In honor of National Apprenticeship Week (Nov. 14-20, 2022), Virginia Health Services is featuring two apprentices who have truly embraced what it means to develop a career within the organization.
Our earn-as-you-learn apprenticeship program graduates Care Assistants to Nurse Aides. The six-week course includes classroom and clinical experience. After graduation, our education team provides review sessions leading up to the state certification exam to be a Certified Nurse Aide (CNA). The program covers the cost of the exam, and our apprentices become team members at our seven nursing and rehabilitation centers.
The apprentices featured below are just two examples of how the program is a foundation to career development within Virginia Health Services.
Community care
Shawn Hillwas a member of our July 2022 class. He has been working as a Nurse Aide at Coliseum Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Soon he will start as the Assistant Activities Director at the facility. Below, he shares his experience in his own words.
Shawn Hill graduated in July and will start as assistant activity director at Coliseum on Nov. 28.
I was a caregiver without a medical education. The apprenticeship program let me learn the skills I need to provide the proper care an individual deserves.
When I saw the earn-as-you-learn opportunity, I knew I couldn’t miss it! I stepped out on faith and applied. I was nervous, but I got the call!
My whole life changed because I am doing something I really want to do. My passion for people and helping others is on display daily. I dedicate my time outside of work to helping others as well.
My opportunities within VHS continue to expand. I’m excited to share I will start as an activities assistant at Coliseum on Nov. 28.
Serving the community inspires me. I have a nonprofit back-to-school event annually, I coordinate Christmas giveaways to families in need and much more. What I say to everyone, “If you are going to do a job, do a good one.”
Adding on certifications
Valentina Zakievais a CNA/RMA at York Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She graduated from the apprenticeship program in February 2022. At graduation, VHS Director of Education Princess Henderson called Zakieva her “ball of energy. None of us moved fast enough for you!” Valentina shares her journey with VHS below.
Valentina graduated the apprenticeship program in February and works at York.
The apprenticeship program with Virginia Health Services completely changed my life. I started in the dietary department, then enrolled in the earn-as-you-learn program to become a Nurse Aide. I passed my certification to CNA, and recently received my Registered Medical assistant (RMA) certificate.
I’m not stopping there. My goal is to become a RN.
It was an honor to be recognized at York as Team Member of the Year. I also was nominated as Apprentice of the Year in September. I work hard daily to justify the hopes placed on me. VHS has provided me the opportunity to thrive.
I am thankful for excellent teachers who imparted as much knowledge as possible on us and taught us skills until we got them precisely right.
I am here for the Residents. Seeing their smiles means the day is not lived in vain. I try to provide the compassionate care anyone would want to have for their loved ones.
I don’t regret moving to the U.S. three years. Everything is possible when you do it with love.
Join our team
We will start accepting applications for our January class on Dec. 5 at vahs.com/careers. The class will begin Jan. 23, 2023. Please look for the Care Assistant job description to apply.
Virginia Health Services welcomed nine new Nurse Aides to its ranks Friday with the graduation of its most recent class of Care Assistant apprentices.
The earn-as-you-learn apprenticeship program places Care Assistant students in the classroom and on the floor for clinicals for about six weeks before their graduation to Nurse Aides. The program also covers the cost of the certification exam to be a Certified Nurse Aide (CNA).
Instructor Nora Gillespie, RN, and Director of Education Princess Henderson, BSN, RN, said the nine women came together to form a sisterhood.
“They had each other’s backs,” Nora said.
The graduating class was: Daniesha Anderson, Latoya Eley, Elvia “Roxy” Harris, Krystal Jones (valedictorian), Darlesia Mauro, Tierra Nared, Amie Poe (salutatorian), Alexcia Pridgen and Ty’Zanae Sills.
They were joined by friends and family for the ceremony at The Arbors Independent Living and then a reception with cake at the education center.
VHS Vice President of Operations Don Lundin opened with remarks, saying, “We are all here to support what you are doing. This is a big step in your careers. The work that you do makes a difference in people’s lives.”
The class
To graduate the apprenticeship class, students must pass 14 tests and learn 22 clinical skills in about 25 days.
“Nothing is easy about this class,” Nora said. “You all were outstanding. You helped each other get across the finish line – especially in clinicals.
“What you should know,” she said, turning to the audience, “is each one of them has heart and compassion. … They had purpose in all they did.”
The nine women bonded quickly and all brought skill, commitment and compassion to each day of the experience.
“This is the stepping stone for your career in healthcare,” Princess said. “I’m proud of your growth and development throughout the class.”
