Meet Our 2020 ESPRIT Winners!
Diana Vargas, Supply Chain Coordinator, PPE Inventory Management & Distribution
November 7, 2020–“I love to interact with people and to be of service.” After COVID-19 burst on the scene and VNSNY’s office staff transitioned to working remotely, Diana had only been working from home for two weeks when she heard that volunteers were needed to hand out personal protective equipment, or PPE. “I didn’t even know what that was at first, but I was eager to help,” she says. “I love to interact with people and to be of service. I was also having a conniption because I was home-schooling my 10-year-old and couldn’t handle fractions. So it was good timing!” Her new role was also an excellent fit. Before long, with the help of a team she wound up managing, Diana had completely reorganized VNSNY’s PPE supply rooms, optimized the inventory, and set up schedules to make the best use of staffers’ time, all while making ongoing daily improvements to streamline
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Marion Marley, Manager, Care Coordination, VNSNY CHOICE MLTC
November 7, 2020–“I feel very fortunate to have a stable, wonderful team that’s been with me for a very long time.” Marion has been with VNSNY for 15 years, and has worked at CHOICE since 2009. “I feel very fortunate to have a stable, wonderful team that’s been with me for a very long time,” she says. “We have a good relationship. I feel very comfortable providing support for them, and they support me right back.” Marion supervises a group of CHOICE MLTC Care Managers consisting of social workers and registered nurses—a role that includes coordinating and supplying education as needed, giving guidance, and assisting with care management on complex cases. “A big part of my job is providing emotional support,” she adds. The CHOICE Care Management team has been working remotely with members for some time now—thus sparing the staff the need to suddenly navigate an entirely new way of operating
Meichelle Huff, Home Health Aide, Partners in Care
November 7, 2020–“This is such a rewarding job.” Becoming a home health aide had always been a goal of Meichelle’s. While looking for work some eight years ago, she took an HHA training course and was immediately assigned several hours of work on cases scattered around New York City. When her supervisor came back to her and asked whether she’d consider a live-in position three days a week in Manhattan, she quickly said yes. It was a life-changing decision. “My client is an elderly, bedbound lady with Alzheimer’s who never spoke English and is nonverbal—but we have our own way of communicating,” says Meichelle. “I have a song that I’ll sing to her so that she knows that it’s me. As soon as she hears it, she starts reaching her hands out to me.” Meichelle admits that she was a little nervous to start with. “I had never bathed or changed anybody