In this new era of remote work, it may not be surprising that someone sitting in a home office in southern Alabama helps keep surgical and anesthesia services running smoothly in Samaritan Health Services’ five hospitals located in the mid-Willamette Valley and central coast of Oregon.
For Devon Daniels, working for Samaritan from his home in Dothan was an ideal opportunity.
“When I found the job listing it sounded interesting,” Daniels recalled of his online search that led him to Samaritan. “I had a friend who moved to Salem, Oregon. I wasn’t interested in moving but wondered what jobs were on the West Coast. I searched and there it was. It looked like a great opportunity so I applied.”
Daniels is now an Epic application analyst II, working with Samaritan’s Information Services Design and Operations team since January 2022. Before joining Samaritan, Daniels worked at a hospital in Dothan – 13 years in the respiratory therapy department followed by two years working as Epic OpTime and Anesthesia analyst in the hospital’s IT department.
As he describes it, his work is to troubleshoot problems and answer end user questions about the operating room software management system; he interacts with other tier two analysts to implement system updates and test each new release to make sure there are no bugs; he assists with workflow design; and he helps trainers with any issues. Fortunately, this work is easily accomplished remotely, using technology and communications tools, such as Microsoft Teams. These same tools help him feel like an integral member of the team, despite the distance.
“I’m glad I have been able to help the team,” he said. “There have been some experiences where my knowledge of the OR system benefitted the workflow of Samaritan Health. This helped end users be more efficient which I feel helps patient care.
“Everybody seems very dedicated. They’re very focused on getting Epic right. There’s a lot of commitment to testing before implementation, and I appreciate that particular bit of dedication that goes into the software which I think makes a difference in the end-user product – dedication to getting it right before implementation.”
He praises his managers and colleagues for their energy, commitment and extra effort to make him feel welcome and to help him navigate the Samaritan landscape and understand its mission and vision.
Samaritan’s benefits team was extraordinarily helpful in ensuring that he understood his benefits package and how to access the health care network, given his location out of state. This was important to the married father of two young children.
Speaking of family and working from home, Daniels finds that the two-hour difference works to his advantage. Once he and his wife, Tifanie, get the kids ready for school and out the door, around 6 a.m. Pacific Time, Daniels has a couple of hours of uninterrupted time to focus on his work, he said.
“I tell people that if you have the skills and feel like you can be a part of the Samaritan Health team, definitely apply,” he said. “There is a level of trust that Samaritan has in me that I can get the job done and I appreciate what they’ve done for me so far.”
Looking for a new job? From housekeeping to nursing and accounting to managing, there are a lot of opportunities to explore at Samaritan Health Services.
