Fortune Names Scripps Health to Its 100 Best Companies List

Fortune recognized Scripps’ culture of trust, its efforts to protect staff during the pandemic and the company’s empowerment of employees.

As one of San Diego’s largest health systems faced a second year of COVID-19, its staff trusted Scripps to provide the best supplies and equipment despite reports of shortages worldwide. Early on, Scripps executives had anticipated supply chain issues and gave their supply chain management senior leader an unlimited budget, entrusting him to source the best-available price and material to protect patients and staff.

Scripps’ care for its workers also included up to 80 hours of paid time off (PTO) for a variety of COVID-related situations. This program, which was created in addition to an employee’s regular PTO hours, was implemented prior to the state mandating this for all companies operating in California.

With Scripps employees experiencing intense fatigue, both physically and emotionally, throughout the past year, the in-house Employee Assistance Program continued to provide important services to employees through a team of trained psychologists who help those dealing with a crisis, such as a major illness, a natural disaster or the loss of a loved one.

Another program, Resilience in Stressful Events (RISE), uses trained volunteers from across Scripps to provide psychological first aid through a peer-to-peer support system to physicians and staff members who need help. The assistance is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

As COVID-19 vaccines became available, Scripps leaders decided that first to receive the vaccine would be staff most at risk for contracting the virus, including those working with patients being treated for COVID and those who directly supported COVID units.

Next the focus of vaccination turned to equity and access. In addition to shots being available at all five Scripps hospital campuses and eight clinics throughout the county, front-line staff proposed a super station that would allow people to walk-up or drive-up for a vaccination. With executive support, the board quickly approved the proposal and, less than a month later, the super station opened at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. By June 30, 2021, the station had administered shots to 131,103 people.

“Nothing has tested our commitment to our mission, our community and each other more than the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Eric Cole, corporate senior vice president of Scripps human resources department. “Around the clock, and throughout our many points of care, our physicians and staff have truly been there for one another. Our front-line managers have strived to address employees’ evolving needs. And our executive team has provided proactive, empathetic leadership to keep us safe and see us through these uncertain times.”

A staff proposal from Scripps Green Hospital to start a food drive to help co-workers struggling financially because of the pandemic grew into a donation program supported by departments systemwide. Employees donated food, gift cards and money through payroll deductions. The culinary services team secured donations from food vendors and prepared hot meals. In total, the program dispensed 34,891 pounds of groceries, 280 prepared meals, 390 gift cards ranging from $10 to $50, and payroll deductions from almost 596 employees and physicians totaling $43,490. These items helped 404 employees in need, serving 2,318 total family members.

Learn more about Scripps Health, a nonprofit integrated health system in San Diego, Calif.