The Clean Team
June 23, 2022 – The pandemic taught us many lessons; one of the most eye-opening was the importance of behind-the-scenes team members. In health care, these people may not have a role in direct patient care, but they are essential to the patient experience and overall safety. Three of these unsung heroes are Angelica Herring, Dana Pow, and Jason Woodard, team members in Environmental Services (EVS) at Southeast Georgia Health System’s Camden Campus.
A self-described “clean freak,” Pow prides herself on keeping patient rooms and public areas sanitized and safe. According to William Burdell, EVS Manager, her job helps protect patients and staff. “Dana is a rock star in the ICU and Medical Surgical floors! She was fearless during the pandemic.” Pow is not only fearless and fastidious, she’s friendly. “Often, when passing rooms, you hear Dana and the patient or their visitors laughing or in conversation,” Burdell says. Reflecting on her role within the Health System, Pow explains, “I take care of patients. I make them feel good and make sure they stay in a clean, healthy environment.”
Pow has her hands full outside of work, too. “I have three children, three grandchildren, two dogs and four cats.” Even with such an important role within the Health System, she is up to the task of her active household. “I like things to be neat and tidy,” Pow adds. When not busy at work or home, she enjoys shopping and imagining a trip to her dream destination: Rome, Italy. Until then, she will continue keeping the hospital clean and patients happy.
Her co-worker, Herring, works in one of the busiest areas of the hospital: the Emergency Care Center (ECC). Just one year into the job, “Angelica has become an integral member of the ECC
team,” Burdell says. “Few employees get as many written compliments from staff and patients. She keeps her areas clean and is always willing to assist even if the task is outside her normal scope of responsibility, going above and beyond.” Burdell remembers an incident when Herring went out of her way to help. “During her shift in the ECC, Angelica noticed that a patient was upset. She walked up and reassured him all would be well, setting him at ease.”
A Camden native, Herring is proud to be part of her hometown hospital. She looks forward to moving up within her department, a goal that is well within reach, given her excellent work ethic. Herring is grateful for her family and friends, and in her spare time, she indulges her creative spirit with art projects.
When you work as part of the EVS team, you rarely get a chance to sit during the job. Fortunately, Woodard is “a hardworking perpetual motion machine,” Burdell says. Woodard focuses on one of the hospital’s most time-consuming tasks: keeping hospital floors clean. “I want them to shine every day,” Woodard says. It sounds simple, but his job is paramount to hospital hygiene. “Jason’s roles impact infection prevention, a critical focus for the Health System and patients,” Burdell says. Woodard’s work is essential to keeping diseases at bay.
A three-year team member of the Health System, Woodard helps out in other ways, too. “It’s common to find Jason working independently on a project that he noticed needs addressing. He exceeds expectations and is invaluable to the team and the Health System,” Burdell says. Woodard takes just as much initiative in his personal life as he does on the job. He plans to become a graphic designer one day, and like his co-worker Dana Pow, he hopes to visit Italy. When he’s not making the hospital shine, the St. Marys resident plays football, soccer or ultimate Frisbee with friends.
The self-satisfaction of having a clean house is second to none. It’s even more reassuring to know that our hometown hospital is cleaned and cared for by such dedicated individuals like Dana Pow, Angelica Herring and Jason Woodard.
About Southeast Georgia Health System
Southeast Georgia Health System is a not-for-profit health system comprised of two acute care hospitals, two long term care facilities, two comprehensive Cancer Care Centers and multiple specialty care centers, including orthopedic and spine care, joint replacement, breast care, maternity, outpatient rehabilitation, sleep management and wound care. The Brunswick Campus Cancer Care Center is accredited by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer and offers the only CyberKnife® M6 with MLC technology in Georgia. Additionally, the Southeast Georgia Physician Associates medical group includes more than 140 providers working in 20 different medical specialties at more than 50 locations. The Health System is part of Coastal Community Health, a regional affiliation between Baptist Health and Southeast Georgia Health System forming a highly integrated hospital network focused on significant initiatives designed to enhance the quality and value of care provided to our contiguous communities. For more information, visit sghs.org.