WellSpan COVID-19 Testimonials
WellSpan COVID-19 Testimonials
I feel honored to have served as Interim Senior Vice President WellSpan Health and President of York Hospital from January-July, 2020, during the initial COVID-19 outbreak. The following is a collective account of my work there from the mouths of my superiors and peers. Together, we truly are stronger. — Rodney D. Reider
WELLSPAN — COMMENTS FROM COLLEAGUES
I had the pleasure of meeting and working with Rodney during his time at WellSpan York Hospital. During great uncertainty and unprecedented change, Rodneya came to WellSpan as the interim CEO and VP. His leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic was remarkable.
His clear, concise, and, above all, calming leadership style guided the hospital and its staff to adjust quickly and take an early proactive approach to prepare for this global crisis. Rodney’s experience in leadership upheld the hospital's mission, vision, and values, ensuring that our patients and their families were taken care of and that the hospital staff and their families were supported.Rodney has a rare skill set that demonstrates what an effective leader is and how a leader must never lose touch with the compassion and caring towards others that is required to be successful. Rodney spent the first part of his time at WellSpan York Hospital getting to know our patients and front-line staff, taking time to learn the history of the hospital and the population it serves, including the culture of the work environment.
This created meaningful conversations and trust, which improved the staff’s ability to prepare and weather the upcoming event.
Rodney's leadership supported the staff's resilience during this time. His calming support and strength gave staff a sense of support and confidence that we would be together as a team, truly working as one. I would not hesitate to work with Rodney again if given the chance.
— Layla San Martin MSN, MHA, RN, HACP, CJCP, Director of Accreditation & Licensure, Wellspan York Hospital
Rodney did a great job coming into a new market without any connections. He provided excellent governance and medical staff relational skills. He also assisted in stabilizing a volatile Emergency Department setting and obtained outstanding interim and permanent leaders.
What separated Rodney from many interim executives was his openness, desire to listen before taking action, focus on quality/patient safety, and collaborative nature. Even though he was very experienced, he offered suggestions and recommendations but always ddid soafter assessing the situation.
I also found Rodney to be very responsive. He responded quickly to physicians, staff members, and leaders. What was also very impressive was that he rounded continuously and speedily became known to many of the 5,000 employees.
In addition to the above, this was all accomplished during the outbreak of COVID-19, with three months of Incident Command responsibilities and a significant impact ono the system. WellSpan York Hospital performed very wellunderh Rodney’s leadership during this period.
— John M. Porter, Jr., Executive Vice President & COO, WellSpan Health
Leslie and I want to let you know how thankful we were to have Rodney as our interim hospital president. His leadership and calmness through the last few COVID weeks and prior to that were exactly what we needed. He was a tremendous advocate for all of our staff, listening to issues and following through, and wasn’t afraid to tell people that he would get back to them if he didn’t immediately have an answer to their question. Our ED physician, nurse,g and other ancillary staff kept asking for more of his time because he was perceived as a strong leader in our hospital. He made our jobs infinitely easier in some pretty stressful times.
— Tom Kehrl, MD, Chair Leslie Mahoney, Emergency Director WellSpan, York Hospital Department of Emergency Medicine
I just wanted to congratulate those already expressed by the York Hospital Medical Executive Committee at its June meeting, where a resolution was unanimously passed acknowledging all Rodney’s many positive contributions to York Hospital and its medical staff in his tenure as our Interim President.
I have worked with many healthcare executives over my 35-year career, 15 years as a Vice President of Medical Affairs and over 20 years as a Chair of Anesthesiology. Rodney has impressed all of us with his uncompromising commitment to quality, safety, patient experience, and especially staff engagement. His ability to motivate and connect on a fundamental level with our medical, nursing, and hospital staff to inspire
Their performance at the highest level was broadly recognized as impressive and well-appreciated.I, along with our YH medical staff leadership team, especially valued his wisdom, sincerity, accessibility, and ability to listen and guide us. His leadership during our COVID-19 pandemic response and reactivation was critical to our collective success.
— Allan M. Birenberg, D, MBA, Vice President of Medical Affairs, York Hospital, WellSpan Health System.
I am grateful for the leadership I experienced from Rodney and the leadership I witnessed and learned from him throughout the past six months. Getting to know Rodney through incident command was a privilege, and it was also an honor for me to learn and grow my leadership skills. While I hope that I do not have to respond to another pandemic in my career, the skills and leadership I witnessed (and gained feedback on) from Rodney through this experience will continue throughout my career. I genuinely value Rodney's ability to listen, care, and lead by example with a calm approach. I'm thankful for Rodney's leadership and hope our paths will cross.
— Stephanie L Bream, MSPT, Manager – Inpatient Rehab Services, WellSpan Rehab Services – York Hospital
I want to express my appreciation for Mr. Reider's efforts at York Hospital. Never have I seen a president take the time to meet and learn about the staff with such care. He was the perfect person to be York Hospital President through the COVID start-up in unpredictable and troubling times. The staff was happy to see the Hospital President roaming the halls to check on them and enjoyed the treats he brought with him. More importantly, he was visible and took the time to speak to them, learn, and listen to what they had to say. I will ALWAYS remember how he came to talk to the staff on 4 Main after the loss of our dear friend. He visited and asked sincere questions about her and our relationship with her. That made us all feel seen and heard during such a dark time. The dinner he ordered was above and beyond, a 5-star touch. I am sad to see him leave York Hospital, but I hope that whomever is lucky enough to have him lead, knows how special he is.
