BEMMY AWARDS

Shine a Light on Beaufort Memorial’s Best

story by SALLIE STONE                                           photos by SABELL SILHOUETTES

Talking the talk is easy — anyone can do it, and most everyone does. But walking the walk? That’s something else entirely.

As it happens, Beaufort Memorial has no shortage of men and women on staff who travel that less worn path, who do their best, day after day after day, to live the hospital’s core, essential, and aspirational values. Men and women who walk the walk.

To celebrate National Hospital Week — and especially to honor its own finest and bravest — last month, Beaufort Memorial presented the first of what will become its annual Bemmy Awards to employees, providers, and departments singled out by appreciative patients and admiring peers for exemplary performance and adherence to hospital values over the past year.

Though it wasn’t exactly the Emmys, similarities were noted. No flock of paparazzi descended on the fancy-dress awards ceremony, held at twilight on the rooftop deck at Old Bay Marketplace, but there was a red carpet and stars sufficient to populate a galaxy.

Russell Baxley, BMH president and CEO, proudly served as emcee for the evening and personally presented the Bemmy Award to each winner.

Taking top honors for Department of the Year was the Intensive Care Unit. In describing why the ICU — already a high-pressure environment clearly enhanced by the pandemic — had won the award, Baxley cited its nomination: “Across the nation, many ICU units fell apart. Yet today, if you look into our unit, you will see the same doctors, nurses, and staff who were here at the beginning, still advocating and caring for our patients. This speaks volumes about their resilience.”

Sherri Rabon was named the Vaux Clinical Employee of the Year, an award established in memory of Ruthven Vaux, a longtime Bluffton resident and former member of the Beaufort Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees. Here’s how her nomination described the Quality & Patient Safety Department infection preventionist: “Sherri demonstrated complete selflessness during the COVID pandemic. She worked 12 to 14 hours a day. She took calls every other weekend and carried the on-call phone with her nonstop. She was also asked to pick up clinical shifts, which she did without any hesitation. After a clinical shift, she would come back to her office and catch up on infection prevention work. She was professional, thorough, and relentless, even when it was not easy to be those things.”

The Nonclinical Employee of the Year Award went to Mario Melendez, the lead medical records clerk in the Health Information Services Department. Honoring Melendez, his nominating co-worker wrote: “Mario is an excellent, hard-working employee and a superb individual. He has become ‘the face’ of HIS. Everyone knows Mario! If he sees something that needs to be done, he does it, even if it’s cleaning up a spill from the floor. If he is asked to do something once, he adds it to his list of things to do regularly. He is the first to cover a shift or stay late if we have a call-out. If he doesn’t know the answer to a question, he finds someone who does. He is quick with a smile and kind to everyone he meets.”

Just the Beginning
In addition to the department and employee of the year awards, several other individuals and departments were recognized with Bemmy Awards, based on specific criteria.

The Leader of the Year Award was presented to Ashley Hildreth, MSN, RN, CEN, SANE, corporate director of quality. “Ashley is the epitome of servant leadership,” her nomination read. “She steadfastly led her team and the entire organization during the pandemic. She truly gave all of herself to ensure we were navigating on the correct path. No matter the day or hour, she was available to staff and providers. The extra hours and energy she has given the community, BMH, and her staff could never be measured or repaid. She never says ‘no’ or ‘that can’t be done’; she always finds a way.”

Angie Barber, Beaufort Memorial Physician Partners practice operations manager, walked away with the Innovator of the Year Award. In presenting the award, Baxley cited Barber’s work during the pandemic, where she worked with the Express Care clinics to manage staffing and COVID testing. At the same time, she coordinated with outside labs and agencies, set up tents, and handled the flood of associated employee health forms. She also helped to launch the hospital’s first direct primary care practice. “And not only did she manage this, but she did it with grace, patience, and humility,” he said.

