Empathy in action

Shelly Martin thought every job she’s had at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center couldn’t be topped.

From a patient care associate who helped patients before and after surgery, Martin moved up to training patient care associates, then managing teams of patient care associates as well as patient transporters.

“It just keeps getting better and better,” she says of her 26 years on staff.

At the same time she grew in her career, Martin got more and more degrees: a bachelor’s, a master’s and now she’s pursuing a PhD, all at Ohio State.

As a manager, she found out that some on her staff struggled. Their car broke down so they couldn’t get to work. They worked third shift and couldn’t afford child care. They were going through a divorce and straining to make their next mortgage payment.

‘How can we help them?’ she wondered. That question, along with the support of many co-workers and mentors, led her to start the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center’s Employee Resource Center, which she now runs.

Any medical center employee with a financial need can pick up a new coat for themselves or their children, a backpack filled with supplies, a bus pass or a work uniform, food, toiletries – all free. They can get a referral for child care or counseling.

“This is an extension of what God has assigned me to do, to help people,” says Martin, who’s also a minister in her church. “How can we help staff grow not just in their positions but as people?”

Since the Employee Resource Center opened in 2021, it has helped 2,800 people. Private donations as well as support from the medical center and fellow employees fund the center.

The financial challenges of people who come to the center are some of the same ones Martin’s family had when she was growing up. That’s part of why she’s so passionate about her job, why she thinks this is the best job here she’s ever had.

“It’s a familiar journey,” she says. “I want people to see themselves in me and recognize an attainable path of opportunities.”