Fellowship Graduates (L to R): Alice Velasquez-Leon, FNP-BC; Lorna Medcalf, FNP-C; Katherine Tinajero, DMSc, PA-C; Annie Martin, FNP-C; Sandy Holder, FNP-C; Aura Truelove, FNP-C. (Absent from photo: Gabriel Garcia, FNP-BC; Arsine Abramyan, FNP-BC; Amber Peterson, FNP-C; Michael Chau, FNP-BC.)
Congratulations to the 10 Fellows who’ve graduated from the Desert Region’s Advance Practice Fellowship program since its inception in 2017. They were recently honored at a banquet in Las Vegas. The Fellows include Alice Velasquez-Leon, FNP-BC; Lorna Medcalf, FNP-C; Katherine Tinajero, DMSc, PA-C; Annie Martin, FNP-C; Sandy Holder, FNP-C; Aura Truelove, FNP-C; Gabriel Garcia, FNP-BC; Arsine Abramyan, FNP-BC; Amber Peterson, FNP-C; and Michael Chau, FNP-BC.
“We honored them for their commitment to Intermountain and their patients and recognized the hard work they’ve done to be the providers we’re privileged to affiliate with,” says Robert Vadovic, RN, Fellowship director. “We look forward to continued excellence from each of them. We also want to acknowledge the faculty for their significant investment in the Fellows they mentor and in the program as a whole, senior leadership for their support of the program, and the many operational and support staff who are vital to the success of the program.”
Veronica Tomlinson, Fellowship coordinator, says the Fellowship has lived by the values of “quality education, patient focus, accountability, and fulfillment,” since its inception.
“We live these values every day,” she says. “Through their constant effort and dedication, our Fellowship graduates are now some of the best providers Intermountain has to offer its patients.”
Michelle Born
Shout out to Michelle Born, patient service center representative in Nevada, for being the first caregiver to achieve more than 30 perfect call audit scores in two months. Even though she’s still a relatively new Intermountain caregiver, she does an excellent job at making sure each patient who calls is completely taken care of.
Michelle says her secret is simple: closely follow the script every time. “Add you own flair and style to it, but always make sure you say it,” she says.
Dr. Todd Vento speaks at a COVID-19 news conference in March 2020.
A round of applause for Todd Vento, MD, an infectious diseases specialist and associate medical director of teleservices, who was recognized by the Utah Education and Telehealth Network (UETN) for the work he’s done to improve telehealth services in Utah. The organization specifically recognized his efforts both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic that helped Intermountain manage the pandemic in a “tech-enabled” way.
“Todd’s contribution to one of the leading telehealth operations in the country has been substantial, and we think he’s well-deserving of this award,” Adam Hornung, executive director of Connect Care operations, said in his nomination letter.
“I feel tremendously blessed and honored,” Dr. Vento says. “It’s a reflection of the people I work with, how well we work as a team, and how much we put into providing these telehealth services, not just in the state, but in the entire region and across the country.”
Brooke Heath, Erin Hakoda, and Dave De Rurange
Three cheers for three members of Intermountain’s Marketing and Communications team, Brooke Heath, Dave De Rurange, and Erin Hakoda, who’ve all earned Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) from the Public Relations Society of America. APR is the highest certification available for public relations and communication professionals. The trio studied together for months and they each completed a rigorous examination as well as a presentation before a panel of experts—all in the middle of a pandemic.
“These amazing individuals persevered through the pandemic, through personal and professional obligations, and came out on top to earn their APR, which is the gold standard in our industry,” says Gretchen Papez, APR chair for the southern Nevada chapter of PRSA.