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Welcome to the Team!
Xin Niu starts as a Postdoctoral Scholar in the division of Neurology on December 13.
December Milestone Anniversaries
Julie Osterhaus, ARNP, CPNP celebrated 35 years on December 7.
Correction: In our last issue, we stated that Julie Osterhaus is celebrating 30 years of service. This is incorrect, and Julie celebrated 35 years on December 7. We apologize for the misprint and any confusion it may have caused.
How to recognize and avoid a phishing scam
UI Health Care is asking its employees to be aware of an increase in phishing scam attempts. Phishing is an identify-theft scam that can use emails and websites to deceive people into giving out personal information. Please follow these five best practices to avoid falling for phishing scams.
- Never follow the links in an email you suspect might be phishing. If you are unsure about a link you receive in an email, hover your cursor over it. If the link text doesn't match the link address, do NOT click it.
- Always be suspicious of emails asking for sensitive information. Email is not a secure form of communication. Organizations you do work with already know your account information and will never request it in an email.
- Never respond to an email request for personal information. Err on the side of caution. Look at the "from" field of the email. If the organization name does not match the "reply to" organization name, the message is probably fake.
- Beware of phone phishing scams. If someone requests personal information on a phone call, be sure you initiated the call - not the other way around.
- Make sure your operating system, antivirus software, and browser are up to date. Malware exploits vulnerabilities in the security of operating systems and web browsers. Be sure you have the latest security updates installed on your computer.
New UI password standards take effect January 4, 2023
Starting January 4, 2023, new HawkID and HealthcareID passwords will require at least 15 characters. The new password-length requirement reflects recommendations from the SANS Institute and other cybersecurity experts. The new standard affects only new passwords. Existing passwords can be used until they expire or users choose to change them. View UI cybersecurity pros recommended strategy for managing longer passwords.
UI employees can get year-end tax forms online
To set your delivery preferences, log in to Employee Self-Service, go to My Self Service, then Form Delivery Options under Settings. You can choose online delivery for your W-2 and 1095 forms. Delivery preferences must be set by Sunday, January 8, 2022. Employees who choose online delivery will receive an email in mid-to-late January notifying you that your forms are available in Employee Self Service. | | | Holiday Happenings Angel Tree, November 21 - December 19
Share the joy of the holidays by donating a gift to a UI Hospitals & Clinics patient! Your generous donations help the Activities Therapy staff reach their goal of offering a gift to each long-term inpatient during the holiday season. Adopt an angel tree from outside the Volunteer Services Offices (between Elevator D and F, Level 8).
If you can't make it to the Angel Tree, you can give virtually through the virtual Angel Tree. Suggested gifts can be found on the Wild Rose Website. See what programs your gift will benefit here!
Warm the Sole, November 22 - January 31
UI Health Care Holiday Committee needs your help decorating the clothesline with new socks! Donated socks will be donated to local nonprofit agencies such as DVIP, Crisis Center, NCJC, Shelter House, UAY, and Girl Scouts. The Warm the Sole clothesline can be found by the Main Entrance (Elevator E, Level 1).
Staff Appreciation Meal, December 25
Food and Nutrition Services is providing a complimentary Christmas meal to employees and volunteers on Sunday, December 25. Participating locations include:
- Fountain Dining Room: 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
- Marketplace: 2:00 p.m. - 2:00 a.m.
Tokens of the Season, December 21 - December 23
Every year, UI Health Care volunteers deliver a Token of the Season to our inpatients to brighten their spirits over the holidays.
Seasonal decorations
Many seasonal decorations pose fire safety and infection control risks. Visit the Loop to see the full list of prohibited decorations.
DeGowin Blood Drives
The UI DeGowin Blood Center is in need of blood and platelet donors. DeGowin is instructing donors to schedule an appointment before donating. To sign up for an appointment, visit uihc.org/degowin and click "Start Your Donation Today" or call (319) 356-2058,
Spiritual Services
Visit uihc.org/spiritual-services to find information on the Spiritual Services during the holidays.
Donations or gifts
Review this FAQ page to learn what donations are accepted and where to direct inquiries
HIPAA and the holidays
A holiday greeting card is a great way to connect, honor, and brighten another person's day. As a reminder, accessing a person's electronic medical record to obtain an address or telephone number, for purposes outside of your job, is not permitted. Even using Epic's "Patient Lookup" feature without viewing any other part of the medical record is impermissible, as it is part of the electronic health record and does not display protected health information (PHI).
Questions? Contact the Joint Office for Compliance at (319) 384-8282 or compliance@healthcare.uiowa.edu. | | | | YOU Make a Difference! Congratulations to Carol Johnson on making a difference to someone by providing excellent care or service.
Carol Johnson is the Program Coordinator for the newborn screening short term follow up program, which is located in the division of Medical Genetics and Genomics. Newborn screening has had several major stressors over the past three years, including a big loss in funding due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a rapid increase in demands on the system due to new legislation, serious understaffing due to Covid-related turnover, and the need to establish a Continuity of Operations Plan.
"Everyone in the program counts on Carol to hold the program together, roll with the punches, and make a plan to deal with the problems, and she has. We absolutely could not have made it through without all of Carol's hard work. As the Medical Director of the Iowa Newborn Screening program, I count on Carol for absolutely all of the logistics of our program including the budget. We made serious budget cuts in Covid, and she handled these with fairness, calmness, and efficiency." -Amy Calhoun, MD, who nominated Carol.
