Holiday Raffle Results

Our auditors have required that we post the results of the holiday raffle on the blog in order to maintain the transparency and integrity of the raffle. They are listed below. Congratulations to the winners.

IPOD Holly Goodrich
$100.00 Visa Gift Card Kelly Peters
$50.00 Visa Gift Card Joel Dougherty
$25.00 Visa Gift Card Mary Wheeldon
$25.00 Visa Gift Card Kelly Peters
Decadent Sweet’s Gift Basket Judy Vodicka
Coffee Gift Basket Debbie Circo
Movie Night Basket Dr. Dethlefs
Movie Passes to Rave Digital Theatre Dulce Duarte

Oscar's Christmas

Oscar would like to report that he had an enjoyable Christmas. The first picture is his annual modeling for our holiday card. Santa apparently recognized that he went through a lot of trouble to get that picture right so he brought Oscar lots of presents on Christmas. The only two that he cares about are Mr. Duck and Baby Rabbit. He guards them very closely and when he does decide to rest he makes sure that they are well guarded so the sneaky cats don't play with his "friends."

Late Start Due to Weather

OneWorld will open late tomorrow Friday December 19th. There will be no patient appointments in the morning. All staff report to work at 12:00pm. Call your supervisor if you have questions. Thanks and drive safe!

Christmas Party Update

Christmas Party Update: The location has been changed from the Reed Center to Our Lady of Guadalupe Hall on 23rd and O. Alcohol is not permitted at this location. The party is still on Friday, Dec. 19th, at 6:30pm; tickets are $15 for employees and $3 for guests over the age of 4, please give your money to Susan Ovalles, if paying in check give money to Lisa Gentes. Any questions, please contact Gabriel Gonzalez at 402-320-8701.

Pat O in Print

OneWorld’s very own Pat O’Hanlon was featured in Saturday’s Omaha World Herald. If you haven’t seen the article, you can check it out below:

Click here for the article in the Omaha World Herald.

Congratulations on the article highlighting some of your great work here Pat. You are an excellent ambassador for OneWorld.

Common Holiday Shopping Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Here is a list of common holiday shopping mistakes and how you can avoid them from Dave Ramsey. Following the items on this list will contribute to your financial wellness.

Make this year different!

Here are the top 10 Holiday shopping mistakes and how you can act differently:

1. Not prioritizing. Instead of getting stressed out with all the parties, baking and shopping, in addition to your normal daily life, set some priorities before you’re bombarded with a million requests. Think about which things are “must do” and which are “would be nice to do.” It’s all right to say no to keep yourself sane. Shopping for gifts is more fun when you’re not completely stressed out.

2. Not using a budget. Before you make a gift list and head to the mall, set aside a reasonable amount of money for gifts. Make a commitment that you won’t add $20 to the fund every week just because you saw something cute that your niece would love. Get budgeting advice here.

3. Using credit cards. Once you have your budget finalized, stay away from credit cards! You will still spend 12-18% more if you use plastic, and you’ll be paying it off come 2009! Doesn’t paying with cash sound more freeing than having a credit card balance looming over your head? You bet.

4. Buying for everyone. Do you really need to buy gifts for every family member and friend you have? That can get overwhelming and expensive for everyone. Talk with them and work toward an agreement to draw names for gifts or donate money to a common cause.

5. Not listening. Listen to the hints your loved ones drop about what they need or want this year. Maybe your Aunt Sally mentioned that she would love someone to help her in the garden, or Cousin Bob keeps losing guitar picks. A thoughtful gift like this will mean a lot.

6. Not having a thought-out list on paper. If you think you can spend time in “Christmas retail world” without getting distracted by all the shiny toys, you’re in for a big surprise! You’ll be more likely to buy impulsively if you do it that way. Write down what each person you’re buying for would like and stick to the list. Stay focused!

7. Not shopping around. “Shopping around” doesn’t mean you have to spend 24 extra hours running from store to store to save 10 cents. Take a look at your gift list and do some comparative price-checking online before you head out into the retail and traffic madness. This will save you money, time and stress!

8. Waiting until the last minute. Procrastination is not the most appealing gift out there. Don’t find yourself stressed out on Christmas Eve just because you didn’t invest a little bit of time to plan.

9. Forgetting to plan for next year. Throughout the next year, look for outrageous sales on things your loved ones will need. If you time the sales just right and clip some coupons, you could land a major discount on something you were going to buy in a few months for a birthday or wedding gift. Remember to have a list and budget for this, too.

10. Forgetting why we celebrate. If this season becomes all about shopping and gifts, you’ve missed the whole point. People—not things—matter.

Final Results Wellness Challenge 2

The final results for the Wellness Challenge 2 are in. I would first like to thank everyone for participating and encourage you to not allow your personal wellness journey to end here. Take at least one thing that you have been doing for the challenge and sustain that change until the next challenge starts on January 5th. Prizes will be handed out next week on Tuesday the 25th to those who have earned them. Below are the final standings.

FINAL TEAM SCORES:

1. Beauty and the Geek – 1442.5
2. Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers - 1437
3. Super Heroes in-training – 1256.75
4. The Poor 4 – 1204
5. The Pink Ladies – 1155.6
6. The Bratz – 1080.5
7. Ladybugs – 777.25
8. Supersonics – 759
9. Buff Bananas – 730.5
10. Latin Warriors – 698.5
11. Bienestar – 690.5
12. Chicas Fabulosas – 667
13. Baby Blue – 596.25
14. Pat O's Pateadores – 569.4
15. Royal Blue – 479
16. S.C.A.R.E.– 448
17. Team Cass -- 222


FINAL INDIVIDUAL TOP 15:

Barry Webber, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 2119
Kris Huber, Super Heroes-in-Training: 2019
Hans Dethlefs, Bienstar: 1752
Holly Goodrich, Beauty and the Geek: 1747
Jeanette Gaines, The Pink Ladies: 1658
Michelle Linbo, Beauty and the Geek: 1653
Carmen Alcazar, Supersonics: 1511
Jeremy Holt, Beauty and the Geek : 1444
Paul Beutler, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 1432
Michelle Perez, The Poor 4: 1351
Alicia Lagunas, The Bratz: 1333
Claudia Rios, The Poor 4: 1316
Nora Salazar, The Bratz: 1277
Ana Gudino, The Pink Ladies: 1273
Melisssa Hines, Buff Bananas: 1241

