Maryland Department of Health, Charles County, Mobile Integrated Healthcare Team
(Left to Right) Mike Morello, Jenny Hunt, Pam Gantt, Wanda Mahoney, Greg Derwart. The Governor’s Office of Performance Improvement presented citations on behalf of Governor Hogan to the Charles County Department of Health, Mobile Integrated Healthcare Team (MIH). The innovative MIH program, made up of a community health worker, a paramedic, and a registered nurse have reduced emergency room visits by 74% and in-patient hospital admissions by 80% by serving patients in-need out in the community. Learn more here – https://goo.gl/USGt4N
Maryland State Police, Forensic Sciences Division
The Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division received a citation from Governor Hogan for excellence in customer service. The laboratory team processes evidence that requires precision so managing their customers’ expectations for timeliness is important. Also, meeting time sensitive requests requires being flexible with hours of operation. While the citation was given to one standout employee, the Forensic Sciences Division of the Maryland State Police demonstrates Maryland’s Finest is Changing Maryland for the Better!
Frank Pullifrone – Maryland Department of General Services
Mr. Pullifrone is a Project Manager in the Facilities Planning, Design and Construction Division at the Department of General Services. When the Grand Building, a state-owned property in Cumberland, MD lost its heating and air conditioning due to emergency systems failures, Mr. Pullifrone oversaw getting the systems replaced. He repeatedly traveled four hours round trip between Baltimore and Cumberland to ensure the project was successful. The Grand Building houses the Canal Place Authority, who oversees the preservation, development, and management of the Canal Place Preservation District, a designated heritage area in Cumberland around the western end of the C&O Canal. Secretary of the Department of General Services, Ellington Churchill said “Frank is responsive, respectful, and results-oriented. We are proud of the fine work he is doing and congratulate him on this well-deserved honor.” Secretary Churchill received many compliments about Frank’s efforts at Canal Place regarding his knowledge, how he works with others at the site, and perseverance to see the project through to completion. For this effort, Frank was awarded the first Customer Service Heroes Award by Governor Hogan on April 5, 2017.
Natasha Jones and Jessica Mencos – Maryland Department of Transportation, Motor Vehicle Administration
The Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) received an inquiry from an elderly customer who was new to the State of Maryland and needed an identification card for medical benefits and other purposes. The customer lives in a nursing home and was physically unable to visit an MVA branch office.
MVA employees Natasha Jones and Jessica Mencos visited the nursing home to collect all the necessary information to process an identification card. It took a collaborative approach to develop a new process to complete this transaction. The employees brought a white background from a branch office for the photo and cell phone camera. Jessica held up the white background while Natasha took the photo. The employees captured the customer’s signature on a blank sheet of paper. The customer provided copies of her identity, social security card and residency documents. Once back at headquarters, Natasha emailed the customer’s signature and picture to our technology team. They resized the photo and signature, and formatted all the images. Once the technical solution was in place, the application was completed. The customer was mailed her new ID Card and was very pleased with the premier customer service provided to help her obtain this critical document. On May 24, 2017, Governor Hogan recognized Natasha and Jessica’s efforts with a Customer Service Hero Award.
Audrey Clark and Christine Farrelly, Maryland Department of Health
When a constituent provides feedback through the Governor’s Customer Service Survey, that feedback is provided to the appropriate agency for follow up. In this case, a constituent who is a physician’s assistant by occupation used the survey to offer suggestions for how the Maryland Department of Health could improve the processing of applications. Audrey Clark from the Office of Controlled Substances Administration and Christine Farrelly from the Maryland Board of Physicians took the constituent’s advice and implemented measures to immediately improve the processing of applications. They also set in motion plans to share information in real-time. The result will reduce the administrative burden for the applicant and the agency, and will increase information reliability. For this effort, Ms. Clark and Ms. Farrelly were recognized with a Governor’s Customer Service Heroes Award on June 21, 2017.
Brian Stupak, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Forest Service
Brian Stupak supervises a three county project area and is the primary forester for Calvert and Prince George’s County. He provides forest programs in these counties, including assisting landowners with forest management, coordinating tree planting activities, managing state forest lands, and more. In the town of University Park, MD in 2016 and 2017 after a timber harvest was completed in a neighboring area, University Park officials complained about damage to a nearby stream, which feeds into the Anacostia River. Mr. Stupak committed to investigating the cause of the issue. Through his persistence and collaboration with Mayor Len Carey and Prince George’s County, they were able to determine that the damage was most likely caused by runoff from a nearby school, not the harvest, and the issue was dealt within an accurate and timely manner. Maryland Department of Natural Resources Secretary Mark Belton said “In a 19-year career with the Department, Brian has gone above and beyond to solve problems for our customers in a friendly, timely, and truthful manner. He is a great example of a dedicated and professional state employee and testament to the great work of the Maryland Forest Service.” On July 27, 2017 Brian Stupak was recognized with a Governor’s Customer Service Hero award.
Customer Service Spotlight – Sandra Cobb
Office: Office of Controlled Substances Administration, Maryland Department of Health
The Office of Controlled Substances Administration (OCSA) processes registrations from doctors, pharmacists, hospitals, and other prescription writing and/or filling personnel and locations for the authorization to write and fill prescriptions for medication, and to process, store, label, and ship these medications.
The Office encountered a backlog in the processing of registrations for Controlled Dangerous Substances (CDS) permits. Sandra Cobb demonstrated outstanding customer service during this period that helped her team to eliminate the backlog of permit applications. She also handled customer calls and walk-ins. For the walk-ins needing to receive registrations or renewals prior to expiration dates, Sandra shined by demonstrating interpersonal skills to assuage customers’ tensions and guide them through the process. In many cases, walk-in customers failed to bring in needed paperwork. Rather than telling them to come back later, Sandra would help them get the appropriate paperwork together so that they could submit applications correctly. In the words of Sandra, “I treat people the way I want to be treated.”
The Office of Controlled Substances Administration has received many compliments from customers and from her co-workers about her attitude and approach to achieving the Office’s mission. In addition to helping eliminate the backlog, the Office was able to implement process improvements to improve the cycle time of processing applications while maintaining the rigor this work requires.
We had an opportunity to interview Sandra about her work, and we were not surprised to hear her give credit to her team and how their office works as a unit to perform their mission. The Office Chief, Ms. Audrey Clark, Deputy Chief James Polek, and their entire team echoed that sentiment when we met with them. At the Maryland Department of Health, Office of Controlled Substances Administration, Ms. Sandra Cobb is Changing Maryland for the Better by fulfilling the principles of the Customer Service Promise.
The Office of Controlled Substances Administration Team – (left to right – back row) Tiffany Lovett, Sharein Greene, Robert Pelakakis, Jim Polek, Christopher Morton, Lisa Ellis, (middle row) Cynithia Gethers, Andrea Mack, Sandra Cobb, Carl Norman, Lisa Ridolfi, and Department of Health Chief Administrative Officer Lisa Ellis, (front row) Olivia James, Audrey Clark. Not present in the photo: Sharell Myers, Fred Evans, Howard Minster, and Sandra Yankosky
Ms. Sandra Cobb
[1] Governor Hogan; April 5, 2017; Board of Public Works; Transcript page 10 – http://bpw.maryland.gov/MeetingDocs/2017-Apr-5-Transcript.pdf retrieved 9/18/17