Waffles Before Work

Have you already held a pancake breakfast to thank your employees? This year, switch to waffles. Offer regular waffles (round or square), Belgian waffles, and waffle sticks. Also provide an array of toppings, such as fruit, butter, jelly, whipped cream, cinnamon and sugar, flavored syrups, and even peanut butter. Serve juice in Eco-To-Go Cups. Make sure everyone takes home a Mini Paper Tote With Hershey’s® Kisses, which you can put at each place setting before your guests arrive.

Drawing With A Spin

Use two-part raffle tickets to pick a prize winner per day during National Hospital Week. Distribute the tickets Monday morning to your staff members. Place the five items from the Gift-A-Day Combo in a pillowcase. At the end of each day, draw a raffle ticket. Have the lucky ticket holder reach into the pillowcase without looking and pull out a prize. On Friday after the drawing, hand out Breakaway Lanyards to everyone who did not already win a prize.

It’s “Bean” Great

Serve something a little different at your 2011 luncheon–beans! Produce flyers advertising the luncheon that state, “It’s BEAN a great year. We would like to thank you with lunch.” Tie ribbons around jars you’ve filled with jelly beans, and use them for colorful centerpieces. Begin the meal with five-bean salad. Then make chili with beans or bean burritos your main dish. Servings of chocolate-covered espresso beans can finish the meal. Have luncheon guests write down as many types of beans as they can think of. Award the jelly-bean centerpieces to the people with the most answers. Reward all staff members in attendance with “Thanks For All You Do” 3-Piece Stationery Sets or “Thanks For All You Do” Pewter Key Tag Gift Sets for having “bean” excellent workers this last year.

Reward Perfection

Having perfect attendance is no easy task. Plan a ceremony to honor your staff members who have been at work 100% of the time. Invite everyone from your hospital to be there. At the ceremony, have your local high school band play. Bring in the hospital’s administrators to say congratulations, then present a “One Person Can Make A Difference” Stainless Steel Water Bottle and a “One Person Can Make A Difference” Full-Color Clipboard to each award-winning

Lunch At New Levels

Does your facility have a flat, easily accessible roof? If so, consider holding a rooftop cookout for your staff. Take a portable gas grill up there to cook hamburgers and hotdogs, both meat and veggie versions. Set up a lightweight table for condiments, buns, and salads. Provide blankets for people to sit on, and liven the mood with fun music playing from a battery-operated CD player or MP3 stereo. Tell your employees that your facility has been able to reach new heights in patient care with their help. As a token of your gratitude, present everyone with Drawstring Backpacks or Mini Fabric Key Ring.

Mingling And Munching

You may have heard of progressive dinners. At your hospital, try progressive snacks. Have each unit in the building set up a different snacking station. In addition to munchies, the units would offer information about their areas of specialty. Provide gifts to be given away at the snacking stations. Small-sized gifts would work well, such as “Caring Hearts, Helping Hands” Recognition Buttons and Accent Pens. Throughout the day, your staff members could stop by the various units to eat, learn, and feel appreciated.