Week 8 Results Part 2

1. Beauty and the Geek – 1237.75
2. Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers - 1099.85
3. Super Heroes in-training – 1041.5
4. The Poor 4 – 960.25
5. The Pink Ladies – 905
6. The Bratz – 875.25
7. Latin Warriors – 698.5
8. Ladybugs – 634
9. Supersonics – 597
10. Bienestar – 588
11. Chicas Fabulosas – 586.5
12. Buff Bananas – 584.67
13. Baby Blue – 538.5
14. Royal Blue – 479
15. S.C.A.R.E – 448
16. Pat O's Pateadores – 455.8
17. Team Cass -- 222


INDIVIDUAL TOP 15:

Barry Webber, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 1644
Kris Huber, Super Heroes-in-Training: 1617
Holly Goodrich, Beauty and the Geek: 1508
Hans Dethlefs, Bienstar: 1426
Michelle Linbo, Beauty and the Geek: 1364
Jeremy Holt, Beauty and the Geek: 1266
Jeanette Gaines, The Pink Ladies : 1250
Anabel Tapia Marin, Latin Warriors: 1211
Paul Beutler, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 1140
Carmen Alcazar, Supersonics: 1095
Claudio Rios, The Poor 4: 1050
Michelle Perez, The Poor 4: 1036
Alicia Lagunas, The Bratz: 1031
Ana Gudino, The Pink Ladies: 1015
Liliana Cortes, Chicas Fabulosas: 974

Wellness Challenge Week 8 Results

Work on the EHR project is progressing. Dr. D and Tom Oakes, with assistance from Michelle and I are working on template customization. This is where we create screens in the EHR to make the EHR flow more in tune with our redesigned processes.

Dr. D., Sarah Dworak, Jeremy and I have also been working on our data preload processes and have been testing instructions and how long it takes to enter a chart into the EHR. This is going well. The financial counselors are using scanners at their desks to scan pay stubs rather than make copies. This is exciting as they are now as close to a paperless system as any area in the building.

Jeremy has completed collecting fingerprints from all of the nurses and providers and is rolling out the tablets through the end of November. He is working on setting up four days in December for a "tablet petting zoo" where people can come, ask questions, and play with the tablets.

Last but not least, our official go live is in May 2009. I know that we have had some other go live dates but this is the one we are sticking with.

I bet you thought this was a wellness challenge update. Ha ha, made you read an EHR update. I will post the wellness scores tomorrow.

The Newest Niemeyer

Saturday November 1st saw the introduction of the newest member of the Niemeyer clan. Both Valerie and baby are doing well. Despite my pleas to name him Lawrence so that they would then have Hank, Chuck, and Larry they decided to name him Benedict (Ben) Marion Niemeyer. He weighed 8lbs 3.5oz.

Below is a picture of Hank and Ben and then Ben by himself.

Twas the Night Before Halloween, version 2.0

Last night 1166 children from the community came and trick-or-treated through the medical clinic. All departments did a wonderful job decorating the rooms and there were so many amazing costumes. Thanks go to Holly Goodrich, our community relations specialist, for her hard work on getting the entire night organized, promoted, and running smoothly.

The front desk seems to own the Halloween contest repeating their 2007 victory in the Best Room category as judged by the kids. Second place went to the providers and the Under the Sea theme, and third went to the Lab for their Mad Lab room.

I don't know or want to know what went on at the Ceballos house on Halloween when Lupita and Alina were growing up but whatever it was it inspires them to bring their "A" game to the costume contest. Lupia Ceballos won first place (she won in 2007 as well) followed by a tie for second between Alina Ceballos and Lulu Flores. La Lucha Libre rides again!

Week 7 Results

TEAM SCORES:

1. Beauty and the Geek – 1095.75
2. Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers - 954
3. Super Heroes in-training – 913.25
4. The Poor 4 -- 830
5. The Pink Ladies – 784.6
6. The Bratz – 780.75
7. Latin Warriors – 698.5
8. Ladybugs – 536.5
9. Supersonics – 532.2
10. Baby Blue – 522
11. Bienestar – 520
12. Buff Bananas – 514
13. Chicas Fabulosas – 513.72
14. Royal Blue – 479
15. S.C.A.R.E – 424
16. Pat O's Pateadores – 398.6
17. Team Cass -- 222

INDIVIDUAL TOP 15:

Barry Webber, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 1452
Kris Huber, Super Heroes-in-Training: 1414
Holly Goodrich, Beauty and the Geek: 1307
Hans Dethlefs, Bienstar: 1225
Michelle Linbo, Beauty and the Geek: 1214
Anabel Tapia Marin, Latin Warriors: 1211
Jeremy Holt, Beauty and the Geek: 1155
Jeanette Gaines, The Pink Ladies: 1047
Paul Beutler, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 1023
Claudia Rios, The Poor 4: 924
Ana Gudino, The Pink Ladies: 896
Carmen Alcazar: 890
Alicia Lagunas, The Bratz: 884
Margine Davis, Royal Blue: 880
Michelle Perez, The Poor 4: 878

Wellness Challenge Week 6

INDIVIDUAL TOP 15:

Barry Webber, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 1249
Kris Huber, Super Heroes-in-Training: 1200
Holly Goodrich, Beauty and the Geek: 1090
Hans Dethlefs, Bienstar: 1049
Anabel Tapia Marin, Latin Warriors: 1020
Michelle Linbo, Beauty and the Geek: 1012
Jeremy Holt, Beauty and the Geek: 1010
Margine Davis, Royal Blue: 880
Jeanette Gaines, The Pink Ladies: 861
Paul Beutler, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 853
Claudio Rios, The Poor 4: 792
Ana Gudino, The Pink Ladies: 756
Alicia Lagunas, The Bratz: 752
Michelle Perez, The Poor 4: 737
Irma Orozco, The Poor 4: 724

TEAM SCORES:

1. Beauty and the Geek – 941.25
2. Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers - 826
3. Super Heroes in-training - 777
4. The Poor 4 -- 708.25
5. The Bratz – 664.25
6. The Pink Ladies – 662.6
7. Latin Warriors – 650.75
8. Bienestar -- 476
9. Baby Blue – 466.75
10. Royal Blue – 465.75
11. Ladybugs – 461.5
12. Supersonics – 455
13. Buff Bananas - 443
14. Chicas Fabulosas – 439.25
15. S.C.A.R.E – 424
16. Pat O's Pateadores – 339.8
17. Team Cass -- 222

This American Life

If you haven't ever listened to a radio show called "This American Life" on NPR then you are missing out. A couple of weeks ago they had a show on about an organization that was making a real difference in people's lives in Harlem, NY. You can listen to the show for free from their website or you can download it to your MP3 player for 99cents. The link to listen free on your computer (at home) is HERE. Below is a description of the episode, it's worth your time.