The Provider of the Year Award went to Douglas Folzenlogen, MD, an internal medicine specialist and hospitalist at Beaufort Memorial. “Dr. Folzenlogen consistently treats the person and not just the diagnosis,” his nomination read. “He is respectful of colleagues, nurses, and auxiliary staff, and uses resources within the BMH health care system to support patient wellness. As only one of many examples, he always reaches out to the medication navigation team to verify coverage and cost for brand medications prior to discharge to ensure patient affordability.”

As a hospital employee for no more than 12 months, Brandon Mantell, MOT, OTR/L, was named Rookie of the Year. An occupational therapist in the Acute Rehabilitation Unit, he “hit the ground running, figuratively and literally,” wrote the co-worker who nominated him. “Brandon is always willing to take an extra shift, switch weekends, come early, stay late, whatever is needed to ensure patients get the therapy and quality of care they deserve. It’s clear patients quickly feel comfortable talking to, trusting, and confiding in him. He has a good working relationship with everyone he encounters.”

The Community Champion of the Year Award was given to Roxanne Davis-Cote, MPH, RD, LD, CNSC, clinical nutrition manager, for an outstanding job as Green Team leader at Beaufort Memorial, advocating for reusable straws, refillable water bottles, and highway cleanup, among other improvements, all while working in dietetics at the hospital and weight management clinic and at local health fairs. She also produces the monthly nutrition newsletter that “highlights the great things her department is doing and recognizes its great people.”

Picked as Zero Harm Patient Safety Champion of the Year for the assistance she provided to patients and fellow staff members was Wanda Jeffcoat, a pharmacy technician and medication navigation supervisor in the BMH Pharmacy. On one occasion, she helped a diabetic patient —who was hospitalized with COVID — get the insulin supplies he needed following discharge. Another time, she facilitated the dispensing of required medication to a low-income cancer patient when the usual pharmacy was closed.

And last, but certainly not least, three clinic departments were cited as Patient Experience Champions. These winners were chosen in their specific categories based on their exceptional patient survey scores: Oncology Specialists (Beaufort Memorial Physician Partners practice category); the Progressive Care Unit (inpatient department category); and Beaufort Medical Plaza X-ray Services (outpatient department category).

First runners-up for the hospital’s awards were:
•Department of the Year (tied): BMH
Express Care & Occupational Health clinics and LifeFit Wellness Center
•Vaux Clinical Employee of the Year: Tenaya Adams, phlebotomist
•Nonclinical Employee of the Year: Marion Arbuckle, chaplain
•Leader of the Year: Shannon Adams, MSN, RN, Medical-Surgical Unit director
•Provider of the Year: Luke Baxley, MD, Emergency Department physician
•Rookie of the Year: Jessica Specht, MSN, RN, Education Department clinical instructor
•Innovator of the Year: Allison Murphy, MSN, RN, quality & patient safety specialist
•Community Champion of the Year: Wendy Spano, surgery scheduler
•Zero Harm Patient Safety Champion of the Year: Brandie Gillian, BSN, RN, Chemotherapy and Infusion Center nurse

“Each one of these employees really embodies our core values. I think they stand above the rest and have gone above and beyond — recognized by patients, by their peers, by leadership,” said Baxley. “We could not be more proud of these employees for what they’ve done this year — and really the past two years — through the pandemic.”

Bemmy Award winners were selected from a combined field of recent You Shine Through employee award recipients and employees who were nominated by co-workers in response to a call from the BMH Employee Engagement Committee.

Having requested employee nominations in nine different categories, the Committee was delighted by the large number they received. “These are no ordinary times, and it seems staffers were eager to recognize their colleagues for work that had gone, by any standard, above and beyond,” said Baxley.

Committee members reviewed all nominations and submitted their top candidates to senior leadership for winner selection.

Besides the best view in town, the Bemmy Awards celebration featured live music, drinks and hors d’oeuvres, and a seated dinner before the presentation of the Bemmys themselves.
It was, by design, an impressive affair.

“We wanted to show our employees, in every way, how much we value them and their service to our patients and our hospital,” Baxley said. “We can’t applaud them enough for the good they do.”