Pictured above right, from left to right, Shaheena Ahmad of Food and Nutrition and Mother-Baby nurses Gabriell Pascarella, RN, and Taryn Freda, RN, show off the new ice cream truck that delivers treats daily.
On the Mother-Baby Unit at Princeton Medical Center (PMC), a popular ice cream cart makes daily rounds, with Food and Nutrition staff delivering treats to patients, visitors, employees, and physicians.
These days, the cart resembles an old-school, honest-to-goodness ice cream truck thanks to a recent makeover by the hospital’s Engineering Department.
The cart overhaul began with a friendly challenge to Smirna Bocanegra, director of Engineering, from Larry Garcia, director of Environmental Services (EVS). Garcia was reading an article on LinkedIn and saw images of a nursing home treat cart that had been decorated to great effect using just a little cardboard and paint.
Why couldn’t PMC do the same thing… only better?
Bocanegra’s staff accepted the challenge and put their creativity and construction skills to work. Tom Early came up with the design, and then everyone pitched in to bring it to life.
“My staff feels very proud of what they did,” Bocanegra said. “We are all in this as a team.”
Sydney Sookerman, patient experience manager for EVS and Food and Nutrition, reports that people seem to love the new look — not to mention the sundaes.
“This is a true example of teamwork that brought a lot of smiles and enthusiasm to our Mother-Baby unit,” said Lesha Colin, director of Food and Nutrition.