Volume 2022.17 – Day of Mourning
Premier John Horgan has issued the following statement in response to the federal government declaring a national holiday to mark the Queen’s funeral:
“Over the last few days, British Columbians have joined with people across the country and around the world in an outpouring of support for the Royal Family over the loss of Queen Elizabeth II. Our government will follow the lead of the federal government and join with other provinces in observing the national day of mourning to mark the Queen’s funeral.
This one-time national holiday will be Monday, Sept. 19, 2022. All regular staff at Menno Place will receive premium pay if you work on this date and be provided another day off in lieu. This lieu day off will be scheduled by Staffing on your next 3 day break. Casual staff who work this day will receive premium pay but do not receive another day off. Regular staff not scheduled to work on September 19 are entitled to another day off with pay.
Team members who work a regular Monday to Friday schedule will have the Monday off to honor this day.
For those who are scheduled to work this day, please plan for daycare or other situations that may arise due to this short notice.
Sincerely,
Jeanette Lee
Director, Human Resources
Support Team Appreciation Day – Sept 22, 2022
Thank You Support Service Teams for your amazing contributions at Menno Place each day!
Enjoy Ice Cream Sundaes on Sept 22!
Volume 2022.15 – Introducing SWITCH BC
Introducing SWITCH BC
We have a new partner to further support the health, safety, and wellbeing of everyone working in healthcare – SWITCH BC.
SWITCH BC is committed to supporting a provincial and system-wide approach to health, safety, and wellbeing so that everyone who works in healthcare in B.C. can show up each day and do their best work knowing the system is caring for the people who care for us.
SWITCH BC which stands for Safety, Wellbeing, Innovation, Training and Collaboration in Healthcare is an independent, provincial non-profit. Its role is to lead and support provincial, systemic improvements in healthcare workplaces. SWITCH BC’s governance model is unique in B.C. and in Canada with representatives of unions, employers, physicians, Ministry of Health, and WorkSafeBC on its board of directors, making consensus decisions to support positive change in healthcare workplaces.
Originally incorporated as the BC Health Care Occupational Health and Safety Society, SWITCH BC is the working name for the organization.
Our CEO, Karen Biggs, serves on SWITCH BC’s Board of Directors, representing affiliates across the province.
SWITCH BC has just launched its website www.switchbc.ca and created an animated video About us for a quick overview of their work. SWITCH BC would love to hear from you and get your ideas and suggestions to support health, safety, and wellbeing in your workplace! Please watch, health care teams who explain what challenges they are facing, how to better support the sector and what they love about their work YouTube.
You can also stay connected to SWITCH BC on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
Jeanette Lee, Director, Human Resources
Congratulations to Hilda on her Retirement from Menno Apartments
Congratulations to Hilda Dyck, Food Service Worker at Primrose Gardens Apartments, on her retirement after 11+ years of service! Hilda’s colleagues couldn’t say enough about her kindness to the residents and how she mentored them with kindness. She will be greatly missed! Hilda looks forward to spending more time with her grandkids and giving back to the community.
Blessings to Hilda in her retirement!
Manulife ID for your members will become mandatory this Fall
We are now entering the final phase of the Manulife ID rollout for group benefits members.
Through the Fall, members who haven’t created their new Manulife ID yet will be prompted to do so when they sign in with their plan contract and certificate numbers.
This final rollout phase will be staggered through the Fall. Starting in October, members will be encouraged to create their new Manulife ID when they sign in, but the mandatory use will not be turned on at the same time for everyone. Over the fall, all members will transition to the mandatory use of Manulife ID.
Members who have already created their new Manulife ID will have to use their Manulife ID to sign in.
Also, new members from small and mid-size organizations will have to set up their Manulife ID when joining their new GB plan starting in October. The welcome email they receive will have Manulife ID instructions and a link to get started.
Improved experience
We are excited about some enhancements that will make it easier for members to create their Manulife ID and connect their GB plans. There are now fewer steps and we’ve pre-populated some fields. We also have a more integrated experience for brand new members. They can now setup their Manulife ID and activate their new GB plan at the same time.
We started the rollout of Manulife ID last year, and we’ve been constantly working on improving the experience and process based on what we’ve learned from users.
Where are we today?
- 35% of members have already created their new Manulife ID and now use it to sign in.
- All members using our Group Benefits app or Manulife Vitality Group Benefits app are signing in with their new Manulife ID.
Members can find support materials and FAQs about Manulife ID here.
Access to Practical Nursing Bursary Available to HCAs
On August 23 2022, the Ministry of Health (MoH) announced the Access to Practical Nursing Education Bursary. This bursary is for students and recent graduates enrolled in the Access to Practical Nursing (APN) program at a recognized BC-based public institution.
The APN program is a unique career laddering program for Health Care Assistants (HCAs) wishing to train as Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs). The APN program allows students to apply training and experience garnered as an HCA to accelerate their training as an LPN. Incentivizing HCAs to enroll in this program will help to retain HCAs in BC’s public health system and to expedite the number of LPNs available to support more immediate LPN staffing needs.
This bursary will be paid in equal installments each semester to new students, as a one-time payment to recent graduates, or as a combination of these two payment methods for mid-stream students, to a total of $10,000.
To find out more, go to https://www.choose2care.ca/apn-program-education-bursary
Congratulations on Your Retirement Thy!
Congratulations to Thy Daigneault, Health Care Support Worker, on her retirement after 32 years of service at Menno Home! Thys’ colleagues couldn’t say enough about her kindness to the residents and her generous spirit to her team members over the years. She always had a song in her heart and a cheery disposition and she will be missed!
Blessings to Thy in her retirement!
Upcoming Resident Care Coordinator Change at Menno Home E1
After more than 10 years of loyal service to Menno Home we would like to wish Debbie Jamieson a happy retirement and warm farewell as Resident Care Coordinator (RCC) on East 1. Debbie has been an amazing leader and support to the staff and a wonderful advocate for the residents on the special care unit. We will be honoring Debbie with a Tea on September 21st on E1 at 1pm.
We are also pleased to announce that Alyssa Sargeant will be taking on the RCC role after Debbie’s retirement. Alyssa is already in training and very excited with this opportunity. Please warmly welcome Alyssa in her new role.
Be prepared to rapid test at home – get your kit from your local pharmacy
Be ready to rapid test at home if you have ANY symptoms!
Have a rapid test kit on hand if you have any COVID symptoms.
Don’t come to work to be rapid tested.
BC makes Rapid Antigen Testing Kits available at your local pharmacy – CLICK HERE FOR INFO
Rapid antigen testing kits are free for everyone. A pharmacy should never ask you to pay for a kit.
Visit your local pharmacy and ask for your testing kit. Anyone can ask for a kit. You don’t have to show ID.
If you can’t go to a pharmacy, a friend or family member can pick up a test kit for you.
What are the COVID symptoms that are used for self-screening?
Do you have ANY of these symptoms?
Follow COVID-19 testing instructions if the answer is yes.
- Fever (above 37.8C)
- Cough
- Nausea
- Headache
- Chills
- Sore Throat
- Runny nose
- Loss of sense of smell
- Vomiting
- Loss of appetite
- Extreme fatigue or tiredness
- Body aches
- Loss of sense of taste
- Difficulty breathing
- Diarrhea
