Top Stories

System Updates

Marsh Blood hosting team member drive through June; give blood and receive a Marsh lapel pin

Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly listed Holston Valley Medical Center’s next blood drive as Thursday, June 19. The correct date for this drive is Thursday, June 29 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Marsh Regional Blood Center is offering a fun extra incentive to promote blood donations throughout May and June. Any team member who donates blood during any of our hospital blood drives during May or June will receive a Marsh blood donor badge lapel pin. The lapel pin is also available to donors who may not be eligible to give on the dates listed. Please visit your closest drive to receive your pin. Pins will be available in all of Marsh Regional’s donor centers, located in Bristol, Johnson City and Kingsport. Blood donations from team members play a key part in serving our patients throughout the region. Last year, Ballad Health team members donated 2,569 pints of blood, impacting up…

System Updates

Team Member Kudos

Lisa Carter among Becker’s Hospital Review’s ‘women hospital presidents and CEOs to know’

Ballad Health has had another leader recognized nationally by Becker’s Hospital Review. Lisa Carter, president of Ballad Health’s Southern Region, has been named among Becker’s “177+ women hospital presidents and CEOs to know” for 2023. Becker’s is a leading health system news magazine that occasionally researches and recognizes standout members of the healthcare community. Ballad Health chief financial officer and executive vice president Lynn Krutak was also recently recognized by Becker’s as a “CFO to know.” Carter, who joined the system in 2001 at Niswonger Children’s Hospital, began her career in nursing and has served in various leadership positions during her time with Ballad Health, including as vice president and chief nursing officer at Niswonger Children’s and Johnson City Medical Center, and as CEO of Niswonger Children’s Hospital. As Southern Region president, she oversees operations at Johnson City Medical Center, Niswonger Children’s Hospital, Woodridge Hospital, Franklin Woods Community Hospital, Unicoi County Hospital, Sycamore Shoals Hospital,…

Team Member Kudos

Lynn Krutak named ‘CFO to Know’ by Becker’s Hospital Review

Lynn Krutak has just been dubbed one of the top health system “CFO’s to know” in 2023, according to Becker’s Hospital Review, a leading health system news magazine that occasionally researches and recognizes standout members of the healthcare community. Krutak, executive vice president and chief financial officer, has served with Ballad Health and its legacy systems for more than 25 years. She started with Mountain States Health Alliance as a chief financial officer for Johnson City Specialty Hospital. She is responsible for overseeing financial operations throughout the whole Ballad Health system, and she has proved an invaluable part of our healthcare family. Becker’s Hospital Review says that Krutak is “instrumental in leading long-term financial sustainability efforts, including identifying growth opportunities, assessing healthcare trends and regulatory changes, and driving innovative business models.” To read the full article, click here.

Team Member Kudos

From the CEO

Memorial Day message from Alan Levine – a time to pause and reflect

This message was emailed to all Ballad Health team members from Alan Levine, president and CEO of Ballad Health, on Friday, May 26. Memorial Day 2023 is observed on Monday, May 29. Good morning: So many of our colleagues inside Ballad Health, and so many of our partners outside our system, have chosen to serve our nation in uniform. Today, as we begin the Memorial Day weekend in remembrance of those who gave their lives, I also want to give thanks to those who have sacrificed, and continue to do so, in the name of protecting our great nation. In 1996, I had the opportunity to be the Republican Nominee for the Florida House of Representatives. As I was only 28 years old at the time I embarked on that journey, there was so much I had not yet been exposed to in my life. Even though my own father served in the United States Air Force, that…

From the CEO

System Updates

Ballad Health investing in outpatient services, realigning intensive care services at Sycamore Shoals Hospital

New technology to benefit women’s health, while regionalization of ICU services aligns with national best practices for quality JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Ballad Health today announced new investments at Sycamore Shoals Hospital in Elizabethton, which will enhance care for women and expand access to psychiatric services through the addition of a psychiatric provider at its primary care clinic. The new investments come on the heels of nearly $2 million of capital improvements to Sycamore Shoals Hospital in the last 18 months. “I am so pleased that Ballad Health leadership has approved the purchase of a new 3D mammography unit, or digital breast tomosynthesis, for our community,” said Dwayne Taylor, CEO of Sycamore Shoals Hospital. “This new technology will enhance breast cancer detection and improve patient outcomes for the women in the communities we serve. Additionally, given the demand for behavioral health services, we are also pleased to be adding a psychiatric provider to our primary…