Host Ira Glass introduces a story on the most ambitious and hopeful solution to urban poverty in the country—the Harlem Children’s Zone. The project’s goal is nothing less than changing the lives of thousands of children in Harlem, starting at birth and continuing until they go to college. (2 minutes)

Act One. Harlem Renaissance.
Paul Tough reports on the Harlem Children’s Zone, and its CEO and president, Geoffrey Canada. Among the project’s many facets is Baby College, an 8-week program where young parents and parents-to-be learn how to help their children get the education they need to be successful. Tough’s just-published book about Geoffrey Canada and the Harlem's Children Zone is called Whatever It Takes. You can see a slideshow of more photographs from the project here. (30 and 1⁄2 minutes)

Wellness Challenge 2, Week 5

I am posting the Week 5 update but you should remember we are finishing up week 6 this Sunday. That is a reminder to all of you sandbaggers that want to go for the most improved prize. Prizes for most improved will be awarded based on a person's increase in weekly scoring average from weeks 1 through 4 compared against weeks 7 through 10.

Beauty and the Geek continues to pull away from the pack, Dental Destroyers better watch out because the Super Heroes are gaining ground. Congratulations to the Pink Ladies for jumping two spots to enter the top 5.


Barry Webber, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 1067
Kris Huber, Super Heroes-in-Training: 1051
Holly Goodrich, Beauty and the Geek: 907
Hans Dethlefs, Bienstar: 849
Jeremy Holt, Beauty and the Geek: 848
Michelle Linbo, Beauty and the Geek: 826
Margine Davis, Royal Blue: 754
Jeanette Gaines, The Pink Ladies: 689
Paul Beutler, Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers: 678
Arceli Ayala, S.C.A.R.E: 674
Anabel Tapia, Latin Warriors: 673
Claudia Rios, The Poor 4: 653
Ana Gudino, The Pink Ladies: 631
Michelle Perez, The Poor 4: 603
Nora Salazar, The Bratz: 598


Beauty and the Geek 771.75
Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers 677.5
Super Heroes in-training 661.5
The Poor 4 581.75
The Pink Ladies 546.6
The Bratz 544.75
Latin Warriors 529.5
Bienestar 426
S.C.A.R.E. 424
Royal Blue 407.25
Baby Blue 402.25
Ladybugs 393
Buff Bananas 366.1667
Chicas Fabulosas 361.25
Supersonics 355
Pat O's Pateadores 283
Team Cass 222

Contreras Baby

Congratulations to Karla Contreras from the OneWorld WIC office. This morning at 7am she had an 8lb. 1oz. baby girl. I will post the name and a picture when/if they are received at blog world headquarters.

Wellness Challenge Week 4

If you are a devoted reader of the blog you will notice that we skipped from week 2 to week 4 with the scoring updates. If you are upset about the lapse I apologize. If you are still upset after that please fill out a comment card and put it in the suggestion box outside my office.

Team Standings
1. Beauty and the Geek - 611.75 points per person
2. Dental Destroyers - 564.5
3. Super Heroes in Training - 516
4. Poor 4 - 464.25
5. Latin Warriors - 455
6. The Bratz - 433
7. Pink Ladies - 422.8
8. Bienestar - 353
9. S.C.A.R.E. - 343.2
10. Lady Bugs - 340.25
11. Baby Blue - 333
12. Royal Blue - 330.25
13. Chicas Fabulosas - 302.5
14. Buff Bananas - 300
15. Supersonics - 277.8
16. Pat O's Pateadores - 239.8
17. Team Cass - 184.5

Individual Standings
1. Webber, Barry 868
2. Huber, Kris 841
3. Goodrich, Holly 682
4. Tapia, Anabel 673
5. Dethlefs, Hans 662
6. Linbo, Michelle 662
7. Holt, Jeremy 648
8. Davis, Margine 631
9. Beutler, Paul 529
10. Gaines, Jeanette 523
11. Ayala, Arceli 519
12. Rios, Claudia 511

Race for the Cure

On Sunday over 17,000 people including 50 OneWorld staff and their families participated in the annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. This was the 15th year that the race has been held here in Omaha as a way to raise money and awareness about breast cancer. Thanks to all of you who participated and represented OneWorld. Thanks Holly for organizing the OneWorld team. The World Herald article about the race is HERE.

Employee Assistance Program

One of the really great but under-utilized benefits we offer at OneWorld Community Health Center is our Employee Assistance Program. This is a service offered through Alegent Health here in Omaha. All of our employees have full free access to all of the services that the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) has to offer. The services include but are not limited to:

Consultation Services
Legal Services
Financial Services
Critical Incident Stress Debriefing
Grief Counseling

This program provides assessment, short-term counseling, referral to appropriate community resources and ongoing follow-up.

OneWorld pays the exact same amount each year whether we use this service or not. It is anonymous and nobody at OneWorld even needs to know about it. The phone number is 402-398-5566. If you are unsure if they can help you with the specific issue you are having, give them a call and ask about it. Everyone needs someone to talk to once in a while and this is a great resource for that. Or you could just get your own blog and work on your issues that way.

OneWorld in the News

Andrea Skolkin is quoted in the article below on Immigration in Nebraska.

State sees slight dip in foreign population

Richard Brown, CEO of the Charles Drew Health Center in North Omaha, is quoted in the article below on the prevalence of STIs in Omaha.

Sexually transmitted infections still being battled in Douglas County

If you have any news stories regarding OneWorld or where someone from OneWorld is quoted or featured please forward them to me for publication here.

Wellness Challenge II, Week 2

There was a shakeup in the ranks this week. I am posting expanded rankings this week so that more people can see how they are doing. If you are not on the list and want to know your individual scores, just email Jeanette, Judy, or I during the week and we will let you know.

Teams
1. Beauty and the Geek 321.5
2. Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers 269.5
3. Super Heroes in-training 269
4. The Poor 4 228.25
5. Ladybugs 206.5
6. The Pink Ladies 203.8
7. Latin Warriors 202.5
8. The Bratz 200.5
9. Bienestar 181.5
10. Baby Blue 175.5
11. S.C.A.R.E. 174.2
12. Royal Blue 170.75
13. Team Cass 163.75
14. Buff Bananas 159.16
15. Supersonics 156.6
16. Chicas Fabulosas 147.25
17. Pat O's Pateadores 121.8


