OHA awarded Karen Buchmann, RN and case manager at Salem Community Hospital, its 2010 Albert E. Dyckes Health Care Worker of the Year Award June 15 at its annual OHA Recognition Dinner.
Karen Buchmann started her career as a candy striper at Salem Community Hospital when she was 15. Nearly 40 years later, Buchmann is now a case manager at the same hospital and played an instrumental role in establishing the first in-home emergency response units for the elderly in Columbiana County, Project Hello.
“I was taught to live by the Golden Rule. I have done nothing in my life but use my talents to make my little corner of the world a better place,” Buchmann said. She raised $50,000 for the hospital response center and personally installed the devices into subscribers’ homes. She continued fundraising efforts so Project Hello could be provided free-of-charge to residents. The service has grown to nearly 250 subscribers. During her acceptance speech, Buchmann spoke words of encouragement to those in attendance. “Keep the faith and keep on plugging. You probably think what you do is just another drop in the ocean. But it takes a lot of drops to make a big wave.”
Words of praise continued for Ohio’s health care workers at the Recognition Dinner as featured speaker Susan deRoos told the story of her husband’s stroke four years ago, which left him without the ability to speak fluently. Despite his setback, he worked with a team of Ohio health care employees and exceeded everyone’s expectations for his recovery and his ability to re-learn to communicate with others. “We have no family in Ohio, but we stay here because of you,” deRoos told the room of hospital employees. “Some people call you caregivers, but I call you lifegivers. You have given us back our lives.”
In addition to Buchmann, OHA honored 74 Health Care Worker of the Year Award nominees for their leadership, high values and ideals, in addition to going above and beyond the call of duty, giving back to the community and overcoming the odds to succeed. Out of the 74 additional nominees, four finalists stood out among their peers.
Award finalist Georgia Morrow, RN, IBCLC, increases the chance of survival and good health for hundreds of ill or
premature babies at the Mother’s Milk Bank of Ohio, a service of Grant Medical Center. As a lactation education specialist,
Morrow turned a $400 grant into the only milk bank in Ohio, and just one of ten in the U.S. She developed protocols and policies, rehabilitated an empty pharmacy for its location and rallied hundreds of volunteers. Last year the Milk Bank shipped 175,000 ounces to 11 Ohio hospitals and hospitals in five other states and Canada.
Award finalist Doug Mangas, CRT, respiratory therapist at Defiance Regional Medical Center, developed and wrote protocols for a new stress test, the Lexiscan Cardiolite Stress Test. Patients specifically request him when they come for tests and procedures. “Patient interaction is my favorite part of the job,” Mangas explains. “I have met interesting people with great stories to tell and feel privileged to be able to provide the best experience possible for my patients.”
Award finalist Kathleen Schwan, CCLS, MRC, CRC, is admired for her dedication and devotion to the young patients she serves as a child life specialist and clinical coordinator at Toledo Children’s Hospital. “My patients and their families are my top priority—always,” Schwan stated. “It feels good to help others, no matter what the call of duty may entail.” Schwan developed Angie’s Memorial Place Library, which functions as a therapeutic diversion for patients and their families.
Award finalist Jeff Osborne, trauma registrar at Lima Memorial Hospital, beat the odds by recovering from a severe head injury that left him unable to eat, talk or walk. After years of therapy and determination, Osborne earned his bachelor’s degree. He developed a prevention education program and attends more than 15 health fairs each year to educate the public on severe trauma injuries.
Overall, nearly 600 co-workers, family members and guests honored the 75 nominees for the Albert E. Dyckes Health Care Worker of the Year Award. These health care heroes, with a combined 1,831 years of experience, reflect the high values and ideals that all hospital employees strive to reach. These workers represent a small slice of what Ohio’s health care employees do to keep their friends, families and communities healthy and strong.
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