Tanner in the Fall

Autumn is my personal favorite among the seasons.  Rustic colors, cooler temperatures, football and hayrides are just some of the aspects of this time of year that warm the heart.

When you work at an organization like Tanner Health System, Autumn can also be a very busy season.

For instance just over the past week, employees that do not normally perform invasive procedures have pulled out their scapel and scissors and have put them to use . . . carving pumpkins. 

The annual pumpkin carving contests at Tanner Medical Center/Carrollton and Tanner Medical Center/Villa Rica always bring out some very interesting and creative entries.  Pumpkins are adorned with a variety of acoutrements from hats to hosiery; and the carvings span from the traditional "Jack O' Lantern", to architecture, to babies and one even bore a remarkable resemblance to one of our VP's.

Higgins General Hospital just completed their annual Chili-Cook Off.  Team members not only get to show off their culinary prowess by preparing the dishes, but they also get to sample all of the entries.  There are awards for "Best Tasting", "Hottest" and "The People's Choice!".  The point is that everyone has the opportunity to share in the fun (and maybe the heartburn, too).

Other happenings this Fall have included participation in a 5K Moonlight Run, an "Ideas in Motion" process improvement exposition, blood drives and community health fairs - not to mention an accreditation survey at the Carrollton facility.  
In the near future there will be Farmer's Market events and a big "Choirs for Cancer" concert.

Healthcare is an adventurous career choice. Employees share in experiences that are both exhilerating and difficult; celebratory and sometimes sad. 

Struggling together, laughing and crying together.

These shared experiences help solidify relationships and teamwork.  Out of this grows a great organization that is also a wonderful place to work.

Like Tanner Health System.

Tanner in the Fall

The People Pillar

One of the ways we illustrate our foundational values at Tanner is with pillars.  One such value is People; they are recognized as a key ingredient to our future success.  

In the Human Resources department, the people we deal with are mostly employees and potential employees so those are the folks I want to talk about in this posting.

We are a fairly large organization - consistently a top employer in our area - and poised to continue to grow.  In healthcare, they say that it is easy to lose that "small hospital feel" when you grow.  In other words, it is easy for employees to lose that connectivity with one another when the landscape keeps changing.

Today, I am remembering just a few instances that provide anecdotal evidence that the People Pillar  is still intact at Tanner Health System.

I know of a particular department that has had more than one of their team members to tragically lose family members over the past year.  In each instance, they came together to support the employee, giving of themselves and out of their resources, working extra shifts, making those comforting phone calls, or sending a note now and then.

At the same time, they continued to care for their patients with unfettered diligence; not swayed from the duty of their call.

The same particular department also found time recently to combine their efforts and prepare trays of homemade candies and sweets of all sorts, to send out to other departments! (The Human Resources group happened to be on the receiving end of one of those trays *WOW*.)

In the corner of the cafeteria recently, I watched as a group of employees gathered around a co-worker to celebrate her birthday with a cake and singing.

A couple of employees teamed up to intervene and find resources for a colleague who suddenly found themselves without a home.

When an emergency with an employee's family resulted in one of our hospital's Nutrition Services department being short of staff.  The Director of Nursing stepped in and quickly pulled together a team to help them get through the lunch time rush.  On that particular day - I got wash dishes.

Tanner even has a benevolence program set up that allows employees to contribute to a fund providing assistance to those that encounter setbacks beyond their control.

Ours is a culture built around people and the interdependence of our employees results in a vast improvement in the care we provide for the community.  We are more efficient because we know one another and rely on one another.

The People Pillar: another reason Tanner Health System is a Great Place to Work!

The People Pillar

Why do I work for Tanner Health System?

Often times I am asked the question when interviewing candidates; "Do you like working for Tanner and if so Why?" As most recruiters would say the answer is always "Yes, I love it here" since their job is to represent the organization they work for. Personally, I can take that answer a step further. I absolutely LOVE working for Tanner Health System! Although I may not be involved with direct patient care, I can still make a difference in people's lives for their betterment. It is so rewarding to know that someone I hire will save, change or positively impact a patient's life.

Why do I work for Tanner Health System?

National Hospital Week at Tanner!

To the untrained observer, the hour just prior to a Tanner Health System National Hospital Week event may resemble mayhem.

The more experienced eye might even refer to it as "chaotic" , but no one would ever say it wasn't an adventure!

And most would call it "fun".

Many healthcare organizations commemorate National Hospital Week in some form or fashion but at Tanner Health System, new heights of creativity are achieved each year.

