Meet Cynthia Beaulieu, one of the Humans of Partnership
Access to tuition reimbursement has allowed me the opportunity to go for my doctorate in organizational leadership. In one of my classes, I learned about positive psychology for leaders and how to help them become more resilient. I discuss this with employees and incorporate the concepts into my presentations to stewards and unit-based team health and safety champions. I feel very fortunate that the partnership and Kaiser Permanente value continuing education. I definitely would not be going for my doctorate right now if it weren’t for the educational funds. I also love the Ben Hudnall Memorial Trust. It offers me free continuing education so I’m able to maintain my credentials, which can also be very expensive. Being able to keep up my credentials at zero cost is amazing. You can’t beat that – it’s invaluable. There’s a website you can access for all these courses and it's free with the BHMT. It’s an untapped resource – I just learned about it last year.
What can your team do to better manage your inventory? What else could you do to save money and keep KP affordable for members and patients?
In just six months, a pharmacy team in Portland, Ore., reduces its expired-medication costs by 90 percent—from $70,000 to $7,000.
By working with other departments to get the data they need, members of this pharmacy team in the Northwest reduced their expired-medication costs by 90 percent. What can your team learn from its success to help keep Kaiser Permanente affordable?
Produced by Jennifer Gladwell.
Edited by Jennifer Gladwell and Kellie Applen.
Videography and Photography by Beverly White and Laura Morton.
Meet Kate Pingo, one of the Humans of Partnership.
I was on the picket line in 1997. I was a picket captain and not one SEIU member crossed the line at Portland’s Division Medical Clinic. I coordinated food bank runs, schedules for pick up and schedules for picketers. I remember speaking at a rally with around 150 people outside the KP building, and I was wearing my picket captain shirt—I wore this with pride. There was union solidarity—the Longshoremen helped us out in a number of ways, including giving about 10 of our folks jobs on the waterfront as on-calls. They made good money—it was hard work. Thirty-three days on strike was a long time but worth it. I retired in 2016 after working 26 years at Kaiser Permanente and then seven years for the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions. I worked long days the last few years—but it was so different from 20 years ago. I believe in the partnership and what it does for workers. I loved working for the front line.
Co-leads administering a dose of fun helps shake up a department that had low morale.
A Labor and Deliver team in the Northwest reduces the average time taken to begin an emergency C-section once a physician makes the decision to do surgery.
A Labor and Delivery team in the Northwest reduces the average time taken to begin an emergency C-section once a physician makes the decision to do surgery.
Produced by Jennifer Gladwell
Edited by Jennifer Gladwell and Kellie Applen
Meet Celeste Servo, one of the Humans of Partnership.
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.