Q&A

Good morning!

We have “officially” stepped into fall but I’m not sure Mother Nature is ready to give us Mississippians the seasonal temperatures many others are getting. We’re all pretty used to that, I guess.

With the changing of the season, at least according to the calendar, I think that’s a good time to do a little (or a lot, if needed) clean-up of our personal workspaces and of the areas our patients and visitors see. I encourage you to take some time in the next couple of weeks to tidy up and to look around to make sure that all areas showcase the quality of all that we do and our high level of professionalism. How others see us – including within our facilities – matters.

It's the last Friday of September, so today I’ll respond to some of the comments and questions you sent me through the VC Notes inbox.

I read all your questions and comments and enjoy hearing from you. I’m only able to respond to some of them in this space, but I pass the rest along to senior administrators for their review and possible follow up.

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Q: The first row of parking spots in the gated area is designed for visitors and patient parking. I have seen countless employees parking there. No one is ticketed or action taken for them parking in that area. Today when I arrived at work, I saw a mother and child, patients, parked several rows back because the area designed for them was full of cars. At 8 a.m. in the morning, that whole row was full of cars mostly belonging to employees. I get wanting to get a good spot, fighting for a parking spot in the heat is no fun but those spots aren't for us. If tickets are given to those who park in the garage, why aren't tickets given to those parking in those spots?

A: You are correct that the row of parking spots in the stadium lot that is closest to State Street. and facing campus is set aside for patients and visitors, with a few spots reserved for employee recognition winners. As you noted, there are times when our employees use these patient/visitor spots while at work, and that is absolutely not allowed. So far this year, 102 parking citations have been issued for unauthorized parking. I ask that everyone consider the convenience of our patients and visitors and not park in spots dedicated to them. If you do, don’t be surprised when you get back to your vehicle and find a parking ticket under your windshield wiper.

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Q: Is UMMC going to offer the latest COVID booster to staff, like the flu vaccine?

A: Student and Employee Health is not planning on stocking the COVID vaccine, so it will not be available to employees and students in the same way it was previously.

Since the COVID-19 federally designated public health emergency has ended, the previous system of the vaccine being provided to institutions at no cost is ending. It’s anticipated that availability of the COVID vaccine will transition to the commercial market like pharmacies and clinics and through public health departments. There may be a cost to receive the vaccine, or you may be able to get it at no cost if your health insurance covers it.

While it is currently not required for our employees and students, you are still encouraged to get the COVID vaccine according to guidance by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found here.

While we are on the topic of vaccinations, keep in mind that we are now entering flu season, and receiving an influenza vaccination is required for UMMC faculty, staff and students. Information about this requirement and when and where you can get your flu shot can be found on the Intranet here.

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Q: Can someone please address the FedEx box situation? This box sits in the basement of the hospital close to the post office and shipping and receiving. We use this box quite frequently to ship patient samples — clinical samples and research samples. Recently we have been having issues with having our packages not being picked up. On more than one occasion they have sat in the box overnight or over the weekend without being picked up. This greatly compromises the quality of these samples, some of which we use for clinical care. Is there no longer a schedule that the box is picked up? We do leave our packages at shipping and receiving sometimes but late in the day (after 3 or 3:30) the FedEx box is the only way to get them shipped that day.

A: Because of a merger of two local FedEx distribution centers resulting in fewer employees, pick-up service for UMMC has been negatively impacted.

Earlier this month, the UMMC Shipping and Receiving, in collaboration with Supply Chain, took packages to the FedEx distribution center in Pearl on days that FedEx failed to show up on a scheduled day. When this happened, it was logged and then shared with corporate FedEx leadership.

Our diligence to track and report instances when packages were not picked up according to schedule paid off when we were presented a resolution by FedEx last week. The new pick-up weekday schedule for the drop-off box and our receiving dock is below. There are no weekend pick-up times.

• Between 9:30-11 a.m., shipments are picked up from the receiving dock.
• Dry ice packages are picked up at the receiving dock between 2-3 p.m.
• Between 3-4:30 p.m., shipments are picked up from the receiving dock.
• At 5:30 p.m., properly labeled items left in the FedEx drop box near the post office are picked up.

If you have a question about a shipment that has already been picked up, call 1-800-463-3339 and provide the tracking number. For any other shipping questions or for help with preparing a package, contact the UMMC Shipping and Receiving at upreceiving@umc.edu.

