Breakout Session Summaries
To download session handouts, please click here.
Monday, June 7 10:45am – 11:45am
Happy Patients = Happy Employees: The New Unit That Could- Tracy B. Holshouser, BSN, MHA, Interim Director for Emergency Services; Cindy J. Horman, RN, BSN, Clinical Decision Unit RN; Reba Ann Petrosky, RN, MHA, MBA; Presbyterian Hosital Huntersville, Huntersville, NC. It was depressing. Novant Health’s brand-new unit had 0% Excellent patient satisfaction scores. Staff felt compelled to prove they provided excellent care regardless of the room size or lack of amenities. Learn how the department used intuitive Key Drivers until statistical Key Drivers could be calculated and gathered feedback from patients and other departments to lead the team down the right path. One year later, they are the top-ranked nursing unit at Novant Health for patient satisfaction scores and their As a Place to Work employee score is 100% excellent!
Our Journey from Good to Great- Janine Begasse, RN, Clinical Manager; Kimberly Newman, RN, APNC, Clinical Manager; AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, Atlantic City, NJ. Learn how AtlantiCare moved from a good healthcare organization to a great one from two people who were integral in this journey. Speakers will discuss appropriate and inappropriate ways to engage staff in the journey, the importance of hardwiring hourly rounding, and how to successfully introduce AIDET into nurses’ daily routine. This session will walk participants through AtlantiCare’s journey of improving patient communication and bringing staff back to the bedside. AtlantiCare is a 2009 recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.
Emotional vs. Rational: What Works in Healthcare?- Candace Quinn, CEO & Sr. Strategy Consultant; Brand=Experience, McLean, VA. It’s a debate that dates back to the late 1920’s and even the experts don’t agree. Should healthcare advertising appeal to consumers’ emotional side or rational side? Attendees will view many different advertisements and discover how brand, price, consumer perception, and importance play into the decision to use rational or emotional advertising. Join this session to discover what may work best for your organization’s future.
2009 President’s Award Winner
Building Physician Loyalty through Survey Tools- Greg R. Johnson, DO, Chief Medical Officer; Parkview Health, Fort Wayne, IN. Parkview Health had already established their culture of excellence with patients and employees and received multiple national awards for their efforts. But what about their physicians? Learn how the system furthered their efforts with their 700 physicians, starting with a medical staff loyalty study. Parkview’s Chief Medical Officer will discuss why the system implemented a detailed pre-survey communication plan, how results where shared with physicians and leaders, and their plans going forward.
Dream, Believe, Achieve: A Cultural Journey- Elizabeth K. Vieira, ACC, Director, Research & Strategy Development; Parrish Medical Center, Titusville, FL. After building a new facility, Parrish Medical Center found that their beautiful environment wasn’t enough to achieve healing experiences for everyone all the time, so they started a complete transformation. This session will share the details of this journey, including how physicians were selected and developed into leaders, a unique model that selected employee leaders to lead the transformation, and how seven employee-directed teams implemented and sustained many important initiatives. As a result of this work, the hospital’s Overall Quality of Care ranking increased from 54th percentile to 75th percentile and its Loyalty ranking increased from 50th percentile to 78thpercentile.
Building Coworker Loyalty During an Economic Crisis- Lisa Hodges, SPHR, Employee Relations & Diversity Manager; Lisa Schiller, Vice President of Marketing/Public Relations, Community & Government Relations; Rex Healthcare, Raleigh, NC. The past two years produced unprecedented challenges for healthcare workers across the country, including job security, stagnant pay and increased health insurance rates. In taking a proactive approach to these challenges, Rex Healthcare executives developed programs utilizing their employee Key Drivers of Excellence – Senior Leadership and Total Compensation Package. Learn how these programs educated Rex coworkers on the steps they were taking during the economic crisis and the advantage of their benefits package, resulting in significant increases in As a Place to Work, Senior Leadership and Total Compensation Package scores.
