Awards and Recognition
Clinical Laboratory Scientist (CLS) Student of the Year
and Recipient of the Jacque Kralik Memorial Award
Pictured below:
Jennifer Claeys
 One of the CLS students in this year’s class, Jennifer Claeys, was nominated for and received the Student of the Year award at this year’s American Society of Clinical Laboratory Science-Iowa chapter. Jennifer is
a 4.0 GPA student in the CLS program.
It is also my pleasure to announce that Jennifer is also the recipient of the Jacque Kralik Memorial Award. This honorary faculty award is given in memory of Jacque Kralik who graduated from the Clinical Laboratory Science program in October, 1970 and immediately became employed in the clinical hematology laboratory at UIHC.
Ms. Kralik was known for her high professional standards and for her love of teaching.
Unfortunately, Ms. Kralik succumbed to cancer in 1980.
In 1982 the Jacque Kralik Memorial Award was established to recognize academic excellence in a graduating student.
Minimum requirements for this award include:
• A cumulative GPA of 3.5 for Program courses
• Acceptable, professional conduct throughout the Program year
The award then goes to the graduating student with the highest cumulative Program GPA who also fulfils the minimum requirements.
~Submitted by Judi Kittleson
Site Coordinator, CLS Program
Reclassifications
Pictured below left to right:
Dion Baylor, Adunni Noibi and Shelby Poore
 Congratulations to Dion Baylor, Adunni Noibi and Shelby Poore who were all recently reclassified to Laboratory Technician II positions. The three of them are workflow facilitators in our Pathology Core Laboratory.
Thank you for your dedication!
~Submitted by Kathy Eyres
Assistant Laboratory Manager
Phlebotomy
Improving Our Workplace Award (IOWA)
RARC Members pictured below from front to back row:
Candice Galvan, Sheila Pitts, Sue Zaleski,
Iwa Clark, Kathy Eyres,
Sue Lewis,
Dawn Striegel and Rachel Kobernusz
 Congratulations to the members of the Core Laboratory Staff Reward and Recognition Committee! After a hospital-wide survey in 2006, this committee was formed to ensure that patient care is delivered on time, every time and with 100% accuracy.
The committee's implementations have been incorporated into our social and professional culture within the Core Laboratories. Our ongoing practice of continuous improvement in our workplace now has invaded this very important part of work and professional satisfaction, and contributes to a warm and fun work environment.
Both managers and staff note that morale has improved, as evidenced by a
noticeable professional pride is evident when employees wear their ASCP pins on their lapels, the courteous voices answering phones and interacting in the laboratories. These same “voices” were heard as an outcome of the survey, and the many activities provide ongoing evidence that meaningful measures were implemented to achieve these outcomes.
Staff persons are overheard routinely expressing how good it feels to be recognized on the Kudos Board for all to see, and that they felt proud to be part the laboratory team.
This workgroup realizes their job is far from over, though. This effort has to be on-going with new ideas generated each year. Consequently, the workgroup will be reorganizing in order to keep fresh ideas coming and to set new and higher goals for staff recognition. They look forward to being able to outdo themselves and see the positive effects it has on their fellow employees!
~Submitted by Sue Lewis
Assistant Laboratory Manager
TRAC Members pictured below from front to back row:
Denny Drees, Deb Faught, Cherri Doud and Corry Morris
Not pictured: Diane Poch and Stephanie Kneeskern
 Congratulations to the members of the Training, Resource and Action Committee (TRAC) for receiving their IOWA Award. Members of a laboratory work-group stepped forward to actively consider ideas, and to develop action plans for implementing improvements for Core Laboratory training methods, schedules and competency. The new system was thoughtfully rolled out in July 2007, amidst a record number of new employees beginning training during that month. The new system was stretched and tested at a level unanticipated by those who designed it. Through these challenges, a new standard for building a systematic approach using Baldridge Criteria for Performance Excellence is now a reality within our community.
The 61 Clinical Lab Science (CLS) staff persons at all levels within the Core Labs express satisfaction with demonstrated improvement in the training.
All staff person have a clear understanding of the expectations/goals of the trainer and trainee; there is no longer any confusion over the process. Having electronic documentation allows more communication between trainers, trainees and the TRAC. The electronic documentation of all training-related activities, most notably, the Daily Training Feedback form allows the new employee to express any issues they might have in a safe environment, and be assured that appropriate and professional action is taken to build trust and create an environment of open communication.
The team continues to work hard to provide a welcoming and friendly atmosphere for new employees, as evidenced by our ability to retain all of our new hires.
An internal survey is now in process within the Core Laboratories, and the TRAC is confident that while improvements will likely be applauded, there will also be more opportunities for improvements that the workgroup is poised to tackle.
Thank you for your dedication!
~Submitted by Sue Lewis
Assistant Laboratory Manager
Pictured below left to right:
Sue Dane, Debby Greene, Judy Elleson and Norma Ward
 Dr. John Kemp presented Judy Elleson with an Improving Our Workplace Award (IOWA) on Wednesday, April 9 in the presence of the Pathology Administrative Service Team and their Anatomic Pathology Customers. Judy was being honored for her leadership to develop a “customer service” environment in Pathology Administration.
