Novant Health Inside Remarkable

Online shopping has become the preferred way to purchase items without the hassles of traffic and crowds. However, the internet is full of hidden dangers that can compromise your information with a single click. In this episode of Cyberchat with Cybersmart, we discuss how applying the proper security measures and behaviors will ensure you enjoy the benefits of shopping online while avoiding the pitfalls. Before you start your holiday shopping, remember to pause and think about what you are doing so you can spot, stop and prevent any compromise of your information.

Smishing, or SMS text phishing, is a form of phishing that uses mobile text messages to trick people into providing personal or financial information, downloading malicious files or clicking on links designed to steal their information. In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” we will cover the signs of a smishing message and provide strategies to help you handle a smishing attack. Listen in and get cybersmart.

In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” we hear more about the different data classifications at Novant Health and the types of data that fall within each classification.

Data breaches have become a common problem for consumers and organizations alike. A data breach is a security violation in which sensitive, protected or confidential data is copied, transmitted, viewed, stolen, altered or used by an unauthorized individual. In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” listen to hear about the latest T-Mobile data breach and how to protect yourself if your information is compromised as a result of a data breach.

In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” listen in to hear how unapproved software on Novant Health computers could affect our security. Our host, Drew Walker, cybersecurity threat intel analyst, discusses why we only allow approved software on our computers and how to request new software for yourself. Listen in to get cyber smart.

Local administrator access, or “local admin” for short, is a form of elevated access that gives a user more control over a device or system.  In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” listen to learn why someone would need local admin access, why we separate it from standard accounts and how to get local admin if you need it.

In this episode of "Within These Firewalls," listen in to hear how a common password used by several team members could have affected our systems. Our host, Drew Walker, cybersecurity threat intel analyst, covers the importance of choosing a unique passphrase and the easy methods you can use to create one. Listen in and get cybersmart. 

In this episode of "Within These Firewalls,” we speak with Anthony and hear his story about personal account compromise. We talk to Anthony about the impact the event has had on his life and the actions he has taken to protect himself in the future. Listen in and get cybersmart. 

Tax season is upon us, and we are all in the process of filing our tax returns. Criminals know this and use this time to conduct tax scams attempting to trick you out of your personal information, or worse, your money. Scams take many shapes and forms, such as phone calls, letters and emails. Many Internal Revenue Service impersonators use threats to intimidate and bully people into paying a fabricated tax bill. That’s why it is important to be vigilant and know what to do if you are the target of one of these scams. Listen in to get cyber smart. 

In this episode of CyberSmart, we hear about Amy’s careful response to an email with an urgent message. We learn about techniques cybercriminals use to trick us, how to spot a phish and what to do when we suspect a phish. Listen in to learn ways that you can help protect Novant Health from cybercriminals.

In this episode of "Within These Firewalls," we chat with Jim about the importance of reporting suspicious cybersecurity issues. Hear how the things our team members share with the cybersecurity team help us secure our environment and how you can report suspicious events. Listen in and get cybersmart.

Featured guests: 

• Elizabeth Outten, senior director of external affairs, Government Relations and External Affairs team.
• Kristen Barnhardt, strategic relationship lead, Government Relations and External Affairs team.
• This episode of Inside Remarkable was edited by Gina DiPietro of Novant Health Public Relations. 

Looking for more information?

• This resource guide, available on I-Connect, guides team members throughout elections.
• Election activity guide, also available on I-Connect, includes a list of do's and don'ts for nonprofits and election activity.
• Register to vote in North Carolina.
• Request a mail-in ballot, also referred to as an absentee ballot, from the North Carolina State Board of Elections. 

In this episode of "Within These Firewalls,” we hear from Traci about a phone call she received from a ‘visher’ impersonating the social security administration. Hear how she paused and prevented falling victim to the attack. We also speak to Joel from the Novant Health cybersecurity products and services team about common strategies vishers take when trying to fool you on the phone and steps you can take to protect yourself from these scammers. Listen in and get cybersmart.

