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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1995-02 rI ::... A Newsletter for 7 r. r.. o-::::n;x. : ` - . :. ::Y. Employees and Retirees (lt }}� } of Tompkins County I L\;,,... -1.......)`\,......) :.!:-.. FEBRUARY 1995 Volume 8 Number 2 HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR SHIRLEY MORE ABOUT THE BOX" HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU I 1 , ', / , ,, • : IIII a..,. r• "n n &� w ,441,Pv t. The mystery box pictured in last month's issue is a TIME CAPSULE which has been placed behind the corner stone of the new airport terminal. It contains the following When the DSS Services staff learned that Shirley Fritts items: airport manager's letter for posterity, various was going to be 65 on December 19th, it was unanimously business cards, grocery list from P&C, grocery list from decided that we would celebrate this special occasion for a Wegmans, paperweight, sketch of the terminal's"Ring of very special lady. Since Shirley took the day off, we made Light" by architect Anton Egner, final results table of plans to celebrate Tuesday, December 20th. Shirley was Winter Olympics, 1994 airport budget, 1994-2000 airport very pleasantly surprised when she arrived at 3:00 to find capital improvement plan,airport annual report 1993,rules a beautiful cake waiting for her and many of her friends for airport's new logo contest, monthly energy samples from "her family on the second floor" there to greet her and report (from new terminal), information concerning wish her a HAPPY BIRTHDAY. She was presented with a flora/fauna study done for terminal,photos of 1994 airport gift certificate from Homespun Boutique,as she has just staff (County employees),Ithaca Journal from March 26, taken up knitting. 1994 (airport terminal article), local government directory Thank you Shirley,for allowing us to give back to you a 1994, 1994 mint proof set of US coins,invitation to ground little bit of what you give us every day. breaking ceremony, speakers list and program (grand opening),ribbon and badge from ribbon cutting ceremony, (Shirley is a night cleaner at Biggs A and the person who base of parachute from unveiling of"Scout"aircraft,sign-in faithfully readies the mailing of County Corridors for retirees) book from grand opening ceremony, 1994 terminal brochure and"hoax"grand opening invitation(Ross Perot). COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT by Scott Heyman WHAT WOULD YOU DO? A recent meeting of the employee safety and health committee included a discussion of how to solve the problem of vehicle exhaust fumes and cigarette smoke produced outside of County buildings floating up and into offices. The group agreed that these were serious problems that needed to be addressed. But every proposed solution had apparent drawbacks. If there are areas where people idle their cars while waiting to pick people up, it is very difficult to get them to stop; they tend to ignore signs and have been known to drive right through any barrier that is not substantial. Space could be r provided for vehicles that need to wait to pick people up, but such spaces tend to be regularly abused by people who just want to park close to where they are going. If smokers are required to stand farther away from the building,they are exposed to inclement weather. Some organizations have banned smoking even outside of their buildings,but this would appear to be unfair to people's right to smoke if they want to. Smokers tend to congregate at picnic tables near the buildings where these have been provided;then complaints are often received from employees whose windows are above the tables;but if smokers are told they have to smoke under cover near doorways,people walking in are exposed to the cloud their smoke produces. Every organization larger than one employee has to wrestle with problems like these. When she returned from the meeting described above,Jackie Kippola, Contracts Coordinator who works in my office,asked me why we don't ask our own employees to help solve problems. Do you have any suggestions about how to solve the problems described above in a way that is fair to everyone and makes sense? Please send your ideas to Frank Croteau,Employee Safety and Health Coordinator(% Health Department),or your own Department Safety Officer(you should know who that is,call Frank at 274-6704 or me at 274-5552 if you don't) and the Safety Committee can review them. Do you know of other problems that you would like your co-workers to try to solve? Send them to me (Scott Heyman, % Old Jail)or to Corridors, % the Old Jail. I'M SORRY In January's Corridors there appeared all of the written questions from the Partners for Quality orientation sessions. I drafted the answer to most of these and my answers were reviewed,and in some cases changed,by members of the Leadership Council. One answer that I wrote conveyed a message to some that I did not wish to send. The question was,"Are the top level managers in their positions because of political power,not their fiscal or managerial skills?" My answer included the following: "Three department heads are elected by the voters (District Attorney, County Clerk and Sheriff) and two are selected by the established political parties(the elections Commissioners). Certainly these five are in their positions because of political power and influence and this is our system." I thought what I was trying to say was clear-- these five are in their positions as the