Princess and Nora had glowing remarks about each graduate. Trending themes were their commitment, knowing they had a sense of purpose and connection to one another and their Residents, and having a heart for compassionate care.
Darlesia earned Princess’s Champion Award, because “she’s like Rocky” and had the third highest grade in the class.
Val & Sal
Amie Poe was the salutatorian. She had perfect attendance – and early attendance, Princess said.
“She had her nose to the grindstone,” Nora said. “And she found out it this was where she wanted to be.”
Valedictorian Krystal Jones “set the bar high,” Princess said. “You worked hard for this.”
Krystal fought through tears to deliver her valedictorian address.
“Y’all broke me out of my shyness,” she said. “We pulled through and got it done. I wish the best to you all in whatever you choose to do.”
Upcoming classes
The graduates will be placed at Coliseum, Northampton, York, The Newport and Walter Reed nursing and rehabilitation centers.
Join our team! We are always on the lookout for the next class of apprentices. The next class begins in November.
Applications for our January 2023 class open Nov. 14 and will be available at vahs.com/careers. Apply to be a Care Assistant.
Virginia Health Services’ team of 1,200 spans across multiple buildings from Kilmarnock to the Peninsula to Southside. What keeps it all connected?
Our IT team.
Global Health Equity Week (Oct. 24-28) celebrates the role information and technology play in healthcare. Teams protect vital private healthcare information, streamline care and support infrastructure that keeps systems running.
VHS’s IT team of Jon Gordon and Kathy Wickline collaborate constantly to do all of the above, and more.
Who ya gonna call?
The Virginia Health Services IT team are self-described generalists.
“We know a little about a lot,” John says. “We’re a one-stop shop. Cybersecurity is a big piece right now. We’re first responders to any work stoppage issues. All the technical stuff – ordering for most departments, hardware and software, system administration. … We wear many different hats.”
Kathy and John use their skill strengths to balance the workload and respond to any ticket, project need or emergency. They also partner with JK Technologies to consult on high-level projects, taking their recommendations and using the partnership to plan and implement solutions.
A big piece is staff education, particularly new hire training and cyber awareness.
VHS has many disciplines with IT needs, such as nursing scheduling, payroll, billing, dietary, rehab, admissions, communications and network infrastructure. It also includes equipment like servers, computers, smart phones, iPads, copiers, printers, electronic faxing and surveillance cameras.
“Those are the large pieces that move forward our company every day, grow revenue and keep our staff moving in the right direction,” Kathy says.
John adds, “We are the solutions experts for VHS.”
What we think they do! (No wands are used, just knowledge, in finding solutions to Virginia Health Services’ IT needs.)
That includes researching and testing the best, most affordable option for whatever the need might be, procuring the equipment and getting it ready for deployment. Then comes training staff and managing the equipment (and its software) once it’s in the field.
“There’s nothing left untouched,” he says. “From start to finish to upkeep.”
Kathy joined VHS in 2001 to install a local area network. John has been with VHS for almost two years. He has a background in IT in the manufacturing industry.
“We’re a team,” she says. “We can’t work without talking to each other constantly, every day.”
John says that VHS truly commits to using every piece of the resources it has.
“I really like that,” he says.
Top priority: Cybersecurity
With cybersecurity insurance up for renewal this fall, protecting VHS from hacking attacks was paramount.
“Cyberattacks have amped up in the internet world. We could not take that risk,” Kathy says. “We really needed to push going to the Cloud. Protecting healthcare information is our No. 1 priority.”
Keeping HIPPA compliant when it comes to patient information plays hand-in-hand with cybersecurity. The IT team manages multiple servers, and moving email off a physical server solution to the Cloud was necessary to keep VHS less vulnerable to hacks.
There are other measures also in place for “additional levels of protection against outside intrusions,” Kathy says.
IT cha-cha-changes
Kathy has been with VHS for 20 years. She has watched how the IT needs throughout the company have evolved and grown.
When she started, it was to install a local area network (LAN) at James River and the separate building behind it, which served as the corporate office at the time. Then the wide area network to connect the facilities.
Communication was done by pager. There was limited email and no company mobile phones. Resident files were hard copy.
Oh, how times have changed. Patient files are electronic, which makes it easier to share between services for better communication. Wifi came online in 2012 and laptops were utilized more with remote access.
Patient care became more efficient with the addition of wall kiosks on units so CNAs can chart care and have it flow to electronic medical records. Same goes for the addition of laptops on med carts.
Mobile workstations keep the nursing staff nimble and patient information updated efficiently and timely.
