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Director's Message April 16, 2004To: DHS Employees From: Gary Weeks, Director In this week's message: 1. DHS people 2. Interactive training coming to your desktops 3. Register to vote by April 27 4. Food for thought 5. Staff news As we look toward reductions in the Oregon Health Plan (OHP) for the Standard population on August 1, I want to address the issue of what this will mean for staff members associated with that program. We will make every effort to manage the position eliminations and retain our workers through the use of vacancies and the normal turnover that occurs in our agency. In a period of continuing retirements, I believe we have many opportunities to avoid layoffs and find places in the DHS organization where we can best use the talents and abilities of those who may have to leave their current positions. I want you to know that we take this approach not only because it is clearly the right thing to do, but also because it is good business practice. Finally, please remember that current levels of service for the OHP Standard population will be maintained until at least August 1. Oregonians who are on this plan will continue to depend on us until then. I thank you in advance for serving them throughout this period with the same consideration and care you have demonstrated in the past.
It will allow for secure, interactive learning without anyone having to leave their desks, and will thus be more convenient and less time-consuming than previous training methods. As a result, it should also produce considerable savings for the agency in the long run. By attaching a combination headset and microphone to their computers, students will become part of a "virtual classroom." An instructor will be in a central location, controlling all functions of the system and speaking to the students through their computer headsets. Students will use the controls on their screens to "raise their hands" to ask or answer a question or to make a comment. When given the floor by the instructor, the student's microphone will be activated, and all will be able to hear the comment. Currently, PowerPoint slides can be shown, Web tours can be conducted, and video can be used to give scenario-based training. Down the road, we will be able to record, edit and store all sessions, allowing for the creation of instant self-paced content for student review or instructor training. Flexibility is important when it comes to the classroom, and from what I've seen, this system gives us that. It is so easy to use for both students and trainers, and it so greatly enhances collaboration, that I expect to see an improvement in the content, effectiveness, and consistency of our online training programs.
Candidates from congressional, statewide, and local races will be on the ballot, in addition to state and local initiatives. Regardless of how you choose to vote, we encourage you to participate in our democracy. — Tom Stoppard View the current issue of DHS Staff news on the Web. Back to top |
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