result of a political process. The County Charter requires this,and I view it in a very positive light--when position selection in Tompkins County is tied to the political process we say so openly for all the world to see. But by repeating the questioner's words "power and influence" I appeared to be saying that they were in their positions because of the"underside"of politics-- selection based on who you know or who owes you a favor. I certainly did not intend this and I apologize to all five of the people who hold these positions. The three who hold elected department head positions all have been elected by the voters of the entire County twice and all were elected to their positions after long careers in the same profession. The two election commissioners both were selected after rigorous selection processes by their political parties and both are subject to reappointment every two years. In all five cases the political parties are openly accountable to the people of the community for endorsing quality individuals whose selection is based on merit and they have consistently done so. o� sO0C> og To: All Tompkins County Employees and Officers From: Scott Heyman, County Administrator Date: 18 January I995 Subject: Conflict of Interest It is of fundamental importance that every officer and employee of Tompkins County adhere to the highest standards of ethical conduct in carrying out their duties, standards that go beyond the requirements of law. The General Municipal Law of New York State and the Code of Ethics of Tompkins County require any county officer or employee who has,will have, or later acquires an "interest" in any actual or proposed contract with the County to disclose the nature and extent of that interest in writing to the Clerk of the Board of Representatives. "Interest"is defined as a direct or indirect financial or material benefit that a municipal officer or employee might receive as a result of the contract with the municipality which the officer or employee serves. A municipal officer or employee has an interest in any contract that involves: a) a spouse, domestic partner, minor children or dependents; b) a firm, partnership or association of which such officer or employee is a member or employee; c) a corporation of which such officer or employee is an officer, director, or employee; or d) a corporation any stock of which is owned or controlled directly or indirectly by the officer or employee. If you as an individual, member of any partnership, or stockholder or trustee in any corporation have an interest in any actual or proposed contract with Tompkins County, or anticipate acquiring such an interest, you must disclose the nature and extent of this interest in writing to the Clerk of the Board of Representatives. Your disclosure of an interest in a contract with the County does not necessarily mean that this interest must be ended. Many employees have disclosed such interests in the past and they have been carefully reviewed, and usually discussed with the employee, by the County Attorney. The County Attorney in every instance looks at the central • issue of whether your personal interest(s) create a conflict with the duties of the position you hold. If such a conflict is found, the County Attorney will discuss with you how it would be best to eliminate it. A memorandum similar to this one is sent to all employees and officers every year and is included in the orientation packet for new employees and officers. If at any time during the course of any year an interest such as described above should arise you must notify the Clerk of the Board in writing at that time. If you would like to receive a copy of the Code of Ethics of Tompkins County please notify the Clerk of the Board and she will send you one. ` Thank you for your cooperation. Silence is ,he halides, Thing ,n refuge. -ad,k eittrgs DEPARTMENT HEAD MEETINGS MINUTES 25 January 1995 Present: Kathy West, George Dentes,Teddy Zimrot, Irene Stein,Aurora Valenti,Don Franklin,John Beach,Alice Cole, Kathy Leinthall,Bill Mobbs, Bart DeLuca,Nancy Zahler, Mary Pat Dolan,Anita Fitzpatrick,Susan Cook, David Squires, Jim Hanson, Cathy Covert,Jackie Kippola, Dean Eckstrom, Julie Crowell, Scott Heyman 1. Labor Management Partnership Agreement. A draft agreement approved by a labor/management subcommittee of the Leadership Council and endorsed by the full Council was reviewed and discussed. It was suggested that the listing of Council membership indicate that middle managers select the middle management representative on the Council and that department heads select the department head representatives. This change had already been approved by the Council. Several department heads expressed support for the goals of the agreement but reservations about various aspects of it. The latter included the fact that department heads are required to live within their budgets,but grievances arising out of this agreement could delay layoffs if budget reductions were making layoffs necessary;and the fact that the paragraph pledging that attrition would be the first method used if staff reductions became necessary is worded in away that could be construed to prevent any layoff. It was agreed that a survey will be circulated to all department heads asking them to list and explain any reservations that they have and asking them how they feel these reservations can be addressed. 