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Valle Vista is Now a Member of the Employee Assistance Professionals Association

Established in 1971, the Employee Assistance Professionals Association (EAPA) is the world’s oldest and largest membership organization for employee assistance professionals.

Reflections of the Past, Visions for the Future

Valle Vista celebrates its 25th anniversary

Karen Hayden started working at Valle Vista a few weeks before the sprawling 12-acre hospital opened its doors. Twenty-five years later, as the hospital celebrates its silver anniversary, Hayden is still there.

“When I came here I was 23 years old. Now I have two kids – one is married,” says Hayden, now director of Health Information Services. “It just seems that time has gone by very quickly. I’ve enjoyed coming to work every day. I know what I have here and I’m glad that I’ve stayed.”

Loyalty has been a common thread for Valle Vista’s leadership team, whose average tenure is a decade. One reason for this is the facility’s emphasis on professional development. Like Hayden, two-thirds of leadership team members climbed the ladder through internal promotion. Originally, Hayden managed the medical records department, but her duties have evolved to include HIPAA training and IT management.

David Bell, the facility’s longest-running CEO, is in his ninth year at Valle Vista (his eighth as CEO). In Bell’s opinion, staff morale is just as important as patient and physician satisfaction. Friendly and up-beat, Bell says he’s more excited about 2009 than any other year in the past.

“I am extremely lucky,” says Bell. “My favorite things about coming to work everyday are the people and the fact that I absolutely love my job. That’s not a cliché – I really do.”

When Bell first joined the Greenwood, Ind., health system in 2000, there were 96 employees. Now there are 227 staffers – a growth spurt of 120 percent. And they’re not finished yet. In 2009, they hope to increase the number of beds by 17, up from the 102 currently available.

Looking ahead, their biggest goals include diversifying the residential client base; improving and expanding their adult services; and aggressively negotiating rate increases from insurance companies. According to Bell, their 2009 projected growth revenue is 10.7 percent.

Over the years, the Greenwood community has expanded around the facility’s property. Nearly 48,000 people now live in the city, which is a 15-minute drive from Indianapolis. Valle Vista’s Community Advisory Board strives to keep the community informed and closely tied to the facility’s mission.

“We’re a small facility and always have been,” explains Hayden, who grew up in Greenwood. “We’ve become much more known in the community. Some people don’t realize that mental health issues can affect anybody. It’s sad because a lot of insurance companies don’t treat it the same as other illnesses.”

Valle Vista offers both inpatient and outpatient treatment options. Outpatient programs include day and evening programs, individual therapy, and residential programs for 6 to 18-year-olds.

In its 25 years of service, thousands of patients have had positive outcomes. “Patient success stories happen every day,” says Bell. “When the staff is able to see they’ve been a positive life-changing resource to someone else, you can feel the positive energy on a unit or in the entire building.”

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Valle Vista Health System Celebrates 25 Years

Left to Right - Mayor Henderson, Ismael Santos, David Bell

Left to Right - Steve Davidson, Karen Hayden, Jeff Bergren, David Bell

Valle Vista Health System celebrates 25 Years of Service: Achieved the Silver, Going for the Gold, this August by celebrating with staff through out the month and hosting the State of Mental Health Panel Discussion on August 28.

The staff events were focused around the Olympic theme and included a count down to the 25th Anniversary celebration on Thursday, August 14. The count down included many dress up activities and contests. Several events throughout the month were community give back programs such as a food drive and denim days to help raise money for the Johnson County Flood Survivors.

The celebration event kicked off with a proclamation from Mayor Henderson, Greenwood’s Mayor. Other guest included the Greenwood Chamber of Commerce, governing board members and corporate representatives.

Karen Hayden, Director of Health Information Services helped open the hospital doors in 1983. She was honored along with the hospital’s governing board president, Pat Van Valer. Both were honored for their 25 years of service at Valle Vista Health System.