Director's Message

Dec. 21, 2007

To: All DHS employees

From: Bruce Goldberg, M.D., director

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"Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible."
~Frank Zappa

I'm always pleased when the time comes around to announce the recipients of the quarterly Director's Excellence Awards. The personal commitments and achievements -- not only of the winners but of all the nominees -- are excellent reminders of the wonderful work accomplished by so many of the dedicated employees who make up this agency.
This quarter's award recipients include one 16-person team and five individuals. And those are just some of the many employees who were nominated for an award. The following information from their nominations speaks eloquently of the high quality of work performed by this quarter's winners. You will see common themes throughout -- an emphasis on collaboration, a dedication to providing excellent service, and a belief in the importance of the work they are doing.

The team award goes to the Public Health Division Translation Team, which includes Kathryn Broderick, Emilio DeBess, Loretta Gallegos, Susan Greathouse, Concepcion Guillen de Heacock, Rocke Klockner, Julie McFarlane, Alberto Moreno, Trish Neiworth, Carlos Quintanilla, Roberto Reyes-Colon, Maria Smith, Hanna Swenson, Bonnie Widerburg, Veronica Williams and Susan Yusem. This group has led an effort to improve delivery of time-sensitive public health and safety information to diverse, non-English-speaking residents of Oregon. This new program more than proved its worth during the recent storms and floods, when it was imperative to reach out to people whose first language is not English to alert them to potential dangers and provide critical health advisories. This team also established an English-Spanish glossary of commonly used public health terms to promote uniformity and accuracy in technical health-related advisories and news releases. The members of this team are dedicated to ensuring people have the information they need to protect themselves and their families, and the results have made a positive difference to thousands of Oregonians.

Samantha Byers, a CAF child welfare caseworker, has a well-deserved reputation as someone who is always exploring new ways to help clients and remove barriers to treatment. She is a highly regarded advocate of client rights and good social work practices, and has worked diligently throughout her time with DHS to bring more and better services to drug- and alcohol-involved clients. Samantha has served as the DHS child welfare representative at the Multnomah Juvenile Court for four years, where she has represented DHS in the 11-agency collaboration that makes up the Family Involvement Team. Her continued emphasis on partnerships and customer service sets an example for everyone.

Mike Harryman, the department's Public Health Emergency Preparedness manager, is responsible for bringing new focus, energy and skill to the state's Public Health Emergency Preparedness Program. His efforts have resulted in better outreach and engagement with other organizations and partners, and a program well prepared to respond to emergencies such as the recent storm and flood damage along the coast. He has established a liaison program that provides technical assistance and support to tribes, health departments and hospitals throughout the state, and has promoted the use of shared resources and assets among Oregon agencies and Pacific Northwest states. He brings a can-do work ethic to everything he does at DHS, as well as a focus on collaboration and partnerships.

Rita McMillan, an AMH children and adolescent mental health specialist, is a supportive team member who is always willing to initiate projects both large and small to improve services and supports for children and families in Oregon. She choreographed a statewide educational program to teach collaborative problem-solving skills to more than 300 stakeholders in the children's treatments system, and her exceptional efforts have helped engage communities and partners, and have led to an improved service delivery model. Rita also has been a leader in implementing transition-aged group homes in the state.

Bill Morris, a data management accountant with the Office of Financial Services, has displayed a career-long commitment to professional excellence and extraordinary customer service. Every day through his work he models the DHS core values. He is always willing to go the extra mile to provide the data DHS staff need to make their jobs easier. He recognizes the importance of prompt and accurate data, and is quick to provide resources and respond to requests. He has been an active and productive participant in the Lean Initiative, and constantly works with his DHS customers to seek ways to improve service delivery.

Linda Pursell, a CAF operations manager, excels at building trust in relationships and brings a passion to her job that is unparalleled in the community. She has worked tirelessly for the past year to improve DHS's domestic violence prevention and response programs. She established the first DHS self sufficiency domestic violence hotline in Multnomah County, represents DHS on the Multnomah County DVERT team, and has trained community agencies and advocates. She personally does whatever it takes every day to respond to clients and meet their service needs. Linda is a caring and compassionate voice for domestic violence survivors, and has been able to knit together an effective program with very few resources.

Please join with me in congratulating these impressive Director's Excellence Award recipients.

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This message is intended for all department employees. Please read it electronically, if possible. Managers and supervisors are asked to share the message each week with employees who do not have email access.