December 8, 2020 — Englewood Health has been awarded the Leapfrog Pandemic Hero of the Year Award by The Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization of employers and other purchasers focused on healthcare safety and quality. This prestigious national honor recognizes Englewood Health’s extraordinary commitment to patient safety and ensuring the health and well-being of their employees throughout the COVID-19 crisis. The winner of this one-time national award was selected by an interdisciplinary committee of Leapfrog leaders and advisors.
“At Englewood Health, we absolutely know what it means to go above and beyond,” said Warren Geller, president and CEO of Englewood Health. “Our entire team did not hesitate for one moment to care for the many communities we serve. What I witnessed—not surprisingly—was each and every member of the Englewood Health team stepping up in every way imaginable. They put everything else aside. They saved many lives. And our job as leaders was to support them every step of the way. I thank Leapfrog for recognizing this team and I am confident that we will continue to live up to this recognition in the days and months ahead.”
“Our interdisciplinary awards committee had the difficult job of reviewing dozens of excellent nominees from across the country,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “They were most impressed by the people of Englewood Health, who came together in so many ways showing courage and compassion in the face of the COVID-19 crisis. They have inspired us all.”
In honoring Englewood Health with the award, the selection committee noted several initiatives acted upon by the health system during the height of the surge, including:
- The creation of a physician liaison team, in which surgeons and other physicians who were not caring for COVID-19 patients served as a connection for the patients’ families
- The launch of telemedicine visits to provide continuity of care
- The efforts of the patient and family engagement team to maintain needed human connections and minimize feelings of isolation for patients and families through daily phone calls and the use of virtual technology
- Human resources’ promotion of its employee assistance program and other means of mental health support for Englewood Health’s 5,000 employees and affiliated providers
- The establishment of an employee relief fund
- Myriad approaches to communicating the importance of social distancing
- Partnering with local first responders to prepare for COVID-19 patient arrivals, establish triage protocols, increase understanding of COVID-19, and educate on personal protection
- Taking time to celebrate successes, including a vehicle parade of first recognizing frontline workers, as well as playing the song “Don’t Stop Believin’” and having staff cheer as each COVID-19 patient was discharged to go home.
Hospitals and first responders must be ready to expect the unexpected. But there are moments when life challenges us in ways no one can anticipate. Here’s what the Englewood Health community did when COVID-19 emerged in 2020.
“Our nurses and multidisciplinary team members demonstrated a commitment to provide the very best care for our patients and our community when we were at the epicenter of the pandemic in New Jersey last spring,” said Kathleen Kaminsky, MS, RN, NE-BC, senior vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer at Englewood Health. “At Englewood Health, we have a culture of family, and that feeling of being part of something bigger than you is my takeaway on how a healthcare organization can weather a public health crisis of this magnitude. Thank you to Leapfrog’s leadership for recognizing our family and our commitment to doing what we do best—caring for our community and about each other.”
As part of one of New Jersey’s leading hospitals and healthcare networks, Englewood Health’s clinical leaders have served as thought leaders in the community and collaborated across health systems to share best practices and continue caring for patients and staff throughout the pandemic. In addition, the patient and family engagement team replaced traditional bedside rounding with virtual daily rounding, conducting daily calls to every admitted patient in the hospital, as well as every family, to provide updates and ensure needs were met.
“By sticking to our guiding principles of caring for our community and caring for one another, we were able to face the pandemic in a way that made our medical staff and team members feel supported and protected,” said Alexandra Gottdiener, MD, chief of medicine at Englewood Health. “On behalf of all of the physicians at Englewood Health, I thank Leapfrog for recognizing our team’s unwavering commitment to our patients and the community.”