Ben McCallister, M.D., the co-founder of Saint Luke's Mid America Heart Institute (MAHI), passed away May 13 at his home in Kamuela, Hawaii.

He received his medical degree from Kansas University and interned at Tripler Army Hospital in Honolulu, Hawaii, in the late 1950s.

After 10 years doing fellowship training and heading the coronary angiography laboratory at the Mayo Clinic, Dr. McCallister joined Saint Luke's Hospital as a staff cardiologist at Cardiovascular Consultants in 1969. Under his vision and leadership, Saint Luke's opened the Mid America Heart Institute in 1980, the first dedicated heart hospital of its kind in the world.

In 1983, Dr. McCallister became co-director of the clinical research unit at Saint Luke's Mid America Heart Institute. In 1984, he was named president of Cardiovascular Consultants, the cardiology practice that today oversees the heart institute in a unique management model.

In 1996, he was named the Missouri Endowed Chair and Director of Cardiovascular Research, MAHI/University of Missouri - Kansas City School of Medicine.

In 2006, Dr. McCallister was named director emeritus of Cardiovascular Research at MAHI. From 1996 - 2006 Dr. McCallister was the endowed chair and director of cardiovascular research for MAHI/University of Missouri - Kansas City School of Medicine.

Through his leadership in the cardiovascular research program, Dr. McCallister laid the groundwork that makes it possible for physicians to do research, teach, and publish.

In 2006, Dr. McCallister was named a Master of the American College of Cardiology by the American College of Cardiology (ACC). In addition to his many years in leadership roles, the ACC honored Dr. McCallister for his contributions in the writing of many guidelines for procedures such as heart surgery, exercise testing, and balloon angioplasty, as well as the guidelines for who should be performing these procedures. He also led early initiatives to encourage improving and measuring the quality of cardiovascular care. These efforts led to the formation of the ACC National Cardiovascular Data Registry, which collects data on patients from more than 200 hospitals nationwide.

He is survived by Virginia "Ginny" Brosnahan McCallister, his wife of 55 years, his brother, Larry, five children, and 16 grandchildren.

A memorial service will take place at 2 p.m. Friday, June 29, at St. Ann Catholic Church in Prairie Village, Kan. A reception and celebration of Dr. McCallister's life will be held after the service from 3:30 - 7 p.m. at Mission Hills Country Club.

Saint Luke's eStore coming soon

After much anticipation, the Saint Luke's Employee eStore will soon be open for business!

Employees will be able to purchase logo merchandise using Employee Recognition Vouchers or a credit card.

• Existing vouchers: Employees who had unused vouchers on the old eStore have been given the first opportunity to shop the new eStore and redeem these existing vouchers, May 1 - May 31. After May 31 all vouchers from the old eStore will expire. These employees were notified via email along with instructions on how to access the store.
• Launch date: The eStore will launch systemwide to employees on Monday, June 4.
• New vouchers: Managers will be able to start assigning new Employee Recognition Vouchers beginning June 4. Instructions will be sent to all cost center managers.

Stay tuned to eRounds for more information about how to access the store and redeem vouchers. 

The dangers of exposing protected health information using pagers and texting

It is a violation of the HIPAA Security Rule 164.312(e)(1) to transmit protected health information (PHI) electronically without the appropriate encryption to protect the data. Therefore, sending electronic PHI via standard commercial carriers is not permitted. 

Paging systems, instant messaging (IM) systems, and other text-based messaging systems do not provide the security necessary to transmit PHI. Standard paging systems simply do not encrypt nor store information securely. Any data sent could potentially be intercepted and read if the pager is lost or stolen, creating a data breach situation. These systems may appear secure but they are not.

For example, the Physician Paging System in Citrix is a solution to allow for convenient paging of SLHS physicians; however, it is not a solution approved for sending PHI. (You will notice that there is a warning statement next to the message box that states the sending of PHI is not authorized.) This warning applies to any standard commercial paging system whether traditional or web-based.

Sending PHI via standard paging or text messages could put the health system and/or the individual sending the message at risk of violating HIPAA. Pages and text messages should be limited to de-identified information or simply provide a contact number to call if PHI needs to be discussed.

If you have any questions, please contact your entity privacy site coordinator or information security site coordinator.

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Saint Luke's Employee Circle of Giving

June 18-29

Did you know last year, 1,917 employees within Saint Luke's Health System contributed $259,951 through payroll deduction to Saint Luke's Employee Circle of Giving?

More than 100 programs received support from employee donors, ranging from the Miracle on 44th Street employee emergency assistance fund to departmental education funds.

For as little as $2 per pay period, your gift can support Saint Luke's Foundation and benefit medical programs and patient care as well as your colleagues and their families. When you contribute to a specific fund, 100 percent of your gift goes to support the program you choose. And these contributions truly make a difference.

For example, departmental educational funds allow nurses, therapists, and other employees to attend national conferences to gain additional knowledge and expertise in their medical area. "Returning from the conference, I felt a renewed passion for my profession," said one grateful nurse.

Another employee noted how the foundation's assistance benefited others across the globe: "I accompanied a group of dental associates to Venezuela and we provided dental care to more than 1,000 children, many of whom are orphans and otherwise wouldn't have received care. I realized that though we didn't change the world, we did make a difference for someone that day!"

Look for more information about the foundation's upcoming Circle of Giving campaign, June 18 - 29, and a special Circle of Giving edition of eRounds. For more information on how to become an Employee Circle of Giving member, please contact Tanya Carson at [email protected] or ext. 25612.

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Medication Safety Corner

At the last Medication Safety Team meeting, the nurse representatives voiced frustration regarding the turnaround time for medication order processing by the Pharmacy Department. After discussion it was clear that the nurses were not aware of the many steps involved in processing a medication order. The Medication Safety Team would like to highlight some of that discussion.

Click here to read the full article.

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R.N. survey coming to a computer near you

What is it?

The R.N. survey will assess the work environment of the direct-care R.N.s only and will be compared to nearly 95,000 other direct-care R.N.s from across the country. The survey takes place June 4 - 24, and participation in the survey is completely voluntary, anonymous, and confidential.

What's in it for me?

First and foremost, this is your chance to share your honest opinions and be heard. The results from the survey will be shared on both the unit and organizational level and returned to nursing leadership and nursing staff by the end of the year.

After review, action plans will be developed. The second incentive is each unit that achieves 80 percent or greater participation will be entered in a drawing for one of the unit awards. Last but not least, each R.N. who participates will receive a $5 cafeteria gift card.

Where can I find it?

The survey will be sent directly to you. Eligible R.N.s will receive an email with a link to the survey, which can be taken on any SLH computer. The survey takes approximately 15-20 minutes to complete and can be done before, during, or after your work shift.

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