Monday, June 7 1:15pm – 2:15pm
Action Planning for Excellence I- Hope Brown, Consultant, Client Education; PRC, Omaha, NE. In part one of this two-part session, learn how to plan strategies that will have more of your patients feeling the care they receive is excellent. Topics discussed will include how to use your Key Drivers of Excellence, the essential pieces of a successful action plan, and how to properly monitor your plan to ensure you are making progress. This session is appropriate for those who are needing to develop an action planning process within their organization or to enhance their current process.
Strategies and Tactics to Improve Employee Loyalty- Ibis Valles, Human Resources Consultant; Cynthia King, Ph.D., Special Projects; PRC, Omaha, NE. In this interactive session, learn ways hospitals are increasing employee loyalty and how recent innovations in the PRC Employee Loyalty Survey can help you reach your goals. Participants will discuss their strategies for improvements and will be encouraged to give their input on others’ challenges. This session will also introduce two new tools for employee clients: the Action Planning Tool and Employee Engagement Index. Learn how organizations are using the Action Planning Tool to create action plans that hold staff accountable, track progress and meet goals. Speakers will also share the research and background and uses for PRC’s new Employee Engagement Index.
CAHPS: Keep Abreast of What You Need to Know- Jan Carolus Gnida, Director, Project Design & Management; Katie Obst, CAHPS Project Coordinator; PRC, Omaha, NE. With new CAHPS surveys and requirements being added on a regular basis, do you know what your organization should do? PRC’s CAHPS specialists will update you on the CAHPS surveys for hospitals, physician practices and home health agencies, educating you on requirements, upcoming mandates, as well as PRC’s research on these studies. Learn how scores may affect Medicare reimbursement payments and how you can maximize your scoring potential. Questions are encouraged!
What’s Important to Your Customers? An Intro to PRC’s Medical Staff, Employee & Patient Studies- John Bowen, Consultant, Client Development; Sean Swanson, Consultant, Client Development; PRC, Omaha, NE. Customer relationships are essential to your bottom line. Learn how PRC’s surveys can help you improve these relationships and increase loyalty. This presentation will give a brief overview of PRC’s Employee Loyalty, Patient Loyalty, and Medical Staff Loyalty studies, from how PRC achieves unmatched response rates to department-level Key Drivers of Excellence to the advantages of using all three studies in tandem.
Tips for Using New Media & Social Networking in Your Marketing Efforts- Michele Cogger, Video Production & New Media Specialist; Jill Reeves, MHA, Director, New Media Communication; PRC, Omaha, NE. Are new media & social networking in your future? In this session, PRC’s new media experts will share insight into web video, blogs, forums, online resource archives, websites, Facebook, Twitter and more. Learn what your options are, when to use (and not to use) each, as well as insight into upcoming technologies. Participants will be encouraged to discuss their challenges, successes, and hesitations.
Monday, June 7 2:30pm – 3:30pm
Building Compassionate Award-Winning Oncology Services- Kenneth Zeitler, MD, Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of North Carolina; Mona H. Watters, Manager, Rex Hematology Oncology Associates; Rex Healthcare, Raleigh, NC. It’s all about compassion! But how do healthcare managers balance compassion with the extra budgetary constraints that arise during challenging economic times? Rex Hematology Oncology Associates, a two-time PRC Top Performer Award winner, will share how to build a successful practice based on compassion. Participants will learn ways to exceed patients’ infinite and diverse needs by prioritizing compassionate care ahead of budget concerns, which eventually results in extremely loyal patients and a flourishing practice.
The Perfect Storm: Achieving Physician Loyalty, Magnet Status & Growth- Lynne C. Barnes, Vice President, Clinical Operations; John Snyder, Executive Vice President & COO; Pamela Bigler, RN, MN, NEA-BC, Vice President, Patient Care & CNO; Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana, IL. Over the past three years, Carle Foundation Hospital has experienced constant change, including implementing an EMR, merging with its physician-owned clinic, growing significantly, and achieving magnet status. During this time the hospital deployed several initiatives to ensure they would not only maintain, but improve, physician and employee loyalty. During this two-hour session, learn how these initiatives and the ensuing culture change were key to the hospital’s success. Additionally, the speakers will discuss the hospital’s plans to further improve physician and employee engagement, which they believe will result in the best patient care possible.
