Marissa Wickham, MPS, RDN, LDN, Clinical Informaticist/Educator, Information Services, is an incredible asset to many departments at Mount Nittany Health. She is a workflow magician who is dedicated to educating providers and staff on clinical application initiatives, and she actively keeps Mount Nittany Health’s electronic medical records and information technology functioning. In her role, she is personable, respectful, and values the feedback given by providers. She always assists them in finding solutions that will make their jobs easier.
Wickham is always willing and ready to lend a helping hand. She takes an immense amount of pride in her work and regularly visits practices to address the never-ending job of analyzing trouble spots and finding more streamlined solutions. These efforts add up to differences that providers can feel, because she understands their needs. While she epitomizes all of Mount Nittany Health’s core values, she is being recognized for her excellence and respect as Employee of the Month.
Wickham’s nominators praised her dedication and commitment to the organization: “The interface between clinical work and computerized systems never seems to operate as smoothly as we would like. Add to that the seemingly never-ending onslaught of new regulatory requirements, and it is no wonder that providers can feel frustrated and confused. This is where our employee shines. Her ability to find the simplest route from A to Z, and then to create educational tools which make learning easier, make her a standout. We are so grateful for all she does for our team and our organization.”
Wickham began working at Mount Nittany Health part-time as a kitchen worker while she was a student at Penn State. After graduation, she joined Mount Nittany Health’s Nutrition and Culinary Services team as the Diet Office Supervisor, which eventually evolved into the NCS Application Specialist role. In 2018 she transitioned into her current role as the Clinical Informaticist/Educator in the Information Services department. She has served the health system for 11 years; nine years continuously.
“Being able to bridge the gap between the clinical and the technical worlds is one of my favorite aspects of my job,” said Wickham. “I have immense respect for our providers and how much they need to know outside of medicine to be able to perform their jobs well. Facilitating their understanding of the EHR and improving their workflows to improve even a fraction of their day is extremely gratifying to me.”
Wickham was extremely grateful and humbled to be selected by her colleagues as the Employee of the Month. “Any success that I have achieved would have been impossible without the incredible efforts and support I have received. I have leaned on nearly every individual from the Information Services department, and have made some pretty audacious requests over the years. I have always been met with support from my colleagues. I am so grateful to each of them.”
When Wickham isn’t busy improving provider workflow, and making a difference in the community, she enjoys chasing after her extremely active toddler. She also likes running long distances, and her favorite races are the marathon and half marathon. Wickham is grateful for the support of her wonderful husband, Braden, and her (almost) two-year-old son, Finn. Her family also has three dogs and four chickens.
We celebrate Wickham’s wonderful contributions to our organization, and applaud her for exemplifying Mount Nittany Health’s organizational values of caring, respect, teamwork, integrity, excellence, and stewardship. With 2,400 amazing employees, serving 19 locations throughout the Centre region, being selected as Employee of the Month is an incredible honor! Please join us in celebrating Wickham.