NorthShore Health Centers serve thousands of patients every day across almost a dozen locations in Northwest Indiana – a feat that requires a huge team to accomplish, and more than the doctors, nurses, and other providers patients interact with during their regular visits. Those experts rely on a team of professionals such as Craig Dobis to make sure that they have the working tools, facilities, and equipment necessary to get the job done right every time.
First brought aboard in February of this year, Dobis is a member of NorthShore’s facilities team and is already making an impact, including earning Employee of the Month honors in August. He, and the other members of the facilities team, are responsible for all of the day-to-day maintenance and repairs that keep the clinics looking good and running smoothly.
“We’re fixing stuffed-up toilets, changing lights, correcting problems with alarm systems,” he said. “Pretty much anything that’s a mechanical problem in the buildings, we’ll either address or bring on an expert to address it.”
Suzanne O’Brien, director of purchasing, oversees the facilities department and described just how critical the work Dobis does is to NorthShore’s success.
“He’s always willing to do whatever is needed, big or small,” she said. “The whole team has dedicated their time and energy to make sure that jobs are completed. Whenever our staff runs into an issue, they always know with confidence that they can count on Craig and the facilities team to solve it.”
Dobis sees himself as a jack-of-all-trades, and rarely encounters a task he does not enjoy.
“It’s all in my wheelhouse and I love doing it,” he said. “Working with the employees, they’re all great, especially my facilities crew. I have a great time here. I’m the old guy, but I still like to work.”
Despite his ability to help solve just about any problem that comes up, Dobis insists on calling himself a “master-of-none.”
“The reason why I say I’m a master-of-none is because I’m always learning,” he said. “You should always be learning. I think if anyone tells you they’ve mastered something, then that means they’ve stopped learning. You’ve got to continue to learn, even at my age.”
This year is the first in Dobis’ long career that he has worked in healthcare.
“I learn something new every day about the healthcare industry,” he said. “I think the biggest difference is that you’ve got teams for everything. Teams for facilities, teams for getting stuff ordered and to the right people, it’s a big organization with a lot of wheels moving.”
Outside of work, Dobis is a Mason and a Shriner, and also spends a lot of his free time working on computers and other hands-on tasks.
“I’m just a fix-it kind of guy, if someone needs something done I do what I can to get it taken care of,” he said. "That’s just what I like to do.”
To learn more about NorthShore Health Centers, visit northshorehealth.org.