(Part 2 of 2) We continue our discussion with Candace Williams to learn more about how BRG leadership impacted her and what her plans are for the future.

Ashleigh Hargrave  00:05

Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece. We're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health.

Becky Knight  00:25

Welcome to part two of our conversation with Candace Williams, immediate past co-leader of our award winning women's business resource group at Novant Health. In part one, we focused on the work that has garnered some accolades, and on this episode, we are going to focus on how BRG leadership has impacted Candace. Candace, leading such a large BRG, even one with a strong co leader, executive sponsor and committee leaders -- It takes a lot of time and energy. With so many groups you could volunteer to serve, why did you choose to be a BRG leader?

Candace Williams  00:58

To your point, it is a growth opportunity, I saw it as that I saw. It as an opportunity to meet new people in the organization to grow my own skills. And really for the women's BRG, I've always been, I shouldn't say always, but like, as long as I can remember for many years, very personally passionate about helping people grow developing people, and it's particularly women. So the opportunity to help my colleagues to grow, to be able to identify different people to come in and to really pour into them with information and knowledge and learning to be able to plan and strategize how you know, what is this year look like? Are we focusing on mental health? Are we focusing on domestic violence and making sure that women are taking care of themselves is an international women's day and we get to collaborate with other BRG to do something fabulous and honor the contributions that women have made. It just has been, for me, it was just this opportunity to use a lot of the skills that I get to use at work, but maybe in a very different way to be able to be creative and working on our videos that we submitted with our application to be able to like I said, bring in these amazing speakers. So I just really saw it as a way to really sort of feed my passion like I care about it. It's exciting to hear people grow. It's exciting when people reach out to us and say that a speaker impacted them or something that we said impacted them. It's just amazing. So that it was it was for both my personal and professional development personally, I was fed my soul was fed as a result of it, it fed me. And then I also had an opportunity to feed others and the opportunity to learn from more amazing people because the big leader, you're able to connect with all these other amazing leaders across the organization. It's just fabulous. I mean, I really had so much it was like really hard to let go. But I think part of that is making room for someone else. Like I would have happily continued to do this for years to come. But they're amazing people who also want any that same opportunity.

Becky Knight  03:21

I would love to learn what is next for you.

Candace Williams  03:24

So outside of work, I'll say within Novant Health, I still will be very active with the BRG. I'm a member of the Women's BRG and the African American BRG still able to support the new chairs with finding speakers and just anything I can do to help them as they transition. So I'll remain active there and love that and be able to step up with African American BRG because when I took on the chair role women's BRG, I had to step back so I'm so I'm excited about continuing to support the BRGs. Outside of work, I'm very active. I'm in my last year as PTO President, my youngest son is a senior in high school. And so I've been President for probably six years and I've always been on the board of the PTO or PTA and some call it at their schools. I'm in my last year of Jack and Jill of America, which is a an organization of historically black Organization of Women, moms. And so it's really a mother organization, we support our kids and I've been active in that. And so I'm I'm able to kind of step back from that. I'm a sustainer and Junior League of Charlotte, and then recently joined, became a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, which is a historically black sorority, and we strive to be of service to all mankind. And so with that, I know I'll be able to continue to give back to the community. And one of the things that being a big leader did and I said I was passionate about women and growth and development, but it really also sort of sparked this desire in me to do more and what does it look like so capacity for you? I shared that I spoke with the local university. I've actually got two speaking engagements in queue over the next couple of months. And I'm really excited about and really hope to do more of that because I love actually enjoy public speaking and enjoy sharing things that help feed women and help us to grow. I recently had an opportunity to share on the women's BRG call for the first time because all the years it was sort of like I was always scheduling other people and thought, oh, wait, what if I shared you know and so Jill and mothering allow me to share and actually Candace Whitfield who shared with me is going to be coming back and sharing soon as well. And then I, I've started coaching, so I've got some clients that I'm coaching because really, like I said, it's like pouring into women and the BRG really helped me to kind of unlock that gift, that desire that was in me and what does it look like for me to serve and give back to other women?

