Employee Forum
Spring 2022
Catching Our Breath
This is a moment to mark the past and look to the future. To take stock of what we’ve been through and find how it will serve us going forward. It’s also a time to catch our breath and do what we need to heal.
With that in mind, this Employee Forum will be different than any in the past, and that seems fitting. We’ll learn more about each other by sharing our stories. You’ll hear from several key leaders as they reflect on the journey of the last two years and provide insights about the journey ahead. And we’ll do it all digitally, here and on MyCentraCare.
As we gather this week in huddles and on computers, there’s something we all know to be true: Adversity makes us stronger. And while none of us would choose to relive the last two years, your resourcefulness, resilience and true sense of innovation was nothing short of remarkable. We know with confidence that we are capable of rising to any challenge and that we are truly better together.
Eileen Rebella’s Bright Spirit
Covid Collaboration
“We had a seriously ill patient with COVID and we were struggling to find a bed to transfer them to a higher level of care,” said Kris Garman, Director of Patient Care, Redwood Falls. “Typically, our respiratory therapists and CRNAs manage ventilators and the propofol drips, but they were running on no sleep, and needed to be relieved.”
That’s when Kris Garman phoned a friend.
Cultivating Empathy
Dr. Jack Lyons and the ICU
Turning the Corner
We shared the results of a recent employee survey with veteran journalist Eric Ringham and asked him to interview five key leaders about the recent past and CentraCare’s future. Eric, who spent 36 years at the Star Tribune and Minnesota Public Radio, channeled his curiosity to ask the questions we all might ask of Ken Holmen, Joy Plamann, Tom Schrup, Cindy Firkins Smith, and Joe Kalkman.
In their conversations below, we learn about key decisions that were made, lessons that were learned and how we will emerge from the last two years.
Employee Forum Topics
The Journey Ahead
“Where are we going? The most important thing we need to do is heal from Covid and that means a lot of different things. I think for all of us it means getting back to a balanced sense of who you are and building confidence in who we are together,” Ken Holmen, CEO, told Eric Ringham. “And with staffing as a long-term challenge, we have to figure out how to do our work differently. Using technology, coming up with new models, delivering more care at home,” he continued.
“We need to stay innovative and connected, as we have been these last two years. And we need to stay safer together.”
Safer Together
“We proved these last two years that we can do anything. We protected patients and families. We protected our communities. And we protected each other,” Joy Plamann, EVP and President of St. Cloud Hospital explained to Eric Ringham. “In the coming months, we need to begin a very disciplined approach to becoming even safer together. We have risks in our environment and inconsistencies. Becoming safer will lead us to being more accountable. It starts with Safety as a value and a commitment to zero preventable harm to our patients, their families and visitors, and all our employees.”
Workforce & Healing
When asked about the challenges facing the workforce, Chief Administrative Officer Joe Kalkman had this to say, “This has been a traumatic experience and each of us within our own souls have to find ways to heal. And collectively, we need to re-establish our sense of team and belonging. Secondly, we need to make progress on our ongoing staffing needs by attracting people to healthcare and rekindling the spark of those who have been so challenged the last couple of years.”
