Welcome to Laura – Housekeeping & Laundry Supervisor!
We are pleased to announce that Laura Fast has accepted a new role as Housekeeping & Laundry Supervisor for Menno Place.
Menno Hospital Transition from ARH Pharmacy to Apex Pharmacy
Date: January 3, 2024
To: All Menno Place staff, residents, and Families
From: Smitha Varghese, Director of Care, Menno Hospital
Re: Menno Hospital pharmacy transition from ARH pharmacy to Apex pharmacy
We are pleased to announce that Apex Pharmacy will be our new pharmacy partner for Menno Hospital Long-term care beds. This change will commence on January 8th at 8am. There is nothing that residents or their families need to do at this time. Menno Place will take care of all of the details.
Menno Place has a long-standing relationship with Apex at Menno Home and Terrace East Assisted Living. We have known Apex Pharmacy co-founders Elke and Jason for a very long time. They specialize in working with seniors and are well known in the community for their excellent services and wide range of products. We are excited about this expanded partnership!
This transition will provide opportunities to improve resident care and enhance staff experience. We will introduce new procedures like e-MAR (electronic medication administration record) and online medication incident form and will be able to have clinical pharmacist participation in our care conferences. We anticipate your cooperation and support during this process to ensure seamless transition and a successful partnership and collaboration.
Please feel free to reach out to me for any questions/further information regarding this transition.
Violence Prevention Workshop
Learn practical applications to identify risk factors of violence and de-escalation techniques at a Violence Prevention Workshop on Monday January 15, 2024. Space is limited. Register soon!
Hymn Stories – January 2024
January’s hymn is Trusting Jesus. This textually and musically simple expression of child-like trust in Jesus has met the daily spiritual needs of many of God’s people to the present time.
Click to listen.
Expansion of Portfolio: Smitha Varghese, RN
From: Pooja Mishra
To: Menno Place Team
Re: Expansion of Portfolio: Smitha Varghese as permanent Director of Care & Quality Improvement (QI), Hospital & Assisted Living (AL)
I am pleased to announce that Smitha Varghese has graciously accepted expansion of her portfolio with permanent addition of role of Director for Assisted Living effective Dec 22, 2023.
Smitha has been the Director of Care – Menno Hospital & Quality Improvement Lead since April 2019 and in July 2023 took on additional Interim Director responsibility for Assisted Living. In the past 6 months, Smitha has displayed strong leadership skills in stabilizing the care team, supporting the direct care supervisors while working closely with AL Clinical Leads at Fraser Health. Smitha brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to this role with her background in gerontological nursing and her experience as a seasoned leader in Long Term Care.
Smitha had worked as a Registered Nurse in acute care in India for 8 years before moving to Canada in 2011. She has then gained experience is both acute care and long-term care in Canada. Smitha has continued to build her educational competencies. She has completed the Canadian Nurses Association certification in Gerontological Nursing and an advanced diploma in Gerontology and more recently obtained a Master’s degree in Health Leadership and Policy (Senior care) from UBC.
When not at work, Smitha spends quality time with her family. She also has a keen interest in Gardening and Cooking. Smitha wanted to share the following message about her expanded role:
“I am excited with this addition to my portfolio and I am looking forward for the new challenges and opportunities. Thank you for trusting in my leadership. I hope we can work together to make Menno Place a better place for our seniors.
Changes to Menno Home RCC Nurse Leads
Alyssa Sargeant is resigning from her position as RCC for E1. Annette Unrau will take over the role.
Retirement Announcement – Judy Booth
From: Kim Scott, DOC Menno Home/ Smitha Varghese, DOC Menno Hospital.
To: Menno place Team
Re: Retirement of Judy Booth
We are writing to officially announce the retirement of Judy Booth as of Dec 29, 2023.
Judy has decided it is time to begin a new chapter in her life. While we are sad to see her go, we are happy and excited for her new adventures in life to come. Her dedication to Menno has not gone unnoticed and there have been many occasions when we couldn’t have gotten by without her support.
Judy has worked tirelessly in many different capacities over the past many years. She started working at Menno in 2007 as a casual employee in the housekeeping and laundry team. She then moved to the Executive Assistant for the DOC position and provided admin. support for the nursing leadership for 4 years. Following this, she worked as a casual receptionist at both Home and Hospital before she became a casual unit clerk at the Home. She has provided much assistance to various departments at Menno Place. Her latest position was under MBS helping with various projects across Menno place.
Congratulations on your retirement Judy! We will miss you. Please join us in wishing Judy well in her retirement.
Updated: Sparkle Day! December 20 2023
It’s time to suit up in your snazziest attire and shine bright like a diamond! The concert with Alyssa Neilsen has been cancelled.
Staffing Office Christmas Day Hours
Date: December 19, 2023
To: Menno Home, Menno Hospital and Menno Apartment Employees
From: Adrienne Alford, Interim Director of People and Culture
Re: Staffing Office Christmas Day Closure
Happy holidays all! Please note that the Menno Home and Apartments and Menno Hospital Staffing Offices will be closed on Christmas Day, December 25th. Staffing Team members will not be retrieving messages or checking email that day.
Who does this affect?
- All Employees of Menno Home and Menno Apartments and Menno Hospital relying on the Staffing Team for scheduling support.
What do Employees need to do?
If you need to report an absence after 16h00 on Christmas Eve, December 24th, please report as follows:
- Nurses, Health Care Aides and Unit Clerks: please phone the RN for your unit
- Dietary Aides and Cooks: please phone Jacob Doss directly
- Housekeeping and Laundry Attendants: please phone Leanne Tanner directly
All phone numbers can be found in the Menno Place directory linked in the top right corner of the staff site.
Our thanks and gratitude to the Menno Team Members who are devoting their time to serving residents over the holidays! You are appreciated!