Individuals

1 Webber, Barry Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers 468
2 Huber, Kris Super Heroes in-training 438
3 Linbo, Michelle Beauty and the Geek 367
4 Goodrich, Holly Beauty and the Geek 363
5 Holt, Jeremy Beauty and the Geek 348
6 Davis, Margine Royal Blue 337
7 Tapia, Anabel Latin Warriors 319
8 Dethlefs, Hans Bienestar 304
9 Liesveld, Jessica Team Cass 258
10 Salazar, Nora The Bratz 254
11Rios, Claudia The Poor 4 253
12 Cortes, Maria Baby Blue 252
13 Orozco, Irma The Poor 4 250
14 Gaines, Jeanette The Pink Ladies 243
15 Beutler, Paul Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers 238
16 Hines, Melissa Buff Bananas 238
17 Flores, M. Lourdes Ladybugs 237
18 Gudino, Ana The Pink Ladies 235
19 Masek, Phyllis The Pink Ladies 230
20 Jorgensen, Leah Super Heroes in-training 228
20 Torosian, Katia Chicas Fabulosas 228
21 Zubia, Crystal Demoralizing Dental Dynasty de Decay Destroyers 226
22 Olvera, Carmen S.C.A.R.E. 225
23 Bangert, Vicki Super Heroes in-training 222
24 Vargas, Monica Baby Blue 222
25 Perez, Michelle The Poor 4 222
26 Gentes, Lisa Ladybugs 216
27 Rojas, Anita Bienestar 213
28 Alcazar, Carmen Supersonics 212
29 Dougherty, Joel Beauty and the Geek 208
30 Sourile, Grace Buff Bananas 204
31 Santiago, Wilmarie Latin Warriors 202
32 Lagunas, Alicia The Bratz 202
33 Sarah Dworak Pat O's Pateadores 202

Wellness Challenge II, Week 1

Top 5 Teams
1. Beauty and the Geek, 170 points per person
2. Dental Destroyers, 146
3. Super Heroes in Training, 129.75
4. SCARE, 106
5. The Poor 4, 104.25

Top 5 Individuals
1. Barry Webber, Dental Destroyers, 238
2. Kris Huber, Super Heroes in Training, 221
3. Margine Davis, Royal Blue, 204
4. Michelle Linbo, Beauty and the Geek, 194
5. Holly Goodrich, Beauty and the Geek, 193

Cristo Rey

OneWorld is lucky enough to be particpating in a program with the St. Peter Claver shcool on 36th and Q this year. We have four students who rotate days of the week so that we always have one here and they go to school on the other days. The pay earned here goes directly to the school and helps pay for tuition. Our students are working in Medical direction under the very watchful eye of Lucia Morales. Stop by and introduce yourself to them if you get a minute.

Click on the picture below for a column about the schools that appeared in the paper this weekend.

The Duck Has Left The Building...and a Wellness Update

Last night when I called Heather on my way home she informed me that our duck had flown away. She (the duck, not Heather) had been practicing her flying all week. We were kind of sad and unsure if she is actually ready to be on her own in the world. If this is what it feels like when your kids move out then I am glad to be in a pets only household.

Wellness Update
We are approaching the end of the first week of Wellness Challenge 2. Two and a half cups of veggies is proving harder for me than it was for Wellness Challenge 1. I also have a lot of crunches to catch up on over the weekend. I hope everyone is enjoying the contest and remembering that the real prize of the wellness challenge is your own personal wellness. This is especially imprtant since you are all playing for second place. Beauty and the Geek rules!

Hugo y Marielva's Wedding

Hector Hugo Uribe and Marielva were married this past weekend. The wedding was nice and the word on the street is that the reception was off the hook. Congratulations to the happy couple and I am sure there will be lots of pictures going around but here are a few to get you started. Our little Hugo is all grown up!

Wellness Challenge Deadline Extended

The deadline for entereing the wellness challenge has been extended through tomorrow. Contact Judy or Jeanette if you want in. You do not need other team members to sign up, just sent them and email or cal them and they will get you on the list. There is a meeting tomorrow at 12:15 and another at 12:45 in the first floor conference room to go over the details of the contest. See you there.

Duck Update

I know you have all been waiting on the edge of your seats for the latest duck update so here it goes in summary form. The dad left the mom in true deadbeat duck fashion and left her to care for the two babies. A week later one of the babies was apparently ducknapped overnight leaving one baby and one single duck mother. The stress of single motherhood got to the mom two weeks later and she abandoned the sole surviving baby duck to our care. Heather and I legally adopted the remaining baby and have raised her into a fine adolescent duck. I am proud to share the pictures of our young duck daughter below. She doesn't fly yet but is practicing stretching and flapping her wings. if anyone has any resources for parents trying to teach a child to fly I would be grateful if you shared them.

Click here for background on the duck story.

No update would be complete with out a picture of Oscar. Next to it is a picture of the duck mom and the baby before the mom left.

$400,000 in New Funding

We found out this week that OneWorld has received two new grants totaling $400,000 in additional funding from HRSA. One grant is for $150,000 for behavioral health and one is for $250,000 for our dental services. This money will help sustain our current services and allow for some expansion of services in those areas. It is very rare to receive two of these awards in the same round of funding and is a testament to the work that Andrea and our development department do on behalf of our patients and staff every day. This is great news for our patients, the community and OneWorld!

OneWorld in the News

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is the arm of the federal government that provides OneWorl with our largest block of funding each year through what is called a 330e grant. OneWorld was featured in their newsletter this month in an article describing our donation of the mobile van to the clinic in Columbus Junction.

Click here to read the article.

Cass Family Medicine in the News

Click the link below to read about a special fundraiser benefiting OneWorld and Cass Family Medicine.

Click here to read the article.

EHR Project -- Where Are We and What's Next?

The first phase of the Electonic Health Record implementation has been completed. That phase was the successful implementation of the Practice Management module of the NextGen system. My thanks to everyone that made this phase a success are well chronicled in previous posts so I will spare you any more of that.

I estimate that the EPM implementation made up about 20% of the overall project so that leaves us with 80% to go. Currently the EHR Core team, the Groovy Ninjas, are meeting weekly to discuss and plan for the different parts of the Electronic Medical Record portion of the project that comprises the next 80%. A brief summary of those items are listed below.

Hardware
A team made up of Hans Dethlefs, Kris McVea, Eloise Poyner, Beth Levy, and Kimberly Gibilisco each spent several days with each of the tablet pc's that we were testing. Jeremy Holt, our IT Coordinator, searched for the best available options for tablet pc's for our providers and nurses and approved four tablets for testing by the harware team. The models tested were from Fujitsu, HP, Lenovo (IBM), and Dell. Tablets were rated on a scale from 1 to 10 on factors like battery life, feel, screen, handwriting recognition, speed, wireless signal, and aesthetics. After all of the scores were in each member ranked the tablets overall. Both the objective scores and the provider votes for their favorite scored a conclusive win for the Fujitsu Lifebook T4220. Jeremy has ordered them and they are being stored in a secret location awaiting their configuration.