Secrecy is Not the Answer: Sharing & Raising Employee Scores- Sandra K. Werner, MBA, PHR, Director, Human Resources; Simi Valley Hospital, Simi Valley, CA. After enjoying years of acceptable employee loyalty scores, Simi Valley Hospital found it had reached a low point. The scores were so low, in fact, that the administration team wanted to hide them from everyone. Instead, the hospital used a massive communication campaign, employee forums, and PRC’s Client Education Team to turn things around. This session will detail these initiatives, including how the hospital held managers accountable and tied scores to bonuses, that ultimately resulted in a complete transformation in employee loyalty success!
Orthopaedics & Marketing: A Joint Effort- Lori A. Bruss, MHEd, Executive Vice President; The Roberts Group, Waukesha, WI; Gerry Salter, MBA, PT, ATC, CSCS, Director, Orthopaedic Services; St. Francis Medical Center, Cape Girardeau, MO. Creating and successfully launching a new center can be a challenge for any organization. Most centers are developed with the input of clinicians and operations, but don’t often involve the marketing department until the grand opening launch. This presentation takes a look at the positive outcomes of launching a center with input from the marketing team, including details on how it was developed, how it was launched and why it has grown into being a very profitable venture in just two short years.
Two for One: Communicating Patient Survey Information with Employees- Ruth E. Traylor, MHA, Director of Community Outreach; Washington Hospital Healthcare System, Fremont, CA; Lynne Davis, RN, BSN, Nurse Manager II; Catherine Gray, RN, MHA, Nurse Manager; Carolinas Medical Center, Charlotte, NC. Communication at all levels in an organization can be challenging, but it is often the most important ingredient in achieving success with any goal, especially a patient experience goal. Learn how two very different organizations communicate this information to their employees, physicians and leaders. View practical tips, including breaking the data down to assist in understanding, how to educate and train key staff, and how to share data. Both organizations are successfully engaging all levels of staff in their patient improvement processes.
Monday, June 7 3:45pm – 4:45pm
2010 President’s Award Winner
The Leadership Challenge: Raising the Bar on Employee Satisfaction & Retention- Diane Boynton, Director, Human Resources Development; Stephanie Gregory, Manager, Planning & Staffing; Central DuPage Hospital, Winfield, IL. This year, Central DuPage Hospital experimented in aligning leadership focus on supporting a great workplace environment and increasing employee retention. The speakers will share how the hospital achieved this goal through innovative classes that were interactive, results-oriented and fun! Learn the details on their 10-week real-world learning laboratory. Presenters will share how leaders accepted their challenge and blogged about their experiences so others could replicate their successes. Employee surveys document double-digit gains in engagement and leader commitment.
From Secrecy to Transparency- Pamela S. Wendall, Director of Quality, Education & Nursing Informatics; Cobre Valley Community Hospital, Globe, AZ. While moving from little discussion of patient satisfaction scores to complete transparency, Cobre Valley Community Hospital learned many things that all hospitals, regardless of their level of transparency, can benefit from. Attendees will discover methods for holding employees accountable, how to effectively engage hospitalists, implementing successful competitions and easy way to recognize and reward staff.
Leading Service Excellence While Managing Your Regular Responsibilities: Keeping All the Balls in the Air- Rachel Reiman, PT, MSHCA, Director of Rehab Services; Brett Richmond,Vice President, Professional & Ancilliary Services; Fremont Area Medical Center, Fremont, NE. Are organizations without dedicated service excellence staff doomed for mediocrity? No! Without a full-time, dedicated service excellence champion or department can they really achieve excellence? Yes! Learn how one hospital has achieved excellence through a Service Excellence committee, without full-time staff dedicated to service excellence. This session will share details on the challenges and barriers faced and how other organizations can implement this model to achieve excellence.