Becky Knight  05:57

Well, thank you. I am very thankful just personally for what the BRG has done for me as a team member at Novant Health and also in my role as a BRG administrative coordinator. Your leadership of the women's BRG, in your partnership on so many things has really raised the level for all of our BRGs. And so I thank you for what you've done the last few years and I'm excited for what lies ahead for you. So thank you so much for joining us today. I appreciate it.

Candace Williams  06:27

Thank you, but Becky, before we go, I want to thank you too. You are an amazing support. As a BRG coordinator you are they're all extremely supportive. Novant Health didn't just come to the big game like this isn't something new. It's not a result of anything that just happened in culture. This has been going off for years, we've got amazing support all the way across the organization. It's clear that BRGs are valued at Novant Health and you're one of the reasons that we are also successful. So thank you

Ashleigh Hargrave  06:59

Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity and Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

(Part 1 of 2) Candace Williams talks about her term as co-leader of the Women Business Resource Group at Novant Health. Learn why their work was awarded the #1 spot at the national Impact Awards. Then join us for Part 2 where Candace shares how BRG leadership impacted her and how that's opening up new opportunities for her.

Ashleigh Hargrave  00:05

Welcome to mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health.

Becky Knight  00:24

Hello, happy to have you with us for this episode of mosaic, where we focus on what Novant Health is doing in the areas of diversity, inclusion and equity. This episode will highlight the work of our Women's Business Resource Group or BRG at Novant Health. All of our BRGs are impactful and so so instrumental in embedding our value of diversity, inclusion and equity in every aspect of our organization. And the Women BRG is our most award winning. Their mission statement is the women BRG strives to offer a safe place for hard topics, a resource to gain tools for self-care and a place to increase skill, confidence and competence for team members in reaching their professional goals. And they have done just that. With me today is Candace Williams, who recently completed her term as Co- leader of the Women BRG, here to talk about how the BRG impacted our team members, and also how leadership impacted her personally and professionally. Candace, welcome, so glad to have you on this episode. Can you begin by telling us a bit about yourself and your role at Novant Health?

Candace Williams  01:27

Thanks so much, Becky. As you said, my name is Candace Williams, I serve as Director of Patient Advocacy and health humanities. What that means is I have the pleasure of supporting work across the organization that supports our patients and their loved ones. I think at Novant Health we're all advocates. And my role, I get to do things like our patient rights video in English and in Spanish to make sure our patients understand their rights, support our community voice patient family advisory councils, which is a way that we bring the voice of patients and loved ones in as we're making decisions and coming up with ways to better care for our patients. And then on the health community side, really the pleasure of the arts, bringing the arts into our facilities, partnering with other teams, like guests and volunteer services. And recently we've begun installing murals in our parking decks just to create a new environment. So it's about the patient and family member experience, and a team member experience and how can we use art to impact that?

Becky Knight  02:31

And Candace, you just ended a very successful term as C0-leader of the Women's BRG here at Novant Health. In 2020, the BRG placed number two at the impact Awards, which are a national recognition, and in 2021, you took the top spot -- number one! What did that moment feel like and what was running through your mind?

Candace Williams  02:52

Going into it, Becky, all we knew was that we were in the top 25. We didn't know where we fell in the top 25. We just knew we were there. And honestly, in 2021, I was feeling a lot of pressure. Because when you've been number two, where do you go the next year? you want number one! And so in my mind, I thought, Is it even possible could it be but this is what we want. We want to continue to improve and get better. So there was just a lot of anxiety. So as the countdown was happening, I was absolutely on pins and needles. I was actually in the car driving my youngest daughter back from college for the weekend and was listening in. And the closer we got like I'm screaming in the car, I'm making all sorts of noise in the car. And when we got to I think it was like number four, number five, and we still hadn't been called. I very wisely pulled over at a rest stop because I was kind of losing it and pulled over the rest stop. And I'm just sitting there just waiting. And when they said when they announced the number two spot, which meant we were the number one spot. I absolutely lost it. I was screaming, I was crying. My daughter was like looking at me like it was also strange. It was amazing. It was so amazing to hear that. And I think at some point during the night, I thought am I right? Like, I think we're in the top 25. But the numbers are still going down and they haven't gotten to us yet. Like it was very surreal. It was an awesome experience.

