When Jess Rupkey, a speech-language pathologist at Carle BroMenn Medical Center and Carle BroMenn Outpatient Center, began working with a stroke survivor, she saw a whole person who hadn’t felt heard as he struggled with voice and cognitive difficulties for years before this stroke.
Rupkey took his concerns into consideration. Despite their age difference, the patient and speech-language pathologist found they had common interests, and those discussions became part of their therapy sessions.
The patient felt heard and validated. His progress surprised even him.
“At Carle Health, we know that making patients feel safe and heard can improve outcomes,” Theresa Green, MSN, executive director of Carle Experience, said. “Our providers make those connections with patients and each other.”
Carle Health, through its Way to Be! program, honors team members who demonstrate the healthcare system’s Values of Excellence, Integrity, Inclusivity, Compassion and Accountability. Each quarter, Carle Health honors Way to Be! winners who represent each Value, as well as Leader and Team winners.
Rupkey earned the latest quarterly Way to Be! award for Inclusivity.
Her story, and the experiences of all seven Carle Health quarterly Way to Be! winners, follow:
INCLUSIVITY
Jess Rupkey, speech-language pathologist at Carle BroMenn Medical Center and Carle BroMenn Outpatient Center
When Rupkey began working with an outpatient stroke survivor, he told Rupkey he had voice and cognitive issues predating his stroke, but providers elsewhere blamed his age. He wanted to address those issues as well as his stroke symptoms.
Rupkey and the patient found they had common interests and hobbies; those discussions became a part of their therapy, and they had fun working together.
“He was surprised by how much progress he made,” Rupkey said. “His overall confidence has blossomed in a big way.”
“Jessica has such a pleasant, personable demeanor and has a natural way of connecting with all of her patients,” Liz Haas, supervisor of rehabilitation services at Carle BroMenn, said. “Her work truly makes a difference in their lives.”
COMPASSION
Syrena Payne, scheduling specialist at the Patient Support and Access Center
Syrena Payne, who takes patient calls for the Carle Health Champaign-Urbana Service Area, received a call from a patient trying to find out where an ambulance had taken her husband. Payne kept the patient on the phone as she called two hospitals. The man wasn’t at either one.
Then, the patient said her husband was home but wasn’t moving. Payne, not knowing whether the caller needed help or her husband or both, got permission to get into the patient’s chart, reached out to a patient advisory nurse and conferenced the nurse into the call. The nurse found the patient’s son’s phone number and called him while Payne kept the patient on the phone. The son said his mother has dementia and his father had just been discharged from the hospital.
As everyone remained on the phone, the son asked a neighbor to check on his parents. His father was asleep and OK. The son talked with his mother, reassured her, then drove in to care for his parents.
“I am thrilled that we have built a team of people, like Syrena, who make such a positive impact on the lives of people in our communities each and every day,” Heidi Bennett, patient care manager, said.
EXCELLENCE
Connie Langellier, nurse practitioner at the Milford Medical Clinic
Connie Langellier, nurse practitioner at the Milford Medical Clinic, a department of Carle Hoopeston Regional Health Center, has dedicated herself to treating patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) and with jail inmates in Iroquois and Vermilion counties.
Recently, she provided exceptional care to a patient treated in the clinic with buprenorphine for OUD. The patient was trying to get off heroin and was prescribed buprenorphine to manage their withdrawal symptoms and cravings. But the patient had reached back for the drugs.
The patient came to the clinic, bringing the medicine. Langellier, with the assistance of her RN, successfully provided the patient a safe med induction in the office and monitored the patient for several hours. “Only a very compassionate primary care provider would provide this exceptional service in the clinic,” Jacqueline Yu, MD, a family medicine physician and associate medical director for Carle Hoopeston Regional Health Center, said.
“She has dedicated herself to continually learning about OUD treatment and to help patients with OUD, not just in her clinic, but also with community leaders, police and jail, and other social services,” Dr. Yu said. “She did this on her own, and it’s highly commendable.”
INTEGRITY
Desiree Kear, registered nurse, Carle Health Methodist Hospital
Jennifer Graham, an RN on 6 Crescent at Carle Health Methodist, was caring for a patient when their condition declined suddenly, prompting her to call for the rapid response team right at shift change. The unit was extremely busy, and team members were finishing with their patients and completing reports before handing off care to the next shift.
“She (Kear) didn’t care that it was shift change and was time to go home,” Graham said. “She cared about helping me and taking care of this patient.” She answered questions, got vitals, ran down labs and transferred the patient to the ICU, working well after her shift.
“Desiree ensured that patient care remained seamless and her colleagues felt supported,” Jen Getz, RN manager on 6 Crescent, said. “The selfless act reflects the very essence of what it means to be a true team player. Desiree demonstrated not only clinical excellence but also the core Values of empathy, collaboration and integrity.”