2. Partners for Qualitiy pilot project -- simplifying the contract approval process. Contracts Coordinator Jackie Kippola distributed three flow charts depicting the current contract review and approval process. When she begins to meet with representatives of all the stakeholders in the process they will begin to analyze the process to find non-value-added steps and find ways to eliminate or reduce those. She also went over with department heads a form that will be used by contract handlers to determine where the biggest bottlenecks occur. 3. Report on Partners for Quality. Irene Stein and Nancy Zahler reported on the current status of all aspects of the initiative. David Squires volunteered to represent department heads on the Performance Management committee,and Aurora Valenti volunteered for the Human Resource Policy Committee as soon as it is formed. 4. Department Head reports. Cathy Covert provided the schedules of all Board Committees. Nancy Zahler announced that the latest version of the youth services directory has been printed and is available. David Squires asked all department heads to review the copy they now have of their 31 Dec 94 accounts status and to notify him of any discrepancies they see. He also asked all state-aided departments to get their fourth quarter claims to him in a timely way. Kathy West said that line item budgets for 1995 have been printed but will not be distributed until program budgets are ready so both can be sent out at the same time. Nearly all departments have provided the final figures needed for the program budgets and when the rest have done so they will be printed and distributed. 5. County Administrator's report. Scott passed out a resolution resolving the various issues that have been raised during the past year about minutes. This is expected to be reworking as a Board Administrative Policy for passage on 7 Feb. Scott asked everyone to be aware that the upcoming dramatic increase in training offerings will raise issues that will be new to some department heads. Employees will ask to use Code 1 time,on some occasions,for training not directly tied to their current work responsibilities. Department heads can approve these if there is a logical reason for doing so, such as wanting to support the employee's career development. They can also deny them if discussion with the employee does not reveal any potential benefit for the department. The decision rests with the department head;this discretion should not be exercised in a discriminatory way (such as by"playing favorites")but a rigid policy is not required;decisions can be made on a case-by-case basis. DEPARTMENT HEAD MEETING MINUTES page 2 Similarly,employees do not have to be reimbursed for mileage for voluntary training. Usually department heads agree to provide this reimbursement;often they do not. Several department head negotiate the whole package of mileage and Code 1 time to maximize the use of their department's resources. The purpose of this discussion was to encourage department heads who have not had to face these kinds of issues to be giving them some thought. Consult Anita Fitzpatrick and other department heads for good advice. Scott explained that requests for information in a form other than paper are just as valid as requests for copies of documents. As is always the case, requests that specifically cite the Freedom of Information Law must be forwarded(as quickly as possible,usually by fax) to Scott as Records Access Officer. If the request is for computerized information, for example,departments can calculate the cost of producing it and charge that cost if they wish. If confidential information(i.e.information exempt from disclosure) is intermingled with public information,either in documents or in computer files, the department is not obligated to go to the trouble of re-formatting the information for the person making the request. If the department wants to do so as part of the service the department provides,they can certainly do this. This year's conflict of interest reminder memo to all employees will be published in Corridors this year instead of being sent out separately to each employee. Cathy Covert will be sending out this year's annual disclosure notices to required filers by the end of this month. The County Board, at CSEA's request,recently approved a drastic reduction in the number of positions required to file this. Scott and Irene reported on 1995 budget reorganization. Irene had attended the previous evening's meeting of the Budget Reorganization Advisory Committee. She and Scott strongly encouraged department head participation in Budget Committee task forces this year. Eric is revising the proposed list of such task forces and as soon as that list is available department heads and other staff can volunteer. Several department heads volunteered at this meeting and Irene took their names. It was agreed that Irene,Jim I Ianson, and Aurora Valenti will continue to attend BRAC meetings on department heads' behalf. MORE CHEERS FOR DSS from the DSS Success Recognition Committee. 