I had a situation with an elderly member whose family was arguing about her care. She was scared and crying and couldn’t speak because of the strong emotions being expressed. I took a minute to focus on her and helped her calm down. Then, I asked the family to give me a moment so I could review the patient privacy laws. I came back to speak with the calmest family member and gave them an explanation, along with documents they needed to determine who would be responsible for her care. It ended well, but it was very difficult. When something stressful arises, take a minute to breathe and put yourself in the other person’s position. If a person is truly irate, turn to your co-workers or a supervisor to back you up. Two heads are always better than one. Don’t flat out say ‘no.’ Say, ‘Let me check into this for you.’ This lets them know you are working with them and not against them. The words you use can defuse a situation. They will remember that you tried.

Nobody really likes to go to the dentist, so it’s important for me when I see my patients that they are happy to see me. We worked on a project called Comfort Menu, where we offer patients personal headphones, pillows and blankets to help them feel more comfortable when they come in for a dental appointment. Even though this was a region-wide project, our team was able to personalize what we offered our patients at our clinic. If we don’t speak up, we’ll quit getting asked for our opinion. 

My first day at Kaiser Permanente was my 22nd birthday. One of the Emergency Department doctors I worked with told me, ‘As long as you do right by the patient, you can’t do wrong by the company.’ Over the years, I’ve had a lot of opportunity to reflect on what ‘doing right’ means to me. I think it all comes down to choices. When I was 16, my parents died, and I watched how differently my older brothers and I handled their deaths. I’ve come to realize, even if we weren’t doing it consciously, we were making choices with our grief. So now I try to make my choices conscious ones. Working in the Emergency Department, I frequently see people on the worst days of their lives. They’re dealing with pain, fear and grief. I can relate to that, so the first choice I make every day is my attitude. I choose to have a positive outlook. I choose to take that extra step. To be patient and empathize with people. That’s how I put my heart into my work, with my choices.

I do process improvement every day as part of my job. I sort mail and look for ways to save money. I noticed that several envelopes were being mailed to the same location almost daily. I decided to bundle the envelopes to the same location and was able to save over $20 per bundle, which is about $1,500 monthly for just this one location. I’ve got 15 addresses I do this with. Everything I do with the mail, I look for savings. I’ve worked for KP for 46 years. I’m a mail clerk—that’s what I do and I’ve had the same job since I was hired.

I used to be in a department that was driven by management—it was ‘my way or the highway.’ There was no enthusiasm in the workforce, nobody smiled, nobody cared. A pay cut and a couple months later, I transferred to the Emergency department. There I was introduced to the UBT and never looked back. Our meetings are held as ‘equals’ alongside some of the most empathetic managers and supervisors, and we are trusting each other to do by what's right by the department and not by the individual.

 People are always touching me. Talking baby talk to me. That’s OK. It makes them feel better. When I go to work, I’m there for the patients. In my heart, though, I know I’m there for the staff, too. They work so hard. They look so stressed sometimes. No wonder it’s hard for them to speak up. I give them a little bump, and I know I’ve helped. That’s how I speak up. Every day. I’m a pet therapy dog. I’ve been coming to Sunnyside Medical Center for nearly two years.

I had an injury in at my previous job. It was due to the workstation not being appropriate for my height. I had talked about the issues I had with my workstation for years and unfortunately no attention was brought to it until an injury occurred....My hand actually locked up in the middle of work. When I came to this pharmacy, I wanted to make sure that no one else went through that experience. That’s why I become a workplace safety champion.

I was using a mobile X-ray machine in a patient’s room....I had the machine and the tube set up, then I positioned the patient—and when I moved, I forgot about where the tube was. I hit my head on it. It hurt quite a bit, but I wasn’t injured. I was too embarrassed to tell anyone. I didn’t say anything and sure enough another tech did the same thing....After my colleague was injured, I spoke out at my department meeting. Now we position the patient first, and we don’t move the tube until we are ready to take the picture.

Several years ago, many nurses in the region were facing layoff or redeployment due to a primary care redesign. We were forced to leave our work teams, facilities, patients and friends that many of us had worked with for years. It was tough. Devastating, really, for many of us. We had to get past that to move forward. We had to figure out our purpose and how to best take care of our patients and each other. I’m the UBT labor co-lead for Primary Care Virtual Support....The people I work with don’t just show up, we’re professionals and we’re engaged.