We hope you are having a safe and productive week. We appreciate everything you are doing to support our patients, families, and each other.
What You Should Know This Week:
- Cooper Receives National Recognition for Cardiac Services. Cooper has been designated an Aetna Institute of Quality® Cardiac Care Facility for comprehensive heart and vascular treatment. Many thanks to our dedicated clinical and support team for your hard work. Click here to read more.
- National Physician Assistant (PA) Week. This week, we recognize the many important contributions of Cooper’s PAs. Click here to read more about the vital role that our PAs play in improving health care access and quality.
- Next Week is Week on the Wards: October 11 – 22. As part of the medical school education at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMSRU), first year medical school students gain early exposure to clinical hospital medicine and hospital operations as a part of their Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt course and clinical week on the wards, or “WOWs.” The students will be moving throughout the hospital in both clinical and non-clinical areas during the weeks of October 11 and October 18 observing clinical hospital medicine in different departments, and applying the new tools and methodologies learned in their designated fields. Please welcome students as you see them in your area or throughout the hospital.
- Cooper’s 2021 Flu Vaccination Program is up and running. Please review the information here to ensure you are compliant. Click here for the schedule. Flu shots are not being offered in the Kelemen tent or pop-clinics for booster shots, which is exclusively for COVID-19 vaccines.
- Update: Pfizer COVID-19 Booster Shots. Two new Pfizer COVID-19 booster pop-up clinics will be open for team members at the CCBO and at Voorhees in addition to the Kelemen Circle tent. Click here for updated locations and times. To schedule your Pfizer booster shot, visit myCooper. Remember to bring your vaccine card so we can add your booster shot information to it. Click here to read the CDC recommendation for booster shots. Please note that flu shots are not available in the Kelemen Circle Tent – view the flu vaccination schedule here to ensure you are compliant.
- Update: State-Mandated Testing Continues. The State of New Jersey requires all unvaccinated Cooper team members to have a negative COVID-19 test within seven days of working a shift. The antigen tests are available Monday through Friday at the Hospital Garage and any Cooper Primary Care location with LabCorp services. The test kits are also available seven days a week in the Health Care Access office in the Roberts Pavilion. Team members can also receive a PCR test (nasopharyngeal) on Saturday or Sunday in the Hospital Garage, if you choose. Click here for the full schedule.
- Update: Federal Vaccine Mandate. The federal government still has not provided any additional guidance on President Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, its timing, or the exemptions that will be permitted. We will convey new information on this federal government mandate when we receive it. Remember, you can sign up on myCooper to get a COVID-19 vaccine at any time.
- Help Choose the Military Person of the Year Award. A few years ago, Cooper established the Military Person of the Year Award to honor a deserving employee who has made significant contributions to Cooper and in the community. Nominations are now open for this year’s award. Any employee who has had at least one year of employment at Cooper and who is a veteran or an active member of the military in any branch is eligible for nomination. Nominations can be made online by clicking here. The nomination deadline is Friday, October 15, 2021. More information about the employee military celebration will be coming soon.
- Voting for Philadelphia Magazine’s 2022 Top Doctors is now open. The deadline for nominations is November 1, 2021. Cooper physicians, please take this opportunity to submit a nomination for one of your colleagues. Learn more here.
- Click here to read today’s Daily Dose, “Find Your Why and Exercise.” As always, you can view the Daily Dose archives here.
- We love to hear patient feedback about their excellent health care experience at Cooper. Kudos to all who are making The Cooper Experience a reality and who received individual recognition from our patients in recent surveys, including Patty, Victoria, Beth, Cindy, Sue, Jen, Allison, Danny, Rodger, Andrew, Savana, Jessica, Tan, Dr. Shersher, and Magda. Click here to read more.
- Topic of the Week – Situational Awareness: We were all saddened by the tragic shooting that took place earlier this week at Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia. Our thoughts and prayers go out to our colleagues at Jefferson. This horrible incident is a reminder to us all to be ever vigilant about our surroundings and practice situational awareness. Situational awareness means using our senses to scan an environment with the purpose of identifying threats in the present or projecting those threats into the future. Remember, if you see something that doesn’t look right, say something. Please put Cooper Security’s number 856.342.2400 in your phone. As a reminder, Cooper’s EAP, Carebridge Corporation, is offering free-of-charge, online learning events and support to help Cooper team members handle stress, cope with grief and loss, and build resiliency. For more information, click here.
Movie Quote: “The most valuable commodity I know of is information. Wouldn’t you agree?”
We appreciate your ongoing hard work and commitment during these challenging times.