4P)-74) The Families Together Unit has had notable success in only its first year of operation. They have enabled 32 children to remain WHAT'S NEW AT THE with their families rather than be placed in foster care. Nine other HEALTH DEPARTMENT' behaviorally challenging children have been kept in the community who might otherwise have needed institutionalization. The management group of the Health Not only for their admirable success rate but for the high level of Department recently completed phase one of an team work and mutual respect that all members display in the evaluation tool called Assessment Protocol for functioning of their unit, Cindy Christensen, Dodie Smith, Nadine Excellence in Public Health(APEXPH). Phase one Perry,Larry Caslin,Stephenie Delczeg,AI Beller,Penny Calderazzo and took nearly a year and assessed our organizational Diana McComb, deserve recognition for a"Job Well Done". capacity. The 17 member group met and answered The Case Aides,Fran Swartout,Lori Hill and Peggy Kristoff,in the 32 pages of questions, divided the responses into Services Unit cannot be thanked enough for the numerous tasks strengths and weaknesses. We were surprised and they perform on a daily basis to assist the caseworkers;always in a pleased to discover only eight items which were cheerful and cooperative manner and often in difficult situations. identified as weaknesses. The weaknesses are in They all transport clients both young and old. They supervise the areas of planning & community input; and difficult foster care cases often being liason between the foster financial management. parent,parent and caseworker;always with the safety of the child The next phase involves identifying community as their primary concern. health problems. Ultimately,these two phases will In addition- Fran's major function is seeing that the adult clients be a continuous assessment, implementation and get their checks on time. She also sets-up all Adult Protective evaluation cycle. WMS recertification and is assisting with adoption records. Lori We learned that we have many strengths. We sets up all childrens CPS and Preventive case records. She also hope that correcting our weaker areas will enhance schedules all Service Plan Reviews. Peeev sends out Medical our services to the communities that we serve. Packets to foster parents and reminders for follow-up visits. Anyone desiring further information may contact Without them we could not maintain the quality of services that Alice Cole at 274-6674. we provide to clients. Thank you Fran, Lori and Peggy! VERBAL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS FROM THE ORIENTATION SESSIONS Q: My department has not had the money to buy the computers,desks, and even the wrist rests that we need. Now everybody is talking about getting more efficient to cut costs. How do these two things jibe? A: Scott: It has often been the case that departments have used every dime at their disposal to hire as many staff and serve as many people as they possibly can. This sometimes reflects a commitment to quantity,not quality. In the case of not having money for wrist rests for people who do extensive keyboarding,it is never OK. Employee safety and health take a back seat to nothing. Call your own employee safety coordinator (every department either has one or shares one) or call County Employee Safety and Health Coordinator Frank Croteau in the Health Department at 274-6704. Q: The Engineering Division is being required to change in 1995 and earn all of its own revenues. How can we find time to participate in PFQ? A: Scott: Many private sector engineering firms, faced with intense competitive pressures,have found the time to participate actively in quality improvement initiatives. One realistic way to make this work is to go after improvements in wasteful,costly processes first. The savings realized can pay for the time needed to make more improvements. Another technique usually used in initiatives like this one is to work to improve meeting productivity at a very early stage. Again,this produces net time savings. These are approaches that can enable us to "stay open during renovations",and they address the concerns of all work units that feel consistently backlogged already and are wondering where the extra hours will come from to get all the training and adopt all the new practices that these orientation sessions are talking about. Q: Will funds be appropriated into our division's budget to make all this possible? A: Scott: The Inservice Education account is available for this purpose. It is a centralized fund that all departments pay into. Q: How supportive is the Board of Representatives of this initiative? A: Barbara Mink and others: Some Board members are more supportive and knowledgeable than others;on the evening of the 13th Board members will be receiving the same orientation session that Marcia and Ipek have provided for the rest of employees. The Board endorsed this entire effort by a unanimous vote in the fall of 1993, and all of the candidates running for office in November 1993 advocated moving ahead with it vigorously. The Ithaca Journal devoted a full editorial to supporting the initiative. Q: Is there a chance that a future County Board may withdraw support for this initiative? A: Scott: Of course there is a chance,but this is a nationwide and worldwide trend that is gaining momentum. Please also see the question and answer above. Q: Will an attempt be made to improve Purchasing procedures? A: Scott: Yes, along with all other administrative processes. Every one of those processes needs to be examined from the inside,by the people who carry them out in cooperation with the people they affect, and no-value-added steps lessened and eliminated. One of Dr. Deming's basic quality principles-- don't award your bids based on price alone-- has been practiced by our Purchasing Division for many years. The way this is accomplished is by building quality into specifications. Q: How can employees have a say in Leadership Council decisions? A: Call your employee group