For the second year in a row, a Penn State Hershey employee has been named a winner of the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority’s “I am Patient Safety” poster contest. This year, Tammy Angeletti, a respiratory therapy clinical specialist at Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital, won for her commitment to patient safety.
“Tammy is truly an expert in her field, and cares deeply about our pediatric patients. I am honored to have her on our respiratory therapy team,” said Dana Stauffer, manager of respiratory care at Penn State Hershey.
While providing care for a child with a tracheostomy tube, Angeletti recognized a variable connection issue between the oxygen delivery device and the tube. She worked with a manufacturer to develop a device to provide a standard connection, eliminating any variation to the oxygen set-up.
“I am elated that Tammy has been chosen as the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority’ I am Patient Safety award recipient,” said Jim Fenush, a nursing director at Penn State Hershey. “This award only solidifies what we know about Tammy’s innovative ideas and passion for providing excellent care to patients and families. She truly exemplifies how our individual efforts ultimately lead how collectively we achieve the highest level of quality. Her willingness to advocate for her patients inspires all of us to also commit to patient safety efforts.”
A reception for Angeletti was held during Patient Safety Awareness Week and she was recognized at this month’s Management Council meeting.
Angeletti’s action contributes to three of Penn State Hershey’s Strategic Imperatives: Imperative 1, Achieve the highest level of Quality, Safety and Value; Imperative 3, Create an Extraordinary Patient Experience; and Imperative 4, Create Innovation through Research.