Dignity Health | St. Rose Dominican | Reach | Winter 2020

4 StRoseHospitals.org Tributes to our brave doctors, nurses, and clinical staff are well-deserved and appreciated. But those medical professionals are backed up by hundreds of other brave individuals working in departments that are usually behind the scenes. Together, they work to help keep this virus at bay. While nearly everyone else in the world was staying safe in their homes to avoid contracting the coronavirus, the people who work in our hospitals— in both clinical and nonclinical environments—were bravely coming to work, following strict protocols, and wearing protective gear to look after themselves and others. Heroes work here Not all heroes wear capes… or hospital scrubs Environmental Services Some of our hardest-working people work in the Environmental Services Department (EVS). They are responsible for keeping our hospitals clean. Like other hospital workers, they overcame their personal fears of COVID-19 by learning about the virus and following proper infection control practices. The EVS team oversees all areas of our hospitals, including COVID-19 patient rooms. They clean and sanitize treatment rooms, carefully following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines. They maintain an impressively efficient pace, even while following additional steps and precautions. The tools of the EVS trade—hand sanitizer, disinfectants, bleach, and other cleaning supplies— became in very high demand once the pandemic started. EVS teams worked with vendors to ensure that adequate supplies of CDC-approved products were on hand. Lee Timothy, Director of Environmental Services at the Siena Campus, says, “The EVS team took on all of the additional duties that came with COVID-19, while maintaining our other responsibilities. We work hard and take pride in making sure things are safe for our patients, co-workers, and visitors.” Laboratory Hospitals run tests. If you see a doctor, you will probably need blood drawn for testing. The laboratory is where those tests are run and where important data helps doctors confirm a diagnosis and prescribe a course of treatment. If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that heroes are all around us. Environmental Services Team