The customers are represented by the Pathology department faculty and staff and the services provided are management of departmental Finances and Reimbursement, Informatics, Facilities, Human Resources, Risk Management, Quality Assurance, Billing and Coding, Grants and Contracts, Administrative Support and Outreach Services. Judy led monthly meetings that focused on a review of “Best Practices in Customer Services” by Zemke and Woods, with emphasis on surveying customers and discussing and implementing improvements.
The group developed a Pathology Administrative Services website on the Pathology Intranet to provide their customers with a picture of the Path Admin staff, their contact information and a summary of their services. In addition, Judy helped sustain the focus on customer service with periodic “projects” and “Meet the Customer” meetings. The result was a more interactive and cohesive Pathology Administrative staff, increased level of respect between Pathology Administrative coworkers and our customers, changes in our processes and a continuing awareness of our role in servicing others in Pathology.
Thank you for your hard work and congratulations, Judy!
~Submitted by Sue Dane, Informatics, Debby Greene, Quality Assurance
and Norma Ward, Administration
Roger C Haggitt Gastrointestinal Pathology Society Award
 At the recent USCAP 2008 Meeting, Drew Vanderheyden, MD received Best Resident Abstract for his poster, "Lymphocytic Esophagitis in Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Manifestation of Upper Gastrointestinal Crohn Disease".
Congratulations, Drew!
~Submitted by Michael Cohen, MD, Department Head
Immunopathology Award
Pictured below left to right:
Danielle Kunde, Amy Trent, Norm Kalvig, Judy Elleson,
Dave Bohlken, Candice Runyon and Kathleen Crawford
 Congratulations to Judy Elleson, Assistant Director, for recently completing the Introductory to Immunopathology course. Judy has accomplished this coursework with the assistance of the Immunopathology staff: Danielle Kunde, Amy Trent, Norm Kalvig, Dave Bohlken, Candice Runyon, Kathleen Crawford, Stephanie Balke, Ellen Abusada and Lisa Horning.
Thank you for your hard work and congratulations, Judy!
~Submitted by the Immunopathology staff
SPOT Award
The Histology Research Laboratory has many customers with varied requests. One customer group in particular asks specifically for Janis Rodgers to do their work based on a previous output and interaction. Their work requires diligent sectioning of animal lungs embedded in a matrix. Jan has been able to provide them with the highest quality of sections and does so by spending many hours working with their samples. Customer satisfaction is of utmost importance in the lab. Jan has definitely accomplished this through her hard work and caring attention to the customer and their project. Congratulations, Jan!
Submitted by Christine Hochstedler
Research Assistant III
Histology Research Laboratory
Pictured below:
Brooke Zittergruen, Joe Galbraith,
Randy Escobedo, Marcus Nashelsky and Not Pictured: Jeana Heitman
 On December 12, 2007, the autopsy staff (Brooke Zittergruen, Joe Galbraith, Randy Escobedo, Marcus Nashelsky and Jeana Heitman) pulled together to go above and beyond their normal duty to help the Iowa Donor Network (IDN) make a tissue donation case a success. On December 11, 2007, at 15:48, a patient passed away at UIHC and the family was not reachable until December 12, 2007.
The family was interested in tissue and bone donation but time constraints on recovering tissue were to be challenged due to the difficulty in locating the family. In order to allow IDN to recover tissue, Joe Galbraith and Randy Escobedo drew blood for IDN, Jeana Heitman and Brooke Zittergruen copied the medical chart and had it ready for IDN staff. Dr. Nashelsky assisted by moving a scheduled autopsy to another suite to allow IDN to have appropriate space for the recovery. These combined efforts allowed IDN to start recovery with eight minutes to spare before the tissue was timed out. This collaboration with the autopsy staff allowed one family to help others through a gift of donation. Thank you for your efforts, everyone.
Submitted by Rachel Asbury, LMSW
Department of Social Services
Pictured below:
Linda Lampson and Laura Collins
 Ms. Linda Lampson heard that one of our in-house patients had his wedding anniversary the day he was under our care for plasmapheresis. He had a challenging life so far and his wife has recently been helping him especially now since he has many health issues. When he expressed his disappointment about being hospitalized on the special day, Ms. Lampson managed to help him order wonderful flowers to be delivered to his wife (and of course he also had the procedure as well). Linda's special effort made the couple's day!
Submitted by Laura Collins
Assistant Laboratory Manager
Donor Center - Therapy
Pictured below:
Dr. Yasuko Erickson and Laura Collins
 Dr. Yasuko Erickson goes above and beyond her duties as a physician each and every day. For example, she re-stocks our blanket warmer, brings snacks and juices for our phlebotomy patients who need replacement fluids and helps put supplies away in our storeroom. She also personally called a patient to make arrangements for a procedure when they needed to return early from wintering in Texas.
