We caught up with Ed Jimenez and asked him several questions for this edition of News+Notes. See how to submit your question at the bottom of the page!

Why do you think so many employees return to UF Health after working elsewhere?

We do very rewarding work that really doesn’t happen anywhere else in Florida. What we do here is special. Our employees believe in what we’re trying to accomplish and know that they work for an organization that cares about them. I often reference us as a family. This sounds odd when you’re talking about more than 9,000 people, but we are. To find this kind of atmosphere somewhere else is very difficult. At new employee orientation, I recently met a nurse who worked somewhere else and came back because she realized this is the right place for her. Those stories are very gratifying.

Tell us about the annual Milestone Service Awards banquet to honor long-term employees.

I love the camaraderie. People are excited about being honored for how many years they’ve worked here, but they are also excited about their colleagues receiving recognition. There’s a buzz and excitement. It makes me proud to see how much pride people take in working here. I also love meeting the family members of our employees. Sometimes our employees don’t make it home for dinner, work weekends or have their vacation plans altered. I’m thrilled to meet these folks who are so gracious to share their loved ones’ time and talents with us.

Why should employees participate in Raising Hope at Work to support our new hospitals?

There’s a motto I borrow from UF Health Shands chief medical officer, Timothy Flynn, M.D., FACS: ‘Be an owner, not a renter.’ Some people get fixated on numbers, but I just want more employees to participate in supporting our programs here at UF Health. Then people can see, touch and feel what they’ve invested in. They own a piece of it. I love the feeling that we’re all truly owners of what we do here.

What makes our trauma care exceptional?

Our commitment to patients separates us from other health centers with E.R. and trauma services. Typically, you think of care beginning when a patient arrives at the hospital, but our physicians and nurses facilitate Emergency Medical Services Grand Rounds to see the whole picture and they include the teams that transport critical patients to our hospital. EMS first-responder staff share what they see in the field and how they approach their work. They also provide feedback about what happened once they arrived here. We’re also concerned about post-acute care. What happens when people leave the hospital? When you think about trauma care from the moment an injury occurs until the patient is released and goes back to living his or her life, you take a different approach and see the patient throughout their care experience. You think about your role within a larger process — it’s more than a job.