Q&A WITH THE CEO — ED JIMENEZ PAYS TRIBUTE TO VETERANS
Honoring our loved ones and co-workers who served their country
As we recognize the veterans in our work and personal lives in this edition, UF Health Shands CEO Ed Jimenez reflects on the rich experience and skills employees with military backgrounds bring to their civilian careers.
Have any of your family members, relatives or loved ones served in the military?
My family is originally from Argentina and my dad and brother served during conflicts there. Having relatives who served, especially during conflicts, certainly impacts you. Some of the Veterans Day stories in this edition about our employees and their families explain this so well. I also have many close friends and colleagues who have been members of the U.S. Armed Forces.
What impact has this had on you personally?
I’ve seen firsthand that it really does take a special person to understand the calling to serve. I have an emotional response thinking about this …I feel overwhelming gratitude knowing that someone has been willing to temporarily leave their family and put aside work and regular life and risk so much to support their country.
My friends and colleagues who are U.S. veterans are modest and have a humble perspective when you ask about their service. They don’t make it a big deal, they don’t have an ego response or feel they’re better than anyone else. In fact, they tend to be matter of fact about their experience.
Many don’t even want to talk much about what they have seen or lived through.
But they’ll tell you about the people they trained and served with — they value the camaraderie. They feel privileged to have served. That’s what’s important. This is very inspiring and humbling to witness.
(L-R) UF Health Shands CEO Ed Jimenez, with Michelle Chew, B.S.N., R.N.; Charles Holloway, PharmD, M.B.A.; and Delinda Holloway, who represent our many UF Health employees who have served in the military.
How do we benefit from having veterans among our workforce?
When talking with veterans, that bond they experienced serving with others carries over into the workplace. They value the need to work together, to anticipate what’s next and how to adapt and serve their team.
These are relatable skills when it comes to caring for patients, advancing science and education and supporting each other. Their hardcore value is valuing the people next to them.
Most of the veterans I know had a true calling, they chose to serve. And now they continue that passion and drive here, to improve other people’s lives through medicine and health care. They use all sorts of skills they learned or honed in service.
In a complex health system like ours, they often become role models and leaders because they still demonstrate the values and commitments they had in the military.
We’re a better organization because of the diversity of our colleagues, and the special skills and talents of our veterans are part of what makes this a great place to work.
The CEO and many executives share brief updates and blog posts on the home page of the UF Health Bridge intranet portal — Bridge.UFHealth.org — so please stay connected. You can access the digital version of this newsletter and links to a variety of UF Health internal and external communications tools on the Bridge, under the “News & Events” tab.
