Stories

Laughing out loud: Co-leads Terri Imbach, James R. O’Brien, MD, and Christina English, LPN, use fun to shake things up for their Mt. Scott Medical Office unit-based team. 

Problems piled up so much that transporters were keeping patients waiting too long. At left, Esther Logan, a transport CNA and member of SEIU Local 49, and Marta Witsoe (right), patient transport manager  participated in the issue resolution process that led to beefed-up staffing. 

At first, these frontline workers rolled their eyes at UBTs. But their experiences improving performance and teamwork changed their outlook. 

Maria Peyer, an oncology nurse and member of OFNHP/ONA helps Isaias Contreras-Chavez and Justin Dodds learn healthy habits for life.

Dental teams in the Northwest, like this one, keep patients comfortable and satisfied. 

Regaining control: Shannon Cazinha (left), UBT development consultant, worked with management co-lead Linh Chau (center) and union co-lead Fairy Mills (right) to help their Northwest pharmacy team make improvements that gave members more control over their work.

Wendy Watson manages stress through vigorous exercise. 

Southern California's Biohazards band, extending partnership tools into music-making. 

Lisa Kane, UBT consultant, harnesses teams' enthusiasm for improving service and quality. 

A successful kp.org sign-up campaign resulted in a deluge of messages, and providers found themselves struggling to keep up. That’s when co-leads Rikki Shene, LPN, a member of SEIU Local 49, and manager Eliseo Olvera took action, with help from their UPR.  

Ed Vrooman, a union partnership representative from SEIU Local 49, helps teams demystify the data so numbers can be a portal to improved performance instead of a source of stress. Kate Webb, project coordinator, lends a hand. 

Juan Piantino, MD, shares ideas with Debbie Newcomb, an electro-neurodiagnostic technologist and UFCW Local 555 member.