representative,find out what is going on, express your opinions. Q: Is there any planning going on 10 improve quality among the units of government? A: Scott: Some, but not enough. Locally the Bolton Point Water system, Cornell University,Challenge Industries, and some of the departments of the State and Federal government are actively working to improve quality. Some City department heads are actively interested and they are beginning to find some support from Common Council. More than half of the States and fairly large segments of the Federal government have made some great progress. But we certainly continue to feel the impacts of old ways of doing business. Q: What about local DSS policies such as not allowing two people to work on a Child Protective Services investigation,will this be something that can be looked at? A: Marcia C: Every process and local procedure will be open to being reviewed as each unit looks at its own everyday work processes and decides what is most important to change. Q: Where do clients fit in? A: Ipek: We recommend beginning this new way of doing business by focusing on internal customers, then expanding out and building a partnership with clients. We suggest that you ask them what they want and need, include them on your teams. At some point you will need to prioritize competing needs of recipients. The reasons we start with internal customers are: 1) When the internal processes are streamlined the quality of service to the external customer automatically improves;2) Until the internal processes are humming along efficiently you really cannot meet external customers' needs-- the processes would not be able to handle the extra demand. Q: What if management just won't cooperate? A: Scott: First, I do not view managers as "the problem" any more than I view their employees as "the problem". Enthusiasm for this initiative is very widespread among department heads and program leaders. Dr. Deming says that "management is the problem", but he goes on to explain that the real villain is The System with all of its unexamined assumptions and habits;and it is management that has, right today, the ability to change the system. Having said this, the question remains, "What about managers who do not agree or go along?" In the early stages of this process, participation in all of the aspects of Partners for Quality will be optional in nearly every case. People will be receiving training that readies them for the changes to come. Not very long after that the principles that are the subject of these orientations will start to be the way we do business. This is not in the distant future -- the best estimate is year one, two, or three depending on the department. When this time comes, the option to do business the old way will go away. Managers will be held accountable for this, and as County Administrator it will be my job to make sure that that happens. I intend to do exactly that. Q: Why are night staff at Bostwick Road not included in departmental meetings? A: No answer could be provided at the orientation session. Ward Hungerford answered later that they are included whenever possible, but including them sometimes requires overtime pay that the department simply does not have. He is going to make every effort to change their schedule,whenever circumstances permit, so that they can attend meetings. Q: In the Mental Health department we are being required to generate all of the department's funding by seeing more patients. How can we find the time to participate in PFQ? A: No answer was provided in the meeting; Commissioner DeLuca provided the following answer later: Even staff who generate revenues through face to face contacts with clients are expected to spend a significant portion of their work week (up to 40%) in non-face-to-face activities. Among these important activities are team meetings and training sessions. PFQ training will be seen as important as any other training in improving our skills and abilities. Q: How can facilitators get released from their normal duties so that they have time to attend facilitator training and then actually to work as facilitators? I and my co-workers are consistently backed up. A: Marcia: In a governmental setting nearly all units tend to be understaffed relative to the work they are asked to do. We will start out with people who have the flexibility to adjust their own work or whose departments can adjust their work load. Early successes and accomplishments can be expected to inspire other departments and employees to make added changes that will enable to participate as facilitators and on teams-- the benefits of doing so can be real and can happen quickly. In the later stages,when departments really understand the benefits involved,it is possible some people will even be paid for extra time. Q: What tools are available to measure quality in a service organization? A: Marcia: Customer feedback;measurement of waiting time,of cycle time;expenditures;measurement of error rates. Q: How will facilitators be selected? A: Marcia: We will try to train everyone who is interested. At first we will try to include as many work units as possible, after that there may be a lottery to select since it is hard to know who will be skilled. Note: When feedback from the orientation sessions was collected it was learned that more than 70 persons had signed up to attend an information session about becoming a facilitator. We can accomodate up to 20 in one training class, so we will use a lottery to select