With Three Decades of Service to Patients, Nancy Cole Named Day Kimball Healthcare Employee of the Month

Nancy Cole of Brooklyn has been named Employee of the Month at Day Kimball Healthcare (DKH) for September, 2015. A patient service representative, Cole has served patients at the same primary care practice for nearly three decades. Her long service is a testament to the connection she feels with patients, which she says is her favorite part of the job.

As a patient service representative, Cole is often the first contact patients make when seeking and receiving primary care at the Day Kimball Medical Group Internal Medicine office in Plainfield. She handles all aspects of customer service for patients including scheduling, registration and data processing to ensure accurate insurance information and billing, answering patient phone calls and facilitating communication between doctors and patients. Cole also assists patients by facilitating the arrangement of future appointments, referrals and procedures as needed.

Cole has been assisting patients with their medical care at the same primary care practice for the last 29 years, a fact that she says is due to both the team she has worked with and the patients from the community she has grown to know well.

“I started out with Dr. Applebaum in 1986. Dr. Wilcon took over the practice when Dr. Applebaum left the area and then the practice became part of Day Kimball Medical Group in 2008 – and I have remained there through it all,” Cole says.

“Our patients are my favorite part of the job,” she continued. “I have known many of our patients for the entire 29 years that I have worked here. I feel very connected to them and it feels great to be able to help them. We also have an amazing team here at our practice and I feel very blessed for that. I’m so honored and humbled and very appreciative to have been selected as employee of the month, however it’s easy to do something well when you have great people backing you up.”

Those are the same sentiments that the practice physicians, her co-workers and her supervisor express in regards to Cole.

I would be lost without Nancy,” said Laura O’Keefe, Senior Practice Manager for Day Kimball Medical Group. “We have worked together for over 20 years and have been through so many transitions together. She is my superstar at the front desk. She is the kindest, most patient person I have ever known. Everyone loves her - patients, providers, and co-workers. She is ‘the face’ of our practice.”

Cole’s dedication doesn’t end with her co-workers and the patients she serves. A native of Northeast Connecticut, she also has deep roots in the community. She was born at Day Kimball Hospital, was raised in Brooklyn (where she still resides with her husband Steven) and is a graduate of Killingly High School.

In addition to her normal duties Cole also serves on the MY HEALTH patient portal committee for Day Kimball Medical Group, a staff committee that works to coordinate and improve online services for patients. She is also a member of the Woman’s Board of Day Kimball Hospital.