System Updates

Benefits & HR

The Balladeer Children’s Program had a fun (and busy!) month in April

The Balladeer Children’s Program had a busy April, with three picnics, a theatrical performance and a race at Bristol Motor Speedway! The program, a free benefit for Ballad Health employees, is intended to strengthen family bonds and relationships among our Ballad Health family. Activities include visits to area attractions, picnics in local parks, holiday celebrations and activities, sports activities, discount tickets for attractions or events, treats, take-home projects and much more! Check out what our Balladeers have been up to lately, and if you’re interested in joining, see the information at the bottom of this article! April events BMS Race – Families won tickets to attend the Weather Guard Truck Race on Dirt! We had an entire section for Balladeer families and despite it being cold and wet day, our families had a great time. Winnie the Pooh performance – Theatre Bristol hosted a private Balladeers-only showing on Saturday, April 22, for our families. The…

Benefits & HR

From the CEO

Update from Alan Levine on our COVID-19 status

Note: This message was emailed to all Ballad Health team members from Alan Levine, president and CEO of Ballad Health, on Wednesday, May 3. Dear Colleague: I want to provide an update on our status related to COVID-19. As you may be aware, the federal government has announced the public health emergency will expire Thursday, May 11, and will not be renewed. Also, the Biden administration has announced plans to repeal the HHS rule mandating the COVID-19 vaccine for healthcare facilities that receive federal funding. As you may recall, Ballad Health forcefully opposed the COVID-19 vaccine mandate at the time it was imposed, and I testified before Congress in opposition to the mandate. The mandate went all the way to the Supreme Court, with the court ultimately siding with the Biden administration that it had the authority to impose the mandate. Ultimately, Ballad Health complied with the HHS rule so as not to jeopardize our participation…

From the CEO

System Updates

Tuesday, May 2, was the deadline to order Ballad Proud T-shirt; important billing info provided here

The new Ballad Proud Collection T-shirt is for sale to team members through our online Ballad Health Store. T-shirts are available to order through Tuesday, May, 2 at 5 p.m. from the Ballad Health Store online. Click here to visit www.balladhealth.store. These shirts, along with other Ballad Health-branded apparel, are suitable for wearing to work on Fridays, as per our Ballad Health dress code policy. (NOTE: You must be on a Ballad Health network device to access our Policy Manager.) Order and delivery To view the new shirts or place an order, visit the Ballad Health Store at www.balladhealth.store. Please provide the correct billing zip code when entering billing information. If the billing information is provided incorrectly, PromoPro, the company providing the shirts, will attempt to reach out via the provided email address associated with the order. If you do not see an email regarding incorrect information, then your order was placed correctly and a charge will…

System Updates

IT & Epic

As we decommission legacy intranet sites, here’s where you can find key links on Ballad Health intranet

Our legacy intranet sites – Wellnet for L-Wellmont and Pulse for L-Mountain States Health Alliance – will stop displaying on the Ballad Health intranet page and be decommissioned on Tuesday, April 25. Team members who use those sites are instructed to access all their internal SharePoint sites via the Ballad Health intranet main page. All legacy intranet pages from those legacy sites have already been transitioned over to the new Ballad Health intranet and are available there. URGENT: Please check in advance to make sure any sites you use are already re-established on the Ballad Health intranet. If you find that a page/site has not yet been transitioned from one of the legacy intranets to the Ballad Health intranet, contact the IT Service Desk at 423-431-6290 or email the desk at helpdesk@balladhealth.org. How to find sites on the Ballad Health intranet Our IT team has created a page that displays, in Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet format,…

IT & Epic

System Updates

National rating agencies cite quality, cost efficiency, access and performance in affirming Ballad Health credit ratings

