities and save $25 for employee only / $50 for employee + spouse per pay ($650/$1,300 annually).

Get started:

• Visit assethealth.com/wellnessrewards
• Log in for the first time with the following default credentials:
  • Username – first initial of first name + last name + date of birth (mmddyyyy)
    • Example: jsmith01051975
  • Password – date of birth (mmddyyyy)
  • Both the employee and covered spouse need to separately register and log in using their own credentials
• Click the “Health Assessment” icon to start the program

View a previously recorded support session by the program’s vendor, Asset Health, to learn more.

If you have questions regarding the Wellness Rewards Program, please contact Asset Health at support@assethealth.com or 855-444-1255. Representatives are available weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

You can access additional program information and FAQs by visiting HROneSource.org or calling 833-599-2100, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

WVU Medicine Announces Leave of Absence Administration Changes

Changes are coming to how we administer our leaves of absence for most of our hospitals. We’re doing this to make things simpler and easier for you.

At this time, these changes will not extend to Barnesville, Harrison, Uniontown, and Wheeling Hospitals, or our managed hospitals. Here are the details:

What’s changing?

WVU Medicine’s new internal Leave of Absence Team will begin managing all leaves of absence and will use AbsenceTracker as its new administration software platform.

• UNUM will continue to manage any short-term disability leaves of absence that have a date of disability prior to September 1, 2022.

• Lincoln Financial Group will begin to manage all short-term disability leaves of absence that are effective on or after September 1, 2022.

How does this impact you?

• If you need to request a leave of absence for any type of claim, you will have two options:

1. Contact the Leave of Absence Team through HROneSource (1-833-599-2100, option 5), or
2. Request a leave of absence through the “Request Leave of Absence” option available on CONNECT, under “Applications.” You will be asked to register using your WVU Medicine login credentials the first time; you will be able to use the single sign-on functionality going forward.

What actions do I need to take?

• If you are currently on a leave of absence, we have already notified you by mail that you do not need to take any action.

• We have loaded all non-short-term disability leaves of absence (e.g., FMLA, personal and non-FMLA medical leave) into AbsenceTracker and have assigned them to our Leave Claims Analysts, who will manage the claims. They will be reaching out to those with claims to introduce themselves.

• Please make sure your personal e-mail address is updated in UltiPro, as personal e-mail is the main form of communication when an employee is on leave.

What does this mean for managers?

• Managers will have access to view details regarding their employees’ leave of absence data, such as effective dates of the leave, expected return to work date, and FMLA balances.

• Managers can initiate a leave of absence request on behalf of an employee in the event an employee is unable to make the request.

• Managers will also have direct access to an internal Claims Leave Analyst, who will have oversight of the claim, and run reports for their department.

If you have questions, please call HROneSource at 833-599-2100, Option 5.

WVU Medicine leaders are being highlighted in a “Her-story” feature in The Wright Stuff on a regular basis. The women share career advice, insights on lessons learned, success habits, and more. Today you’ll meet Janeen Keller, Clinical Nurse Coordinator Advanced Endoscopy, WVU Hospitals.

Q: What’s the best career advice you ever received?

A: “There will be times you will be challenged. Follow your gut and stand for what's right even if you must stand alone. Don't follow the crowd for the fear of rejection or self-doubt. I'm thankful Mrs. Freeman, my nursing instructor, gave this advice. I keep this message close to me when I reach obstacles.”

Q: If you could start over again, what would you differently?

A: “I wouldn't have done anything differently. I believe that obstacles are opportunities to learn. No matter the path we take, we will encounter challenges. I continue to learn, grow, and make changes that align with my values and passions. Every day is a new opportunity to shift my direction, do something different, and continue developing my story.”

Q: What woman inspires you and why?

A: “The story behind Jamie Kern Lima, the founder of IT cosmetics, ignites my inner core. Jamie developed a foundation to cover her rosacea. Jamie pitched her business idea countless times for three years and was repeatedly rejected. Even when she felt like she was going the extra mile and there was nowhere else to go, she continued to persevere. Family, friends, and the beauty industry ‘experts’ doubted her, but Jamie never gave up and continued to follow her heart through all the external noise. Jamie knew that the only person she needed to listen to was herself. Just a few years after her business launched and flourished, Jamie sold her company to Loreal for $1.2 billion .One ‘expert’ who rejected Jamie, eventually became her employee. In Jamie's book, ‘Believe It,’ Jamie shares jaw-dropping stories about the voices of the critics, or what Jamie calls, ‘the confused supporters,’ and how far they go to pull her down and defame her character. Jamie's resilience, courage, and authenticity is proof of what a person can achieve if they believe in themselves.”

Q: What’s your hidden talent?

A: “I've recently become attuned to my hidden talent and am exploring it in depth. For now, I'm keeping that a mystery. 😉”

A FINAL THOUGHT…

The Dominion Post in Morgantown featured the WVU Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute’s Innovation Center last week when it was all lit up with purple lights to mark the beginning of World Alzheimer’s Awareness Month. We’re certainly fortunate to have such a dedicated and talented team of doctors and researchers at the Institute who are providing global leadership around Alzheimer’s disease and other memory disorders!