Electronic timecards and scheduling, more efficient billing and payroll software, company-wide email and ditching the pagers to move to smartphones – Kathy’s seen it all.
“IT is there for everything,” she says.
Now the team is gearing up to pivot everyone to Microsoft 365, which will provide collaboration tools and communication through Teams and other apps.
“We’ll be able to see changes to documents in real time,” John says.
He and Kathy already use Teams to help organize their work days and prioritize tasks and projects. It also helps them identify bottlenecks in the process.
The COVID factor
The COVID-19 pandemic shifted focus for so many things in healthcare, including technology. VHS had to invest in equipment and infrastructure to manage patient care and Residents’ mental health.
“The pandemic threw technology changes in our faces in a flash,” Kathy says. “The Residents’ mental and emotional health, that was the urgent part.”
iPads and Workstations on Wheels (WOWs) with large touchscreen monitors and webcams were deployed so they could be wheeled to a Resident’s bedside and give them a good video conference experience with loved ones via Zoom. The WOW’s and iPads also helped with rehab assessments, and involved family in meetings and care plans.
IT purchased web cams, iPads, laptops, whatever they could.
The pandemic introduced telehealth to the company. Electronic stethoscopes, vitals machines, electronic weight chairs all aided in providing patient care when individuals were restricted to their facility.
The pandemic also proved how nimble the IT department can – and oftentimes needs – to be.
Kathy Wickline and John Gordon combine for about 25 years of experience with Virginia Health Services in the IT department.
Thank goodness for IT!
Kathy and John’s collaboration extends to building a knowledge base for IT. They manage solutions and lessons-learned in OneNote.
In addition to needing to be subject matter experts in multiple areas, John and Kathy have to be understanding of frustration levels of coworkers when something IT-related fails. Instead of being able to be proactive, they often have to be reactive. It’s challenging.
And the emails (or tickets) don’t stop.
“Technology has provided so much for a solution … a device does so much, that if one piece of it’s down (like a copier jam), that means that whole section of the building can’t be productive. So it stops. That’s where we come in,” Kathy says. “All of what we do interconnects.”
The move to Microsoft 365 will make information easier to access.
“People can lose things in email. If you put information in a spot that’s easy for people to get to, it’s more efficient,” John says.
“We need to be able to provide a solution for an issue as best we can. We always have to have backup equipment/inventory updated and upgraded and in operating condition so it can plug and play at a moment’s notice,” Kathy adds.
The more detailed an IT ticket is, the quicker a solution can be resolved.
“Anyone in IT will tell you, our lives live in detail. If you get a ticket without detail, I could come up with a separate, wrong solution,” John says. “We get things done by collaborating together. We put everything in a pot and chip away from highest to lowest priority.
Nutrition is fundamental to living and meals in senior living settings are a source of healthy socialization. Providing both requires a safe environment and an enthusiastic, well-trained team.
In honor of Healthcare Food Service Worker Week (Oct. 2-8, 2022), we are highlighting all our team does.
Virginia Health Services’ dietary department is instrumental in making sure recipes are executed according to Residents’ diets, they are prepared safely and served at proper temperature, and that the Residents have their needs met to the best of the team’s ability.
“So much of what dietary does is behind the scenes, but our buildings cannot function without dietary,” says Viki Reynolds, Director of Dining and Nutrition for VHS.
“It may not be seen, but it’s part of the heart of the building and it takes a lot of skill. Our staff members have to have a large span of skills to make sure we’re compliant and meeting Residents preference. It’s important for them to get nutrition, to serve healthy meals and provide a dining experience. For them, it’s socialization and comfort.”
Jones, who has worked for VHS for 27 years, says it’s a privilege to be a part of the team.
“I’ve learned a lot, and had a lot of good people to teach me,” she says. “It’s challenging but it’s rewarding. Your heart has to be with the Residents.”
The Dietary Manager at Coliseum Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Teresa Bowen, says, “I like the Residents. Working in a place like this, unlike a restaurant, they appreciate what you do for them.”
Unlike in fast food job where you might just flip a hamburger, “we do way more than that!”
Meal preparation
The dietary departments of our senior living communities and nursing centers wear many hats to get nutrition to Residents, serve healthy meals and encourage Residents to socialize.
Each Resident’s needs vary. Residents in skilled nursing units are trying to gain strength to rehab and get home. Some Residents may need to take food with certain medications, and their tray timing has to work in synch with the nursing team.