“We always put our patients and co-workers first,” Kear said. “It’s part of being on the healthcare team.”
ACCOUNTABILITY
Tim Sullivan, Carle Health Accounts Payable specialist
Workday is a business system that supports Carle Health core operations related to finance, accounting, human resources (HR), payroll and supply chain. The system impacts all team members. Accounting, Finance and Supply Chain functionalities went live Jan. 1.
Sullivan, Accounts Payable specialist, and his team had been training and testing in Workday since June 2024. At go-live in January 2025, they took on the additional responsibilities of Workday tech support and customer service to ensure that Carle Health team members were educated and equipped to use the new system.
Sullivan supported one director with a new process and then checked back with her a few days later, providing additional assistance on two subsequent occasions.
As Carle Health team members work together to become more skilled in using the new business system, patients benefit.
TEAM
Patient Access Team at Carle BroMenn Medical Center
When a pediatric cardiology patient and their mother thought the patient’s appointment was on New Year’s Eve rather than Christmas Eve, they were devastated when they arrived and discovered they were a week late. The mother was upset because their 2024 deductible had been met, and it would be a financial burden to reschedule the appointment in the new year.
The Heart and Vascular Institute in Medical Office Center 1 on the Carle BroMenn campus had no echocardiogram appointments remaining that day. So Kathy Walters, certified medical assistant in Pediatric Cardiology, called Patient Access at Carle BroMenn. That team called the hospital’s Cardiology department, which was able to schedule an echocardiogram for the patient that day.
“This is what patient care is all about,” Walters said.
LEADER
Andrea Reyes, supervisor, Carle BroMenn Resale Boutique
When Andrea Reyes found a chess set for a visitor to Carle BroMenn Resale Boutique, she engendered a new resale boutique customer by helping an uncle strengthen his relationship with his nephew.
Reyes, supervisor of the Resale Boutique, said that’s representative of what Resale Boutique staff and volunteers do every day, “When people come in, this place is so positive and impactful that they keep coming back. We build relationships.”
Reyes’ work at the Resale Boutique has built a team of staff and volunteers that fosters loyal customers, meaning increasing donations and record-breaking sales that benefit Carle BroMenn Medical Center, Sue Seibring, manager of Volunteer Services at Carle BroMenn, said. During 2024, the Resale Boutique raised $246,356 to buy equipment for Carle BroMenn.
Join our team
Would you like to work for a healthcare organization in which team members go the extra mile for patients and each other and are recognized for doing so? If so, find it here.
Rupkey took his concerns into consideration. Despite their age difference, the patient and speech-language pathologist found they had common interests, and those discussions became part of their therapy sessions.
The patient felt heard and validated. His progress surprised even him.
“At Carle Health, we know that making patients feel safe and heard can improve outcomes,” Theresa Green, MSN, executive director of Carle Experience, said. “Our providers make those connections with patients and each other.”
Carle Health, through its Way to Be! program, honors team members who demonstrate the healthcare system’s Values of Excellence, Integrity, Inclusivity, Compassion and Accountability. Each quarter, Carle Health honors Way to Be! winners who represent each Value, as well as Leader and Team winners.
Rupkey earned the latest quarterly Way to Be! award for Inclusivity.
Her story, and the experiences of all seven Carle Health quarterly Way to Be! winners, follow:
INCLUSIVITY
Jess Rupkey, speech-language pathologist at Carle BroMenn Medical Center and Carle BroMenn Outpatient Center
When Rupkey began working with an outpatient stroke survivor, he told Rupkey he had voice and cognitive issues predating his stroke, but providers elsewhere blamed his age. He wanted to address those issues as well as his stroke symptoms.
Rupkey and the patient found they had common interests and hobbies; those discussions became a part of their therapy, and they had fun working together.
“He was surprised by how much progress he made,” Rupkey said. “His overall confidence has blossomed in a big way.”
“Jessica has such a pleasant, personable demeanor and has a natural way of connecting with all of her patients,” Liz Haas, supervisor of rehabilitation services at Carle BroMenn, said. “Her work truly makes a difference in their lives.”
COMPASSION
Syrena Payne, scheduling specialist at the Patient Support and Access Center
Syrena Payne, who takes patient calls for the Carle Health Champaign-Urbana Service Area, received a call from a patient trying to find out where an ambulance had taken her husband. Payne kept the patient on the phone as she called two hospitals. The man wasn’t at either one.
Then, the patient said her husband was home but wasn’t moving. Payne, not knowing whether the caller needed help or her husband or both, got permission to get into the patient’s chart, reached out to a patient advisory nurse and conferenced the nurse into the call. The nurse found the patient’s son’s phone number and called him while Payne kept the patient on the phone. The son said his mother has dementia and his father had just been discharged from the hospital.