the first 20. Until we get to everyone volunteers who are waiting for future training sessions will be invited to attend 2-hour mini-sessions on facilitation tools that they can begin practicing with immediately. The mini sessions will be offered at least once a month. Q: Have projects been selected in DSS yet? A: Marcia: Not yet. A coordinating committee has been formed. After these Orientation sessions are completed they will begin work by conducting an organizational assessment and getting staff input to identify pilot projects. Q: Should the problem-solving process in improvement teams have a timetable or deadline? A: Marcia: Each group will develop an opportunity statement. This will include an approximate timeline. There will be clear communication(both ways)with supervisors about expectations. But there will be no deadlines imposed on the team from above. Q: If a particular project or team saves money,does the department have to use it or lose it? A: Scott: For the last three years the County Board has rejected the traditional(in government) use-it-or-lose-it mentality. It has authorized all departments to use unspent funds from previous years. This has eliminated wasteful spending sprees at year-end and has meant that departments can spend their money on the things they really need. Q: When this initiative is fully implemented will all work be done in project teams? A: Marcia: Once people have been through the training in their natural work unit it will be easy to incorporate customer focus, data, and shared leadership on a daily basis. Q: Is it a goal that there will be self-directed work teams in DSS? A: Marcia: Yes,it is a goal,but there are civil service and position classification obstacles that will have to be overcome. Because of those obstacles this is being done informally in some counties. Scott: They can be complicated but they can be overcome. Q: Will supervisors'and middle managers'jobs be eliminated? A: Scott: We are talking about line employees becoming,to a substantial degree but not 100%, their own managers, assuming many of the tasks that were the job of management. So there will be fewer management and supervision jobs needed. It is my hope and strong expectation that these reductions will happen two ways: 1) natural attrition;and 2) voluntary transfer of managers and supervisors who do not wish to manage or supervise into senior level service delivery jobs that offer the same pay-- essentially they will be paid for their experience,knowledge,and autonomy instead of being paid more for their supervisory responsibilities. We are a service delivery organization charged with meeting our community's needs for specific services-- we can never have enough high quality,experienced people working directly with recipients,clients,and customers to meet those needs. This can enable us to reduce the numbers of layers of accountability within our departments. At the Hospital(which has the same number of employees as Tompkins County), for example,there are only 4 levels--Administrator, department heads,line supervisors,and line staff. Each layer of accountability adds many negatives--blocks to accurate and complete communication,a self-justifying need to make people get approval of every action and decision, etc., and other non-value-added(i.e.bureaucratic)steps. Q: Are elected officials being mandated to attend these meetings like everyone else? A: Scott: Yes. Q: Twenty years ago,the Highway department had 80 staff and today there are 40 who are being asked to do the work that 80 people did then. How can we be talking about a new initiative to become more efficient when we've already been asked to do so much? A: No answer was provided at the Orientation. Ward Hungerford, County Highway Manager,provided the following answer afterward: In 1971, the Highway Department staff level was 48. Today it is 45. In between it reached a peak of 53. Ward agrees that there has been an emphasis on efficiency,especially since 1990, to keep competitive with the private sector. Added answer from Scott: There were several questions that were, in different words, asking"How can you stand up there and tell us we're going to learn to be more efficient when we have already been put under cost and efficiency pressures?" My answer is that looking for ways to be more efficient and productive always makes sense. This initiative is different;it isn't traditional management saying to staff"come on, let's get more efficient." Rather it is management accepting a new role in which it says to staff, "You know about how to become more efficient;how can we support you in that?" Q: Why are there extra management staff attending Leadership Council Meetings? A: Anita Fitzpatrick,Commissioner of Personnel, and Nancy Zahler,Youth Bureau Director,attend the meetings of the group. Neither of them votes, but both participate actively,Anita because so many aspects of Partners for Quality overlap her areas of interest (personnel procedures and human resource practice which includes workforce improvement);Nancy because she is working one day per week as staff support for the overall initiative. Other employees,management or not, are welcome to attend meetings of the Council. Call Nancy (274-5310) or Barbara Mink(274-5434) to find out when meetings are scheduled. It is possible for other employees to participate on work time. If this is something you want to do, briefly put your request in writing and forward it to the Leadership Council (c/o Old Jail) and to your department