EHR Templates
The Electronic Health Record is really a giant powerful database with thousands of forms that display the data and allow for the entry of new data in to the database and reports that allow the users to print data from the database. The forms in NextGen are called templates. The NextGen EHR that we purchased comes already with thousands of these templates ready to use. The problem is that the templates that come with the system might not necessarily be set up to operate in the the same work flow that we have refined here at OneWorld through years or redesign. Hans Dethlefs has set about the task of collecting information from sources in the clinic about which forms need modified the most and how they should be set up to streamline the product. This is a huge task and is going well so far although there is a lot of work to do. Dr. Dethlefs is working with Tom Oakes from Personal PC Consultants on the programming side of this.

Other Items
The EHR core team is aslo developing plans for training, preloading data from existing charts, and interfacing with Creighton's lab system and the State of Nebraska's new immunization registry.


An Update on the Blog

Since the inception of the blog on 1/17/08, 359 unique visitors have logged on a total of 4,447 times and viewed 6,605 pages. The 359 visitors were from 13 different countries. Whoever can guess the most correct countries (*Hint-4 different continents) that visitors have come from will receive a $20 gas card. Email me your guesses by Friday. Visitors came from 65 different cities as well. Anyway, thanks for reading. If you are reading this and don't work for OneWorld maybe you should consider it. There is a link on the right side of the blog that shows current job openings. If you are gainfully employed and stumbled across it looking for EHR information don't hesitate to email us and we can share whatever information might be useful. There is also a link on the right where you can donate to OneWorld. We are a non-profit federally qualified community health center and every dollar you donate goes to helping people who would otherwise have little or no access to high quality health care.

The Second Livestock Exchange Building

Phyllis Masek, Credentialing Specialist, located the picture below on the Omaha Public Library website. This image is of the second Livestock Exchange Building taken in 1900. The building that we work in is the third Livestock Exchange Building and was completed in 1928. This image shows the structures facing south across “Exchange Avenue” which was later changed to “O” street. At the time of the photo, the street was unpaved. The stockyards began in 1883 when Wyoming cattle baron, Alexander Swan, wanted a livestock market closer than Chicago, IL. Together with six local businessmen he formed the Union Stockyards on December 1, 1883. The Drexel farmhouse served as the very first livestock exchange. The second exchange building was constructed in 1885 by J. E. Riley and designed by Mendelssohn & Fisher. The brick structure was 4 stories high with an 80 foot tower. The main floor had public offices and the largest dining hall in Nebraska that could seat 400. The second floor was home to the original Stockyards National Bank. A separate structure was built in 1891 to the east of the Exchange. The third and fourth floors primarily served as a hotel for cattlemen doing business with the Exchange. Thanks Phyllis for sharing this with us! I am also posting a picture of our current building taken between 1950 and 1960.

Free Ice Cream

In honor of National Health Center Week August 10th through the 16th we will be having an ice cream social on Thursday the 14th from 12-1pm in the first floor lunch room. The ice cream is being provided by Cold Stone Creamery so get there early!

Samurai Thank You

The thank you below was delivered at the all staff meeting today.

If we are lucky, a few times in our professional lives we get the opportunity to be a part of a team that is faced with a monumental task for which success is not guaranteed and that failure will be obvious to everyone. The Samurais that you see here all had full time jobs and more work to do already than there are hours in the day before they became Samurais. They were each approached and asked to be a part of this team and accepted knowing that they would still have to do their normal job in addition to this task.

Ana Gudino and Celia created and modified, and modified, and modified almost 300 different provider templates to accommodate the intricacies of our scheduling process.

Michelle and Jeremy took the lead in the setup and training of the system. Each of them was hired at the very beginning of the project and has through hard work, dedication, attention to detail, and great internal customer service woven themselves into the fabric of OneWorld to a point where they are now indispensable. They have spent countless hours doing group and one-on-one trainings and are still happy to help if anyone needs a remedial class.

Alicia and Sara Cervantes both agreed to be a part of the team knowing that it meant long hours, mandatory overtime including weekends and time away from their daily duties knowing that those duties would be piled up waiting for them when they got back. Your input on the front line processes of the organization was irreplaceable.

Hans Dethlefs, in case any of you didn’t know, is a doctor here at OneWorld. He volunteered for the team so that he would be able to offer input on the practice management processes from a provider standpoint and also to learn everything there is to know about the EPM from the ground up. I have leaned on him for advice so much that he now thinks it is ok to offer it without my asking.

Sarah and Hector have been the heart and soul of this EPM implementation. Their attention to detail, commitment to the project, and passion for OneWorld can never be replaced. They mobilized the operations staff to get all of the work done and have led their team through the long days and long lines without a complaint.

This is your team of Samurais. A team that I feel lucky to have been a part of. Please join me in showing my appreciation and the appreciation of the entire organization.

It's here, the big day is here!

Like it or not, tomorrow is the Go Live day for the EPM (Enterprise Practice Management) portion of the NextGen System. The EPM Core team, known as the Samurais, has been working diligently to ensure that this transition will be as smooth and painless as possible. We do need help moving appointments from MDServe to NextGen. At 5:15 today ANYONE who wants to help transfer appointments into the new system should meet in the phone room. Hector and Sarah will pass out hard copies of the appointments scheduled in MDServe and they will be divided up among those who can stay to help out. Dinner will be provided. Overtime is approved for this project. If you are on salary then your overtime will be paid with the never-ending respect and gratitude of the Samurais at 1.5 times your normal rate. Don’t miss out on a chance to be a part of this important milestone in OneWorld’s history!

Below is a rough outline of the go live plan. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me or one of the other EPM Core Team.

Go Live Plan
All Samurais meet at 7:30 am Tuesday in the phone room.
Samurais check that they each have a radio and that it is on channel 9-11. Anyone who needs assistance with NextGen during the Go Live period (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday) can call for assistance on the radio on channel 9-11.
Review Samurai assignments. There will be Samurais assigned to each work area to help with the transition. You will be able to identify them by their NextGen Samurai t-shirt and the look of pride on their face because of the job that they have done to prepare OneWorld for this transition. If you need help and don’t see a trainer, call on the radio and a trainer will respond right away.
We will have bagels and/or rolls in the phone room and lunch provided on Tuesday and Wednesday.
There are four people scheduled to work the front desk on the south side and four people on the north side. Hopefully this will help with any back up at the front desk that we may encounter due to getting used to the system.
We have a greeter scheduled to come in on Tuesday to greet patients on the second floor (obviously), explain to them that we have a new computer system and things may take a few minutes longer than normal, and get them pointed in the right direction.
A trainer from NextGen, Molly Houston, will be onsite through the go live to assist us with any issues as they come up.
All patients from MDServe have already been entered into NextGen and the Operations team has been working diligently to enter all of the financial information for these patients.