Excellence Doesn’t Mean Expensive: Creating Excellent Patient Experiences on a Tight Budget- Lynn Carter, Director of Guest & Volunteer Services; Knapp Medical Center, Weslaco, TX. By using creativity, others’ knowledge and experience, many free resources, and time, Knapp Medical Center has found that big budgets aren’t necessary for creating positive patient experiences. This fun session will share tips and tricks on several low-cost techniques that increase service excellence. Learn what resources are necessary in designing a successful program and that don’t break the bank, as well as readily-accessible components that can enhance any current excellence program.
Monday, June 7 5:00pm – 6:00pm
Our Malcolm Baldrige Journey- Bush Bell, Corporate Director, Customer Service; AtlantiCare, Egg Harbor Township, NJ. The latest Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Winner will share what it takes to win this much-sought-after award. Following a high-level review of the Baldrige criteria, the speaker will share key learnings from their journey, including the importance in using the voice of the customer methods in engagement and staff development. Attendees will understand how deployment of strategy throughout the organization is critical to a culture of service excellence and why a strategy map is essential to this deployment.
Impact of Rounding & Post-Discharge Calls on Patient Satisfaction Scores- Bonnie Felts, Patient Satisfaction Specialist; Carolinas HealthCare System, Charlotte, NC; Joe Snipp, MA, Consultant, Client Education; PRC, Omaha, NE. Carolinas HealthCare System and PRC collaborated to study the impact of patient rounding and post-discharge phone calls on patients’ perception of care. This study began in early 2009 at eight CHS hospitals of various sizes and located in both rural and metro areas. The results provide insight for organizations currently using or considering implementing patient rounding and post-discharge calls. Additionally, learn how CHS successfully rolled out rounding and post-discharge phone calls with system-wide education. This session will delve deep into the study data and discuss the relative impact on both ED and outpatient visits.
Peer Coaching: The Difference in Achieving Success- Cynthia B. Speer, RT, MA, Service Excellence Advisor; Renae Caldwell, RN, Staff Development Clinician; Kelly Swauguer, BSN, MHA, MA, Director of Nursing; Debra Macbeth, MHA, Service Excellence Advisor; Novant Health, Winston-Salem, NC. Healthcare organizations spend hours trying to implement and sustain improvement strategies into daily routines without sustained success. In this session, attendees will learn why the traditional top-down approach is ineffective in changing culture. Participants will show attendees how changing to peer coaching that builds on prior knowledge, trusting relationships, feedback and mutual experiences can lead to sustained improvement.
Improving the Physician Experience: Using Data to Drive Results- Jeff Cowart, VP of Communications & Chief Marketing Officer; Inova Health System, Falls Church, VA. Many organizations struggle with improving physician relationships, especially when physicians are spread out among multiple locations. Inova Health System will share how they improved physician relationships through a focused, system wide cultural change initiative. Attendees will learn the details of strategies and tactics that helped drive improvements in the physician experience, how to create a culture of physician relationship change, and how to create relationship and operational alignment around physician experience goals.
A Multifaceted Approach to Improving ED Scores- Catherine Zaharko, Vice President of Marketing/Communications; Alicia Fredella, Customer Relations Manager; San Juan Regional Medical Center, Farmington, NM. San Juan Regional Medical Center had to do something drastic to combat their 5th percentile ED patient satisfaction scores. They discovered that a multi-pronged approach was just the ticket for turning their scores around. Learn the details of this approach, including how it was customized for the ED, a six sigma project on ED patients with multiple visits, hiring new management to “fit” the ED, and a two-step triage with the addition of a fast track program.
Tuesday, June 8 7:30am – 8:30am
Service Excellence Councils- Deborah Lumpkins, RN, MSN, Vice President of Nursing/CNO; Joan Stephens, Customer Service Coordinator; Kaye Brewer, Vice President of Human Resources; Maury Regional Medical Center, Columbia, TN. Maury Regional Medical Center’s Service Excellence Council, overseeing patient, employee and physician loyalty, has a huge positive impact on the organization. The Council was modeled after an already-established Quality Council and includes the hospital’s CEO, CNO, Medical Director, VP of Human Resources, and representatives from the ED, inpatient, outpatient and support departments. This session will teach attendees how to establish their own effective councils, how to ensure success from inception, how the councils can elevate patient, employee and physician loyalty, and how to harvest best practices from council meetings.
