Photo courtesy of Abrazo Health
Gerry Coleman, a hospital worker at Abrazo Scottsdale Campus, is the newest member of the prestigious Tenet Heroes Hall of Fame. Coleman was nominated for the award in recognition of his community service and passion and enthusiasm for his job.
Induction into the prestigious Tenet Heroes Hall of Fame is an honor bestowed this year to only 23 of the company’s 100,000 employees nationwide. Tenet Healthcare is Abrazo Scottsdale’s parent company.
With a sunny disposition well-known to hospital employees and visitors at Abrazo Scottsdale Campus, Coleman overcame a serious brush with COVID-19 and is the hospital’s number one cheerleader.
Coleman was nominated for outstanding service in 2021 by his supervisor Jean Revard, food and nutrition director at Abrazo Scottsdale Campus. During the height of the pandemic Coleman, who had been vaccinated, was hospitalized at Abrazo Scottsdale with COVID.
“Gerry went through very rough days. With the help of our great nurses and doctors at Abrazo Scottsdale Campus, he recovered and did not need to go to ICU. One of the doctors told Gerry if he had not been vaccinated, he would not have survived. Gerry had not missed work in the eight years he had been here. The first few days after he returned to work, whenever I heard spontaneous applause, I just knew someone else had just run into Gerry,” says Revard.
“Gerry had always been such a promoter of Abrazo Scottsdale Campus to everyone he met––whether it was in the grocery store, the cafeteria, on a patient unit. Now he was a promoter of the vaccines, and he was telling everyone about the caring doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, and asking people to trust our great medical experts,” says Revard.
“He was the most positive person to everyone who was still debating the vaccines and gave his story in a way that inspired people and did not make them feel guilty or bad because they had not yet received the vaccine. He talked to anyone who asked about his experience–employees, doctors, and nurses,” she says
Coleman was also recognized for his compassion for people, from the doctor talking to him about his favorite restaurants, to the employee asking for help, to the patient asking for more food, and to the person ordering their cappuccino at the coffee shop. Hospital leaders frequently receive feedback on how helpful, funny, and caring he is.
“The Tenet Heroes program celebrates those individuals who make a meaningful impact within their communities that goes above and beyond their daily responsibilities. That description fits Gerry to a ‘T’,” says Abrazo Scottsdale Campus CEO Naman Mahajan.
Tenet Heroes exemplify the company’s core values and commitment to its mission.
“Gerry is a true inspiration, and his actions make a positive and meaningful impact in our community each day,” says Mahajan. “We are proud to serve alongside Gerry and deeply appreciate his dedication.”
