2004 Hartford Hospital Annual Report

“When I picture a patient being treated by a doctor or a clinical person,
I see standing shoulder to shoulder with them many other people.”
Staff
IIt takes people with an amazing array of backgrounds and skills to make Hartford Hospital the
world-class health care facility it is today. The hospital is one of the city’s largest employers,
with more than 6,000 people on its rolls. Many of them are not health care professionals, but the
important work they do benefits patients, families and their fellow employees every moment of
every day. They keep the buildings clean, the power flowing, the temperature comfortable, the
food wholesome and much, much more.
Kris Armogida, a Plumber/Steamfitter in the hospital’s Mechanical Department, is
one of these indispensable people. A skilled tradesman, Armogida has earned state licenses in
heating and cooling, plumbing, and sheet metal, and is planning to go back to school to earn
his contractor’s license so he can further his career at the hospital.
Currently assigned to the campus of The Institute of Living, Armogida performs general
plumbing repairs and works on the facility’s steam heating system. After years of working on
construction sites prior to joining the hospital, Armogida says he enjoys the “people” contact his
job involves.
“I like coming to work,” he says. “I like the people I work with. When I respond to a call,
people are glad to see me, because they know I’m going to fix the problem. And when I walk out
of a patient’s room, I feel good because I was able to take care of their problem.”
John Wrobel is Unit Leader in the hospital’s Engineering Department and is
Chairperson of the Employee Council. A 27-year employee of the hospital, he says his work on
the Employee Council has broadened his perspective.
“It’s easy to get hung up on what you’re doing, and your vision can get a little narrow,”
Wrobel says. “This has let me see the workings of the hospital from the grass roots to the
administration.”
Wrobel has a mental image that illustrates the way he perceives the role of employees
in the hospital.
“When I picture a patient being treated by a doctor or a clinical person, I see standing
shoulder to shoulder with them many other people—people from environmental services,
electrical, plumbing, the person who does the billing. You need all those people and more to
take care of that one patient.”
HARTFORD HOSPITAL