Saint Luke's East Hospital

Helping others is what makes our Saint Luke's team so special! Members of the Saint Luke's East Hospital leadership team wanted to give back in a different way during Hospital Week. Together, they volunteered at Harvesters - The Community Food Network for a day of sorting nonperishable goods in their warehouse to distribute to families in need.

Our radiology department has been named the new Team of the Quarter! They were nominated by their manager who is grateful for all the extra work they've done during the pandemic. "Not unlike other departments, radiology staff members saw unprecedented hardships due to short staffing during and post-COVID-19. The team still needed to provide 24/7 coverage, so they had to be very creative with their schedules. They remained resilient by making an intentional effort every day to show kindness to one another. I can't express my gratitude enough. They always find a way to continue to make sure every patient receives the best care every time. Thank you!" #TeamSaintLukes

We had some furry little friends who wanted to say hi! KC Pet Project made a special visit to Saint Luke's East Hospital employees with two baby chihuahuas in honor of Nurses Week. They provided joy and snuggles during a much-needed break in the day. #Puppie #NursesWeek

Emergency medical service (EMS) workers are there when we need them24 hours a day, 365 days a year. They're brave, selfless, and dedicated. Their quick action saves lives every single day. This week, we honor EMS workers for their expertise, commitment, and compassion. Thank you for all you do. #EMSWeek #NationalEMSWeek

This year's Saint Luke's East Clinical Excellence Awards highlighted the unique contributions of nurses and their commitment to delivering exceptional care. 28 nurses were nominated in five categories. We are thrilled to announce this year's winners: Clinical Excellence Tayler Gero, Intensive Care Unit and Sonia John, Medical Intermediate Patient Experience Antoinette Brown and Nicole Heaton, Medical-Surgical... Rising Star Edgar Enriques, Intensive Care Unit and Erica Miller, Cardiovascular Recovery Authentic Leadership Candice Coit, Rehabilitation Services and Shannon Hoover, Cardiovascular Recovery Spirit and Art of Nursing Morgan Fellers, Intensive Care Unit Congratulations to all!

Hospitalists have been at the frontlines of COVID-19 patient care as much or more than most essential health care workers. Jessica Lee, DO, is one of them. We asked her what she has experienced throughout the pandemic. This is what she said: "We play a pretty big role. Oftentimes, we are the ones doing the initial admission. We take care of them from the minute that they get here and typically all the way through to discharge. It was massively different when the pandemic sta...rted. We shut down all the elective surgeries and our census dropped about 50 percent that first month. I had almost daily meetings with hospital leadership about getting appropriate PPE. We have some doctors who are older and we discussed how to protect them. It was lots of scrambling and trying to learn as much as we could, as fast as we could. In the true surge period in November and December, it was awful. It was very hard to have families not be able to be there. You would go and round on all your patients and then you would make calls all afternoon to all the families. It was exhausting, but I think our group did a good job and we had a lot of camaraderie through it all. I love talking to patients and families, and to have a disease that was really unpredictable was challenging. I wasn't able to give the reassurance that I like to give because every patient reacted so differently. I always think of my job as a blessing. It's a blessing to be part of people's lives in such hard times, but last year was very difficult."

Our hospital leadership color-coordinated their work attire for #PrideMonth.

Don't be discouraged if, along your weight loss journey, you experience some weight regain. Join us for our next Bariatric Support Group, June 29, at 5:30 pm, where the topic will be weight regain, brought to you by Bariatric Advantage. There is still time to register. https://bit.ly/3fqv0pR

You never know it, but someday you may need to help someone experiencing a life-threatening bleed. Similar to how you learn CPR, bleeding control techniques are another life-saving skill to have. Take the free 'Stop the Bleed' class at Saint Luke's Hospital of Kansas City on Tuesday, June 29 to learn how to use your hands, dressings, and tourniquets to prevent blood loss after a critical injury. Register here: https://bit.ly/35qo0o6 ... (Photos from pre-pandemic class)

National Nursing Assistants Week is June 17-24. To celebrate, Saint Luke’s Health System is proud to introduce the BEE (Be Exceptional Every Day) Award. The award honors nursing assistants, medical assistants, and technicians who provide compassionate care, demonstrate clinical excellence and serve as outstanding role modelsevery day. To learn more or to nominate a deserving caregiver, visit saintlukeskc.org/bee-award.