Olympic Medical Staff Honored for Prioritizing COVID-19 Testing Work

Olympic Medical Staff Honored for Prioritizing COVID-19 Testing Work

PORT ANGELES  (August 27, 2020) – Seven Olympic Medical Center employees received recognition at a virtual board of commissioners meeting recently for their extensive work during the pandemic, particularly their impacts on patient testing.

Chief Medical Officer Scott Kennedy, MD, honored Anna Albright, hospitalist services coordinator, Dalyn Titterness, laboratory technical specialist, Patty Wood, laboratory technical specialist, Carie Metcalf, laboratory assistant, and Kim Kummer, infection preventionist.

“When COVID testing began affecting our workflow and procedures, these staff members stepped up to facilitate new requirements and processes,” said Dr. Kennedy.

While public health notified patients with positive COVID-19 test results, Albright took on the workload of sending letters out to emergency department and hospital patients that had negative test results and were no longer in the hospital.

Titterness, Wood and Metcalf have been instrumental in facilitating COVID-19 testing through Olympic Medical’s lab for tests done in-house and those sent to the University of Washington lab.

As infection preventionist, Kummer is deeply involved in the coronavirus response at OMC. “Kim has been a tremendous resource during the COVID-19 pandemic. She works tirelessly in close coordination with Clallam County Public Health, Olympic Medical’s Incident Command Team and staff on preparedness, policies and best practices for preventing spread of COVID among patients and healthcare workers at OMC,” said Dr. Kennedy.

Employee Health prioritizes staff safety

Chief Human Resources Officer and General Counsel Jennifer Burkhardt recognized Jon Critchfield, RN, employee health and wellness coordinator, and Jasmine Birkland, employee health certified medical assistant.

Critchfield and Birkland met the many demands of COVID, and aligned guidance from the CDC, Washington State Department of Health, OSHA, University of Washington and other leading institutions along with our labor agreements to develop processes and policies that protect OMC’s nearly 1,600 employees. From working weekends, to working with education to implement an N-95 Fit Testing program. “Jon and Jasmine have demonstrated immense dedication and abundant patience. The amount of work Jon and Jasmine have had to tackle and organize since the pandemic started has been tremendous, yet, they continue to provide compassionate and professional support, while answering questions and conducting employee screenings,” said Burkhardt.

Pictured from top left: Anna Albright, Dalyn Titterness, Patty Wood, Carie Metcalf. Bottom row: Kim Kummer, Jon Critchfield, Jasmine Birkland