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Q: Is there a universal dress code policy for UMMC employees and students? I see several versions from different departments and schools, but there does not seem to be standardization for patient-facing roles. For example, a standard policy on body art, piercings, etc. would be helpful.

A: We do have an institutional Professional Appearance Policy and it can be found here.

This document outlines the “minimum standard for professional and personal appearance at UMMC” and is expected to be adhered to by all faculty and staff. Departments and units that have their own, more specific personal appearance policy can continue that practice, but those policies are in addition to and cannot be in conflict with this Medical Center-wide policy.

The policy does cover tattoos and piercings so I believe you’ll find what you are looking for by reading through the policy.

I encourage school/department/unit/etc. managers to bring this policy to the attention of their faculty and/or staff and to ensure they are in compliance.

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Q: We have been hearing a lot about the blood shortages at the hospital. Why do we not have the motor coaches here anymore? I love to donate and that is a convenient way to do this.

A: Thanks for your question. It provides a good opportunity to broadly communicate that we recently switched to a new primary blood products provider, the American Red Cross, ARC for short. We continue to have an agreement with Mississippi Blood Services as a secondary option as needed and also have access to LifeShare as another blood products supplier.

As for our supply, we have been operating at normal levels mostly, but we did experience a critical drop in type O blood (which is usable in people of any blood type) for a couple of weeks around Labor Day. That was also around the time we were making operational changes that came with transitioning to a new primary vendor. We are not yet back to the supply level that we are comfortable with, but we are steadily recovering.

While we can plan and stock for normal clinical operations, it’s difficult to prepare for trauma care. Just one significant trauma case can require a significant amount of blood and deplete supply, causing a “shortage.” So far, ARC has been very responsive to us when we needed a quick resupply. Their ability to pull from national sources is helpful.

Now that we have an agreement with ARC to be our primary supplier, we are also contracted to use their “blood bus” when holding blood drives at any UMMC campus or facility. So, if you are wanting to host a blood drive, please reach out to American Red Cross first to check availability. Dane Usry is our ARC contact and can be reached at 256-399-5435.

I’ll also take this opportunity to encourage you to donate blood. It is ALWAYS needed and with the holidays approaching, our need for blood products will be higher than normal. And during the holiday months, when people are travelling or doing other activities, blood donations are typically down.

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Q: At the Jackson Medical Mall, employees are stealing time. They pull up to the front of the building, run in and clock in at the door. Then they go park. For those of us who get to work on time, we almost get run over by these people. Maybe someone should be at the time clock to catch these people.

A: Thanks for sending in this comment. I’ve spoken about it in a previous VC Notes.

I must say, I don’t think there even needs to be a policy reference to say activity of this type is not allowed. Non-exempt employees – those paid at an hourly rate and eligible to receive overtime – must record their work time in Kronos. The key phrase there is “work time.” Non-exempt employees must accurately log the time they are working and make sure to clock out when taking care of personal business. Clocking in and then going to park your car, get breakfast or run any other non-work-related errand is prohibited – and this applies to all non-exempt UMMC employees, regardless of work location. We can review time records and attendance, and when this type of “stealing time” is confirmed, it will result in termination. 

On the flip side, it’s unlawful for non-exempt employees to be asked to adjust when they clock in or out so that they do not exceed 40 hours worked in a single week, which would provide overtime pay for each hour worked above 40. If you are a non-exempt employee and you have questions about timekeeping, please consult with your supervisor. If you’re not able to get the information you need or aren’t satisfied with your supervisor’s response, please reach out to the HR Business Partner for your area.

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Q: I would like to suggest we develop a page that lists all conference rooms available on campus. I would like a common place to locate a room including room number, capacity, contact person, and A/V setup. Often for those of us located off campus, using Outlook Scheduling Assistant, the conference room number does not describe the room adequately. This would be helpful for bringing in vendors for in-services, product demos, and scheduling with multiple departments.

A: This has been done.

An audit of all spaces available for reservation was done and what is available to you to schedule for your meeting or event and how to make a reservation can be found on the Intranet at intranet.umc.edu/RoomRes  

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I appreciate your questions and information and encourage you to keep them coming. Our attention to matters of importance to you and this institution ensures that we have what we need to build A Healthier Mississippi.