TO: Ballad Health All
FROM: Ballad Health Corporate Emergency Operations Center
DATE: Oct. 4, 2024
TITLE: System updates for Oct. 4
ACTION: Please post and cascade to all team members.
Ballad Health’s Corporate Emergency Operations Center (CEOC) remains active due to ongoing issues caused by severe weather from Hurricane Helene.
Please see below for the most current list of system updates.
The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) remains available to assist team members and their families with confidential mental health and substance abuse services through Ballad Health Counseling Services. Ballad Health provides coverage at no cost. Please review the enclosed list of locations and contact numbers at the bottom of this memo to learn more. Additionally, the 24/7 Respond Crisis Hotline can be reached at 1-800-366-1132.
NEW/UPDATED INFORMATION
Surgeries resuming at Kingsport hospitals
The boil water notice in Kingsport has been lifted, so Holston Valley Medical Center and Indian Path Community Hospital will resume elective surgeries beginning Friday, Oct. 4.
Canceled/resumed classes
- All classes (AHA, Clinical Education, CPR, Epic Education, Organizational Development) for the week of Sept. 29 were canceled, but beginning Monday, Oct. 7, classes will resume on regular schedule.
- Mandatory licensed nursing skills fairs scheduled in October have been canceled.
Support through Ballad Health Foundation
- Multiple assistance funds have been established:
- The Ballad Health Team Member Emergency Fund is accepting donations that will benefit team members affected by the disaster. See details in the Human Resources section of this memo about how to make a donation to the Team Member Emergency Fund using your PTO.
- The Patient Assistance Fund will benefit patients who have financial needs.
- The Disaster Relief Fund is a greatest need opportunity for support.
- To donate to any of these funds at the Ballad Health Foundation:
- Text “disasterrelief” to 44834 to make a gift.
Donation bins
- Donation bins are available outside of hospital gift shops
- Requested items:
- Adult diapers and pads
- Baby formula, diapers and wipes
- Bottled water
- Cleaning supplies
- Feminine hygiene products
- Personal hygiene products (soap, shampoo, deodorant, etc.)
- New bedding, clothing, socks and shoes
- Nonperishable food
- Manual can openers
- Donations will support our team members, vulnerable children and families through Strong Starts, Strong Futures, and Strong Families, low-income participants in Appalachian Highlands Care Network, and patients with emergency needs.
Volunteer coordination
Interested in volunteering? Volunteers can sign-up via Smartsheet with their name, contact information, desired locations and any relevant credentials. This will create a contact group and allow Ballad Health to best align volunteers with needs.
Human resources
- The flu shot deadline has been extended to Wednesday, Nov. 6.
- Team members who need emergency resources such as food or housing should reach out to:
- 423-431-2426 or ahcn.navigator@balladhealth.org
- Team members who need childcare assistance should reach out to:
- 904-451-2793 or Pam.smith@balladhealth.org
- The Inclement Weather Policy remains in place through the night shift on Sunday, Oct. 6, and until Monday, Oct. 7, at 7 a.m.
- A one-time PTO (paid time off) cash-in has been approved with the following details:
- A team member can cash in up to 20 hours from their regular PTO bank. Additionally, team members may choose to donate up to 10 hours to the Team Member Emergency Fund (TMEF) to support flood relief and other critical needs, a total of 30 hours.
- You may choose to cash in fewer hours (less than 20) and donate more hours to the TMEF. For example, you can choose to cash in 15 hours and donate 15 hours, or donate all 30 hours to the TMEF and forgo receiving a PTO cash-in.
- All hours will be treated as income and taxed accordingly. For any hours donated to the TMEF, the foundation will provide documentation that can be used to support a charitable donation of the amount contributed.
- You will need to maintain at least 20 hours in your PTO bank after cash-in and donated hours are deducted. If you do not have enough hours in your PTO bank to cover the cash-in and donation and maintain a balance of 20 hours, then the time will be deducted from your frozen personal bank.