Experience Design: From Turnings Tasks to Turning Heads- Sean L. Keyser, Vice President, Operations & Service Excellence; Novant Health, Charlotte, NC. Experience requires design. We tend to describe the patient’s journey using the language of our work…tasks. What if our work was designed and described around what we want patients to experience based on their needs and expectations? Learn how Novant Health did just that and changed their thinking and patients’ perceptions.
Excellence on a Dime- Amber E. Kozak, RN, BSN, Unit Manager; Courtnay Bracken Linahan, RN, BSN, CCRN, CNRN, Unit Manager; Parkland Health & Hospital System, Dallas, TX. Parkland Hospital’s Medicine Division was tasked with creating strategies to improve patient satisfaction scores. The Renal Transplant and Neurology units spectacularly succeeded in meeting these goals by reaching the 98.3 percentile and 100th percentile respectively in FY2009. Learn the secrets of their success including shifting organizational behavior, surviving the transition to an EMR, patient call-backs, quick-look rounds, and staff development and recognition.
The Blitz: Building Excellent Service One Plate at a Time- James P. McGrody, Director, Food & Nutrition Services; Rex Healthcare, Raleigh, NC. Patient rounding isn’t only for direct patient caregivers and leaders. Rex Hospital’s Food & Nutrition Services program offers an outstanding example for any department seeking to build excellent service. Participants will learn how patient rounding moved this department’s score from the 55th percentile to the 90th percentile, and why this department has one of the hospital’s best patient service plans, highest PRCEasyView®.com usage, best rounding strategy and greatest number of continued service improvement ideas. And, Jim is an excellent chef, too!
A Marketing Primer: Changing Community Perceptions of Small Hospitals- Lori A. Bruss, MH Ed, Executive Vice President; The Roberts Group, Waukesha, WI. The generations-old perception that rural hospitals can’t provide care as good as that of urban medical centers is simply not true. But how do leaders bridge the gap between what perceptions are and what they want them to be? Participants will learn how coordinated internal communication and external marketing plans can make a difference and how to implement these tools in their organizations. They will also review the case study of how a critical access hospital changed consumers’ perceptions.
Tuesday, June 8 8:45am – 9:45am
Internal Coaching Model: Developing a Structure to Sustain Excellence- Patrick Ratchford, Assistant Vice President; Dennis Phillips, Executive Vice President; Justin Lash, Director, Service Excellence; Bonnie Felts, Patient Satisfaction Specialist; Carolinas HealthCare System, Charlotte, NC. Many organizations work with external consultants to instill a culture of excellence, but for many reasons it is not always feasible to maintain these consulting relationships year after year. Learn how Carolinas HealthCare System executed a plan that ensured the foundation established during the initial rollout of Service Excellence remained strong. This session will share how an emphasis on accountability and managers’ ownership of patient satisfaction data continues to propel the system’s quest to improve patient experiences.
The Doctor Will Now See You: Linking Efficiency and Excellence in a Physician Practice- Brian Hunt, Operational Improvement Advisor; Claudia Ward, Operational Improvement Advisor; Novant Health, Winston-Salem, NC. Years ago, a crowded waiting room was a sign that a physician was popular; today, that isn’t necessarily the case. In this interactive presentation, participants will learn specific tips for improving operational efficiency and service excellence in a physician practice. They will also learn how Novant Medical Group used PRC’s tools to engage staff, managers and physicians in improvement efforts, and how they, too, can use these tools in their own organizations.
DOUBLE SESSION
Promising Practices to Re-Inspire Presence- Gail M. Parker, Service Excellence Initiatives; Kathy Dancy, Service Excellence Initiatives; Novant Health, Charlotte, NC. Hourly rounding is a proven approach to improve the patient experience; ultimately it serves as a way to create presence and predictability. By now, many hospitals have experienced the victories and the fits of hourly rounding. This refresher will reveal visually, through cause and effect, how the tasks of clinical and non-clinical staff lead to relationship-centered care. Attendees will enjoy a meaningful and inspiring twist on a time-honored practice.