Countless hours have been spent planning this implementation to ensure that all of our bases are covered. I believe that we are as ready as we will ever be to make this switch. That being said, small issues will arise that may or may not seem like small issues at the time. We will address each of these issues as they come up and resolve them as rapidly as possible. We will need your help to stay calm and use your resourcefulness and problem solving abilities to help us through these moments.

Your Samurais are listed below. Thanks to all of you for your hard work and dedication to this project.
Celia Blizzard - Nursing
Sara Cabriales - Patient Registration
Hans Dethlefs - Provider
Joel Dougherty - Operations
Sarah Dworak - Operations
Ana Gudino - Provider Scheduling
Jeremy Holt - IT
Alicia Lagunas - PT Support
Cassie Lawson - Billing (Custom Computing)
Michelle Linbo - Data
Hector Uribe - Operations

Saturday EPM Training

The Operation staff spent from 8 until 4 Saturday learning the ins and outs of the NextGen Practice Management system. We went over at great length enrolling new patients with the sliding fee scale, insurance and Medicaid. We also spent a lot of time on the front desk check in process. Everyone loved the signature pads and the insurance cards scanners. Thanks everyone for giving up their Saturday for the clinic and thanks especially to Sarah and Hector for organizing and conducting the class. I can't believe that go live is really here. In case you have been on another planet for three months, we are going live with the NextGen EPM on Tuesday July 29th. Here are some pictures I took with my terrible camera phone, hopefully Maria Mendoza will send me some of the pictures she took with her real camera. Three of the pictures are from training and one is not. There may be a great prize waiting for you if you can spot which one is not, email your answer to Celia Blizzard and Hans Dethlefs.

Futbol?

Our own Matia Capriz played in an exhibition futbol (soccer for those of you who are not bi-lingual) game between a semi-pro team from Omaha and a first division pro team from Guadalajara. 3400 people attended the game including Pat O, Hector, Nora, and Lucia. I was really happy that Hector was able to take a few hours off of wedding planning to go to the game. (Thanks Marielva!) Here are some pics from the game. OneWorld had a table at the stadium to tell people about our services. Thanks Pat, Hector, Nora, and Lucia for volunteering your time to represent OneWorld at an exciting event.

Happy Fourth of July

My patriotic puppy preparing for the Fourth of July parade.

Columbus Junction Pictures

Here are some pictures from the Columbus Junction clinic of the Southeast Iowa Community Health Centers that we are donating the use of our mobile to for the summer. I think we can count our blessings here.

Storm Pictures

We received some pictures of the storm last Friday. You can view them on the F drive under pictures\Storm 062708. Thanks to all of you for handling the storm and its aftermath so well. Special thanks to Jeremy and Hector for working through the weekend to ensure that we were operational Monday morning. You guys are the best!

Pink Team is Losing a Member

An important member of Patient Support is leaving us. Veronica Ibarra has worked at OneWorld for over three years and her last day is this Tuesday the 24th. She and her family are moving to California to explore opportunities out there. She has been an instrumental part of patient support leading up the Hope referrals for two years and then being the first radiology tech and a huge part of the successful opening of our radiology department. Veronica is always there with good ideas on how to improve the department as well as witty and occasionally funny comments. Thanks for lending OneWorld your skills over the last three years and we wish you luck and know that you will be successful in the future.

Flooding at Iowa Health Center

The picture here is from a health center in the Iowa/Nebraska Primary Care Association that OneWorld belongs to. This is one of the clinics for the Community Health Centers of Southeast Iowa. The site had only been open for one month and is probably a total loss. OneWorld has offered the use of our Ronald MCdonal Caremobile to help them get back up and running as soon as possible and we are awaiting word whether they will take us up on that offer. There are two other health centers in the IANEPCA group that have had to be relocated as well.

Retreat

Thank you to everyone for making the retreat a worthwhile experience. Thanks especially to Teawna Bell for organizing this day. I received an anonymous haiku that I want to share with you. If you have your own OneWorld haik please send it to me and it may be published.

OneWorld is awesome

Helping patients every day

Come here, feel better

Wellness Challenge Update

Here are the wellness totals so far in the competition. There are only a few weeks left so lets keep up the good work. Remember that you can get 20 bonus points for your team by turning in your point totals by 5pm each Monday. Congratulations to the Incredibles for re-entering the top ten.

Final Four 2555
Real Chicks 2116
4 Fantastic Women 2098
Part Timers 1635
Team Cass 1598
Ladybugs 1498
OW Angels 1482
Emeralds 1288
Ghost 1234
The Incredibles 1152
Butterflies 1139
Team WIC 1122
Steamrollers 1035
Screaming Monkeys 987
Thunderbolts 952
Chivos Activos 946
The Zappers 764
Rockstarz 561

Operation Rescue McVea

Our own Dr. Kristine McVea (BFF) found herself in quite a predicament last Thursday when she was locked in an exam room with a patient and couldn't get out. Edith called me on my cell phone and Don Manion from Seldin and I began trying to free her.

It was quite a job to keep her from panicking but I was able to use my extensive behavioral health training to keep her calm. Edith and Jessica were so upset about the fate of our dear doctor that they barely had time to take out their cell phones and snap countless pictures of this "hilarious" incident.

Ultimately we were able to pry the door open and free Dr. McVea. To her credit, she was in good spirits and had managed to keep the patient from getting upset also. Thanks to Dr. McVea for her sense of humor and to the amateur cell phone journalists for getting these pitures to the blog.

OneWorld Wellness Challenge

I don't think I have really blogged much about the OneWorld Wellness Challenge so far so here it goes. On April 7th we started a 12 week wellness challenge here at OneWorld. The idea of the challenge was hatched and developed by the C&C committee. The purpose of the challenge as written so eloquently by Valerie "Words" Niemeyer is to "support each other in developing lifestyle habits that form us into healthier and happier human beings."

Seventy-two staff members signed up and were broken into 18 4-person teams. Each team member keeps track of his or her physical activities for the week and then turns in (sometimes) their log each Monday. When we started this project we knew that we would be hiring a Wellness and Training coordinator but did not want to wait for that person to be hired to start the program. Teawna Bell has been hired to fill this position and has taken over the administration of the wellness program and is doing a wonderful job.

The Top Ten after week 6 is:
Final Four - 1873
Real Chicks - 1570
Four Fantastic Women - 1565
Part-Timers - 1258
OneWorld Angels - 1216
Team Cass - 1177
Lady Bugs - 1000
Butterflies - 933
Emeralds - 923
Ghost - 898

There will be a meeting this Friday at 12:00 in the first floor conference room to review the program so far and to ask questions and make suggestions for the next wellness challenge. Please plan on attending and sharing your input. There will be sugared drinks provided for those of you on a different team than me. See you there.

