Focus: November 19, 2009

Page 1

FOCUS Focus on Excellence speaker stresses team work and responsibility

T

ake responsibility. Help your teammates. And always land on target.

That was the message of Master Sgt. Dana Bowman, keynote speaker at the Annual Focus on Excellence Awards and Exhibit ceremony. More than 300 people attended the event held Thursday, Nov. 13 in the John H. Ammon Medical Education Center. Bowman is a double amputee and former member of the elite Golden Knights parachute team. Robert Laskowski, M.D., Christiana Care president and CEO, said the transformational spirit of the teams infuses their work with excellence day in and day out. “Every year is better than the year past,” he said. Formal recognition for PDCA efforts

Clinical News Tricia Strusowski completes teaching tour

3

Outpatient physiatry now available at hosptials

3

General News Junior Board celebrates 25 years of service

4

Council plans diversity and inclusion strategy

6

Caring for Yourself Smoking’s financial impact

10

The awards give formal recognition to teams of employees who enter projects that demonstrate improvement in process or outcomes using the PDCA Plan-Do-Check-Act) model. Teams have submitted 512 projects since 2003. This year, 18 winners were selected from 89 projects. “There was some really excellent work from across the health care system,” said Donna Mahoney, BS, CPHQ, director of Data Acquisition and Measurement. On 4C, a med-surg floor, the team launched a successful strategy to improve shift-to-shift communication

Master Sgt. Dana Bowman, keynote speaker at the annual Focus on Excellence Awards and Exhibit among nurses using the DATAS (Demographics Assessment Tests Alert Status) form. That initiative reduced length of stay and overtime costs while increasing patient satisfaction. “It helped us to work more efficiently,” said Maria Alvarado, LPN. Carol Moore, RN, MS, a Quality and Safety Education specialist, worked on projects to improve perioperative teamwork and communication, as well as plan-of-care briefings. “I am thrilled by the efforts of the teams I’ve been working with,” she said. CONTINUED

N E X T PAG E


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.