These events have included Atlanta Braves games, cookie deliveries, softball games, pop corn, fake talent shows, real talent shows, barbecue, and once our Administrative Council dressed up like the "Village People" - oops - I mentioned that once before....

Since Human Resources usually has the opportunity to play a major role in the development and coordination of these events, we see it all first hand. Usually these events are taking place at all four of our hospital locations and they ordinarily take place at the same time!

Many individuals and departments contribute in great part to these events! Managers and Directors volunteer to serve the employees, some will even make themselves available at ridiculous hours of the day or night. Our Marketing department steps in to aid in communicating the news about our events. The Print Shop produces wonderful fliers, banners, posters and the like. Information Systems, Housekeeping and Engineering are invaluable as relates to set up clean up and entertainment . And since many of our events include food - the Food and Nutrition Department is heavily involved in most every activity.

This year we tried to pull off what they call a "hat- trick" in the game of Hockey - that's three events in a row. Routinely we space things apart a little more.

This year all of these back-to-back-to-back events involved food.

On Tuesday, we celebrated with an ice cream social; Wednesday it was "A Taste of Tanner" featuring exotic cuisine from 6 regions around the world; and on Thursday it was an employee cookout with grilled chicken, corn-on-the-cob and many other delightful delicacies.

The chaos that ensues during the pre-event preparation stems from the fact that many enthusiastic people are all coming to one location, each with specific expectations in mind as to what the event will look like. At the same time there are new ideas being bandied about and orders being shouted, people darting about here and there, moving furniture and bringing out food and always ... ALWAYS a constant chatter from everyone involved.

It could be compared to a large family get-together.
Onlookers may be tempted to misjudge the intensity. But for the most part, every person there is just very passionate about pulling off a memorable event and one that is true to our culture of excellence.

Once the event begins, all that energy is then focused on one point - celebrating the Tanner Team!

And it is quite a team.

National Hospital Week at Tanner!

A Taste of Tanner!

Each May - usually near Florence Nightingale's birthday - Tanner Health System commemorates Hospital Week. It's a time to focus on the heroic work of our 2500+ employees and a time to have a little fun.

In the past, that "fun" has taken many forms: softball games, ice cream socials, pop-corn, talent contests and once our Administrative Council even dressed up like "The Village People"!

Hospital Week at Tanner Health System this year will feature exotic cuisine when for the first time, we experience "A Taste of Tanner!". The event takes place on May 12th and will feature dishes from regions around the world - all prepared by Chef Tom Wild and his "top-drawer" team of culinary craftsmen. A recent informal survey among employees revealed that at least 26 different countries of origin are represented by Tanner associates. It is that diversity that we will be celebrating.

Among the sundry edibles, samplings could include:

Tamatar Salad from Pakistan,

Rice Jollof from Nigeria and

Flan deVainilla from Columbia.

Part of what makes Tanner Health System a great place to work is the fact that it is a place in which people from various backgrounds and cultures can bring all their unique personalities and skills to bear on one goal of providing a continuum of quality healthcare services to this community and service area.

Be watching for more posts about this great annual event at Tanner.

A Taste of Tanner!

Tanner Service Awards

At Tanner Health System, one of the things that makes us a "Best Place to Work" is employee recognition.

You see it everywhere: some departments note employees that are "Caught in the Act of Caring", others point out those that go "Above and Beyond" in their group, communication boards are filled with thank you cards and notes from patients and fellow-employees.

One of the exciting ways we recognize people who serve diligently over a long period of time is through our Annual Service Awards program.




Last week, the 35th Annual Service Awards Banquet was held in the Education and Conference Center at Tanner Medical Center/Carrollton. Over 180 employees were honored for providing 10, 15, 20 and all the way up to 40 years of continual service.



Chef Tom Wild and his "top drawer" crew provided an exquisite meal.There was cool jazz . . .


...and there were warm receptions as old friends gathered with their family from work.
Throughout the night, employees received accolades for their years of service.


In health care, most of our heroes are the unsung kind. It's good that we have these events every now and then to stop and say "thank you!".


And speaking of unsung heroes, Vette Carr and Keron Smith of Human Resources each played vital roles in the coordination of this mammoth event; but like everything in our business - it wouldn't have happened without the tireless efforts of people everywhere. People like Environmental Services, Food and Nutrition Services, Information Systems, Engineering, Security, Human Resources, Administration and a sweet bunch of little ladies from Volunteer Services!

Tanner Service Awards