Becky Knight  04:18

Yes, that was very exciting. And you definitely, I recall, kind of putting out the intention of you wanted to be number one, and you would share that on calls. And so what did you do to earn the number one spot what was the work that was recognized? 

Candace Williams  04:35

Definitely was believing for that number one spot and we were saying it all the time as a BRG and just were really amazed when it happened. In terms of work itself, we saw an opportunity to create something for our team members frontline through supervisory roles. Now, while Novant Health has a training and personal development available, we really saw an opportunity to leverage some existing training. It was available in sort of a self-paced way and really create some accountability. And the way we did that was by selecting specific modules that we thought would help a team member who wanted to grow in their career. We also set specific timelines there were, there were timelines by which certain things had to be completed. We worked with this company to provide coaching sessions for our team members. So as an organization, Novant Health would cover team members to coaching sessions for free. And additional coaching sessions were $10 Each, we wanted to make sure that even that $10 wasn't an obstacle. So we agreed and determined that we would support any team member who needed that assistance with that $10. So that that even wouldn't be an obstacle for the team members. And so it was really amazing the feedback we received from those who participated in it, because they weren't taking advantage of what was already there. So instead of us we thought about do we want to build something from scratch, but we didn't need to completely reinvent the wheel, what we needed to do was present it in a way, like I said, that created that buy in, that created that level of accountability that encouraged people to take advantage of coaching, which is so valuable, and so many people don't understand the value of it. And so everybody who participated, agreed to a certain number of coaching sessions, a certain number of modules to work on resumes, and interviewing skills, and all those things. And so I think it really produced something wonderful. And those who participated gave wonderful feedback about it.

Becky Knight  06:34

That is, that is, yeah, great work, and was so thrilled that it was recognized, and I think sets the standard for what other people and other companies can do for their team members. And I like what you said about you don't necessarily have to reinvent it, but customize it. Know who, who your members are and what they need and create something that is accessible and relevant to that was so well done. And you did have a lot of other things that you did during your two years. When you look back, are there other moments that stand o...

Yvonne Dixon, a health director for Novant Health shares her reason for taking the Covid 19 vaccine and the historic and recent health inequities that may deter African-Americans and people of color from receiving theirs.

The  Covid 19 Vaccine: A Reflection on Impact and Equity - Yvonne Dixon

January 2021

Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health.

Ashleigh Hargrave  0:28  

I'm Ashleigh Hargrave. Today's episode features a leadership reflection with the spotlight on health equity. We'll hear from Yvonne Dixon, Director of health equity, as she shares her personal reflection on the COVID-19 vaccine and equity in medicine.

Yvonne Dixon  0:47  

Hello, everyone, this is Yvonne Dixon, Director of health equity from the Office of diversity, inclusion and equity. really, you know, I want you to hear something, do you hear that sound in the background. it's a tick tock sound? It is  an actual clock there, I have an antique clock on the wall, and I'm sitting up under this clock. And it's called an eight day clock. This clock is about 100 years old, or I'll say is over 100 years old, it was my great grandfather's clock. So yes, it's over 100 years old, but I'm sitting under this clock, just to remind me and you of what time it is.

You know, there are times in which I am sitting in the same room with this clock. And although the tick tock is very loud. Sometimes I don't hear it.I have become so accustomed to hearing this tick tock sound, that I can be in the same room with it sometimes, and I don't hear it. I bring that up because there are times in which when we are called, we are called to do something that is so very right, we don't do what is needed because we don't hear it. We don't hear the call. Because we believe that, you know, sometimes maybe we don't need to hear that call. Or we can become immune to hearing that call  if needed for need.

Unknown Speaker  2:28  

Again, confirmed cases within North Carolina is 6274. We also have a number of deaths, meaning 7328. Again, this is a call I want you to hear this call, not become immune to this call.Because the call is for all of us to really and truly highly consider taking the COVID vaccine injection.I have taken this injection.

