Tuesday, August 24, 2021

Chartwell’s Employee of the Year!

Local 304 member Sharon Bogle leads with her heart, making the lives of everyone at her workplace better every day

By Christina Matta, Pine Grove Lodge Administrator

Congratulations to Sharon Bogle for winning Chartwell’s Employee of the Year Award! Sharon is a PSW at Pine Grove Lodge in Woodbridge and is also a company health and safety representative. She begins the day with a morning blessing, asking for strength, courage, and hope, not only for the residents and team members at Pine Grove, but also for their families.

This is how Sharon brings the team together each morning. She believes that starting the day with a blessing allows the team to connect spiritually, which in turn builds unity and bonds that cannot be broken and in times of crisis.

This has been evident throughout the pandemic and during the home’s COVID-19 outbreak. The team members in the home’s Bella Vita neighbourhood, where Sharon works, laugh together, support one another, and are always there to help each other when a resident is not having a great day. Her belief in unity and togetherness have had a domino effect on all the teams in the various neighbourhoods throughout our home.

Sharon has been a PSW at Pine Grove for over 25 years. She has grown to be a leader and a role model for many. She has a charismatic yet stern personality and has mentored many new team members over the years. She is the first to applaud a coworker for a job well done but does not hesitate to teach and coach a coworker when they have doffed a gown incorrectly or have not sanitized their hands for the full 15 seconds.

Sharon has built trusted partnerships not only with coworkers but with residents’ families and external partners. She is the first to recognize her peers’ talents and lean toward them to improve care processes or find a creative way to deescalate any expression a resident may be experiencing.

For example, despite being an IMAGINE grad, Sharon will often call on our BSO lead to assist with innovative ways to encourage residents during sundowning. She will look to the recreation team to educate her on our new move in’s life stories so she is able to make personal connections with each of them.

Sharon takes the time to update families when visiting their loved ones and uses the opportunity to learn about their hobbies and other interests the residents may have. She uses this information when providing care to make personal connections and to help deescalate any anxieties. These connections are leaned on when external partners such as lab techs or physicians are in and unable to provide service. She is able to successfully assist these partners to achieve the required outcome.

Sharon is an aggressive trailblazer. She does not hesitate to challenge the status quo when a new rollout may take place that does not have the best interest for the residents, team members, or overall flow of operations. If she feels the impact is not favourable or, in turn, simplifies processes and drives results, she will be sure not only to challenge the status quo but also provide her thoughts for improving the process.

The residents and team members look up to Sharon as a role model, which she truly is. From braiding a resident’s hair to sitting at the bedside providing support for a palliative resident and their family, Sharon is always there for them to turn to for comfort, laughter, and a warm hug. She took it upon herself to do in-room exercises, walking, and reminiscing with the residents on Bella Vita while they were isolated in their rooms for 76 days during our home’s outbreak.

This example was followed by her peers. Recognizing the residents could not have showers, she led her team to find an innovative way to shower the residents in their rooms, ensuring everyone’s hair was washed and they felt fresh.

Sharon is an individual who leads with her heart. She always sees the cup half full and puts a positive spin on any situation or obstacle that presents itself. She is an inspiration to all. She makes the lives of everyone at Pine Grove better every day and is truly deserving of the Employee of the Year Award. Congratulations, Sharon!

Silvana Pasqualino (steward), Sharon Bogle, Fran Drago (steward)

Chartwell’s Employee of the Year!

You might be interested in