91探花

Delivering the best care to every patient, every time is a common phrase in todays patient-centered care world.聽 , chairman of the , kicked off a planning meeting in June by admitting that hes not quite there yet in terms of his own performance.聽 It was a brave and honest statement鈥攅veryone has room to improve, really.

Wessells, , Clinic Manager Nancy Eberhardt and are leading a quality improvement project to improve patient and staff satisfaction.聽 The project is known as U-FIT (Urology Flow Improvement Project), a collaborative effort between 91探花Medical Center, the School of Medicine and 91探花Physicians.

The is already faring well in keeping patients happy and healthy.聽 In an ongoing hospital initiative, the clinic is the first to have had every patient rate the experience a nine or a 10 (out of 10) on patient satisfaction. 聽The clinic’s ratings have been consistently on the higher side since the rating system started, too.

Urology leaders and staff are working closely on U-FIT with Naomi Maxey, consultant in Performance Improvement/ Lean at 91探花Medical Center.聽 Lean is a term typically used in manufacturing, though its now spread to the healthcare field.聽 It refers to eliminating wasteful processes or procedures, or any action, process or product that adds cost without adding any value for the customer.

How does that translate in medicine?聽 Waste can occur in terms of time, for example.聽 The projects goals are to improve patient flow during clinic visits, and to improve daily clinic flow.聽 Maxeys work with the department entails developing measures to monitor clinic flow and improving patient, staff and provider satisfaction.

Wessells outlined the AIDET (acknowledge, introduce, duration, explanation and thanks) guidelines as part of the Patients are First and Lean process.聽 “We need to give the patient time to express all concerns,鈥� he said, while discussing the typical visit.聽 “Sometimes, a patients experience is related to their perception, regardless of how good the care actually was.聽 If we deliver great care but they think its terrible, were stuck,鈥� Wessells said.

Ellis said that the number one predictor of patient satisfaction is being seen on time.聽 He shared a story of his own personal experience with his dentists office being efficient, and how his appointment runs smoothly.聽 “With the growing need for our services, Im finding it harder and harder to keep up with my schedule,鈥� he said, candidly.

In one activity held in July, patients were armed with clocks and recorded the length of time spent in the waiting room, wait for a doctor and length of the appointment.聽 Clinic staff and providers took on the role of observer to gain a better understanding of the entire process and how individual roles fit into the process.聽 Its a novel approach that was perhaps a little nerve-wracking, but also eye-opening for the urology team, as staff reported back that they really learned from each other.

“We hope to become the shining example of putting our patients first at 91探花Medicine,鈥� said Walsh.