“I always come in smiling, or at least try to,” says Ed Moyer, Crothall Patient Experience Manager for Housekeeping. “Be positive. I’m a little bit of a joker and want to make people laugh. I have an open-door policy. My team can come to me. I will stand up for them, and I will also let them know when I think they weren’t right.”
When Moyer started as Operations Manager, he had experienced Crothall’s culture of teamwork first-hand. “I became a housekeeper for a day. I worked with a Clemencia, from the Dominican Republic. She showed me how to clean the room. Working with the staff really helped me earn their respect.”
It also gave the team a sense of community. “A few months later, Clemencia’s father passed away in the Dominican Republic. She was really upset, she planned to work the weekend before she flew back home.” Moyer and his fiancée, Erica, decided to visit her at work, on her lunch break, to offer hugs and support. “Clemencia still brings this up from time to time.”
You can’t ask your workforce to form those types of bonds with staff and patients. But you can create a culture that nurtures the human connection. We asked Moyer, “What does providing a welcome experience mean to you?
“Be inclusive. Let everyone know that they all are welcomed. I’m a team builder. I love sports and still play basketball and flag football. Working with people to reach a common goal makes me feel like we accomplished something. It feels good. I want other people to experience that. I want people to feel welcomed, wanted, and that they matter.
“Then your team can do great things.”
What does it mean to you when you’re the recipient of a welcome experience?
“That I’m wanted, that you want me to succeed and to contribute.”
Perhaps most importantly of all, this commitment to a welcoming experience encourages a human connection between the staff and patients. We’ll finish with one of Moyers’ more memorable moments from March 2018, “right in the middle of those nor’easters,” when a new patient arrived with a broken leg, two places right under her new knee.
“When I introduced myself to her, I noticed she was very upset or in pain. I asked her if she was okay. She said, ‘No! I’ve never been to this hospital before.’ She said that she lived an hour-and-a-half north, that she missed her sons (she was in her late 60s), and with the weather, she didn’t know when she would see them again.
“I told her that I understood, my uncle felt the same way when he was here. I told her accidents happen, you’ll get very good help here. My uncle was here for a long time. Almost two months here, then three weeks of rehab. She asked how he was doing now. I told her great. They fixed him up well.
“She perked up, ‘really?’ I told her ‘oh yeah, at first he didn’t even want open-heart surgery, but he had no choice. Now he’s in probably the best shape he’s been in a while. I told her, the doctors and nurses are very good here. They will take great care of you. The Nurse Director runs a tight ship, there was no need to worry.’
“Then Awilda from housekeeping walked by. I pulled her into the room and introduced her to the new patient. I also gave her my card. She seemed very happy. About three hours later the Nurse Director called to thank me. The patient had been hitting the call button all morning. Since we spoke, however, she was good. Over the next few days, I met her sons and talked about all sorts of things, mostly the weather. They thanked me for talking to their mom, and I told them that it was my pleasure—she’s a very nice lady.
“I hope I relieved some of her anxiety and made her stay as comfortable as could be.”
Help Create a Welcome Experience and Join the Crothall Family!
Looking for meaningful work helping people? Do you want to marry your passions and serving others? Check out available opportunities to join the Compass One Healthcare and Crothall Healthcare family. We believe in providing exceptional patient experiences and are proud of the opportunities we have each day to help people and serve alongside world-class clients.
Crothall is a proud part of Compass One Healthcare and Compass Group USA.
Crothall was the first in the industry to standardize the use of ultraviolet (UV) technology. Crothall quickly identified UV as an innovation to destroy microorganisms and fight HAIs.