EHR Update

I guess that a blog doesn't really work if you only update once a month. Sorry. I have lots of things to share but sometimes this slips by. I will try better.

The Go Live date for the EPM is now July 29th. This will give us time to more thoroughly test the electronic claims process. Cassie from Custom Computing has been working diligently with NextGen staff to ensure that this transition is smooth. Each staff member who has gone through EPM training will have a one on one skills check off with a member of the Samurais. On the EMR front, the Groovy Ninja’s have been meeting weekly for some time and are currently tackling chart pre-load procedures and document types as well as process mapping to make sure that we set up the EMR to be able to accomplish all that we currently do for our patients. Dr. Dethlefs, Michelle Linbo, Tom Oakes, and I spent last week in Dallas learning how to modify the templates in NextGen to better meet our needs. It was a long week with lots of information but it was the best training session that I have ever been to. November is our initial go live date for the EHR side of the software. If we are unable to make that date we will fall back to February.

Happy One Year Birthday

Happy first birthday to Nico Dworak, son of Sarah and Alex Dworak. Nico likes walks on the beach, trips to the zoo, and green cake.

EHR Project Update

April has been a very busy month for the EHR project. The Samurais have been busy training each member of our staff on how to schedule different types of appointments and how to update patient information in the EPM software. The go live date for the EPM software has been moved to June to accommodate more testing of the electronic billing module of the software. The Groovy Ninjas have been working diligently in their monthly meetings to learn the EMR system and attempting to log and map out all of the processes within the clinic. The Groovy Ninjas will be spending 4/22 through 4/24 in all day training sessions to
learn the ins and outs of the EMR software. After they have completed this training they will begin designing the training curriculum for the entire staff.

Ducks Everywhere

On Tuesday this week I was lucky enough to be visited by two ducks in our pond in my back yard. They apparently were flying over and stopped for a rest. On Wednesday night they hung out in our pond for about 45 minutes. They didn't show up on Thursday and I worried all night but this morning when I left for work they were sitting in the pond again. My wife and I have agreed not to name them so that we can avoid too much attachment. I feel a little bit like Tony Soprano, hopefuly without the panic attacks.

SWAT Update

Today is a big day for the OneWorld Hearld blog as I am blogging live from the SWAT team meeting this morning. I was lucky enough to be invited to attend this meeting in Hector's place as he is at a super secret conference this morning. The group has several items they are working on right now including replacing defective radios, identifying locations for new signs and clocks, and working on patient education handouts. A "big" issue this morning was where the team could get some masking tape. Courtney was forward thinking enough to save us from forming a committee to solve this problem and offer to go to the store and buy some tape. I hope this was not a confidential conversation, we'll see if I get invited back. There was discussion of getting nurses more involved in the flow of the clinic. Dr. X (I was told that I could not attribute quotes for the blog to specific individuals because "what happens in SWAT stays in SWAT") noted that this would be easier once "internet machines" were in every room. I love internet machines. If you do not know what an internet machine is then you need to get with the 21st century. You may know it by it's alternative name, the magic email box.

There were three memorable quotes from this meeting, not to be attributed to anyone specifically, of course. 1. "At least we can set the bar somewhere.", 2. "If we stress the team more we can bring the team closer together.", and my favorite #3. "Sometimes you just have to throw ______ out of the room."

Have a great day!

Someday you could be a Samurai too!

The samurais held our first EPM end user training today from 8 to 10am in the old billing office/current training center. Everything went swimmingly. A complete training schedule has been emailed to everyone and you can also download it here. If you have a conflict on the day you are scheduled or if you are not on the schedule for some reason please let your supervisor know ASAP so that we can make modifications.

Are You In???

The Culture and Communications Committee has developed a wellness program and are hoping to get as many people involved as possible. We have very cleverly maned the program the OneWorld Wellness Challenge.

The purpose of this program is to support each other as a staff in developing lifestyle habits that make us healthier and happier human beings! A little competition and accountability goes a long way.


HOW it works:
Participating employees will:

1) Fill out an initial assessment - for measuring improvement and making fair teams
2) Be assigned to a team of 4 people
3) Complete wellness activities for points and track them on the Wellness Activity Log (draft attached - not finalized)
4) Total weekly point earnings and submit Wellness Activity Logs every Monday morning for record-keeping.
5) Earn incentives on an individual and a team basis. (Incentives to be determined, possibly free lunch, extra PTO, gift cards, etc.)

There are several wellness areas that will be included for individual incentives, but will NOT be tracked or reported for the team competition. For instance, those who voluntarily choose to participate in weight-loss tracking for individual incentive points will also weigh in with the Wellness Challenge Coordinator on Monday mornings. Individual incentive points can also be earned for blood-pressure reduction, cholesterol reduction, blood sugar (AIC) reduction, and smoking cessation for employees with hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes or a smoking addiction. Individual incentive points can also be earned for self-development activities, such as educational reading, classes or counseling.

More details about the program will be presented at the All Staff Meeting on March 28th. Stay tuned.

We're pumped about this program, and think it will be very fun and profitable for all who participate!! If you think you may be interested or just have questions about this program please don't hesitate to contact Valerie, Courtney, Beth, Sara C. or myself if you have any questions.

OneWorld in the News Again

OneWorld is very fortunate to be honored as the Nonprofit Organization of the Year by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce. We feel fortunate to have received this award and it shows that the Omaha business community is recognizing the important work that you all do everyday in providing quality health care to the underserved. Thanks for all your hard work! To view the full press release for this award click here.

Much Anticipated EHR Update

It has been a while since we have had an EHR update so here you go.

The EPM core team will from this point forward be known as the Samurais. Last week the Samurais completed three intense days of end user training on the EPM system. To review, the EPM is the part of NextGen that manages the demographics of our patients, the schedule, and the billing for our practice. The Samurais have learned how to enter new patients into the system, schedule patients, set up sliding fee scales and insurance companies as payers. The next phase of the EMP implementation will be training the entire staff on how to do the basic EPM functions. This morning the Samurais developed a training schedule for everyone in the clinic. Later today you will receive an email with the entire training schedule attached. Ana Gudino will block providers' schedules during the time that they are scheduled for training. Training classes will be help on Tuesdays and Wednesdays between 8am and 10am until everyone has been through it. The entire operations staff will have a mandatory training from 8am to 1pm on Saturday March 29th. This training will cover the more in depth patient registration, check in, payment, insurance, and financial counseling parts of the EPM. The go live date has been moved from April 29th to May 1st at the request of our accounting department who would have their jobs become unnecessarily more complex if we were to use two different EPM systems during one month.