— Jeannette Stambaugh, BSN, RN-BC, House Supervisor, Clinical Nurse III, WellSpan York Hospital
Rodney came to York Hospital and was a breath of fresh air. He took the time to speak with the staff, to hear them, and to appreciate their concerns, feedback, and opinions. He made everyone feel that their jobs, no matter how big or small, were an essential part of the team. Their participation made a difference. I don’t think Rodney knew that he was the difference. He made the staff want to be the very best that we could be. He wanted to see us succeed, and we wanted to see him succeed. He took the extra time and steps amid a global pandemic to make us feel, on this vast campus, that we were making a difference and that he appreciated us. That was a fantastic feeling, and I know he will take it wherever his following path may lead.
— Sarah Laughlin, Case Management Social Work, York Hospital, WellSpan Health System
I wanted to express deep gratitude for Rodney’s guidance and leadership through these unprecedented times. His thoughtful and direct approach to the task of governance has been a lesson to us all. I hope our paths cross in the future, and wish him much success in his future endeavors.
— Heidi Beilis, M.D., WellSpan Health System
It had only been a couple of weeks since Rodney had assumed the interim position of President of York Hospital when I had the opportunity to meet and talk with him. We met not in his office or a conference room but in the Gemba, where I work. That day was a system-level, sponsored, lean training class for about 30 people. His knowledge and application of key Lean guiding principles struck me the most. After we talked for a few minutes, he asked if he could speak to the group. This was not a typical request that I have experienced in healthcare. From the beginning, he demonstrated leadership with humility and engaged people in improving patient care in the hospital. He also clarified that if people were having a problem making improvements, they should call him directly—all principles followed by a Lean Leader. What makes him most unique compared to many is how he communicated expectations, but in a way that was so positive that it gave people and teams the confidence to be innovative and take ownership in making process improvements.
— Bryan Taylor, Manager Performance Improvement, WellSpan Health System
Rodney Reider came to lead our WellSpan York Hospital during a time of transition in January 2020. As he assumed this leadership role for our 600-bed Level 1 Trauma Center, his prior experience and aptitude positioned him well for success. Then came COVID-19. Such trying times test even the strongest leaders. He rose to this challenge with poise and grace. His cheerful demeanor and calm countenance reassured our clinical and medical staff during a very uncertain time. His unfailing optimism and appreciation for a job well done helped our staff weather this storm with similar positivity. As he moves to his next role post-COVID we wish him well and will miss him here in York, Pennsylvania. Our organization is better for his time here.
— Alyssa Moyer, MD, Chair, Department of Medicine, WellSpan York
Rodney really engages with our staff and makes everyone feel heard. He visited our Pediatric Unit one evening during the COVID-19 nationwide shutdown, actively listening to our employees, which not only inspired them, but helped to increase employee engagement across the board. Rodney always went the extra mile to meet and greet people within our organization.
— Christine Miller, Pediatrics RN, WellSpan Health
In January 2020, we hired Rodney Reider as the interim SVP and president of York Hospital. We were very impressed with Rodney’s extensive experience; he has proven a huge asset since his arrival! In his six months with us, he oriented quickly and worked significantly to build relationships with multiple stakeholders, including his executive team, hospital leadership, physicians, and hospital employees.
Rodney has been evident in the organization through frequent rounding, amplified during the COVID-19 pandemic. He has set an open and transparent tone. He listens to people, which has been widely acknowledged by staff and physicians. It has been interesting to observe how he has brought his extensive and profound experiences to bear in a wonderfully humble way.
Rodney has produced organizational confidence in his leadership, which was difficult to achieve in six months. He was exactly what we needed; if we were doing it again, we would hire him immediately.
— Thomas R. McGann, M.D., Executive Vice President, Clinical Practice, WellSpan Health
Rodney showed positive leadership for the Emergency Department during his time at York Hospital. Our team was extremely encouraged by Rodney's timely responses throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Rodney is a major reason our staff was able to remain positive and excited to do their jobs during this very difficult time. Rodney allayed staff fears through all of this, and it was crucial!
He frequently visited the ER department delivering constant positivity and support to all. This was crucial during challenging times.
— Steven Schirk, 30+ year ER physician for York Hospital
We have been through many challenges as a community and I am glad Rodney was with us through this one - COVID-19. He has a wonderful way of connecting with team members and listening. Rodney's leadership style has been appreciated by many he will be missed.
— Marlene Crouse, MSN, RN, NE-BC, Regional Director of Case Management Operations for York County
I really enjoyed working with Rodney. To my recollection, I have never seen a leader who is out with the "people" more than Rodney. I saw him interacting with everyone from physician leaders to housekeepers and showed all the same courtesy and respect. Rodney was always out there, friendly, knew people's names, etc. Huge respect for that! A big thank you goes to Rodney for his leadership during the unanticipated COVID crisis. Not what he signed up for, but very well done.
— Lee Maddox, Medical Director, Pulmonary Services and WellSpan Lung, Sleep and Critical Care Site Director, WellSpan Health
I so enjoyed working with you and I appreciated your calm and kind leadership during a very troubled time. I hope you are doing well and have moved onto another interesting opportunity!
— Amy Nelson, Vice President and Deputy General Counsel at WellSpan Health
It was an absolute pleasure to have Rodney on the Senior Leadership Team as the interim President for York Hospital. Rodney was able to step into a 639-bed facility and create a sense of direction through unprecedented times. His leadership during COVID was clear, concise, and calming. Thank you.
— Kimberly Wakefield, MA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, Director Human Resources, WellSpan Health
Mindset, Skillset, Peopleset Leadership