EvenMORE For You

Staff Spotlight on Office Administration

Compassion Meets Coordination with Receptionist Tricia Woodside

After just two years at Crossroads in Northeast Ohio, Receptionist Tricia Woodside has transformed the inbound caller experience. Her positive energy, passion for patients and families and her willingness to step in wherever needed make Tricia a valuable member of Crossroads’ administrative team. 

Tricia’s is the first voice families hear when they call Crossroads. She has an innate sensitivity when speaking with patients and families at an often stressful and fragile time. Tricia drives to make their experience as smooth and as informed as possible.

Internally, Tricia can be a force of nature from command central at the reception desk. Whether she’s grabbing supplies, forwarding information by email, coordinating with vendors during deliveries, working with volunteers or assisting with bereavement and memorials, Tricia can be depended upon to be an extra set of hands for any nurse or staff member in need of support.

Tricia’s can-do attitude and ability to multitask ease the pressure of Crossroads’ fast-moving environment. In many ways, Tricia is performing triage all day long. Sometimes she “even feels like a 911 operator.” But Tricia views herself as much more than “just an admin.” 

That’s because even though she’s only been with Crossroads for two years, Tricia had her own firsthand experiences with hospice before she joined the company. Tricia was introduced to hospice care when her grandparents and mother all passed away within five years. Witnessing her own family's end-of-life journey and caring for them all the while made Tricia want to do better for other families.

It was when she was working as an aide in the memory care unit of a long-term care facility that Tricia first crossed paths with members of the Crossroads team. When she learned of an opening in Northeast Ohio she applied immediately.

A Northeast Ohio native, both Tricia and her husband are self-published authors. They have two daughters, ages 13 and 15, who are very active in high school speech, debate and choir and middle school theater arts. While she’s Mom at home, at Crossroads, Tricia is the steady, compassionate and consistently helpful Receptionist.

Spread Love this Valentine’s Day!

Make Memories with a Charming Beaded Craft

February can be a dreary month with cold, dark and gloomy days on top of stressful days at work and busy days at home. How about a way to unwind and fill your space with Valentines? Try this adorable Valentine’s Day beaded craft. Invite your loved ones (or perhaps your special Valentine) to this fun and simple activity.

What You’ll Need:

• Pipe cleaners
• Beads (pink, red, purple & white)
• Ribbon for hanging
• Cookie sheet or tray

Steps:

• Place your materials on a cookie sheet or in a tray to avoid beads rolling away.
• String your beads onto the pipe cleaners.
  Try a variety of patterns, mix and match your beads to your heart’s content. For larger heart decorations, use more beads. For smaller ones, use less. 
• Bend the pipe cleaner into a heart shape.
  Create a circle with your pipe cleaner by twisting the two ends together. Then, carefully pinch the bottom and middle to create a heart shape. 
• Add ribbon to hang the hearts.
  Tie the ribbon to the top of your heart decoration to hang it. You can link together multiple hearts to create a longer decoration.

February is Random Acts of Kindness Month

Nice Thoughts and Gestures have Impact

By Emily Hammer
Imagine a world where each of us commits to one act of kindness every day. Research shows that our stress levels would decrease, happiness would increase and empathy and compassion for others would abound. 

Furthermore, people can be inspired by acts of kindness causing a ripple effect of positivity. 

Would you like to try your hand at Random Acts of Kindness with your coworkers? 

The best ideas are simple. Write out your Random Acts of Kindness ideas and put them in a bowl. Choose one every morning and then pick a coworker to bestow your kindness on. 

Authenticity is key. Coming from a genuine place makes the impact that much more powerful. Try a variety of kindnesses, from small gestures like compliments to volunteering your time. 

And if you’re a people pleaser, be mindful to not overextend yourself. You can be kind without compromising your well-being. 

Pro tip: For a more powerful experience, keep a journal and record your thoughts and feelings as you continue with this experiment throughout February. And remember, nothing says you can’t continue after February… 

Take this Project Home

Whether it’s your family and friends, your local grocery store, gas station, or dry cleaner, you never know what a simple Random Act of Kindness could mean to someone. It could truly make a difference.

Another powerful way to spread kindness is to do it anonymously. Pay for the person’s coffee in line behind you. Leave several quarters in the vending machine to surprise the next person. Pull your neighbor’s garbage can up to the house.

Use Crossroads' Wheel of Kindness to encourage yourself to perform a Random Act of Kindness this month.

Let’s face it, doing good for others, does us good. We all want goodness in our lives. Let’s show it this month at Crossroads with Random Acts of Kindness.