Some Residents need a therapeutic diet (such as low-concentrated salt or sugar) or a textural diet if they have trouble chewing or swallowing (such as meat already cut, softened vegetables or a pureed meal).
The dietary side has to match up with the care plan from the nursing side, Reynolds says.
Residents and families don’t see the actual work that’s being put in, Jones says, but they see the result.
“It takes a certain type of person to do the work and it’s serious,” Jones says. “It gets deep, when it comes to diets, and knowing what is right by the Residents. “It’s serious work and it isn’t easy.”
In addition to abiding by diets and allergies, there are codes and regulations to follow, including when and how frequently trays are loaded onto carts, the temperature of the meal and more.
“That can be overwhelming sometimes,” Jones says.
Venzel Snead is a cook at Coliseum Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
The upside is knowing you are working hard for the Residents.
“I love seeing the Residents’ happy faces when they eat the food that I make. It brings me joy,” says Coliseum cook Venzel Snead. He spent years in restaurants before coming to long-term care.
“Here you are a bit more intimate with the Residents and can improve what you’re doing so they see it (the consistency), unlike in a restaurant, you change customers daily. They really appreciate what we do.”
Healthcare food service
Our dietary team really gets to know the Residents’ preferences and makes note of them. They will fulfill special requests when they can. They get to know the Residents and their families.
“It takes a team. Everybody that’s working in that dietary department is important,” Jones says. “You do the best you can do.
“You have to be all in and have a humble spirit. You need to be able to receive feedback and want to do things the right way; learn from a mistake and be willing to learn. Be enthusiastic, be hyped up, be on fire!”
The James River team, led by Linda Jones (left), recently rolled out a continental breakfast for Residents that they enjoyed.
Bowen says, “You cook like you cook at home, but a different amount. And less fat and salt. I encourage my team to do different things. We will tweak recipes if we have to.”
And everyone gets geared up to serve holiday meals, such as Cornish hens, ribeye steaks and turkey dinners.
The dietary team becomes part of the Resident’s family. Jones says you often meet with Residents and families who understand you are doing a service.
“At the end of the day, I can visit a Resident’s room and hear, ‘thank you for all you do,’” she says. That appreciation helps build morale.
So does encouragement from the leadership team.
“I like that I see the administration and they’re not afraid to get down and dirty (if we need help),” Bowen says.
Teamwork and being able to come together to “be ready to do the impossible,” Jones says, means “we can do so much more and be so much better if we’re all on the same page.”
Chef Akira Johnston prepares meals on the line at The Arbors Independent Living.
The assisted living communities also are introducing more options, Reynolds says, with more to come.
“We’re figuring out how to best serve our population,” she says.
The Huntington and The Hamilton offer pre-meal bread service, and will introduce a soup or salad course before the meal, “to encourage the Residents to come down and socialize.”
A third dessert offering is also to come, and the dietary staff is figuring out how to interact more with Residents at their room, such as offering fresh, hot items with the help of hot plates and toasters on each floor.
The dining and dietary team at The Hamilton Assisted Living helped pull off a fun “Cheeseburger in Paradise” party for AL Week in September.
To encourage Residents to eat in the dining room more often (which during the height of COVID went underutilized), the dining managers are ordering fresh linens and chinaware to improve aesthetics, Reynolds said. They also are in the process of setting up a breakfast bar that will feature items like fresh fruit, pastries, muffins, cereal and coffee.
Johnston and the teams at The Huntington and The Hamilton also are excited to introduce fun fare in time for the holidays.
Join our team
Our dietary department is hiring cooks and aides for all of our locations. Job descriptions and how to apply can be found at vahs.com/careers.
“The road is bumpy right now, but there’s a light at the end of the tunnel,” Jones says of knowing quality, skilled team members are being hired.
Cindee Hawkins loves what she does. Contracted by Virginia Health Services through her employer, Mid-Atlantic Long Term Care, Cindee spends most days at Northampton Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She also can be called on at other VHS communities.
“I love being a PA. I love being a healer,” she says.
A PA, or physician assistant, can under the supervising physician prescribe medicine, diagnose illness and perform many medical tasks. PAs are being celebrated this week (Oct. 6-12) to recognize all of their contributions to the healthcare team.
Cindee is the only full-time PA with Virginia Health Services. She works with individuals on the skilled (short-term inpatient rehabilitation) and long-term units under the care of her supervising physicians at Mid-Atlantic.
“The goal is to get them doing their best and get them functioning as best we can to give them a good quality of life when back at home,” she says when it comes to individuals in skilled care.
“We see them as our family and take care of them like they’re our own.”
