Aug. 11
August 11, 2009Ruth Hills Blunt
August 13, 2009
Two Terrebonne General Medical Center directors were recently given Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Patriot Award for their role with the nation’s armed forces.
The hospital’s director of case management, Joy Martinez, RN, CPUR, CCM, and Lucetta Sweet, RN, CCRN, MSHSA, director of critical care services, were honored for providing outstanding patriotic support and cooperation to their employees. Martinez has been with TGMC for five years, while Sweet has served the facility for 24 years.
To qualify for the ESGR Patriot Award, employers must practice leadership and personnel policies that support employee participation in the Guard or Reserve.
Capt. Ryan Kliebert, of the state Air National Guard’s 159th Medical Group, nominated Martinez and Sweet.
Kliebert and his wife Rebecca are both TGMC employees. Martinez is Kliebert’s supervisor, while Sweet manages his wife.
The two TGMC directors were nominated for allowing the couple to spend time together before deployment even on short notice and for the support they gave his wife.
“Joy went out of her way for me,” Rebecca Kliebert said. “The military is ‘hurry up and wait.’ We knew he was going to Iraq but did not know when, so I needed a lot of last-minute time off and she always accommodated me.”
The Klieberts also complimented TGMC for exceeding the military’s leave policy requirements.
Sweet said she was taken aback when she learned of the nomination. “I was shocked and extremely surprised. I was also honored that Ryan would think that much of me to nominate me for the award,” she said.
“Ryan is an excellent nurse who takes pride in the care delivered to his patients,” Sweet added. “It’s been a pleasure working with Ryan in the critical care arena; he always brings humor to the workplace…”
Likewise, Martinez expressed surprise to be given a Patriot Award. “It was an unexpected and great honor,” she said. “When I think about the sacrifices that are made every day by people such as Ryan and Becky, it inspires me to want to do all that I can to be the best that I can be.
“We all have a part to play in support of those who defend and protect us every day,” Martinez added. “I am happy and proud to do what I can to support Ryan and Becky as they give of themselves for the benefit of the country and the world. I feel honored to be a part of this.”
Kliebert was serving in Iraq when the awards were presented; however, he has since safely returned home, reunited with his family and is back at his TGMC job, according to hospital staff.
TGMC directors Lucetta Sweet (second from left) and Joy Martinez (third from left) are pictured with hospital CEO and President Phyllis Peoples (far left) and Col. Charles Chappuis, commander of the Louisiana Air National Guard’s 159th Medical Group, after receiving the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Patriot Award. Guardsman Capt. Ryan Kliebert, who is assigned to the 159th Medical Group, and his wife Rebecca (fourth from left), both TGMC employees, nominated Sweet and Martinez for the award. * Photo courtesy of TGMC
