Category: MIL OSI

Source: US State of Connecticut

Yarelis Wilson, RN recently joined UConn Health’s Office of Patient Experience in the fall of 2023 and very happily serves as the director of Patient Experience for UConn Health.

“When I was interviewing for this position, I was instantly and incredibly inspired by UConn Health and the leadership of its Office of Patient Experience,” says Wilson. “I was hooked to work at UConn during my first interview with this amazing team. Our Office of Patient Experience and the people of UConn Health are why our patient experience at UConn Health is the best and really stands out.”

Wilson applauds UConn Health and its providers total dedication to its patients, which is why UConn Health is known for its excellent patient experience. UConn Health recently received Healthgrades’ Outstanding Patient Experience Award making it among the top 10% of hospitals nationwide, and it is the only hospital in Connecticut recognized by Newsweek’s World’s Best Hospitals ranking for its excellent patient experience.

“We know every interaction with our patients matters. We make sure to make every moment matter!” Wilson stresses and it includes making a positive first and lasting impression with patients and visitors to UConn Health.

“It has been shown that it only takes a few seconds to make the right impression,” says Wilson.

The Patient Experience team at UConn Health always recommend providers and employees alike, greet everyone whether a patient or visitor with a positive demeanor and a smile; make sure to knock before entering a patient’s room; effectively communicate; say hello in the hallways; and even ask a visitor who may look in need of assistance a simple ‘how can I help you?’ or even instead of giving them directions walk them over to their appointment visit.

“It’s the little things that really go a long way to leave a lasting impression with a patient, visitor, or even a colleague” says Wilson. “At UConn Health, our workforce tries to be role models. It is so important to continuously build and nurture positive relationships with our patients and our colleagues.”

Interestingly, Wilson joined UConn Health from a nearby hospital where she was a critical care nurse manager throughout COVID-19 including in the ICU and medical stepdown unit. “As a nurse, I always have taken each patient’s experience seriously.”

Not being at the beside administering care as a nurse is a very different patient experience Wilson says, but “In my role as Director of Patient Experience I am still there for my patients and families,” she heartwarmingly shares.

“The power of positivity is real,” says Wilson. “And I am the first to say to my colleagues, that we need to always find the positive in every situation, even from the COVID-19 challenge.”

Wilson reflects while the COVID pandemic was the hardest moment working in health care, on a positive note she recalls the incredible teamwork that happened among health care workers and the undying support they have shown to patients, families, and to one another. Plus, importantly, now thanks to COVID the health care industry is recognizing and more greatly supporting health care workers’ mental health and burnout.

When it comes to caring for patients and their families, Wilson reminds how strong professionalism and communications are key.

“When providers are communicating with patients and their loved ones in the hospital, we must keep in mind that they may be experiencing the very worst time of their lives,” says Wilson. “The more empathy, connection, and understanding we can offer during these difficult moments in time, the better. Also, when it comes to our patients’ diversity of cultures we can’t assume that everyone has the same level of health care literacy and we need to do our best when explaining things to patients.”

This April 29 to May 3 marks the celebration of national Patient Experience Week.

This week and beyond Wilson reminds all those working across the fields of health care, whether at the bedside or behind the scenes at health systems like UConn Health, to take a moment to pause and reflect on:  what you can do differently to improve a patient, visitor, or fellow colleague’s experience?

“Pause for positivity,” says Wilson. “Smile and show your sunshine to others. Know that by taking a moment to improve someone else’s day with a small gesture of positivity will also improve your own day too.”

And to patients, families, and visitors, Wilson and the Office of Patient Experience shares their many thanks for all the thank you emails, letters, and online reviews.

“It really makes so much of a difference when our providers get a thank you. We make sure to share all patient compliments with our health care teams to applaud, engage, and encourage them. It absolutely keeps you going knowing that you and your work are much appreciated,” reports Wilson.

She concludes: “Our work in the Office of Patient Experience at UConn Health is really all about how to create a positive experience for all. At UConn, we are a teaching hospital and are always learning, and finding new opportunities to make things better for our patients and our providers.”

UConn Health’s Office of Patient Experience, led by Cindy Molin, VP, also includes the Patient Relations Department, Post-discharge Call Management for UConn John Dempsey Hospital and its Emergency Department, Volunteer and Guest Services, Interpreter Services and patient survey administration and analytics.

