Owens & Minor announces interim president and CEO
Owens & Minor Inc (Richmond, VA) announced that Robert C. Sledd, a member of the company’s board of directors, was elected chairman and interim president and CEO. Sledd has been a director of Owens & Minor since 2007 and most recently served until his appointment as Interim President and CEO as a member of the Executive and Audit Committees and Chairman of the Compensation & Benefits Committee. Sledd succeeds P. Cody Phipps, who served as chairman, president, and CEO. The company also announced that the board has already formed a search committee to recruit a new CEO with the assistance of a leading executive search firm. The company also announced that Robert Snead will continue in the role of interim CFO.
Midmark breaks ground on new technology center
Midmark Corp (Dayton, OH) has broken ground on a 107,000-square-foot expansion, including a technology center “that signals the next phase in the company’s evolution as a clinical environmental design company,” Midmark said. Located on the company’s Versailles, Ohio, campus, the state-of-the-art technology center will bring together Midmark engineers, designers and experts from across the company to develop new approaches, technologies, and proven solutions with the goal of enabling a better care experience for caregivers and patients. It will also become a research and development hub for additional collaboration with customers, industry leaders, and strategic partners. The technology center will be joined and supported by a new Midmark experience center that is designed for customers to help them make informed design and workflow decisions to improve clinical outcomes. Construction of the technology and experience centers is scheduled to be completed in the spring of 2020.
Flu season could cost employers $21B
Influenza cost employers more than $21 billion in lost productivity during the 2017-18 flu season, according to an estimate from global outplacement and executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. The company estimated the flu sickened 25 million workers last season. Based on this estimate, analysts calculated average wages lost due to missing four eight-hour shifts using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. They estimated flu caused $21.39 billion in losses for US employers. The company advised that employers, especially those with open offices and shared workspaces, should treat these spaces and other common areas as gyms treat exercise equipment. This includes daily cleanings of all surfaces with disinfectant. Employers should also keep soap and hand sanitizer in plentiful supply.
Walmart launches telehealth initiative with Doctor On Demand
Walmart announced a new partnership with RB (Reckitt Benckiser Group plc) (England), a global consumer health and hygiene company. Together, the companies have collaborated on a telehealth initiative with Doctor On Demand, a virtual care provider. This fall, consumers who purchase Mucinex, Delsym, Airborne, or Digestive Advantage at any Walmart stores or Walmart.com will receive a limited time offer for a no-cost telehealth medical consultation with a Doctor On Demand physician. Additional details of the partnership were not disclosed.