2009 President’s Award Winner
Yes, Virginia, Culture Does Drive Performance- David C. Hunter, Chief Operating Officer; Christina Blaskie, Service Excellence Coordinator; Cathy Byrd, RN, VP, Patient Services; Charlotte Olsen-Chiddister, RN, Surgery Manager; Parkview Noble Hospital, Kendallville, IN. Just as Virginia learned that there really was a Santa Claus, Parkview Noble Hospital has learned that culture is the heart of the hospital. Witness this hospital’s journey to move their service excellence scores from good to great. Hear about the tools, tactics and teamwork that went into creating their culture and steady improvements.
Using New Media to Educate Administrators, Managers & Physicians- Denise G. Rabalais, Director, Survey Research; Vanderbilt Medical Center, Nashville, TN. Vanderbilt Medical Center has found success in using new media tools to educate leaders and physicians on patient satisfaction initiatives. The speakers will share how the medical center is using targeted web training, online tutorials and live training sessions to communicate with this audience. Participants will also learn many tips for effective communication and education of physicians.
Tuesday, June 8 10:00am – 11:00am
Transitional Times Don’t Equal Low Patient Scores- Heather M. Santa Barbara, BSN, Clinical Director; Cathleen Jordan, RN, BSN, CCRN, Clinical Manager; AtlantiCare, Atlantic City, NJ. As the number of patients increased, AtlantiCare’s surgical unit was unable to handle the volume. An efficiency analysis showed that a medical unit could be transitioned into a surgical unit to alleviate the problem, but that would mean that staff had to become comfortable and competent with surgical patients and surgeons. Learn about the unit’s detailed transition plan and how it helped employees and surgeons accepted changes and continue improving patient loyalty scores, ultimately winning the 2009 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.
Using Tools & Resources to Engage Your Employees- Leslie Speas, Manager of Workforce Initaitives; Novant Health, Winston-Salem, NC. Through various tools and resources, Novant Health increased employee loyalty and improved their As a Place to Work survey scores. This session will share why the system developed specific toolkits to increase employee loyalty through improving areas such as teamwork within the department. Participants will hear details on Novant’s programs for on-boarding new employees, best practices for employee engagement from high-performing departments, how an employee engagement decision tree helps guide leaders, and guidelines for developing a Staff Advisory Panel.
The Ups & Downs: Getting Frustrated Employees to Rise to the Challenge- George Einhorn, System Director of Service & Operational Excellence; Gail Chase, System Manager, Service Excellence; Paula Simmons, Clinical Manager, Family Birthing Center; Linda Jones, Director of Women’s & Children’s Services; Provena Health, Mokena, IL. Transitioning patient survey vendors can be challenging, especially when scores with the new vendor are dramatically lower than with the previous vendor. This was the challenge faced by Provena Health. Learn details on the specific actions taken by an OB unit’s nursing staff after this initial shock. Education, understanding new processes and tools, and how to pinpoint weaknesses will be addresses. See real-life examples of adjustments that were required as scores improved, were maintained for a few months, took another nose-dive, then recovered to the 90th percentile.
Step-by-Step Success: Improving ED Wait Times, Low Patient Scores, & High LWBS Rates- Jody Gerard, MD, FACEP, Chairman & VP, Department of Emergency Medicine; Kerry Eaton, RN, BSN, MSN, Senior Vice President/Chief Administrative Officer; Frank Illuzzi, MD, FACEP, Associate Chairman, Department of Emergency Medicine; Kathleen Woods, RN, BSN, MSN, CEN, Director of Nursing, Emergency Department; St. Vincent’s Medical Center, Bridgeport, CT. Long wait times, low patient satisfaction scores, and high left without being seen rates plague many EDs. Learn how St. Vincent’s Medical Center addressed these concerns through a three-part program implemented over two years. This program resulted in dramatic improvements in teamwork, satisfaction and LWBS rates and can be replicated in any ED.
Tuesday, June 8 12:45pm – 1:45pm
Action Planning for Excellence II- Hope Brown, Consultant, Client Education; PRC, Omaha, NE. If you are familiar with Key Drivers and action plans or learned about them during part one, the second hour of this session is perfect for you. Attendees will learn how to use PRC’s newly-released Action Planning tool to streamline their own patient-focused action planning process.