I can't emphasize enough that the May 1st go live date is for the EPM only, not the EHR part of the system. The EHR go live day is still up in the air but it looks like it will be in the late fall.

The EHR core team will from here on out be known as the Groovy Ninjas. The groovy ninjas are meeting right now. They have broken the implementation of the EHR portion of the projectinto 8 main tasks. I can't comeup with them right now but you will hear more about these items as the project progresses. If you have any questions about the EHR project please contact anyone from either the Samurais or the Groovy Ninjas.

It has been a while since Oscar has received any face time on the blog so here is a picture of St. Patrick's Day at my house. Thanks for checking the blog and goodbye until next time.

National Registered Dieitians' Day

Apparently blogging is a lot like exercising, if you take a couple of days off it's hard to get started again. I apologize for my absence and will attempt to get back on track.

Today, March 10th, is National Registered Deiticians Day. OW has many registered dieticians on staff at our WIC clinic at 25th and L. This clinic is the state's busiest WIC clinic. The dieticians there are listed below. Our thanks and appreciation go our to all of them for their hard work and dedication that they bring to OneWorld and the WIC clinic each day.

Grace Sourile, BA, MS: Grace attended the University of Indiana & University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. She lived and and worked with Upick Tribe in WIC Alaska for 6 years, has lived in and visited a total of 37 of the U.S. states.

Amber Lothridge, BSc, RD: UNL. Amber was born in England and lived in Greece for 1 year and can name all the capitals of each state in the U.S, even Vermont.

Melissa Hines, BSc, RD LMNT: UNL & Baylor University Medical Center TX. Melissa likes to run cross country and was born with a different first name.

Lisa Steinbach, MS, RD, LMNT: UNL & University of Central Oklahoma. Lisa's nickname is "Cole Trickle" after the race car driver in Days of Thunder...hmm I wonder why?

Dawn Ballosingh, MPA, RD, LMNT: UNO & UNL. Dawn played keyboards with Carlos Santana during the summer concert series in South Beach , Miami and played keyboards for Inner Circle at the Cleavlander when they first debut their single "Bad Boys".

Stephanie Thorson, MS. College of the Ozarks & UNL. Stephanie lived in Honduras for 2 years and during that time learned to make cheese and weave on a traditional loom.

Big EHR Day Tomorrow

Tomorrow is a big day for the multiple EHR teams. The EPM core team meets from 8am to 9am. The EHR leadership team meets from 9am to 11am. The EMR core team has its first meeting ever from 11am to 1pm. All of these meetings are in the third floor conference room.

"To EHR and Beyond!"

Employee of the Year - Amber Van Kirk

Congratulations to Amber Van Kirk, OneWorld's Employee of the Year for 2007. Amber is a nurse and a diabetic educator. It is quite an honor to be voted as employee of the year in an organization of almost 140 employees. Click here for a list of all of the employee of the month winners for 2007. Remember that anyone can nominate an employee for employee of the month. The form is available here or on the "F" drive under forms or by contacting Beth Drick in Human Resources.

Amber was gracious enough to spend a few minutes with the OneWorld Herald to answer a few questions and give all of you faithful readers a chance to get to know her better.

Interview with Amber Van Kirk

OWH: Hi Amber, congratulations on the award.

AVK: Thanks, I get kind of embarrassed by all the attention.

OWH: You deserve it. How long have you been at OneWorld?

AVK: Just about three years. I did my preceptorship at OneWorld back when it was still the Indian-Chicano Health Center almost seven years ago. The main person I worked with was Courtney Allen and also did a lot of work with Jerry McGuire.

OWH: Where did you go to college and what is your degree in?

AVK: I got my BSN from Creighton University in 2001.

OWH: Have you always wanted to be a nurse?

AVK: Yes, absolutely. My mom and my grandma are both nurses. My mom is the nursing director for the Cardiac Cath Lab at Bryan/LGH in Lincoln. There are pictures of me dressed up as a nurse when I was little so I guess I never even thought twice about it.

OWH: Tell us a little bit about your childhood.

AVK: I was born in Sioux City, IA and we moved to Lincoln when I was in the first grade. I attended St. Joseph's Elementary School (Interestingly enough, Amber took religion and PE from my uncle Jerry while there) and St. Pius High School. I graduated from Pius in 1997.

OWH: Did you take Spanish in high school?

AVK: I only had two years there. It was very introductory.

OWH: So when did you learn to speak Spanish?

AVK: I participated in the ILAC (Institute for Latin American Concern) while I was at Creighton. Sarah Miller and Nick Flattery were in the same program. I always new that I wanted to work in some aspect of community health.

OWH: So you learned there?

AVK: Not totally. Most of what I learned I picked up in the Dominican Republic. After I graduated I moved to a small town near Brownsville, TX. I was a volunteer with Americorps for one year and worked at a birthing clinic. I learned a lot more there. When I completed my one year committment there I moved to the Dominican Republic. I lived there for a year and a half. During this time most of my work was centered around health promotion, things like water safety, nutrition...

OWH: Tell us a little bit about your current role as a diabetic educator and why you decided you wanted to do that.

AVK: My passion has always been in health education. While working as a nurse I sometimes feel like our interaction with the patients is too short. I wanted to be able to sit and talk with them and be able to help them make choices that would positively affect their health. I still work a couple of days each week as a nurse in the clinic.

OWH: Has there been anyone who has really influence you during your time here at OW?

AVK: The have been lots of people but Jerry McGuire is the one that stands out the most. It is neat to work around someone who works so tirelessly with and for our patients. He is a true inspiration.

OWH: Any childen or pets?

AVK: No pets. I have a daughter Hanila who will be four years old in March. She was born on the same day I was. It is kind of neat because I don't have to focus on getting older or my birthday. Now it's all about her.

OWH: What is your favorite TV show?

AVK: (Looks at me with a puzzled look) I don't really watch television.

OWH: What is the last book that you read?

AVK: "A Long Way Gone" It is about a child soldier in Africa. Very good book but pretty depressing.

OWH: What types of things do you like to do when you are not working?

AVK: Drawing, running, and camping. I took my daughter camping four times last year. She loves it and so do I.

OWH: Do you have any patient stories that stand out from your time here?

AVK: I once saw a mother in triage who had brought her daughter in because she wasn't doing well. She appeared to be about two years old. Her husband had been killed in a car accident and the mom was so concerned for the daughter and didn't have anywhere to go. I talked to her and found out that the daughter was actually five years old and was severely undernourished. She was not eating because her teeth were rotten. I got her an appointment right away with Dr. McVea and Dr. McVea treated her and got her hooked up with one of our social workers. This was almost three years ago and today the girl is doing well and is still a patient here at OneWorld.

OWH: That's a great story. Thanks for taking the time to sit with us today.