head. Each request would have to be evaluated,but additional employee involvement is definitely welcome. Other employees,management or not, who are interested in providing staff support to the initiative as Nancy is doing, should also put this in writing and forward it to the Council and to your own department head. There has been no decision,but many of the Leadership Council believe that as this initiative grows and spreads,more employees will have to be"hired" (i.e. money paid to their departments)or actually hired(paid for added hours) for staff support. FIRST AID from Parlay International Submitted by Frank Croteau J•f410 ANIMAL BITE: Wash the wound with soap and iii o Memorial Note water. Control the bleeding with pressure and cover with by Aurora Valenti,Tompkins County Clark a clean bandage. Find the name and address of the animal's owner. Have the victim lie down, and report Our friend, Michael Manickham, died on February the bite to your physician or to a hospital emergency 6, 1995. Fie had been employed as a Recording department. Clerk in the Tompkins County Clerk's Office since 1987. Michael was a sensitive, intelligent, hard- FROSTBITE: Warm up the affected area working individual whose next-of-kin are a brother gradually in warm (not hot) water or cover with warm (a Jesuit priest) and a sister (a Roman Catholic nun) towels or blankets. Do not rub or massage the area or both of whom reside in India. We at the Clerk's break blisters. Give warm tea or soup but no alcohol. Office, therefore, feel we are his Ithaca 'family". Put a clean cloth or gauze between any affected fingers Michael quietly enjoyed his work and his co-workers. or toes. Even when very ill, he made the herculean effort to join us for a few hours a day. Michael never BROKEN BONE: If the bone protrudes through complained of the pain caused by his final illness. the skin, control bleeding with pressure and ice packs. We have placed a lighted candle in our office with Use padded boards, magazines or any straight and strong Michael's name-plate beside it as our way of objects to keep the limb immobile until emergency help observing and memorializing the life of arrives. Michael Manickham. TOMPKINS EMPLOYEES FEDERAL CREDIT UNION by Roberta Chiesa,Manager �� The ANNUAL MEETING of Tompkins Employees i�'` Federal Credit Union will be held on March 9, 1995 at the �+ Ithaca Youth Bureau Building at the entrance to Stewart Park at 5:30 p.m. There will be refreshments and prizes. Prizes will include money and gift certificates- and who knows what WALK FOR FITNESS else we might come up with. Moderate exercise reduces the risk of heart disease and The Credit Union is a cooperative,that is, it is owned by its members. The best way to know what is going on and improves overall wellness,no matter what our age. One of to let us know what you want is to attend the annual the best forms of exercise is walking since it can be done meeting. almost anywhere, it requires no experience or expensive We will be electing three members to the Board of equipment, leads to few injuries and is something most Directors. The Board sets the policies of the Credit Union people can stay with. Walking reduces blood pressure, as well as the rates paid on deposits and the interest we moderates stress, increases heart rate, improves mobility, pay on loans. We could really use YOU! If you are maintains healthy weight and boosts good HDL cholesterol. interested in running for a seat on the Board, please call With this in mind, the Senior Citizens' Council is the office, 272-8567, and we can tell you all about it. planning a WALK FOR FITNESS, to be held in Stewart We hope to see all of our members at the Annual Park, May 11th, 1995. For those 55 years of age and over, Meeting. Bring along some co-workers - if they aren't there are two ways to participate. One, mark your calendar members now, they can join at the meeting. for May 11 and plan to join the fun that day. Two, be a The easiest way to save is through payroll deduction part of the steering committee that is planning the activities deposited directly into an account at the Credit Union. for May 11th. Payroll deduction can also be an easy way to make deposits If you are interested in helping with this event(there are to a sharedraft/checking account. Can you think of an a variety of tasks that need to be done), please call Mimi easier way to make sure your Christmas Club is paid up Hardy at 273-1511 or Marilyn Strassberg at 274-5482. This than to do it with payroll deduction?! walk is partially funded through the County Office for the Aging. WHY NOT LAUGH ABOUT IT? A woman was giving instructions to her s remodeler. "I want to redo my bathroom in Early American." ATTENTION!! 