As everyone remained on the phone, the son asked a neighbor to check on his parents. His father was asleep and OK. The son talked with his mother, reassured her, then drove in to care for his parents.
“I am thrilled that we have built a team of people, like Syrena, who make such a positive impact on the lives of people in our communities each and every day,” Heidi Bennett, patient care manager, said.
EXCELLENCE
Connie Langellier, nurse practitioner at the Milford Medical Clinic
Connie Langellier, nurse practitioner at the Milford Medical Clinic, a department of Carle Hoopeston Regional Health Center, has dedicated herself to treating patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) and with jail inmates in Iroquois and Vermilion counties.
Recently, she provided exceptional care to a patient treated in the clinic with buprenorphine for OUD. The patient was trying to get off heroin and was prescribed buprenorphine to manage their withdrawal symptoms and cravings. But the patient had reached back for the drugs.
The patient came to the clinic, bringing the medicine. Langellier, with the assistance of her RN, successfully provided the patient a safe med induction in the office and monitored the patient for several hours. “Only a very compassionate primary care provider would provide this exceptional service in the clinic,” Jacqueline Yu, MD, a family medicine physician and associate medical director for Carle Hoopeston Regional Health Center, said.
“She has dedicated herself to continually learning about OUD treatment and to help patients with OUD, not just in her clinic, but also with community leaders, police and jail, and other social services,” Dr. Yu said. “She did this on her own, and it’s highly commendable.”
INTEGRITY
Desiree Kear, registered nurse, Carle Health Methodist Hospital
Jennifer Graham, an RN on 6 Crescent at Carle Health Methodist, was caring for a patient when their condition declined suddenly, prompting her to call for the rapid response team right at shift change. The unit was extremely busy, and team members were finishing with their patients and completing reports before handing off care to the next shift.
“She (Kear) didn’t care that it was shift change and was time to go home,” Graham said. “She cared about helping me and taking care of this patient.” She answered questions, got vitals, ran down labs and transferred the patient to the ICU, working well after her shift.
“Desiree ensured that patient care remained seamless and her colleagues felt supported,” Jen Getz, RN manager on 6 Crescent, said. “The selfless act reflects the very essence of what it means to be a true team player. Desiree demonstrated not only clinical excellence but also the core Values of empathy, collaboration and integrity.”
“We always put our patients and co-workers first,” Kear said. “It’s part of being on the healthcare team.”
ACCOUNTABILITY
Tim Sullivan, Carle Health Accounts Payable specialist
Workday is a business system that supports Carle Health core operations related to finance, accounting, human resources (HR), payroll and supply chain. The system impacts all team members. Accounting, Finance and Supply Chain functionalities went live Jan. 1.
Sullivan, Accounts Payable specialist, and his team had been training and testing in Workday since June 2024. At go-live in January 2025, they took on the additional responsibilities of Workday tech support and customer service to ensure that Carle Health team members were educated and equipped to use the new system.
Sullivan supported one director with a new process and then checked back with her a few days later, providing additional assistance on two subsequent occasions.
As Carle Health team members work together to become more skilled in using the new business system, patients benefit.
TEAM
Patient Access Team at Carle BroMenn Medical Center
When a pediatric cardiology patient and their mother thought the patient’s appointment was on New Year’s Eve rather than Christmas Eve, they were devastated when they arrived and discovered they were a week late. The mother was upset because their 2024 deductible had been met, and it would be a financial burden to reschedule the appointment in the new year.
The Heart and Vascular Institute in Medical Office Center 1 on the Carle BroMenn campus had no echocardiogram appointments remaining that day. So Kathy Walters, certified medical assistant in Pediatric Cardiology, called Patient Access at Carle BroMenn. That team called the hospital’s Cardiology department, which was able to schedule an echocardiogram for the patient that day.
“This is what patient care is all about,” Walters said.
LEADER
Andrea Reyes, supervisor, Carle BroMenn Resale Boutique
When Andrea Reyes found a chess set for a visitor to Carle BroMenn Resale Boutique, she engendered a new resale boutique customer by helping an uncle strengthen his relationship with his nephew.
Reyes, supervisor of the Resale Boutique, said that’s representative of what Resale Boutique staff and volunteers do every day, “When people come in, this place is so positive and impactful that they keep coming back. We build relationships.”
Reyes’ work at the Resale Boutique has built a team of staff and volunteers that fosters loyal customers, meaning increasing donations and record-breaking sales that benefit Carle BroMenn Medical Center, Sue Seibring, manager of Volunteer Services at Carle BroMenn, said. During 2024, the Resale Boutique raised $246,356 to buy equipment for Carle BroMenn.
Join our team
Would you like to work for a healthcare organization in which team members go the extra mile for patients and each other and are recognized for doing so? If so, find it here.
Categories: Culture of Quality
Tags: Culture, Experience, Recognition, Reward, Values