“Patients at UConn Health receive an exceptional patient experience,” says Molin. “We have made it our mission to put patients at the center of everything we do, and it shows. We are so happy to have Yarelis, her positivity and leadership on our amazing team!”

This content is part of a collaborative initiative of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, with UConn Health’s Chief Diversity Officer Dr. Jeffrey Hines, to celebrate the institution’s shared values and its workforce. Send your word-of-the-month nominations to thehub@uchc.edu.

Source: US State of Connecticut

As an undocumented and first-generation student, Valentina Rodriguez Aguado ’24 (CLAS) spent a lot of time learning how to navigate the college environment. Now, she’s graduating with a bachelor’s degree in sociology, a minor in Africana studies, and a home and community at UConn.

Why did you choose to go to UConn?
I received a lot of financial aid from scholarships and it’s close to home so that helped a lot. 

What drew you to your field of study?
I think both fields intertwine with each other. I took intro courses in both sociology and Africana studies, and I fell in love with them. I enjoy unraveling the threats of social injustice and delving into readings which dissect racial and social systems.

Did you have a favorite professor or class?
Surprisingly, my organic chemistry class, although it was a difficult time, helped me learn time management and a couple studying habits.

What activities were you involved in as a student?   
I first got involved with Project Fashion, and then I got involved with the Academic Achievement Center. At first, I was a mentee because I was on academic probation, but I worked my way up from mentee to mentor to master coach. I was also in Undocu-huskies, which is a fairly new club on campus that I helped co-found and was president of for a couple semesters. I was also a part of the CLAS Women’s Leadership Collective. 

What’s one thing that surprised you about UConn?   
I came into college without having any prior knowledge because I am a first-gen student, and on top of that, English is not my first language. So, I was surprised to find a home here — it doesn’t matter how you identify, you will find other people that you can call family or home. 

What was it like starting college during the pandemic?   
It was not the best thing ever. I stayed home the fall semester of my freshman year and then I wanted to come to campus for the college experience. Being first-gen, I was so eager to know what this whole world was, so I came here in the spring semester of my freshman year, and it was nothing like I thought it was going to be. There was no one around. It was shocking, but I was also surprised that there was still a lot of help and resources around. I still found ways to talk to my professors and go to office hours. 

How has UConn prepared you for the next chapter in life? 
I learned a lot about myself through my years here. I also learned how to be a professional, and as silly as it sounds, even just about English as a language. For my next chapter, I feel like I’ll be well adept because UConn has helped me a lot with making connections, being on my own, and finding a way to navigate life by myself. 

Any advice for incoming students? 
I would say reach out and say ‘yes’ to a lot of things. When I first started, I kept to myself, but when I started getting involved, that’s when everything changed. Getting involved is a way to make friends and build your resume or connections, but it’s also a way to learn about yourself as well. 

What’s one thing everyone should do during their time at UConn? 
I would say attending sporting events — the school spirit is unbeatable. 

What will always make you think of UConn?   
Honestly, there’s a lot of things. Friends, events, classes, and even professors — it’s the whole experience. I had a pretty good time at UConn, and I can’t complain about anything other than the weather. 

How has being a student in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences impacted your UConn experience?   
The CLAS community is big here. I was always able to find a sociology friend in my classes. It creates a community in which we can all relate to each other because the humanities are important.  

Source: US State of Connecticut

Jerold “Jerry” Mande ’78 (CAHNR) has spent decades working to improve Americans’ health.

Mande will deliver the commencement address for the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources on May 4, 2024.

From efforts to reduce tobacco use, to creating the organ doner matching system with Al Gore, and collaborating with former first lady Michelle Obama to improve the nutrition of school meals – Mande has worked on major health initiatives with some major players in Washington, D.C.

But all this work began at UConn when Mande was an undergraduate student studying nutritional sciences.

In 1976, the FDA banned products that used amaranth, the basis for Red Dye No. 2. This ban was because of the link between this dye in foods like red M&Ms to an increased cancer risk. Mande was mystified by the decision and wanted to learn more about the nutritional science behind it.

“I knew enough to know that diet indeed was a leading risk factor of cancer, but it was probably more basic parts of the diet, not the red dye,” Mande says. “I was perplexed [as to] why the FDA would choose to ban red dye and not do something more meaningful in terms of changing the way we were eating.”

