The 2017 State Employee Charitable Campaign (SECC) came to a close at midnight on Nov. 3 and our UTMB family showed that when we come together, we can accomplish anything.
Many of our employees have faced tremendous challenges because of Hurricane Harvey, yet our SECC campaign raised $538,765, or nearly 98 percent of our goal for the benefit of others. In this month of Thanksgiving, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you who helped lead UTMB to a successful SECC campaign, as well as those who were able to contribute to our employee and student Harvey Relief Funds. Your commitment to your communities is remarkable.
This issue of Impact highlights many people who make up our diverse workforce, including the thousands of veterans who have found a second career home at UTMB. On Nov. 2, we held the first Veterans Day Luncheon celebration to honor our faculty, staff and students who have served. It was my honor to moderate a panel discussion of military veterans who described their experiences and the challenges they faced when transitioning from the military to the civilian world. We are thankful to all our veterans for their years of service to our nation and for their continued service to UTMB.
You can read more about the Veterans Day event, along with many other stories, including:
- A day in the life of Kim Barfield and UTMB’s Alumni Relations team during the recent Homecoming Weekend
- A profile of Gary Eubank, director of nursing for UTMB Correctional Managed Care
- A Best Care in Action spotlight highlighting UTMB’s efforts to address patient length of stay (LOS)
- An “A” grade from the Leapfrog Group recognizing UTMB’s accomplishments in making patient safety and quality a priority
- A $10,000 donation of medical equipment and supplies that is helping a pediatric hospital in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria
- How feedback from more than 1,000 employees will help guide the Impact newsletter’s path forward
- A research study that has given new insights into what factors lead to preterm birth
- The 10th anniversary of UTMB’s Academy of Master Teachers
- The annual Hector P. Garcia Awards Luncheon, featuring winners of the essay and poster contests
- Tips for creating a better family health history by Dr. Michael Thanh Nguyen, assistant professor of Internal Medicine
- Numerous accomplishments and kudos in the Working Wonders column and throughout the newsletter
As always, I hope you enjoy reading this issue of Impact, and, in this season of thanksgiving, I am truly grateful to each of you.
Dr. David L. Callender
UTMB President