Patient care
Cindee says in addition to administering patient care, a lot of the job includes educating the individual, and their loved ones, about their condition and recovery.
“It falls on us a lot of times to educate the families and explain the individual’s baseline,” she says. “We do the best we can to keep them here and really just try to nurture their rehab as best we can.”
She tells her patients that physical therapy is the “captain of the ship, I’m just here to keep it on course.”
Oftentimes, families have a hard time understanding the process after an illness, knowing only how the individual was before. Providing education and empathy is key to the job.
“I never want anyone to suffer while they’re under my watch. I feel like it’s a calling,” Cindee says.
Physician Assistant Cindee Hawkins works primarily out of Northampton Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
“I just love it. The team here is awesome. I love everyone I work with. … We just love what we do. It’s difficult, I’m not going to lie, it’s difficult work. I love what we do. I love this field of medicine.”
She started at Northampton about three years, so was “face-to-face with COVID-19 patients three days a week.”
Cindee says it was a difficult time, and she and the team wept with some of the patients.
“As caregivers, we mourned them as a group,” she says.
She says the aging population “needs a voice, and that’s what I want to do.
“A majority of us are here because we genuinely care and want to make things better for their loved ones. … We are caregivers. We are healthcare providers and we are healers, and that’s just what we love to do. That’s why we’re here,” she says.
“When you love what you do, you do it better.”
Becoming a PA
Cindee enrolled in medical school around the age of 40. While always interested in the medical field, having a husband, three kids, two dogs and elderly parents came first. She began taking prerequisites at Eastern Virginia Medical School (some of her early college coursework had relapsed) before being accepted to PA School.
She says there were 53 seats for more than 1,300 applicants for her class. Her father passed away the day she was offered an interview for the school, and her mother died of lung cancer following her first full school year.
They were the inspiration long before their passing to enter the medical profession.
Cindee says she watched her father have a stroke in front her while on vacation. He was in his early 40s and she was 15.
“Watching everyone come together (at the hospital), working together, it just reminded me of an orchestra,” she says. “Everyone knew their part and did it well, and it was comforting to see that.”
She spent a lot of time taking both of her parents to and from various doctors’ appointments and was dissatisfied with what appeared to be general disregard for them as patients.
“I don’t want anybody to go through that. It’s been in me (to be in medicine) ever since I was exposed to that,” she says. “We get close to our patients.”
She recalled a story of a woman she was getting ready to put on hospice care. Cindee reviewed the history one more time and found a medication she couldn’t identify on the chart. She consulted with palliative care coordinator Dr. Sharon Petitjean, who agreed the woman could come off the drug. Within three to four months, the woman was recovered enough she could go home.
“Going that extra step for her literally changed her life and the direction of her life,” Cindee says. “My thank you is somebody getting better. Outside of rehab, medically, they’re better because of me.
“Taking the extra time on a patient means the world. That’s the motivation.”
Haley Holland had a good feeling about her test when she left the exam room on a Friday morning. She turned in her exam without reviewing it to prevent her from second-guessing herself. And her proctor indicated she likely passed her long-term care administrator’s licensure exam.
The weekend was more celebratory than stressed. The Virginia Board of Long-Term Care Administrators confirmed her license by Tuesday.
Haley started at Virginia Health Services as the recreation director at Coliseum Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She entered the Administrator-in-Training (AIT) program near the beginning of the year and completed her hours while on the job. She was promoted to Coliseum’s Assistant Administrator in the spring.
“Coliseum is so diverse, anything that’s going to happen in long-term care, it’s going to happen at Coliseum,” she says. “I know that I am where I need to be right now so I can get the best experience that I can.”
AIT
Haley shadowed employees in all departments to understand their roles during the AIT program. While day-to-day focuses on operations and environmental services, Haley said she also needed to focus on finance, management and leadership.
The exam sections covered finance, customer care support and services, human resources, environmental services and management.
Time with Coliseum Administrator Dudley Haas and several VHS vice presidents was valuable to the learning process. Those conversations and notes of encouragement also were valuable personally.
“I really felt encouraged, like people cared that I was taking this test and wanting to advance in VHS,” Haley says.
She observed Dudley’s leadership through interactions with team members, Residents and their families. Haley walked through financials and asked questions all while helping to manage the day-to-day operations at Coliseum.
“The last two weeks of preparation, I studied any time I had free time. Any time. I had my flashcards everywhere,” she says. “I was constantly taking practice tests; looking at my flashcards … I asked anybody who walked through Coliseum questions. I recruited a lot of people to help me study.