Despite the ongoing negative outlook for the hospital industry, and against an avalanche of downgrades nationwide, Fitch Ratings, Moody’s and S&P Global Ratings have affirmed Ballad Health’s “A” ratings, citing improved quality, lower healthcare costs JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Ballad Health today announced that all three national credit rating agencies have affirmed its “A” ratings, while keeping their outlook for the health system as Stable. This announcement comes after Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings announced in January that health system downgrades are outpacing upgrades by double. “Despite significant sector headwinds, Ballad Health has continued to operate at a high level due in part to its long tenured and seasoned management team and the merger of Mountain States Health Alliance and Wellmont, which continues to mature and has resulted in a more streamlined approach to health care delivery in the service area, various cost efficiencies and improvements in quality,” said the report by Fitch Ratings. See…

System Updates

Benefits & HR

Organizational Development adding new topics to series of live, one-hour webinars

Organizational Development’s list of live, one-hour webinar training classes is growing. Live sessions begin in May and will be offered regularly. A variety of classes are being offered, with some new titles recently added. Visit HealthStream to see the class schedule and to register for any of these trainings. These webinars are appropriate for any Ballad Health team member, unless otherwise noted: Civility in the Workplace Emotional Intelligence Time Management Communicating for Success Generational Differences (new) The Secret to Getting Along – Conflict Resolution (new) How to be a Servant First Leader (leaders – new) Peer Today, Boss Tomorrow (leaders – new) For more information, email orgdeveducation@balladhealth.org.

Benefits & HR

IT & Epic

Important IT update: Legacy intranet sites Wellnet and Pulse to be decommissioned April 25

Our legacy intranet sites – Wellnet for L-Wellmont and Pulse for L-Mountain States Health Alliance – will stop displaying on the Ballad Health intranet page and be decommissioned on April 25. Team members who use those sites are instructed to access all their internal SharePoint sites via the Ballad Health intranet main page. Many of the crucial intranet pages from those legacy sites have already been transitioned over to the new Ballad Health intranet and are available there. We continue to evaluate legacy pages and migrate them to the Ballad Health intranet. More details are forthcoming. URGENT: Please check in advance to see if any sites you use are already re-established on the Ballad Health intranet. For old pages that are not already established on the Ballad Health intranet – once any of these pages are transitioned to the Ballad Health intranet, and the old Pulse and Wellnet sites are removed, team members will need…

IT & Epic

Benefits & HR

Lincoln Financial offers the tools you need for financial wellness

Lincoln Financial, Ballad Health’s retirement plan partner, offers the tools and calculators to make it easier for you to manage your finances, plan your retirement and improve your financial wellness. Check out the tools below, and remember, you can always access your Lincoln Financial retirement account at LincolnFinancial.com/Retirement, and you can set up a one-on-one meeting with your Lincoln Financial retirement consultant today by visiting LincolnFinancial.com/BalladSchedule. Click here to view the flyer below as an interactive PDF.

Benefits & HR

Sharecare

B-Well Powered by Sharecare now offering free ‘Unwinding Anxiety’ stress relief program

As part of the B-Well Powered by Sharecare wellness program for team members, Sharecare is offering “Unwinding Anxiety,” an award-winning, evidence-based digital program to help people deal with stress. The program is free to all eligible Ballad Health team members. What is Unwinding Anxiety? The 30-day program consists of 31 individual modules with short daily exercises to help you learn how your mind works and change your habits around anxiety. It combines neuroscience, mindfulness and powerful anti-anxiety tools to help you completely change your relationship to stress. Tools include video lessons, regular check-ins to help break the cycle of worry, journaling, mindfulness exercises, specialized support and access to expert advice. You’ll learn how to switch gears the moment unwanted sensations and anxiety arise. Unwinding Anxiety helps you identify triggers and ride out stressful episodes. The program was designed by Jud Brewer, MD, PhD, a renowned thought leader in the neuroscience of habit formation. His TED…

Sharecare

Benefits & HR

Organizational Development offering ‘5 Minute Skill Builders’ virtual sessions

Time is precious – and so is the need to rejuvenate, re-engage and remember the noble work we do for our community and each other at Ballad Health. Take five minutes and check out these new titles in our 5 Minute Skill Builders library and be sure to share with your teams. 5 Minute Skill Builders are CBL-type videos, internally produced and available in HealthStream, that can be accessed at any time. They are about five minutes or less in length, with content that’s beneficial for any Ballad Health team member. Sessions include: Phone Etiquette Email Etiquette Three Good Things – Helps refocus on gratitude and resilience (new) The Power of First Impressions – For patient, visitors, and our team members (new) Managing a Remote Team – Quick tips for managing, engaging and connecting with remote teams (new) For more information, email orgdeveducation@balladhealth.org.