Since then, unfortunately little has changed. In fact, as Mande explains, things have gotten worse.

Americans, including children, suffer increasingly high rates of diet-related illnesses such as diabetes, fatty liver disease, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. Currently 42% of the U.S. population is obese, more than tripling since the 1960s.

“It’s really sad and a catastrophe for the nation how sick we are,” Mande says. “It keeps me working, because I am convinced that we can make progress.”

When Mande graduated with a degree in nutritional sciences and minor in art, both of which he credits as foundational for the rest of his career, he realized he didn’t want to work with people one-on-one as a nutritionist.

“That is such critical important work,” Mande says. “But you work with a person one at a time and hope to change them, and I had enough insight into myself to know I didn’t have the patience to do that. I wanted to work at a scale of possibly a million people at a time.”

Mande continued his education earning his master’s degree in public health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

He then began his career as a visiting scientist in the FDA. Fittingly, it was the same branch that made the decision to ban red M&Ms.

In what is probably his most recognizable accomplishment in our day-to-day lives, Mande is the man behind the nutrition labels on all our food. Mande says the minor in art he earned at UConn came in handy on this project as he had an aesthetic background the other scientists lacked.

“It’s very popular,” Mande says. “Consumers depend on it. It is important and I was glad to play that role.”

Mande later worked on tobacco regulation during the Clinton Administration. This remarkably successful effort led to a marked reduction in tobacco use, especially among children. Today, less than 2% of American youth are cigarette smokers.

Mande says one of the major takeaways from his work on reducing tobacco use was that the government’s campaigns were most effective in changing behavior when they focused on children’s health, something he is applying to nutrition with his non-profit organization, Nourish Science.

“I learned that we can do big things, and I knew exactly what it would take to have a similar success around food,” Mande says.

One of Nourish Science’s goals is to ensure every child in the U.S. can reach age 18 at a healthy weight and in good metabolic health with the support of government nutrition programs like WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) and SNAP (Supplemental, Nutrition, Assistance Program). Currently, SNAP, the largest nutrition program in the U.S. serving 41 million people, does not have any requirement to meet federal nutrition guidelines.

“We are not this sick because individuals are making bad choices. The answer is not to help them make better choices,” Mande says. “That plays a role. But [the system] has to be set up so that the choices there for them are healthier choices.”

Mande believes the key to achieving this goal is through the programs millions of Americans already access.

For example, during the Obama administration, the government enacted and Mande helped implement the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act setting new school meal standards. It was part of Michelle Obama’s effort to reduce childhood obesity. It worked. Using the Healthy Eating Index which measures how well people follow federal nutrition guidelines, the average score for school meals, and the general population, was 58 out of 100. After introducing the new school meal standards in 2013, the scores of these meals increased to 82 within three years.

“It shows what government can do,” Mande says. “I know we can do it.”

Nourish Science also advocates for the need for more research on what is causing the current diet-related health epidemic in the U.S, particularly the sharp increase in obesity. Currently less than 5% of the National Institutes of Health budget goes toward nutrition-related research.

“We know a lot and we’ve learned so much more since I graduated,” Mande says. “But we still can’t answer that basic question.”

Food For Thought

As CAHNR celebrates the 10^th anniversary of health being added to the College name, Dean Indrajeet Chaubey says it is only fitting that someone like Mande speak with the class of 2024.

“Jerry’s career underscores the value of a holistic, diverse, and visionary approach to health and nutrition policy, and he has worked with the highest levels of national government to put that vision into action,” says Chaubey. “Given the impact that Jerry’s work has had on thousands of Americans’ health, we know he’ll provide invaluable ‘food for thought’ for our students.”

Mande says his work is, overall, dedicated to making the world a better place, a guiding principle he encourages people, including this year’s graduates, to keep in mind when choosing a career.

“You need to balance three things: what are you particularly talented or skilled at…the next is what do you really love doing…and then the third is what would make the world, your country, and your community a better place,” Mande says.

Follow UConn CAHNR on social media

Source: US State of Connecticut

In 1883, the very first commencement at what is now the University of Connecticut looked like this: six graduates, all male, received certificates rather than diplomas in a ceremony at Storrs Congregational Church presided over by J.M. Hubbard, a trustee from Middletown.