“Dudley said, ‘I want to see you do well.’ ”
A majority of the questions on the licensure exam focused on Resident care, or regulations regarding Resident care and environmental services.
“It gets you to think about what’s the best route for everyone involved. … A lot of the questions were things I do day-to-day,” Haley says. The study materials helped immensely.
Haley Holland is “where I need to be” at Coliseum Nursing and Rehabilitation Center as Assistant Administrator.
Drawn to senior care
Haley says her first job out of college was in an assisted living with focused memory care.
“I just knew it was going to be older adults the rest of my career,” she says after initially considering being a teacher.
She loves the Resident stories and learning from their life experiences. Eventually she says she may want to be an administrator for assisted living, where there are fewer regulations that control the Resident experience.
“At the facility, you see exactly what your efforts are doing. You have a direct line to the Residents,” she says.
Promoting from within
Haley said she was encouraged to enroll in the AIT program and used her time on the job to gain the hours needed to complete the program.
She says the administrator’s license provides her with multiple opportunities in long-term care. It was the best way forward in her career.
“It broadened my horizons with my future … doing the AIT and taking my exam, the possibilities are endless,” she says of what might be next. Right now, Coliseum is where she wants to be.
She plans to keep up her continued education credits for her license. Haley’s future paths could include assisted living, independent living or a specialization within long-term care, such as memory care or dialysis.
“It’s just exciting – opens up possibilities for a lot of things with my license,” she says.
VHS is committed to workforce development and promotes from within.
“The support that I get (from the team at VHS) is incredible,” she says. “Things like that, people really care; you feel supported and you can keep moving. I’m really thankful VHS helped financially with the test and the AIT. Overall, I’m grateful for the VHS community.”
Join our team
Be part of a team who wants you to succeed. Our career pathways include leadership, nursing, dietary, housekeeping, environmental services, social work and more. Visit vahs.com/careers and apply for a position that fits you.
It was still Coliseum Park and just opening when Roslyn Shields started working as a laundry supervisor.
She has spent her career in Environmental Services. Over the years her position changed to include overseeing laundry, housekeeping and custodians as Plant Operations Director. She also serves as an administrator on call.
She retires Sept. 23, 2022, after 40 years at Coliseum, which was purchased by Virginia Health Services in 2013.
Coliseum roots run deep
Ros says she has a lot of personal memories in Coliseum. Friends she has made, learning how to be a manager, and it is where she met her husband. He was working in the maintenance department at Coliseum Park, “and one thing led to another,” she says with a laugh.
The Residents have kept her coming back to work for 40 years.
“I have a heart for the elderly population,” she says.
Ros recruited Luwanda Palmer 17 years ago to work in the laundry room of Coliseum. Luwanda handles the Residents’ clothing.
“This is my space,” Luwanda Palmer says of the room where Residents’ clothing and other laundered items are kept.
The washer never stops running, she says with a smile. Each person takes on a role, washing towels, clothes, linens.
“I like the Residents,” Luwanda says. “I like making sure everything is neat for them.”
She also loves to hear their stories. “I try to make sure they’re comfortable,” she says.
And you can never stop ordering supplies, Ros says. She tries to have two cases of toilet paper on hand at all times (that’s 96 rolls per case!) and plenty of detergent, cleaning solutions and disinfectant.
“I don’t like to run low,” she says. Her office is around the corner from the supply storage so she can keep an eye on things.
She is a cancer survivor, in remission for seven years. She says she worked through the treatments, only calling out once. She takes pride in having a stable department.
“I think they have shown appreciation for the way I manage,” she says of her team. “I only ask you respect me, your coworkers and do your job.”
Personal history
Ros moved to Hampton with her family when she was in the sixth grade. She is a graduate of Hampton High. Her son lives in Newport News. Her three grandchildren range in age from 16 to 28. The youngest plays varsity football for Woodside High School.
“I won’t go to the game – I don’t want to see him take a hit,” she says, but still pulls up a game highlight on her phone of him running in a touchdown. “That’s all I need to see.”
She was born in Philadelphia. Her father was in the Air Force, and before being stationed in and settling in Hampton, the family moved all over, including to New Hampshire, North Carolina, England and Florida. He commuted on the weekends from Hampton to Andrews AFB the last year before retiring.
“I traveled a lot,” she says. She has three younger brothers.
In retirement she would like to travel, and views post-Coliseum as “another journey.” She figures she will work somewhere part-time, though, not really ready to commit to sitting at home watching TV with her husband. That won’t happen until she takes some time for herself, she says.