Child Life specialist jumps to help during lunchtime emergency
On any given day, you can find Lisa Miguel, CCLS, helping pediatric patients cope with life in UI Stead Family Children's Hospital. Miguel's fortitude during an emergency has been tested several times including a lunch hour this summer and when she was outside near labor and delivery. Read Lisa's full spotlight story HERE! | | | Patient Comments from the Pediatric Specialty Clinic "Dr. Bayer always takes time to listen and thoroughly explains everything. She is so kind and compassionate. Her resident doctor that came in for this visit was very kind and knowledgeable and we really appreciated his time and input. We always leave feeling confident and in the care!" - patient of Diana Bayer, DO
"I have never had a doctor spend so much time discussing my daughters care with me than he has. He is a wonderful doctor and I would recommend him to everyone." -patient of Majekodunmi Olaleye, MD, MPH
"Dr. Ramakrishna is an amazing doctor. She is so kind and patient. She explains everything incredibly well and doesn't act annoyed or frustrated when asked the same questions repeatedly by my daughter. She listened to my daughter, got her consent for any exams she was doing, and even remembered not to use a trigger word my daughter hates (My daughter hates the word 'shot'. She would rather it be called a vaccine). I just can't say enough good things about Dr. Ramakrishna." - patient of Akhila Ramakrishna, MD
"The NP we met with was kind and thorough. She took the time to explain the plan of care thoroughly and ensured all of my questions were answered." -patient of Kelly Marine, ARNP
"Dr. Nester did a phenomenal job of educating us about my husband's rare kidney disease. She answered every question we had in a way that we understood it. So grateful for her!" -patient of Carla Nester, MD, MSA, FASN | | | | New Scheduling tool for Pediatric Primary Care Pediatric primary care appointment slots are available for the children of UI Health Care faculty and residents. Appointments can now be scheduled online at anytime.
Both sick visit and well-child appointments can be scheduled for pediatric clinics in Iowa City, Coralville, and Muscatine. Faculty and resident appointment slots are available to give your family more access to pediatric care. Both established patients and new patients can use this online tool.
| | | CAMBUS service for 2022-2023 winter break CAMBUS will operate break service from Saturday, December 17, 2022 - Sunday, January 15, 2023. Academic service resumes Monday, January 16, 2023. CAMBUS will operate academic weekend schedules on Monday, January 16, 2023, due to the university holiday.
Visit Parking and Transportation to view the full list of impacted routes.
| | | | Recruiter emphasizes building a diverse, inclusive workforce Since joining the Office of Health Parity in June, Jontell Harris-James, MPA, has been busy meeting with people across UI Health Care with a big-picture goal in mind: diversifying our workforce. Jontell aims to promote faculty positions to candidates who are either considered underrepresented in medicine or have specific passions or skill sets that allow them to work with underserved patient populations.
Jontell spoke at the monthly Pediatric All Admin meeting in November, and discussed how we can utilize her team when recruiting new providers to the Department. Read Jontell's full Q&A HERE! | | | SENTAC podcast episode "Building and Running an Aerodigestive Program with the University of Iowa Aero Team" The Society for Ear, Nose and Throat Advances in Children (SENTAC) published its 5th podcast episode, which features Sohit Kanotra, MD, Riad Rahhal, MD, MS, and Rebecca Weiner, MD. The topics discussed include: team formation, team structure, clinic structure, Aerodigestive team clinical decision-making, things team members have learned from each other, and explanations of how patients have had improved care.
Listen now!
| | | | Live Healthy Iowa - 10 Week Wellness Challenge Live Healthy Iowa is a program offered to all Iowans to improve health and well-being. Teams of 2-10 people track activity minutes and/or weight loss over the course of 10 weeks. Each week, your team is ranked on a leaderboard to see where they measure against teams at the University of Iowa and across the state. Registering as a University of Iowa team will allow for friendly competition with other UI teams as part of an online dashboard.
WHEN: January 9, 2023 - March 17, 2023
REGISTRATION: opens December 1, 2022 and runs through January 23, 2023
COST: $25 per participant, however, UI employees can receive $15 registration fee by using:
- Group ID; LHIUIOWA
- Subsidy Code: 10W23-UIOWA
liveWELL Upcoming Trainings
liveWELL Financial Wellness: Setting Financial Goals for the New Year, Wednesday, January 11, 2023, via Zoom. 12:10 - 12:50 p.m.
liveWELL Taste of Mindfulness-Enhancing Focus: Reducing Distraction to Increase Productivity, Wednesday, January 18, 2023, via Zoom. 12:10 - 12:50 p.m.
liveWELL Tax Tips for Caregivers-LivWell Seniors, Tuesday, January 24, 2023. 12:10 - 12:50 p.m.
liveWELL Design Your Well-Being Engineering Good Habits for Life, Wednesday, February 8, 2023, via Zoom. 12:10 - 12:50 p.m. | | | liveWELL health coaches available A health coach from lilveWELL will be available from 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. on various dates in December and January in the Fountain Dining Room (Elevators B and C, Level 1) and Melrose Dining Room (Elevator L, Level 5) to discuss programs and services designed to support you in your health and wellness efforts. Health coaches will be available on the following days in both dining rooms:
Fountain Dining Room
- Friday, December 9
- Tuesday, December 20
- Wednesday, January 4
Melrose Dining
- Friday, December 16
- Wednesday, December 28
- Tuesday, January 10
They will have information on upcoming programs available for employees including:
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