Things will look a bit different this May, some 141 years after that humble gathering.

In the newly launched website dedicated to this year’s graduates, you will meet Huskies who are veterans, Huskies who are philanthropists, Huskies who are already well into professional careers, Huskies who saw UConn as the pathway to a new life, and Huskies who are carrying on a family tradition of earning a UConn degree.

More than 8,000 degrees will be awarded to Huskies who have come from as far away as Malaysia and as close to home as Mansfield, their ranks full of doctors, nurses, dentists, teachers, Air Force officers, professional basketball players, engineers, entrepreneurs, attorneys, farmers, artists, social workers, pharmacists, chemists, biologists, journalists, and other things that J.M. Hubbard and his audience of six could have scarcely conceived all those years ago.

One thing hasn’t changed, though: the commitment to education for and by the public that rests at the heart of UConn’s mission.

The Class of 2024, having weathered the COVID-19 pandemic and a host of less dramatically disruptive challenges, strides forward in May to serve their towns, state, nation, and world. In big and small ways, in endeavors that will make headlines and in everyday acts of grace that will never be known by more than a handful of people, the newest UConn Husky alums will make the world a better place.

Congratulations, and remember: you may no longer be students today, but you’ll always be Huskies Forever.

Source: US State of Connecticut

For most of UConn’s Class of 2024, high school graduation included caps and gowns, some kind of ceremony, and a diploma – but that’s where the similarities to a traditional graduation ceremony ended.

Because graduation in 2020, in the midst of the early pandemic, was anything but traditional.

Aamna Chaudury ’24 (BUS), a marketing major at UConn, remembers sitting in a car in a large parking lot for her graduation from Pomperaug High School in Southbury.

“They had a stage set up in the parking lot, but you pretty much only went up there to get your diploma,” she says. “They had a big presentation set up on the stage with a projector, and they had the slide shows that they had already planned to do. They had all of that going, and then you were just sitting in your car for most of the time – even during the commencement speech, you’re sitting in your car.”

When Rachel Arreguin ’24 (CAHNR/CLAS) graduated from Mercy High School in Middletown, she didn’t even get to walk across a stage.

“I had a cap and gown that was sent through the mail, but it was a drive-by graduation,” says Arreguin, who studied animal science and Spanish at UConn. “I was handed my diploma through the window of the car, and that was it.”

There wasn’t a big graduation speaker when she graduated, says Lucy Cappadona ’24 (BUS), a finance major from Marlborough, Massachusetts – the school superintendent addressed the class.

“You would walk across this fake stage kind of thing, and then you would take a picture and walk off,” she says. “It was awkward.”

There were no proms or senior skip days, no senior outings, no smiling selfies with friends before the ceremony, and no graduation night parties.

“All of those things got canceled for us,” says Chaudury, “so it’s exciting to finally have that and to actually hang out with my friends at graduation.”

This time around, the class that found the spring of their senior year canceled will get that real commencement experience as UConn prepares to award degrees to 2,060 graduate students and 5,815 undergraduate students this May.

This year’s graduating class includes 33 sets of twins – the oldest member of the class is 77, and the youngest is 18.

Eighty-six graduates are U.S. military veterans, and 1,454 are the first in their families to graduate from college.

The farthest distance a student traveled from home internationally to study in Storrs was from Malaysia – 9,280 miles away – and 806 members of the class took part in Education Abroad, lest anyone doubt the University’s broad global reach.

The Class of 2024 also includes 13 University Scholars, 14 McNair Scholars, and 45 Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Scholars. An incredible 492 graduating students are members of the Honors Program.

For the class where everything was cancelled, they’re hoping for a different experience this time around – a chance to make memories with family and friends and to experience the pomp and circumstance that they were denied four years ago as the world grappled with COVID-19.

“I just hope it feels special and memorable to walk across the stage, have people clap, make my family proud,” says Arreguin. “Especially being a minority, my parents didn’t have this opportunity, so I just hope to get that out of it. Just a normal graduation.”

“I think right now, honestly, a lot of it doesn’t feel real. It hasn’t really sunk in,” says Chaudury. “But, it’ll definitely be exciting to be able to celebrate with everyone. Because, last time, even my cousins or family members who would come for my graduation, they couldn’t come.

“It’ll be nice to finally be able to celebrate with everyone I love.”