“I don’t know where that time went,” she says. “I’m going to miss everybody. Walking out of here is going to be sentimental. I’ll visit occasionally.”
The industrial washing machines at Coliseum, and all VHS facilities, are always going to keep items clean and fresh.
EVS Week
Environmental Services Week is celebrated Sept. 11-17 by the Association for the Health Care Environment. Virginia Health Services is showing its appreciation for our EVS team by treating them to lunch this week. The team is responsible for keeping our communities clean and safe spaces for the individuals in our care and their visitors.
Our EVS team members have direct contact with our Residents and work closely with the clinical staff. We appreciate their diligence in providing sanitized, clean and safe communities for VHS.
You can join our team! View our openings and apply at vahs.com/careers.
Princess Henderson became the Director of Education at Virginia Health Services in June. But she is well-acquainted with VHS and its education programs.
Princess has been with VHS since 2008, serving in a variety of roles. Most recently, she was an instructor with the education team, teaching the Care Assistant apprentices.
She says her journey with Virginia Health Services comes full circle with this move. When Princess started with VHS, she was in the class she now teaches and will oversee in her new role. She was valedictorian of her class.
Princess Henderson started working for Virginia Health Services in 2008 as a Care Assistant and now is the Director of Education.
Princess recently finished her bachelor’s degree in nursing and was figuring out the next step when she said this opportunity presented itself.
“Every time I feel antsy or think I might step away from VHS, an opportunity comes along,” she says.
“I’m invested in this company and invested in the (mostly) women in education. I get to have a hand in our next generation of nurses.”
She says she likes to make an impression on the students in the CNA classes. “We have to tell them it’ll be worth it. Just focus on your goal and remember you are here for your patients,” she says.
The education team is looking to hire a LPN to do skills with the students so they can run more than one class at a time.
Princess says she tried to break into education with VHS as early as 2016, when she was ADON at York. As a new RN, she didn’t quite have enough experience under her belt. Now, with ADON experience at York and Coliseum in addition to being an instructor, the time was right for the promotion to Director of Education.
“I knew the CNAs needed more nurturing, someone who had been in their shoes who had real-life advice for them,” she says.
“I want to continue to grow with VHS and help develop this program into something greater than it already is.”
Princess’s career has been with VHS. Before become ADON at York, she worked at James River after earning her Nurse Aide certification, then becoming a RN.
“I’m thankful for what VHS has given me to help me accelerate my career,” she says. “I appreciate all VHS has done to help me be successful.”
Apprenticeship program
The earn-as-you-learn apprenticeship program graduates Care Assistants to Nurse Aides. It also covers the cost of the certification exam to become a CNA. New classes will sign a 12-month contract to stay on as employees of VHS.
To apply for the apprenticeship program, visit vahs.com/careers. Look for the “Care Assistant” job description and apply.
Other programs
The team at the Education Center coordinates in-services and trainings for the team. That includes updating CPR certifications for staff, offering review sessions before certification exams for CNAs and more. The team also works with Director of Team Engagement Kathryn Fisher who can connect team members to assistance, scholarship opportunities and nursing programs that offer discounts to VHS employees.
Outside opportunities to grow at Virginia Health Services include partnerships with ECPI and South University. Both offer discounted tuition to VHS employees and their dependents. The universities offer nursing programs, and also extend to team members in dietary, accounting, IT and management.
Seven apprentices graduated from Care Assistants to Nurse Aides on Friday in Styron Square in Port Warwick. They were surrounded by enthusiastic family members and friends who treated the group like rockstars, taking photos, holding up handmade signs and cheering.
The graduates were instructed by Nora Gillespie for classwork at the Education Center and in clinical skills with Director of Education Princess Henderson at James River Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. The earn-as-you-learn apprenticeship program includes coursework, daily tests and learning 22 clinical skills.
VHS Vice President of Nursing Rebecca Boyd addresses the graduating class during a ceremony Friday in Port Warwick.
“I’m proud of this professional group of women,” Nora said at Friday’s ceremony. Princess added, “These women really built a sisterhood. They had each other’s’ backs.”
The group was welcomed by VHS Vice President of Nursing Rebecca Boyd.
“We’re proud they chose us as part of their career and they are starting it here,” she said.
The group will work in four of Virginia Health Services’ nursing and rehabilitation centers at Coliseum, James River, Northampton and York.
The graduates
Nora and Princess sang the praises of the graduates during the ceremony.
The class was relieved Tahmiyia Allison held off on giving birth until after graduation. “She gave 100% and never used being pregnant as an excuse,” Nora said.