- You can view your plan balances in the HR and Payroll Service Center by clicking on the PTO Balance icon on the home page.
- You can elect to have your PTO cash-in rolled into your Health Savings Account (HSA) or your Lincoln retirement account.
- The request form will be active Monday, Oct. 7, and will remain posted until Wednesday, Oct. 30, at 5 p.m. No exceptions to the time frame.
- Foundation donations will be processed and donated on the check dated Nov. 8; PTO cash-in requests will be processed and paid out on the check dated Nov. 22. HSA and retirement plan rollovers will be processed on the demand check run dated Nov. 26.
Medical Response Unit operations continue in Erwin
- Located in the auditorium parking lot of Unicoi County High School in Erwin, the site provides 24/7 first aid, triage for minor illnesses and injuries and stabilization, including:
- Basic treatment of infections
- Stabilization and transfer for trauma and serious conditions
- Respiratory infections
- Skin infections
- Located at 700 S. Mohawk Drive in Erwin, Tenn.
- Unicoi County Hospital team members will be staffing the unit around the clock until further notice.
- As of 4 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 3, the Medical Response Unit had seen 45 patients.
REMINDERS
Safety precautions during boil water advisories
During boil water advisories, the use of alcohol-based hand sanitizer continues to be the preferred method for hand hygiene before and after patient care, unless hands are visibly soiled.
- If a team member needs soap and water for soiled hands:
- Use water from the sink to perform hand hygiene with soap and water for 20 seconds.
- Scrub hands to remove visible soil.
- After drying hands completely, the team member should use alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- If no running water is available:
- Hand hygiene with soap and water will become a two-person procedure.
- Assisting team member will pour bottled water over the hands of the team member performing hand hygiene to moisten the hands.
- The team member should then apply soap and scrub their hands for 20 seconds to remove any visible soil.
- The assisting team member should then rinse the hands by pouring more bottled water over them.
- Operating room scrubs for facilities under a boil water alert:
- For the first scrub-in of the day, hand hygiene procedure MUST be a two-person procedure.
- Assisting team member will pour bottled water over the hands of the team member performing hand hygiene to moisten the hands.
- The team member should apply soap and scrub their hands for 30 seconds to remove any visible soil.
- The assisting team member should rinse by pouring more bottled water over the hands.
- The team member should proceed with the six-minute “wet-scrub,” using chlorohexidine- or betadine-impregnated scrub sponges that are part of the normal surgical prep process.
- Once the wet-scrub is completed, the assisting team member should then rinse both arms and hands by pouring more bottled water until a complete rinse has been achieved.
- Additional safety precautions:
- Infection prevention is providing bottled water to patients.
- Oral hygiene should be completed with bottled water.
- Do not use ice machines or coffee machines or consume fountain drinks.
- Specialty education materials will be provided.
Flood recovery safety guidelines
- Anyone involved in disaster cleanup should check their tetanus vaccine status. Team members who are not up to date on their tetanus vaccine may present to any Team Member Health office and receive a TdaP vaccines free of charge.
- If working in muddy areas should wear a mask or respirator as there is a possibility toxins, irritants, chemicals and bacteria have settled into the mud and could be released as a microscopic airborne dust.
- If you or your family have a bee allergy, please be aware the flooding has disturbed bee hives so please have all need supplies on hand— EpiPens and Benadryl as prescribed by your healthcare provider.
- Prior to the floods, there was already an increase in West Nile Virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis, diseases spread by mosquitos. If working outside, please:
- Use insect repellent
- Wear loose-fitting long sleeve shirts and pants to cover all exposed skin
- Additional tips can be found here: Preventing Mosquito Bites | Mosquitoes | CDC
- Vaccine considerations – Hepatitis A vaccine is a routinely recommended vaccine for adults and children. Being exposed to floodwater is not a recommendation for this vaccine, but it’s still important to ensure you are up to date with all routinely recommended vaccines.