Step-by-Step Planning for Success- Ibis Valles, Human Resources Consultant; Cynthia King, Ph.D., Special Projects; PRC, Omaha, NE. We are excited to share the new Action Planning Tool for employee clients, which was created to work seamlessly in an online environment. Participants will learn how to use all phases of the tool, including navigating the application, creating action plans and celebrating success. Following this presentation, participants will be able to immediately implement successful action plans in their organizations.
But My Patients ARE Different: What Really Drives Patient Perceptions- Joe Snipp, MA, Consultant, Client Education; PRC, Omaha, NE. One of the most common objections managers have to patient satisfaction data and norms comparison datasets is that their patients, for some reason, are just different than the “average” patient at the “average” facility. But do variables like bed size, patient age, ED volume, or region of the country really have an impact on how patients perceive care? This presentation will explore all of these questions without getting too statistically heavy, giving participants a better understanding of how these issues really affect scores as well as easy ways to address managers when they question the uniqueness of their population.
Measuring Community Health with PRC- John Bowen, Consultant, Client Development; PRC, Omaha, NE. Learn how PRC Community Health Assessments measure healthcare access, preventive healthcare, modifiable health risks and health status. This presentation will discuss the entire study process, from survey implementation through reporting and prioritization.
What Are They Thinking? Find out with PRC’s Consumer Perception Study- Sean Swanson, Consultant, Client Development; PRC, Omaha, NE. What are your consumers really thinking and saying about you? Are your advertisements making an impact? Is outmigration a problem? Learn how PRC’s Consumer Perception Study lays out consumers’ perceptions of your hospital’s services, communications and programs relative to your competitors, identifies your marketshare for specific services, determines market opportunities as well as evaluates your marketing efforts.
Payoffs of the Improved Patient Experience- Teira Gunlock, MHA, Consultant, Client Education; John Gnida, MA, Consultant, Client Education; PRC, Omaha, NE. Patient experience initiatives struggle to gain traction in many organizations because they often are implemented with a service recovery approach emphasizing “fixing” the negative experiences of few patients. Instead, they should focus on a service excellence approach that increases loyalty among the vast majority of patients, is more likely to be supported by staff, and is the most effective strategy for increasing patient satisfaction and HCAHPS scores. This presentation will discuss best practice strategies for implementing a service excellence culture and the many benefits of patient loyalty, including results from PRC’s nationwide loyalty survey and its effects on patient relationships with healthcare providers.
Tuesday, June 8 2:00pm – 3:00pm
Rally the Troops: Improving Overall Teamwork Between Doctors, Nurses & Staff- Mark Stock, Manager, Patient Relations & Service Excellence; Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA. The key to Childrens Hospital Los Angeles improving patient & family experiences was to focus on its Key Driver of Teamwork Between Doctors, Nurses & Staff. The hospital tackled the challenge head-on by creating an Ambulatory Service Team and discussing teamwork with patients and families to find out what it meant to them. Learn how meeting a Joint Commission PI requirement, visual displays and reviewing patient scores of past projects increased clinics’ teamwork scores from the 33rd Percent Excellent Percentile to the 87th Percentile in two years.
Unlocking Doors to Improve Performance- Anita M. Trackwell, MSN, Chief Nursing Officer; Johnson Memorial Hospital, Franklin, IN. Two years ago, Johnson Memorial Hospital’s leadership team determined a new culture was necessary for decreasing turnover and improving employee and customer scores. These changes began with focusing on employee needs and recruiting all levels of staff members to begin the journey with them. Learn how the hospital implemented many strategies to achieve this objective utilizing a variety of tools and how they are now working with physicians to continue the momentum.
Hardwiring Culture, Creativity & Patient Excellence- Janet Nystrom, Manager, Human Resources; Barbara McLaurine, Manager, Marketing & Physician Services; Progess West HealthCare Center, O’Fallon, MO. Discover how hardwiring a service culture and marrying it with a disciplined approach to strategic planning and operational excellence helped create a high-performing hospital with exceptional patient, employee and physician loyalty. Through lecture and interactive exercises, session attendees will learn how hospitals can set the tone for success by creating a service culture that fosters creativity to enhance teamwork and patient-centered care.