Benefits & HR

Refer a new hire for certain positions with Ballad Health and receive a bonus!

Ballad Health is offering a bonus to team members who refer a new hire for certain direct patient care clinical and lab positions across the system, offered through April 30. (See positions and bonus amounts below.) How it works: When the person applies for the job, they’ll be asked if they were referred by a current Ballad Health team member and can note that on the application. If you know someone who is qualified for these positions, please refer them to our recruitment team! For more details, contact the human resources recruiting line at 423-302-3299.

Benefits & HR

CEOC & COVID-19

CEOC memo: Update on masking requirements, effective Monday, April 3

TO: Ballad Health All FROM: Ballad Health Corporate Emergency Operations Center DATE: March 29, 2023 TITLE: Updated Masking Requirements COVID-19 inpatient cases: 46 COVID-19 patients in ICU: 6 COVID-19 patients on ventilators: 1 COVID-19 pediatric inpatients: 2 Updated Masking Requirements Effective Monday, April 3, Ballad Health will update its masking policy in anticipation of the May 11 expiration of the federal public emergency declaration related to the COVID-19 pandemic. This memo clarifies when and where team members are required to mask. In general, universal masking (source control) will no longer be required in Ballad Health facilities, with the following exceptions: By all team members when directly caring for immunocompromised patients, including all Ballad Health Cancer Centers By any team member who wishes to mask due to personal preference Masks should continue to be worn if a patient requests that the team member mask while providing their care. All individuals are expected to continue to comply with all…

CEOC & COVID-19

IT & Epic

Time clock replacements coming at certain facilities

Ballad Health team members at some facilities will soon see a minor change to time clocks, as we are replacing 86 of the current time clocks around the system with the most recent Intouch model. See the schedule below for when affected facilities will make the transition. From a user perspective, these new models are essentially the same as the current 4500 version, but they feature a touch screen instead of buttons. Each affected facility will only have one time clock down at a time while they are being replaced, and the downtime for each clock is estimated to be 20 minutes. Why are we doing this? The company that maintains firmware for our time clocks has discontinued updates for the 4500 models. We are phasing out the old models for security and maintenance purposes. Facility schedule Below is a chart with the scheduled facilities and the expected installation dates. These dates may change, and…

IT & Epic

Cybersecurity tip: Steps you can take to protect corporate, personal identities

Recently, a top official in the U.S. Executive Branch announced their Twitter account had been hacked. “Hacking” a Twitter account usually means the person’s email address and password were obtained in some other breach and the bad guys tried that combination on Twitter. Account compromises occur daily in a world where every website requires some form of account username and password. Generally, websites (especially social media sites) require an email address as the username. If any of these websites are compromised or if you fail to recognize a phishing attack, then it is likely your email username and password have also been compromised. If you have used the same email address and password on other sites, then your compromised credentials could be used to access other websites with the same credentials, potentially exposing any information concerning you within those sites. Five steps Here are some steps to help users understand how to protect your online…

IT & Epic

Urgent IT notice: Steps to preserve business or personal contacts on personal devices

Who and what is affected If you access Ballad Health email on your personal phone, you may have some Legacy Wellmont/Mountain States Health Alliance/Ballad Health email contacts that were automatically synchronized with your device, giving the appearance that they were part of your personal contacts. These synchronized contacts may be impacted by Ballad Health’s systemwide change on Monday, March 20, regarding how work email is accessed from personal devices. (See here for more details on this change.) Whether or not you take the steps required to continue accessing email on your device, there is a possibility you will notice contacts missing from your devices in the coming weeks and months. This is because, upon removing your previous work email application, these synchronized contacts will be lost from your device. Synchronized contacts may also be lost upon resetting your phone or replacing your phone, even if you copy over all apps and contacts to a new…