- For health and safety questions or concerns related to flooding or power outages due to the hurricane, call the Northeast Regional Health Office’s Citizen Information Line at 423-979-4689, Monday through Friday between 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Send us your Mission Moments
In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, our team members are bearing witness to incredible compassion, volunteerism, support and heroism.
To share these stories, Ballad Health has online systems for team members to submit their photos and experiences the Smartsheet form or click the “Mission Moment” button within the Ballad Teams mobile app. Please fill out the provided fields and provide any photos or other documents.
Please note: Only send photos you have taken – please do not share photos or videos posted on social media or sent to you from other sources.
Resources for displaced team members
- Various shower facilities on Ballad Health properties are available for team members and their immediate family members.
- Team members must provide their name badge when visiting the shower facilities.
- Shower facilities are available at:
- Ballad Health hospitals (contact the House Supervisor before visiting to receive location details)
- The Wellness Center in Johnson City
- YMCA in Kingsport
- Towels and toiletries are not provided.
Sycamore Shoals Hospital resumes all services
- Inpatient services resumed on Wednesday, Oct. 2.
- Surgeries resumed on Thursday, Oct. 3.
Greeneville Community Hospital services remain suspended
- All services remain suspended at Greeneville Community Hospital except for those provided in the emergency department.
- Emergency obstetric (OB) services are still being provided for patients in active labor or have an emergent situation. OB patients with a scheduled induction at Greeneville Community Hospital should call their physician to receive care at another hospital.
- Patients experiencing an emergency may still come to the hospital’s emergency department.
Laughlin Healthcare Center services remain suspended
- Residents from Laughlin Healthcare Center in Greeneville were successfully evacuated to Wexford House in Kingsport.
- Laughlin Healthcare Center will remain closed until utilities and the Greeneville water supply stabilize.
Team member assistance
- Team members who need assistance should first reach out to HR.
- HR will route team members to the most appropriate avenue for assistance.
- HR is prepared to coordinate financial needs, referrals to the Employee Assistance Program or community needs assistance.
- Ballad Health has liaisons available at EMA shelters throughout the region to assist with social needs, including 7-to-10-day supplies of medication for those temporarily unable to get prescriptions refilled. To contact a liaison, reach out by emailing EPMO_Projects@balladhealth.org (note email address contains an underscore symbol) or 423-979-6178.
- The Federal Emergency Management Agency has a site with various resources, including how to apply for assistance. It includes links to state-specific resources.
Questions
For questions, please contact the Ballad Health Corporate Emergency Operations Center at BalladHealthCorporateEOC@BalladHealth.org.
Ballad Health EAP locations
TENNESSEE
- Bristol
1 Medical Park Blvd, Suite 200E
Bristol, TN 37620
423.844.5100
- Elizabethton
1497 West Elk Avenue, Suite 21
Elizabethton, TN 37643
423.542.7420
- Greeneville
438 East Vann Road, Suite 202
Greeneville, TN 37743
423.636.0491
- Johnson City
701 Med Tech Parkway,
Suites 200 & 201
Johnson City, TN 37604
423.302.3480
- Kingsport
2204 Pavilion Drive, Suite 107
Kingsport, TN 37660
423.343.1442
- Rogersville
948 West Broadway Street, Suite 2
Rogersville, TN 37857
423.921.7150
VIRGINIA
- Abingdon
613 Campus Dr, Suite 200
Abingdon, VA 24210
276.628.1186
- Big Stone Gap
1980 Holton Avenue, Suite 103
Big Stone Gap, VA 24219
276.524.8100
- Lebanon
344 Overlook Drive, Suite 200
Lebanon, VA 24266
276.883.8042
- Rural Retreat
7021 West Lee Highway, Suite C
Rural Retreat, VA 24368
276.686.4148
- St. Paul
16431 Wise Street
St. Paul, VA 24283
276.762.2300
