7 Smiles = A Reflection of the Whole

You know you’re at Inova when you are greeted by smiles! A patient recently sent Reuvan Pasternak, CEO at Fairfax Hospital a two page letter that is peppered with the word smile. Being a patient, especially a radiation oncology patient, is not much fun. The writer points out, that patients are often scared and under some level of emotional stress. He wanted to mention a few names of those folks who helped to reduce his anxiety. Here are a few excerpts from his letter:

“Each morning that I got off the elevator, I was greeted by two women with phenomenal smiles, Stephanie Morgan and Linda Carter. The smiles that they provided me and everyone that enters the department radiated reassurance and pure pleasure that they were really glad to see me and stood ready to help…..”

“David Tong, Christine Ku and Cora Johnson were the radiation technicians I saw the most. They all have great smiles ……”

“Amy Bohnslav, the RN in the unit, is just outstanding. She is involved, professional, caring, attuned to what is happening around her, answered dumb questions and is not afraid to say I don’t know but will find out. She does find out and gets back to you. She always has a smile and is looking to comfort and assure all the time.”

“Pethos Andgmichael, the blue parking garage attendant, is super. He too always has a smile, is friendly, is quite a conversationalist, is an encourager and is the last person you see leaving the facility. Because he is the person he is, you leave with a really good feeling of Inova Fairfax Hospital.”

So, while I may not be a math wizard, how do I know that 7 = a whole? Because of the following excerpt from his letter:

“I know there had to be some days when they didn’t feel like being nice, friendly or cheerful but that was never shown. I saw several other technicians and other nurses and they all displayed the same attitude of professionalism, care and knowledge. I consider you very fortunate to have a staff the caliber of these individuals. From casual observation, they are representative of the whole staff at least in the Radiation Oncology Department.”

Thank you mighty seven for representing the whole with your radiant smiles. Thank you for reminding the rest of us that each encounter counts towards the whole. You made a difference in the life of one man and that’s what it’s all about – improving lives, one patient at a time.