Achieving Excellence in Outpatient Clinics- Annette M. Tietz, Clinic Manager, Audiology, Speech & Dental Services; Cheryl Clyburn, Manager, Patient Relations & Referral Center; Maeola Doran, Operations Analyst; UCDavis Health System, Sacramento, CA. Patients’ customer service experiences begin with the first employee they encounter. By training, coaching, and listening to the feedback from your staff, organizations have a greater chance of positive encounters. UCDavis Health System will teach you about their staff program that focuses on standardized scripting, role-play training, and communication techniques that improved communication and increased registration and discharge patient scores at their outpatient clinics.
DOUBLE SESSION
Excellent Training Reaps Excellent Patient Experiences- Bill Nole, Director, Quality; Doug Williams, RN, Executive Director, Saint Francis Heart Hospital; Saint Francis Health System, Tulsa, OK. Join Saint Francis Health System as they present employee training developed for the opening of their new Heart Hospital. This highly-successful program aligns individual behaviors, sets service standards, and develops a commitment to teamwork with all employees that, in turn, creates an excellent patient experience. This in-depth session will explain how to implement service excellence from the start, moving from words that wound to words that wow, employees’ responsibilities in service excellence, being the best team member possible, making physicians feel that they are part of the team, and making family-centered care really happen.
Tuesday, June 8 3:15pm – 4:15pm
All Aboard! Get Your Ancillary Team to Board the Excellence Train- Dana Sanford, RN, Nurse Manager; Myra Stearns, RRT, MHA, Director of Cardiopulmonary Services; Carolinas Medical Center – Pineville, Charlotte, NC. To truly create excellent experiences all the time, hospitals must spread ownership of the patient experience to all department managers and staff. Presenters will teach attendees about the tools support departments should use to improve patients’ experiences. They will also share how an internal survey can increase the service these departments provide to the nursing units.
Super Fast Track to ED Excellence- Stephanie J. Baker, RN, CEN, MBA, Coach; Studer Group, Gulf Breeze, FL; Janice McKinley, RN, FACHE, CNAA, Vice President & Chief Nursing/Patient Safety Officer; Fort Sanders Parkwest Medical Center, Knoxville, TN. To combat long waits, low patient satisfaction scores, long ED cycle times and patients who leave without being seen, Fort Sanders Parkwest Medical Center implemented the Super Fast Track. Learn the reasons why this process was implemented and how employees, physicians and patients have embraced it. Participants will learn how to use this process to reduce length of stay to less than 50 minutes, increase flow and patient satisfaction scores, and reduce the number of patients who left without being seen.
What do CEOs Really Think?- David C. Hunter, COO; Parkview Noble Hospital, Kendallville, IN (2009 President’s Award Winner); Dennis Phillips, Executive Vice President; Carolinas HealthCare System, Charlotte, NC; David Strong, CEO, Rex Healthcare, Raleigh, NC; Jim Sinek, CEO; Faith Regional Health Services, Norfolk, NE. Just what is your administrator thinking when certain decisions are made? Do they really understand the ramifications of their decisions? Join us as we ask a panel of hospital administrators exactly what they are thinking when they make decisions, how employees can positively impact their hospitals, and their vision for the future.
2010 Presiden’ts Award Winner
Improving the Experience: A Strategic Initiative- Barbara Carbon, RN, MS, Manager, Patient Satisfaction; Stratis Bahaveolos, Senior Director, Strategic Planning; Central DuPage Hospital, Winfield, IL. Through a multidisciplinary approach, Central DuPage Hospital has immensely impacted the experiences of their patients, physicians and employees. Learn how the hospital’s core strategies have guided this journey of excellence and boosted its patient, employee and physician scores to above the 90th percentile. Initiatives discussed will include patient care services-focused initiatives, core process improvements, communications, data management, and service recovery.
