SVHC's VP Recognized with Statewide Award
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/ Categories: NEWS, 2022

SVHC's VP Recognized with Statewide Award

BENNINGTON, VT—December 22, 2022—Southwestern Vermont Health Care’s (SVHC) Vice President of Administration and Chief Human Resources Officer Kevin Dailey was honored with the 2022 Dolly Shaw Vermont Human Resources Professional of the Year Award from the Vermont State Council, an affiliate of the Society for Human Resource Management.

“Vermont is home to many exceptionally qualified human resources professionals, so I am humbled to have received this recognition,” Dailey said. “I share the honor with the talented and dedicated members of the HR teams I have worked with at Southwestern Vermont Health Care and Mack Molding Company. Their hard work has driven so much of what we have achieved together, and I am deeply grateful.”

The award seeks to affirm and distinguish an individual who applies advanced knowledge of human resources to substantially impact business outcomes through HR leadership, strategy, and/or development; demonstrates significant value by applying creative and innovative management concepts; implements programs in any of the HR disciplines that positively impacts an organization and its talent; advances and elevates the HR profession in their organization, industry, and community; and exemplifies the highest standards of the profession and serves as a role model for peers.

Dailey has been at the center of several groundbreaking solutions at SVHC. He led the Healthy Homes program, which connected employees with newly renovated homes and favorable financing terms. The program worked to solve a lack of housing availability for staff and to increase rates of home ownership in Bennington neighborhoods. During the early days of the pandemic, Dailey worked with former employer Mack Molding Company to retrofit scuba masks for use as personal protective equipment (PPE). The move relieved staff anxiety amidst a severe PPE shortage and received national press attention. Notably, SVHC has been recognized as one of Vermont’s “Best Places to Work” for 8 years in a row. It is the only hospital ever to have been recognized with the honor.

“Kevin sets an example that combines a commitment to compassion, innovation, dedication, and organizational sustainability,” said SVHC’s President and CEO Thomas A. Dee, FACHE. “These qualities have enabled us to make progress against our most difficult challenges and to build a strong and vibrant organizational culture.”
 
Dailey brought more than 15 years of human resources experience and a background in law to SVHC in January 2015. His most recent previous position was as director of Human Resources for Mack Molding Company, Inc. in Arlington, VT. Before that, he was partner in the legal firm of Dailey & Dailey, P.C., in Manchester, VT. Dailey holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Vermont and a juris doctor degree from Vermont Law School. He is an ardent volunteer. He has served with the SVHC board of trustees, the Arlington Rescue Squad, the Bennington County Bar Association, the United Way, and others.

The Dolly Shaw Vermont Human Resources Professional of the Year Award recognizes exceptional performance and outstanding achievement by a professional in the field of human resource management. Dolly Shaw was one of the founding members of the Vermont Human Resource Association (VTHRA) in 1969 and was a force behind growing and sustaining the state’s human resource (HR) network over many years. She served for 40 year as director of Career Services at Champlain College and was relentless in her pursuit of delivering high-quality HR learning opportunities for the professional community.

About SVHC:
Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) is a comprehensive, preeminent, healthcare system providing exceptional, convenient, and affordable care to the communities of Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York, and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. SVHC includes Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, and the SVHC Foundation. SVMC includes 25 primary and specialty care practices.

Southwestern Vermont Health Care is among the most lauded small rural health systems in the nation. It is the recipient of the American Hospital Association’s 2020 Rural Hospital Leadership Award. In addition, SVMC ranked fourth nationwide for the value of care it provides by the Lown Institute Hospital Index in 2020 and is a five-time recipient of the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Magnet® recognition for nursing excellence. The health system is fortunate to have the support of platinum-level corporate sponsor Mack, a leading supplier of contract manufacturing services and injection molded plastic parts based in Arlington, VT.

Southwestern Vermont Medical Center provides exceptional care without discriminating on the basis of an individual’s age, race, ethnicity, religion, culture, language, physical or mental disability, socioeconomic status, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression. Language assistance services, free of charge, are available at 1-800-367-9559.

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How to Become a Mask Wearer

Long before COVID-19, online chat groups for people with pulmonary fibrosis (PF) were filled with posts about how uncomfortable it is to wear a mask in public: not physically uncomfortable, a fact that was barely mentioned, but psychologically uncomfortable. For people with this condition or the lung transplant used to cure it, catching a cold or the flu could be deadly. They need to wear masks in public to help protect themselves from getting ill.

The participants discussed how awkward it is riding the bus in a mask, going to the grocery store in a mask, or boarding a plane while wearing one. They were mostly self-conscious that others would think they were ill or weak. Many would rather suffer the risk of getting fatally sick than put a mask on in a department store.

Now, we've all been directed to wear masks in public. Both Bennington and Wilmington's Select Boards have passed local mandates requiring masks in public places. This—along with distancing and handwashing—are crucial parts of returning to a more normal way of life. Suddenly, we are all feeling the psychological discomfort PF patients have felt for many years.

People usually have an interest in blending in. And, just like doing anything out of the ordinary, wearing a mask for the first time definitely feels like putting yourself out there. If we want to return to a somewhat normal way of life, masks are crucially important, along with frequent, thorough handwashing and keeping a distance from others.

Here are a few tips for making the leap from being someone nervous about wearing a mask to being a person who wears one regularly.

Do it for others. We know that people can spread COVID-19 as many as a few days before they get sick. Even if you feel fine, you could have COVID-19 right now without knowing it. At the same time, masks are far better at keeping sick people from spreading germs than they are at keeping people from getting sick. So wearing a mask isn't a sign of weakness; it's a sign of altruism. It's like saying, "I am not certain that I am not sick, so I want to pay those around me the consideration of limiting the likelihood I will infect them." Think of it as a badge of kindness.

Get a mask that fits. We know that masks are not completely comfortable physically. Getting the right fit makes a big difference in their "wearability." Cloth masks are readily available online and from local groups. The Green Mountain Mask Makers have excellent information and resources. If you can, purchase a few types in a few sizes to see which you like best. Buy enough of that type to allow washing between trips out in public.

Get a mask that you like. Once you have found a mask source and as long as you have a choice, pick one that you like. You can choose colors that match your wardrobe or that represent your interests, like camouflage. There are even masks that look like fashionable scarves when they hang around your neck. The sooner we start thinking of masks as part of our outfits, as essential and unremarkable as shoes or a belt, the healthier we will all be.

Try to quit caring about what others think. This one is hard. But one wise PF patient wrote, "I just don't give a darn!" Essentially, he shared that if people want to judge him for wearing a mask, so be it. Their opinions don't have a single thing to do with him. Many in the chat group applauded his confidence and vowed to adopt his attitude.

If we all do our best, soon the cultural scale will tip. Wearing a mask or not wearing one will cease to be a political statement. It will be normal. And thankfully, if wearing a mask in public, handwashing and sanitizing, and keeping our distance are all normal, going out into public again can be safe and normal too.

Donna Barron, RN, is the infection preventionist at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center.

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