Jackie Shelley, RN Announced as OHA Health Care Worker of the Year Nominee

            Jackie Shelley, Registered Nurse (R.N.) for the Patient and Community Education Department, was named nominee for the 2020 Ohio Hospital Association’s (OHA) Albert E. Dyckes Health Care Worker of the Year Award.  
                The Albert E. Dyckes Health Care Worker of the Year Award has been given annually since 1996 to one Ohio caregiver who personifies a leader, gives back to the community, routinely goes beyond the call of duty and has overcome odds to succeed.  
            The hospital staff nominated Jackie for the award based on the criteria of the award and how she represents the values of the hospital. As a nurse, Jackie has served patients at The Bellevue Hospital for more than 32 years in many capacities including inpatient, home care and community services, expanding her skills and health screenings in the local area.           
            “No matter the task, Jackie is organized, detail-oriented and someone who rallies the team to make sure an event or project is successful,” said Mandi Artino, Leader of Employee Wellness and Jackie’s supervisor.
            For several years, Jackie has taken a lead role in organizing one of the hospital’s largest annual events, the Kiwanis Blood Analysis program. This five-hour event averages 500 attendees and offers a full blood analysis that helps participants and their physicians determine their current health status. To ensure the event runs smoothly, Jackie has stepped up to facilitate the committee meetings, coordinate the event’s staffing and help set up the check-in process. If needed, she can even be found helping to perform the blood tests during the program.
           Jackie also provides health and wellness information for our littlest community members. Since 2015, Jackie has organized “Healthy Town” field trips to the hospital for local first grade students. Not only does she coordinate the visits with school personnel, but she also works with multiple hospital departments to create a tour route and schedule. As she leads the children on tours of the hospital, Jackie’s warm and inviting personality helps take the “scary” out of a trip to the hospital for younger children. 
            “Jackie routinely goes above and beyond her typical job duties,” said Artino. “While she offers free blood pressure checks at the hospital’s monthly senior luncheon, she doesn’t hesitate to step in to help serve food, pour coffee, carry plates if someone needs assistance, provide minor first-aid and help set up and tear down tables, all with a smile on her face.”
            Another example, according to Artino, is when Jackie recently pitched in to teach a new program called REACH, a Sandusky County initiative geared toward talking to fourth graders in the county about careers in specific industries. Now in her second year, Jackie has shared her wisdom with 72 students about the variety of healthcare careers offered in our community.
           Jackie is always willing to lend a helping hand when it is needed. She has volunteered her time to assist with several local events and fundraisers throughout her tenure at The Bellevue Hospital. Jackie is the type of person that has helped fit children with free bicycle helmets while teaching them about bike safety. She’s handed out treats to children during the local Safe Halloween event and has offered to participate in craft and vendor shows to help raise funds for local schools.
            The Bellevue Hospital’s values include communication, accountability, relationships, empathy and safety/quality. Jackie, with her even-keel, comforting and nurturing ways, epitomizes all of these values.
            “When you ask Jackie to do something, she does it and does it right,” said Peg Natole, Director of Safety and one of Jackie’s previous directors. “You can trust that everything has been handled the way it needed to be.”
             Whatever Jackie participates in, she delivers the highest quality of care and compassion to The Bellevue Hospital’s patients, their family members and her hospital family.
            As a community health nurse, Jackie is considered the public face of The Bellevue Hospital. Jackie takes time to build relationships with the community.
            “I’ve watched her at our monthly Morning Health Breaks,” said Artino. “She is so gentle with patients and very responsive to their needs.”
             Showing this same compassion and empathy for her fellow co-workers, Jackie has taken an active role in the past as a member of the hospital’s BeWELL committee. As part of this team, she engaged employee participation in healthy behaviors and wellness challenges creating an overall culture within the hospital that supports improving the health of employees. Jackie not only makes a difference, but she influences others to do the same.
            With a passion for impacting community health and wellness, Jackie is invested in promoting wellness through monthly health screenings and health fairs offered at the hospital and local businesses. She impacts hundreds of community members monthly through her commitment and dedication. Most health screenings offered are free of charge and Jackie has been instrumental in increasing the number of screenings and locations throughout the community so individuals can access these services easily.
            Jackie also utilizes her knowledge as a nurse to educate others.  As a certified CPR instructor, she teaches community CPR at the hospital, as well as visiting local high school freshmen and sophomores to provide them the fundamentals of CPR. Jackie instructs local tweens and teens how to become better babysitters through a Babysitting Basics Class, showing them techniques on how to handle emergencies or illnesses and provide proper nutrition while babysitting. Through the Healthy Kids program, Jackie visits Clyde kindergartners to talk about exercise and nutrition with the goal to get little ones excited about health and wellness at an early age.
            In her spare time, Jackie also is an active member of her church community. She and her husband, Martin, have four children and one grandchild.
          Jackie will represent The Bellevue Hospital at the OHA Virtual Recognition Event that will be held on August 25.