Skip to contents
In This Issue:
On Tuesday, October 21, Governor Mitt Romney presented BWH with a Massachusetts Governor’s Commission on Employment of People with Disabilities (GCEPD) Exemplary Employer Award during the 15th Annual Awards Ceremony held at the State House. Central Transport Services Manager Beatrice Harris-Lane and Vice President of Support Services Arthur Mombourquette accepted the award, which is presently annually to local companies in appreciation for their contribution to economic development and equal opportunity in the commonwealth through employment of people with disabilities.BWH has a long history of hiring and retaining disabled employees, especially in Central Transport Services, where Harris-Lane has hired many individuals over the years with various types of disabilities. She has encouraged these individuals to grow professionally through job and site modifications, as well as through on-the-job training within the department and in collaboration with other organizations.“More than five percent of Central Transport Services’ employees are disabled. I commend managers such as Bea, who take the time to find a fit for these employees,” said Mombourquette. “We are proud to provide a service to both the hospital and the community by hiring dedicated and valuable employees.”Most recently, Central Transport Services hired Manny Morse, who is visually impaired, as the department’s dispatcher. Morse brings an extensive background in customer service to the position, having worked for The Boston Globe in the area of home delivery for 25 years handling telephone calls. He had the right skill set for the job. With assistance from the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind and the Carroll Center, Morse is able to perform his job by using a speech recognition program called Jobs Access With Speech (JAWS).“As Manny enters patient and equipment information into the dispatch system, the JAWS software reads each successive prompt back to him,” said Harris-Lane, who explained that Gail Penrod of BWH Information Services has been instrumental in helping to customize the program for Morse.Morse attributes his success in his job to the people from the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind, the Carroll Center – who cultivated his keyboarding skills and training him to use the JAWS program, the workplace itself and the employees of Central Transport Services. “I’m just glad that Beatrice Harris-Lane was recognized for this award,” said Morse. “She should be an example for others to make more jobs available to people with disabilities.”“Manny is an amazing person. He is highly independent and has truly shown what can be accomplished through determination and a strong will to achieve,” said Harris-Lane.
“I am delighted and honored that BWH has been recognized with this award,” added Cheryl Locke, vice president, BWH Human Resources. “We are deeply committed to hiring talented candidates, like Manny Morse, who bring skills and experience that further enrich our organization.”