LRMC CEO Joanie Jeanette

Lehigh Regional Medical Center, located at 1500 Lee Blvd. in in Lehigh was all out to show its best last week, only this time it was for the employees of the hospital. LRMC calls them associates and including the entire work force, there are around 350 people who are employed at LRMC.

There were booths filled with information about different departments and people manning those booths offering information about what they do and how it all is intertwined with the successful operations of the hospital. There was a big tent with tables so associates could grab chicken and steak and other things and sit down to enjoy a meal.

But maybe the best thing of all, and it all was for fun, was the dunking of the executives of the hospital.

CEO Joanie Jeannette was the first brave soul to sit over a big tank of water and employees, who had been given tickets at the many booths, took their turns throwing balls at a target that would end up with Jeannette being dropped in the soup, so to speak.

Any observer who stopped by to watch came back with one bit of information the employees of LRMC can’t throw a ball and hit the target, which didn’t upset the hospital’s CEO.

Joanie Jeanette plays the good sport as she falls in the tank.

Like the true trooper she is, she sat at the dunking tank and probably secretly prayed nobody would dunk her. But her prayers went unanswered because a few, and just a few associates hit the target at least two or three times and the CEO fell into the tank.

Diann Cimring, LRMC’s marketing director, said the October 3 event was a big launch of an initiative called “Getting to Great,” and that this is the first year it has been introduced at LRMC. It all began last year when LRMC’s owners in Naples initiated the fun event and now all the 60 or more hospitals in the nation, all associated with LRMC, are planning likewise events.

“The concept is to create a culture of excellence in all areas of the hospital with particular emphasis on patient satisfaction,” Cimring said. So the fun event was really serious and hospital officials are hoping associates learned more about the place they work for with the aim being in the end that all patients of the hospital are happy campers when they leave.

Cimring said that in addition to hospital CEO Joanie Jeanette, “the other three top administrative staff or the ‘O’s’ – CEO, CFO, COO, CNO, were going to get the same dunking opportunity.

The top administrative staff members including Jeanette are COO Justin Krueger, CFO Bo Pulley and CNO Shannon McKlusky.

Andrea Shields manned the patient advocacy booth

Cimring said that on the serious side and the reason for the launch is to get all hospital associates familiar with the “initiative” and the various elements that are part of “Getting to Great!”

She said food was served as associates and their families visited seven booths designed to offer information and educate attendees as to the each of the seven elements designed to achieve the mission of Lehigh Regional Medical Center and that is “achieving and maintaining Great.”

She said early indications are that the initiative was already showing good results since the preliminary introduction to the associates was a few months back.

The event began at 5 p.m. and lasted to 8 p.m. with hopes that all off-duty associates could partake in initiative.

But back to the fun part for just a moment.

Dr. Michael Tucker tosses a ball to try to dunk the hospital’s CEO.

CEO Joanie Jeannette begged people not to take her photo going into the drink. That didn’t stop laughing associates, remember they are employees, with their cell phone cameras grabbing all the shots they could get.

They didn’t get many though because very few people could throw the ball and if given a grade of pitching a ball at a target, most would have flunked. That didn’t upset Jeanette though as she laughed.

Some joked that they didn’t want to get on her bad side and threw the ball intentionally not to dunk her. But the truth is the truth and associates can’t throw very well.

Even Dr. Michael Tucker who reveled at the chance of dunking CEO Jeanette couldn’t put the ball on the target.

The Initiative took place on a parking lot on the east side of the hospital.

Working hard at a large outside grille were Oscar Gamble, a physical therapist, occupational and speech therapist and head of the hospital’s renowned Wound Center, joined by the hospital’s chief financial officer (CFO) Bo Pulley, cooking chicken and steaks for the associates.

Gamble, dressed as a pirate, was not wearing his other hat, that as the honorary mayor of Lehigh Acres.

“It’s a fun event,” said Andrea Shields, who manned one of the seven booths under cover of a long tent.

“I am on the patient satisfaction team. I am an advocate for our patients. I explained what we do on our team. When the patients are happy, everyone has done their job,” she said.

Marketing Director Diann Cimring said the associates seemed to enjoy the occasion to mingle with one another outside the hospital.

“Like we said, we have around 360 associates involved in the Initiative and most of them were able to participate. I think they enjoyed it and learned a lot about what makes the patient satisfied with his or her stay there.

“We have a great hospital in Lehigh and it is because of the work of our executives and of our associates. They all know that the patient is the most important person when they need help at the hospital,” she said.

Lehigh Regional Medical Center, located at 1500 Lee Blvd. in in Lehigh was all out to show its best last week, only this time it was for the employees of the hospital. LRMC calls them associates and including the entire work force, there are around 350 people who are employed at LRMC. There were booths filled with information about different departments and people manning those booths offering information about what they do and how it all is intertwined with the successful operations of the hospital.