3:07  

And that was on the 22nd of December. I'll be due for my second injection on the 18th of January. And I'm looking forward to taking the second part of that vaccine. Why? No, I don't like to get stuck. But at the same time, I know that it's beneficial for me. And I'm very thankful that we have the opportunity to be able to take this vaccine. I know that there are several people, I've talked with several people that are not interested in taking this vaccine and really not having a real good reason as to why. But I do understand, especially when we're talking about previous history, especially as it relates to African Americans. You know, for black people, we have had a very bad history when it comes to how we have been treated as a relates to medicine. One of those stories relating to the Tuskegee experiment, and how so many men were not treated appropriately because of the the diagnosis of syphilis, and not given the treatment to eradicate  syphilis, only doing some of those things such as what we can hear about now kind of like that watch and wait and see what happens. But the watch and waiting for those individuals for over 40 years during the course of this experiment did not provide for great benefits. Matter of fact, death occurred. And then we think about in the past the story about Henrietta Lacks and howher body was used for science, although the outcome of that science was good,  her family was not, did not provide for approval to be able to use her body. Again, one of those inequities in science.

  5:19  

And as we look to the present right now, there are so many individuals that are not receiving equitable care, based upon sometimes those social determinants of healththat befall us. But at the same time, there is truth, and there is appropriate treatment for all of us. And we must speak that truth, I say to you, and to all of us to seek getting that treatment of the COVID vaccine.

5:55  

Number one, I told you,  I have received the treatment and am going back to the second portion of that vaccine. Also, as an African American, and female, black female, I know that I am at that age where COVID is is really taken us out those individuals that are over 60 years old, I fall into that category, also African American, I am in that category. And I also have someone here that lives with me, my 92 year old father, who definitely has comorbidities that would if he were to obtain thevirus, that would definitely befall him as a health care provider, as a nurse entering in and out of these facilities and definitely don't want to carry anything with me. So just knowing what's been in the past as to why African Americans do not want to take it and then knowing what's current, in terms of inequities in health care, and there are,but there's no reason for you to not take care of yourself. I urge you, I contend that this vaccine is something that we all need to take. But I am mostly impressing upon my African American brothers and sisters, to please take this vaccine.

  7:36  

Because as you can hear in the background once again of the ticking clock.It is important for us to know what time it is.

Ashleigh Hargrave  7:46  

Thank you, Yvonne for sharing your insight and personal reflections on equity and the necessity for care, especially as it relates to the COVID-19 vaccine, and all of our communities. Listeners, please contact your healthcare provider for more information as your health care provider is a valuable partner in looking after your health and helping you make decisions about your care.

 
 8:17  

Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity at Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

Ashleigh Hargrave  0:05  

Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health.

Becky Knight  0:24  

One critical piece of the Novant Health mosaic is our Business Resource Groups are BRG's. They are voluntary groups of team members united around a common identity and their work positively impacts our patients, our organization and the communities we serve. With me on this episode is Lauri, a Novant Health team member and BRG member here to share about her cancer journey. We are in the midst of Colorectal Cancer Awareness month, and a few weeks ago was International Women's Day where the theme was "choose to challenge" and I can't imagine a much bigger challenge to face than cancer. So Lauri, thank you so much for being here and sharing your story. Can we begin with you telling us a little bit about yourself?

Lauri  1:04  

Sure, thank you. My husband and I moved down here to North Carolina about three years ago as we were searching for warmer weather. I began my career at Novant Health at that time, I am also the Secretary to our Native American BRG, and I really enjoy that. We've been married for 23 years. We don't have any children, but we do have three dogs. In my spare time, I like to go golfing, camping and help rescue dogs find their forever homes.

Becky Knight  1:36  

Wonderful

Lauri  1:38  

I'm also a colon cancer survivor of almost nine years. 

Becky Knight  1:42  

Yeah, so tell me more about that. You know, in researching this and being Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, I just found out that colon cancer is a lot more prevalent than I expected and a lot more deadly. And it's actually, when you look at men and women combined, it's the third most diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death. So what was that like to hear that you were diagnosed?