Zoe Briggs, the salutatorian, is familiar with VHS. Her mother works in billing with VHS Pharmacy. “She has compassion and heart in what she does,” Nora said of Zoe.
Cyerra Hunter “loves her patients,” Princess said. “She wants them to feel good about themselves.”
Cierra Jackson, who earned a superlative award for hard work, was “always ready early,” Princess said. “She was focus, attentive and got it done.”
“Her warmth flows out of her,” Nora said of Jazmine Martin. “When she told me why she was here, it was, ‘I want to make someone’s life better.’ ”
Andrianna Phillips “brought a wealth of knowledge to these girls. She will be a great CNA for VHS and a great nurse,” Princess said.
Valedictorian Anjil Hicks just graduated from high school. Her perfect attendance edged out Zoe for the top honor. “She cares about those patients,” Princess said.
During her remarks, Anjil said, “as Nora said, our goal was for all of us to get across the finish line – and we did!”
There were a lot of hugs and tears during the ceremony as new name badges and certificates were awarded.
“Princess steered you all right,” Nora told the class.
Andrianna PhillipsAnjil Hicks, valedictorianCierra HunterCyerra HunterJazmine Martin Tahmiyia AllisonZoe Briggs and Director of Education Princess Henderson
Join the program
Virginia Health Services’ earn-as-you-learn apprenticeship program also covers the cost of the certification exam for the graduates to be Certified Nurse Aides (CNAs). The next class is scheduled to start Sept. 19.
Students are employed by Virginia Health Services from Day 1. There is a 12-month commitment to remain employed by VHS when joining the program.
Classes begin about every six weeks. To apply visit vahs.com/careers and look for the “Care Assistant” listing.
Jennifer Dick, the VHS Vice President of Quality and Clinical Revenue Integrity, celebrates her 25th service anniversary this month. She started working with Virginia Health Services shortly after graduating from Mary Baldwin College with a degree in healthcare administration in 1996.
She was hired as an assistant administrator at James River Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Since, Jennifer has been the administrator at York, associate administrator at James River and has overseen quality and clinical revenue integrity for a majority of her VHS career, adding the Vice President title in the past couple of years.
She and her team work closely with the clinical staffs at all VHS nursing centers.
Team development
The crux of Jennifer’s job is evaluating and training team members on programs and tools to effectively measure quality assurance and maximize revenue.
“Jennifer’s always tried to get the best tools in front of clinical staff, and leverage the tools that we have,” said Rebecca Boyd, VHS Vice President of Nursing. “She’s done the research … to make sure we’ve had the best product in front of staff.”
Jennifer has been integral to training VHS team members throughout her career. Several long-time employees have worked with her, including Administrators Nikki Clements (Northampton), Sharon Robins and Bryant Hudgins (Walter Reed), who was Jennifer’s managed care coordinator while a nurse at James River.
“She trains the staff on the use of technology and gets them to embrace and maximize its functionality,” Boyd said.
Jennifer said she has had a hand in developing staff and advancing technology for the team.
“I train a lot on technology,” she said. “You have to empower people to make their own decisions, and you have to have the right facts. … Part of it is really giving people clear directions.”
Measuring success
Jennifer’s focus on training clinical staff on technology has been at the crux of her role with VHS.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rates facilities with weighted star rankings in areas including staffing, health inspection and quality measures. Jennifer and her team have worked diligently with the staff at the long-term care centers to learn those measures.
She says she is a cheerleader for the team and holds them accountable.
“Ratings are up across the board,” she said. “We’re improving, for the most part. … We’re very proud of that accomplishment for our team.”
To do the job well, she said you have to be able to prioritize and be high energy.
“COVID was a definite challenge for us. Long-term care was never technology-focused before the pandemic. … We’ve come leaps and bounds since then trying to leverage technology to help us make better decisions,” she said.
Growing with VHS
Jennifer said in her 25 years she also has been “surrounded with a lot of good people with good intentions, good hearts and who want to work hard.
“You kind of become family,” she said. “VHS has always offered support from anyone in the company. You’re never on your own. …That’s why you’re here. In a pinch, there’s a lot of people who have your back. That’s reassuring.”
Originally from North Carolina, she also has lived in Texas and Richmond.
When she’s not working, she is supporting and encouraging her daughters, ages 7 and 9, in their various activities, which includes sailing with Hampton Yacht Club and club field hockey.
Jennifer also is a member of the Junior League of Hampton Roads and the Hampton Roads Garden Club.
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