IT & Epic

Benefits & HR

Ballad Health team members can get great discounts to Dollywood, Splash Country

Dollywood is once again offering some great discounts to Ballad Health team members on admission to the theme park or to Splash Country in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. All you have to do is use the special Ballad Health link when ordering tickets online. Click here for the Ballad Health ticket discounts. One-day ticket prices (not including tax or fees) and details are as follows: Dollywood theme park Adults/ages 10-up – $45 with Ballad Health discount Children ages 4-9 – $42 with Ballad Health discount Regular prices: $89 adults, $79 children Opens for the season on Saturday, March 11 Splash Country Adults/ages 10-up – $36 with Ballad Health discount Children ages 4-9 – $30 with Ballad Health discount Regular Splash Country prices: Not available yet Opens for the season on May 13 When purchasing your ticket, you will be asked to select a date. The Dollywood ticket will be valid for five days from the date…

Benefits & HR

System Updates

Get to know our Clinical Command Center — a crucial part of patient care

As part of Ballad Health’s digital transformation, we’ve established a Clinical Command Center that combines the responsibilities of what we previously called the transfer center (MD Link/Connect), enterprise call center and the Regional Communications Center (RCC). The Clinical Command Center operates 24/7 with a goal of improving patient outcomes through centralized coordination of care. The team at the command center takes into consideration the acuity of the patient, where they are and what care services are needed, and then coordinates resources as appropriate. It’s a critical service for our health system. Getting a patient access to the appropriate care services as quickly as possible can save lives and improve patient outcomes, as well as increase efficiency at our hospitals. The Clinical Command Center serves almost like an air traffic control tower does for airplanes – coordinating patient care in the most efficient manner. The center handles several crucial responsibilities, including: Communication with emergency medical air…

System Updates

Benefits & HR

There are benefits to using Ballad Health Pharmacy; here’s what you need to know

Have you checked out Ballad Health Pharmacy for your medication and pharmacy needs? If not, you may be missing out on some great team member benefits and discounts compared to other retail pharmacies. If you have a health insurance plan through Ballad Health, you’re eligible for some great benefits and discounts at Ballad Health Pharmacy: You save 10% on the cost of over-the-counter items compared to shopping at non-Ballad pharmacies. You receive free preventive meds. The pharmacy offers a long list of preventive medications that are FREE to team members who have a Ballad Health insurance plan, with no deductible applied. The list includes medications for blood pressure, cholesterol, asthma, COPD and much more – including inhalers such as Symbicort, Advair, Breo and Combivent; and brand-name drugs such as Eliquis, Farxiga, Effient, Xarelto and Premarin/Prempro. Click here to see the whole list on the HR Benefits page of the Ballad Health intranet. (NOTE: You must…

Benefits & HR

Compliance

Reminder: Make sure you’re following Ballad Health’s dress code policy

As a reminder to all team members, please follow our dress code policy. In particular, T-shirts from the Ballad Health family of brands are acceptable to wear on Fridays, but must be worn in compliance with the other elements of our dress code. This means no sweatshirts, hoodies, denim/jeans or unbranded attire. Remember – dress code compliance is considered a security measure. It is important for patients and visitors to be able to recognize us as Ballad Health team members when they see us. It is also important that we present ourselves in a professional and respectful way as we represent Ballad Health to the community. Related to that, please maintain a professional appearance when in a video meeting on Microsoft Teams. In addition, it is crucial that team members properly display their Ballad Health ID badges while they are at work. NOTE: Ballad Health dress code requirements also apply to all Ballad Health Medical…

Compliance

System Updates

Reminder: How to download the Ballad Teams app

More than 9,000 of our team members are using Ballad Teams, our mobile team member app. Have you downloaded it yet? Ballad Teams offers important system news, B-Well powered by Sharecare and easy access to an array of other useful resources like your pay statements, PTO balance, team member discounts, IT support and benefits, as well as a link to log into Smart Square scheduling. We continue to add new features. For any team members who downloaded Ballad Teams previously but have since lost the app – perhaps from updates to your phone, or you may have a new phone altogether – or if you’ve never had the app before, here’s how to get it. Installing or reinstalling the app To do so, follow this link for instructions. For iPhone/Apple devices, you will need a code to download the app. The code is provided by following the above link. NOTE: Only one code should be needed per Apple…

System Updates