Lauri  2:10  

Yeah, I don't know that I could ever truly explain the feelings that overcome you when you get a cancer diagnosis. But I have to say first, I was shocked. I was only 42 years old. And I thought colon cancer only happened to the elderly. The only symptoms that I was having was I was having some episodes of diarrhea, which actually was unusual for me. And then I started having some abdominal pain. So at that point, I did go to my primary care doctor, she referred me to a colorectal specialist. She thought that I had irritable bowel syndrome. But in order to get that diagnosis, you have to have everything else ruled out. So that was obviously not the diagnosis that I got. So after I met with the colorectal surgeon, he did tell me that I had stage three colon cancer, and that it was nearly obstructing my bowel and that I needed surgery right away. And I honestly don't think I heard anything he said after he said that. It took me... it took a while for the initial shock to wear off. And then I was definitely scared. I wasn't sure what to expect as I embarked on this new cancer journey. It was definitely a scary time.

Becky Knight  3:27  

Wow. Yeah. And like you said, you think of it as something that happens, you know, to older folks, and the median age is 68 for men and 72. For women, though, the median age for onset is getting earlier and earlier. So yes, so some of the shock of not only the the diagnosis, but to feel so young and to have something so significant happen.

Lauri  3:54  

I have to say they have found that younger people are getting colon cancer much more than they had in the past. And there are some organizations that now recommend starting your colon cancer screening at age 45 instead of the age 50 that it's always been.

Becky Knight  4:13  

Yeah, and when African American Actor Chadwick Boseman. When it came out in the news that he had died last year of colon cancer. He was only 43. Did you have any reactions when you heard that news?

Lauri  4:25  

Yeah, when I heard the news, of course it brought back all the feelings I had when I was diagnosed. I wondered why I lived and Chadwick, who was a superhero, had to die. I thought about how strong he was as he continued to work through his multiple surgeries and chemotherapy. I also felt very sad for his family and everything that he must have had to go through during the last three years of his life. I also tried to think about anything positive and then I realized that his high profile death has definitely raised awareness of colon cancer. I hoped that with that increased awareness that would encourage others to get screened, because I cannot stress how important early screening is because the survival rate is significantly higher the earlier that you can catch colon cancer.

Becky Knight  5:17  

Yes, screening is so important. And I wanted to look at the data too. I mentioned earlier that colorectal cancer is the third most diagnosed cancer among men and women combined. But when we look deeper into that data, we do see there are racial disparities. You shared that you're involved with the Native American business resource group, and one of the goals of our BRG's is to work on reducing health disparities. So looking at the data on Native Americans, they are more likely to get diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Their diagnosis occurs later in the progression of their cancer, and they experience higher colorectal cancer death rates compared to the US as a whole. And while the incidence rates are declining for white Americans, they remain unchanged for indigenous populations. So it's vital that we recognize the disparities and work to close the gaps because everyone needs and deserves access to lifesaving screenings, and treatments. And speaking of treatment, you mentioned how Chadwick worked during the last few years as he was battling cancer. I imagine he must have had people close to him, supporting him through such a difficult and demanding time. What was treatment like for you? Did you have a lot of support during your treatments?

Lauri  6:32  

So my journey began, of course, when I got the colon cancer diagnosis, and then I started with I needed to have a colon resection where they removed the tumor and they also removed about 12 inches of my large intestine. Unfortunately, on the fourth day after surgery, I developed fevers and the pain became unbearable. So I had a CT scan, which showed that I had an ns an osanastomosis leak, which is a leak where they had reconnected the two ends of my colon during the previous surgery. So I had to go back to surgery. They also had to create a temporary ileostomy so that the surgical repair would have time to heal. Even though I had been a nurse for 20 years, I have to say learning to manage my own ileostomy bag was more than I ever imagined. I just would have never thought that I would ever have to do that for myself. The progress through the remainder of my hospital stay was slow, but I was finally able to leave the hospital after 18 days. The normal time i...