1 "Whatever you say," he responded. The prize for the PFQ logo contest "Just tell me how far from the house is $250.00!! ; you want me to put it." Deadline for entries is 00 0 March 15, 1995. Send entries to: "You'll save enough on your grocery bills PFQ LOGO CONTEST to pay the cost of this freezer," Leadership Council the salesman said enthusiastically. Communications Committee do The Old Jail "Oh yes, I can see that," I. DONT DELAY- replied the customer. ' Subm it your entry "But we're paying for our car todayl on the gas we save, and f f f paying for a washing machine ' r j offles 88BM MEN eaMOSE on the savings from the laundromat, and 53 ..,$ we're paying for the house with the rent we're saving. We just can't afford to save any more right now." PREVIEW OF COMING ATTRACTIONS David Squires is proud to announce that his spouse The March issue of County Corridors will contain Rachel Lampert answers to the following: will be performing her solo theatre piece What volleyball team containing County employees "E hosts" recently supported a charitable organization and at the Kitchen Theatre March 9 11. won a trophy in the process? • Who has found a"life-saver"in Tompkins County r-17> Services? Who or what is it? HEALTHY SPINACH LASAGNA Do employees read this newsletter? (Thank you for reading it). by Theresa Lyczko,Program Director Mid winter doldrums often go hand in hand with mid winter Who's To Blame? menu "blahs." Here's a recipe from the Healthy Heart/Health Who should write a letter to the Editor of County Promotion Program to warm up a cold winter's night. Invite a few Corridors? friends in on the weekend and enjoy this low fat version of an Italian classic. A portion of traditional lasagna can serve up to SO How good are you at "WORDFIND"puzzles? grams of fat and more than 900 calories. Instead, try this healthier version using lower fat cheese and fresh spinach: SPINACH LASAGNA CURRENT COUNTY VACANCIES 1 cup tomato sauce (choose one low in fat-- HEALTH DEPARTMENT less than two grams per half cup) Public Health Engineer, Part-time, Temporary 9 lasagna noodles, soaked in warm water for a few seconds LG.L(12) (do not cook) Nurse Practitioner, Full-time, LG.P(16) 12 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced 1-1/2 cups chopped fresh spinach SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (or 2 tsps. crushed dry basil) Corrections Officers, Full time, LG. IX 8 ounces shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese MENTAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT 1 pound part skim ricotta cheese Rehabilitation Specialist, Full-time,LG. P(16) Cover the bottom and sides of an 11"x 7"lasagna pan with sauce. TOMPKINS SENECA TIOGA BOCES Then layer with soaked lasagna noodles,sauce,mushrooms,spinach, Vocational Assessment Coordinator, Part-time, basil, Parmesan, ricotta and shredded mozzarella. Repeat twice. 50%, 10 month position Bake in 350 degree F oven for one hour. Let sit for 10 minutes Occupational Therapist, Full-time, 10 month before serving. Makes six servings. position Microcomputer Specialist, Full-time, 12 month Nutritional Analysis Per Serving position,base$28,000 Calories 399 Maintenance Worker, Full-time Fat 16 grams Cholesterol 52 milligrams Sodium 574 milligrams MATERIAL TO BE SUBMITTED Source: "Environmental Nutrition"January 1995 Volume 18 No. 1 And, remember HEALTHY HEART/HEALTH PROMOTION FOR CONSIDERATION FOR PROGRAM has a lending library. Videos, cookbooks and other resources related to heart health are available to Tompkins County COUNTY CORRIDORS MARCH residents. Call 274-6710 or stop by the Health Department during office hours. ISSUE MUST BE RECEIVED BY v MARCH 3. UNCLASSIFIEDS Leadership Council Members Barbara Mink,Board of Representatives 274-5434 FOR SALE: Bob Lampman,Sheriff's Deputy Assn. 257-1345 Pressure Treated Picnic'fables for Charlie Evans, Board of Representatives 274-5434 Spring delivery. Call Nancy Bogardus Loretta Bernal,Confidential Employees 274-5252 at 898-3930 or Al Moore at 272-6763. Scott Heyman,County Administrator 274-5552 Ward Hungerford, Middle Manager 274-4262 1984 Toyota Supra - No rust - Runs - Emery Guest, Sheriff 257-1345 Looks Great. One owner Florida car. Mary Pat Dolan,Department Head (DSS) 274 5252 B.O. Call 387-3583 David Chase,CSEA White Collar Unit 274-5294 Irene Stein, Department Head(COFA) 274-5482 Two pair, attractive white Cochin Penny VanShoick,CSEA White Collar 274-5321 Chickens. (Have huge feathery feet). Leighann Baldwin,CSEA White Collar 274-6674 Large and healthy. $10 a pair or best Tony Denmark,CSEA Blue Collar Unit 277-5290 offer. 539-6967. Staff: Nancy Zahler 274-5310 WANTED: Anita Fitzpatrick 274-5526 Adjustable Dress Form or Mannequin. Call 257-0250 after 6 p.m. Personal Ads Translated S�' Recycle "Enjoys candlelight dinners:" didn't pay the electric bill. FREE UNCLASSIFIEDS "Sandy hair:" needs a bath. Classified ads up to 25 words in length are free to County employees,retirees and their immediate families. Ads may be for any purpose except no professional ads will be accepted. No County addresses or telephone numbers may be "Charming Personality:" listed in these ads. Use this coupon to send your ad to Corridors c/o Purchasing. face could make an onion cry. PLEASE TYPE OR PRINT LEGIBLY! "Person of convictions:" has a prison record. "Likes taking long walks:" car was repossessed. COUNTY CORRIDORS Articles and opinion pieces for County Corridors are selected by the volunteer editorial board based on their interest to Tompkins County employees and retirees. I Material is solicited from current'employees, retirees and others.Material for publication is selected by the editorial board which reserves the right to edit any submissions. The editorial board is made up of: Bill Chapp, Social Services; Sharon Cooper,Assessment; Iretta Ellis,Airport; Scott Heyman, County Administrator; Louise McEwen, Personnel;'Ruth Pond, Purchasing and Central Services; Marilyn Strassberg Office for the A in and Jud k Chair g g� Y TYnY � ), Weights and Measures. 4 Correspondence may be sent through County inter-office mail to: County _•• Corridors, c/o Purchasing and Central Services: or contact any board member,or via US Mail to: County Corridors, cio Purchasing and Central Services, 125 E. Court St.,Ithaca, NY 14850.