Connect Newsletter (Aug. 25, 2022)

August ProsperCast: Virtual Tour of Cook Children's Prosper Campus and The Patient Experience Journey

Our latest episode of ProsperCast is here! Click here to watch. 

Kevin Greene, AVP, Administrator, Prosper, and Cheryl Petersen, VP, Nursing, CNO CCMC, are back again and guide us through our August ProsperCast. 

Take a stunning virtual tour through Cook Children's Medical Center Prosper with Spencer Seals, VP, Construction and Real Estate and learn about the Patient Experience journey from Megan Chavez, VP, Patient and Family Experience. 

Raising Joy Podcast: Why Doctors Neglect Their Own Mental Health with Matthew Carroll, M.D.

On episode 20 of Raising Joy, Matthew Carroll, M.D., Associate Chief Quality Officer at Cook Children's, talks about the stigma of mental health care among physicians, why so many suffer in silence,  and how they can promote their own mental well-being. 

“I think if we can just be more transparent and more accepting of our humanity and not be afraid to let other people see those imperfections, then I think that takes so much pressure off of all of us,” Carroll said. “That makes it so much easier to process all of those emotions we’re going through.” 

Episode 20 is out now on Spotify, Apple and Google Podcasts. Listen now!

Burnout Survey is Live

On Tuesday, Aug. 23, all employees hired by June 30 received an invitation to complete the Cook Children's Burnout Survey. The survey is available to complete now through Sept. 13. 

Why do we need a survey, how does it work and what are we going to do with the results? For those answers and more, click here.

Shortly after completing the survey, you will receive a confidential personal report about your own situation. Nobody else will receive your individual report, and the report is not accessible to anyone but you. After the survey closes, executive leaders will receive a de-identified summary of the combined results for their area. 

To learn more about the Burnout Survey, mental health resources available to you and all things burnout-related, visit our Burnout page on Connect Newsroom.

Cook Children’s is making serious efforts to make our chosen careers in health care the rewarding endeavor we all envisioned and not the frustrating challenge that, for far too many, it has become. The results of the survey will be used to build data-driven strategies and associated interventions aimed at preventing and addressing burnout at the individual, team and organizational level.

Please take this opportunity to help Cook Children’s improve your experience.

Employee Referral Bonus Program Extended Indefinitely!*

*Note: You must be connected to the network to access this page. 

We have some exciting news from our Talent Acquisition and Human Resources team: the Cook Children's Employee Referral Bonus Program is running indefinitely.

All employees through the AVP level are eligible to receive a referral bonus up to $2,500 if their referred candidate is hired. The referral bonus is paid out within two pay periods after the new hire has completed 90 days in their position. In order to receive the bonus, your name must be listed in the ‘Employee Referral’ section of the candidate's application. 

For more information on the Employee Referral Bonus Program, click here.

We have many wonderful positions available, especially for our growing Prosper campus! Visit cookchildrens.org/careers to view the current openings at Cook Children's.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness Waiver Ends Oct. 31

The topic of student loans dominated the news cycle this week following the three-part student debt relief plan announced by the government. Did you know that you could also receive student loan forgiveness for working at Cook Children's? 

The limited Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Waiver allows borrowers to receive credit for past periods of repayment that would otherwise not qualify for PSLF. The opportunity ends on Oct. 31. 

To qualify, you need to meet the following requirements:

• Have at least one Direct, FFEL or Perkins loan 
• Made 120 qualifying payments, or the equivalent 
• While making the payments, were employed full-time by the government, 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, or other not-for-profit organization that provides a qualifying service

For more information and to see if you qualify, please visit the Federal Student Aid website.

Happy Retirement!

Please join us in recognizing the upcoming retirement below! 

Carla Davis, claims and mitigation manager, is retiring from the system on Friday, Sept. 2, after more than 23 years of service to Cook Children's. 

We encourage you to take a moment to send Carla a farewell note or a congratulatory eCard by Sept. 2. 

“Carla began working at CCMC in 1999 in Patient Registration while she attended nursing school. After graduation, she worked as a nurse and in case management. In 2012, she accepted a nurse manager position to reopen the new Endocrine/Med Surg unit on 3 South. In 2017, she was recruited to join the Quality and Risk Management team where she was promoted to director of Risk Management. In 2021, she built upon her risk management skills to become a member of the Legal Department, managing claims and litigation for the system.  Carla’s experience and skills were of great value to us and the Cook Children’s workforce, and she will be sorely missed! 

Please join us Friday, September 2 from 10:00 a.m. – noon in ROB 1102 as we wish her well in her new adventure.” - Karen Wardell, Vice President, Chief Risk Officer

Quick Links: 

• Cookchildrens.org
• Cook Children's Careers
• Checkup Newsroom

Our Promise

Knowing that every child's life is sacred, it is the Promise of Cook Children's to improve the health of every child through the prevention and treatment of illness, disease and injury.