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Prescription for Excellence Program


Our Prescription For Excellence



There is increased responsibility of everyone in health care to make patient satisfaction a top priority. Our Prescription for Excellence program is based on making the patient the center of every decision and improving communication with our patients, physicians, and staff. By focusing on service, communication and patient-centered care, we will see an increase in patient and employee satisfaction. We cannot accomplish these goals without you!

In October 2013, MCHS implemented the Prescription for Excellence program. The goals of this program are to ensure we put patients first, aligning physicians and staff with our mission, vision and values which will increase overall satisfaction. We have several tools in our Prescription for Excellence toolbox.

October 2013, our Managers began employee rounding to improve communication with all staff. This is a great opportunity for one on one conversation between staff and manager to see how everything is going, what we can improve on, and who can we recognize for a job done well. Along with employee rounding, managers began the process of conducting 30 and 90 day retention meetings with new hires. This process keeps the lines of communication open and encourages employee engagement. Because is it important to recognize employees who go above and beyond the expected conduct and job duties, we started a formal process of recognizing staff with thank you cards. Recognition can be interdepartmental. Copies of the thank you cards are sent to HR and your manager.

The next tool implemented was patient rounding. Our managers visit patients because we want the patients' experience to be the best it can possibly be. We want to find out, do they have everything they need, how well are we controlling their pain, is their room cleanliness satisfactory. Along with those items, managers also check for safety and convenience items; such as, can the patient reach the call light and phone, are the bed rails up, and floor free from clutter. Patient safety is extremely important and everyone's responsibility.

Engagement, in health care, involves the understanding that everybody has a part in patient satisfaction. Employee engagement focuses on developing and motivating employees to enhance the overall outcomes. The foundation for building an engaged team is -excellent communication. The first tool, employee rounding was developed to improve employee/manager communication and our second tool, patient rounding is meant to improve patient and co-worker communication. Furthermore, communication boards are being placed in all departments to provide vital information to employees regarding the performance of the hospital system under the four pillars of people, quality, service and finance/growth. Just another way to communicate with staff.

The third tool introduced to staff is AIDET. AIDET is an acronym that stands for Acknowledge, Introduce, Duration, Explanation, and Thank You. AIDET is a communication framework that:

Improves patient and customer perception of their care or the service they receive

Helps reduce their anxiety (thus improving outcomes)

Builds customer loyalty

Ensures that all staff are delivering consistent measures of empathy, concern, and appreciation

The elements of AIDET are important in every interaction with a customer.


With that in mind, it is not a script. It is a set of five fundamental objectives to be met in the context of your interaction with others. Elements of AIDET do not have to be delivered in any specific order. AIDET Works in All Departments and Disciplines and AIDET is not just a CLINICAL communication tool. It is valuable in all interactions with customers.

We have many additional tools coming soon such as, internal customer rounding, service recovery and employee teams.

The HCAHPS survey is a way to encourage the focus on engagement with the patient. Watch each departments' communication boards for the latest survey results. The intent of the HCAHPS project is to provide a standardized method for measuring patients' perceptions on hospital care. Two goals have aided in shaping the HCAHPS survey.

1. The survey is designed to produce similar data on the patients' perceptions on care that allows you to compare hospitals.

2. Public reporting of the survey is meant to assist hospitals to improve their quality of care.

The survey contains eight key topics:


1. Communication with nurses

2. Communication with doctors

3. Responsiveness of staff

4. Pain management

5. Communication about medicines

6. Cleanliness of the hospital

7. Quietness of the hospital

8. Discharge information

Plus two questions that give the patients' overall rating of the hospital and whether they would recommend the hospital to others.


HCAHPS Survey questions:


YOUR CARE FROM NURSES


1. During this hospital stay, how often did nurses treat you with courtesy and respect?

2. During this hospital stay, how often did nurses listen carefully to you?

3. During this hospital stay, how often did nurses explain things in a way you could understand?

4. During this hospital stay, after you pressed the call button, how often

did you get help as soon as you wanted it?



YOUR CARE FROM DOCTORS


1. During this hospital stay, how often did doctors treat you with courtesy and respect?

2. During this hospital stay, how often did doctors listen carefully to you?

3. During this hospital stay, how often did doctors explain things in a way you could understand?



THE HOSPITAL ENVIRONMENT


1. During this hospital stay, how often were your room and bathroom kept clean?

2. During this hospital stay, how often was the area around your room quiet at night?



YOUR EXPERIENCES IN THIS HOSPITAL


1. During this hospital stay, did you need help from nurses or other hospital staff in getting to the bathroom or in using a bedpan?

2. How often did you get help in getting to the bathroom or in using a bedpan as soon as you wanted?

3. During this hospital stay, did you need medicine for pain?

4. During this hospital stay, how often was your pain well controlled?

5. During this hospital stay, how often did the hospital staff do everything they could to help you with your pain?

6. During this hospital stay, were you given any medicine that you had not taken before?

7. Before giving you any new medicine, how often did hospital staff tell you what the medicine was for?

8. Before giving you any new medicine, how often did hospital staff describe possible side effects in a way you could understand?



WHEN YOU LEFT THE HOSPITAL


1. After you left the hospital, did you go directly to your own home, to someone else's home, or to another health facility?

2. During this hospital stay, did doctors, nurses or other hospital staff talk with you about whether you would have the help you needed when you left the hospital?

3. During this hospital stay, did you get information in writing about what symptoms or health problems to look out for after you left the hospital?



OVERALL RATING OF HOSPITAL


1. Using any number from 0 to 10, where 0 is the worst hospital possible and 10 is the best hospital possible, what number would you use to rate this hospital during your stay?

2. Would you recommend this hospital to your friends and family?



UNDERSTANDING YOUR CARE WHEN YOU LEFT THE HOSPITAL


1. During this hospital stay, staff took my preferences and those of my family or caregiver into account in deciding what my health care needs would be when I left.

2. When I left the hospital, I had a good understanding of the things I was responsible for in managing my health.

3. When I left the hospital, I clearly understood the purpose for taking each of my medications.

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