Thank you for being a great care team member, Dr. Erickson!
Submitted by Laura Collins
Assistant Laboratory Manager
Donor Center - Therapy
Pictured below:
Vicki Eaton
 Vicki Eaton addressed a situation in the main O.R. when the Honeywell print recorder stopped functioning on December 22, 2007. Due to it being a weekend that bioengineering needed to order a part, she devised a paperwork system to record temperatures of blood products every four hours which is required by regulatory agencies. A form was sent with each case to the O.R. and then the information was collated on another form to help track all of the cases in a day's time. This system was a great help to maintain compliance until the printer was back in operation on December 28, 2008.
Thank you for your quick action, Vicki!
Submitted by Char Elbert
Assistant Laboratory Manager
DeGowin Blood Center
Pictured below:
Dave Bohlken and Ramesh Nair, MD
 Dave Bohlken has always been a very helpful person on the DIFM bench. His easy going manner, helpful nature and quality work is always appreciated. In a recent incident where there was a delayed specimen waiting an urgent report and no one to take care of the specimen, Dave volunteered to do the work and he got it done even though he was not covering the service. He could have easily kept silent and put it off for the person that worked the next day. Additionally, he did this in an enthusiastic way. Thanks for all you do, Dave!
Submitted by Ramesh Nair, MD,
Renal Pathology and Electron Microscopy
Pictured below:
Brenda Carey and Keith Clasen
 On Friday, January 4, 2008, Brenda Carey volunteered to rearrange her work hours and stayed past her normal working hours to ensure a pressing recruitment requisition got processed immediately. The requisition was part of a faculty retention plan and getting the position ready to advertise and processing the recruitment requisition immediately was vital to retaining the faculty member. Brenda always looks out for the best interests of the institution and is an excellent resource for the Pathology HR office. Thanks for all you do, Brenda!!
Submitted by Keith Clasen,
Human Resources
As Lab Manager/Research Assistant III of the Histology Research Laboratory, Christine Hochstedler had to rework the customer pricing for 2008. The work volume in the lab is extremely high so she did not find time to accomplish this until early December. The pricing needed to be posted on the Histology website as of January 1. Christine was not sure if Tina Swartzendruber, Pathology Web Developer, would be able to fit this into her busy schedule but Christine asked her to do so. Tina made time to rework the Histology website including the new lab name and it was ready for January 1, 2008. I cannot say enough about Tina's work ethic and her accomplishments. I am so fortunate to not only work with Tina on these projects but to also know her as the outstanding person she is! Congratulations on your Above and Beyond the Call of Duty Award, Tina!
Submitted by ~ Christine Hochstedler
Research Assistant III
Histology Research Laboratory
Pictured below: Sue Dane and Judy Elleson
 We would like to recognize Sue Dane for her extraordinary skills and efforts as they relate to Informatics in the Department of Pathology.
Sue has been especially busy this past summer/fall directing Pathology's efforts of implementing three major information systems...simultaneously.
Project #1 - Sue is directing the update for all Pathology entries in IPR. This will ensure a smoother transition as we move to Epic.
Project #2 - Sue is the Pathology project manager for design, validation and implementation of the Epic system.
Project #3 - Sue has directed the evaluation and selection of a replacement computer (LIS) system for the Pathology laboratories.
Sue has led each of these tasks with true leadership. She has communicated each project and tasks clearly and with credibility. She has kept to timelines and keeps each one moving forward. Her organizational skills have been nothing short of heroic.
In August, she arranged for on-site demonstrations with the Pathology LIS vendors. This week went smoothly due to her great organization. She has been a good liaison between our department and the vendors. She ensured that all questions and any follow-ups issues were resolved. She had good faculty and staff turn-out for the demonstrations. This diversity resulted in a good selection. Thanks for leading the team!
And so Sue, the managers would like to recognize you for the outstanding performance you have been doing with these multiple projects.
Thank You ~ The Clinical Managers
Also, Thank you to Sue, for her 35 years of service to the Department!
Pictured below: Todd Gillihan and Judy Elleson
 Todd Gillihan, Program Associate, was exceptionally understanding and helpful about my needs during the period of recovery from spine surgery. He did what he could to provide me with an erganomic chair and desk which was not standard issue.
More importantly, he did it with enthusiasm in an easy and friendly manner which has always made interacting with Todd a pleasant experience. He has been consistently so with other dealings related to office space. Todd is an asset to the Department.
Submitted by ~ Ramesh Nair, MD
Pictured below: Todd Gillihan and Pat Kirby
 I needed to have ergonomic changes done to my office. Contacted Todd Gillihan, Program Associate, and he responded immediately. In no time he provided me witha better and more appropriate chair, an angled book rest and lower computer monitor - and I believe he had to search around a bit for the latter. He followed up regularly and was very professional. His quick response is very much appreciated and the changes to my office have made my working set up far more comfortable and efficient.
Congratulations on receiving two Above and Beyond the Call of Duty Awards, Todd!
Submitted by ~ Pat Kirby, MD
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