Working Together for UMMC

Working Together spring 2012

for

UMMC

P ublished i n c on jun c t i on w i th th e E mp l o y e e C o mm u n i c a ti o n F o r u m s a t th e Uni versi t y o f M ary land M ed i cal Cent er

Dear Col l ea g u e:

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Medicare and Medicaid Payments to Hospitals Could Shrink Further s an organization dedicated to excellence, we know

that sustaining such excellence really means constantly striving to do better. We have to engage in a continual process of change and refinement. We apply this to patient safety, to the quality of patient care and to the quality of service we provide for patients, visitors and each other.

What I continue to admire about the staff at UMMC is that, as we face shrinking reimbursement for the care we provide, you have never wavered in your dedication to excellence. Thanks to your ingenuity and engagement, we have been finding ways to improve processes and better use staff time.

It’s tough, but it’s worth it, because of what we do.

Through all of the challenges we face, we continue to achieve excellence through recognition from The Leapfrog Group. In addition, UMMC now rates among the top 10 percent of hospitals nationwide in the “core measure” of treating acute myocardial infarction – heart attack. And an interdisciplinary effort across all the ICUs has reduced the rate of patients developing central line-associated bloodstream infections by as much as 83 percent.

These kinds of achievements only happen when different disciplines

As Working Together goes to press, a number of major health care-related funding proposals are nearing completion. Both the State of Maryland and the federal government face very large budget deficits and have proposed major reductions to Medicaid and Medicare. Major reductions to Medicaid and Medicare will create a severe financial impact on all hospitals in Maryland.

The Maryland General Assembly faces a big challenge as they work to solve a $1 billion budget deficit. Why should you be interested in this? More than 30% of the Medical Center’s revenue comes through the Medicaid program in the State of Maryland. These dollars represent reimbursement for the patient care services provided at UMMC. It is also important to note that 62% of the patient revenue base at University Specialty Hospital (USH) comes through the Medicaid program.

Medicaid usage has grown significantly over the past five years and is expected to take another leap in 2014 when health care reform kicks in. Managing Medicaid costs is essential to the continued financial health of the health care system in the state.

The federal government is also considering large reductions to the Medicare program. UMMC receives 25% of its revenue for patient care services provided to Medicare patients. All hospitals will be affected by reductions in Medicare reimbursement. The combined impact of Medicaid and Medicare reductions on UMMC’s revenue could be substantial, as it represents more than half of our total revenue. All employees are encouraged to follow these issues in the media during the next few weeks.

celebrating sustained excellence

and staff in all roles join forces with a common focus on patients.

On pages 4 and 5, you’ll see some of the employee councils that provide valuable input for major decisions. I urge you to share your own thoughts with them and with any of the executive leaders. What innovative ideas do you have to improve performance? Change will happen no matter what, so let’s work together to make sure it’s change for the better.

Sincerely,

Members of the Employee Celebrations Team handed out ice cream treats to staff to celebrate UMMC

Jeffrey A. Rivest President & Chief Executive Officer

being chosen Leapfrog Top Hospital for the sixth straight year. How cool

is that?

Inside: Also see

w How Dialogue Leads to Change

Being chosen as a Leapfrog “Top Hospital” for quality and safety six years in a row is so cool that the only way to celebrate was with ice cream. UMMC is one of only two hospitals in the country to meet the increasingly stringent criteria for this list every year since it was initiated by The Leapfrog Group.

w Performance Innovation in the Pathology Labs w C2X Team Aims for Quiet at Night w Service

Awards Photos

To thank the entire staff for the effort that makes UMMC a top hospital, President and CEO Jeffrey A. Rivest invited everyone to take an ice cream break during their shifts and to savor the moment. In the Weinberg Atrium, members of the Employee Celebrations Team handed out ice cream bars and cones and frozen-fruit bars to staff – as well as to several patients and visitors who happened to be in the right place at the right time.

“UMMC has earned this continual recognition by The Leapfrog Group because of the multidisciplinary teams

that define us and the invaluable members who comprise these teams – doctors, nurses, pharmacists, therapists, technicians, support staff and leaders at all levels,” Rivest said. “Thank you for the role you play in continuing to make safety and quality a top priority and for giving all of us yet another reason to be proud. Take a moment to celebrate your part in earning this award for the Medical Center.”

See a video and more photos of this celebration on the UMMC blog, Life in a Medical Center, at medcenterblog.org.

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change excellence

Members of the 10 East patient care team who participated in Performance Innovation include (below, left to right) Ada Ibe Offurum, MD; Thomas Harris, Carolyn Washington-Bryant, BSN, RN; and Shawn Hendricks, MSN, RN.

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How Dialogue Leads to Change a n d on t o ex c ellenc e When a team has the right tools to form a tool kit, everything clicks into place for them to get the job done.

That became clear to the staff of 10 East when they took advantage of two “tools” that the Medical Center uses to continuously improve patient care and employee satisfaction. This unit was among the first hospital departments to participate in Performance Innovation, which led to improvements on the Employee Opinion Survey.

Performance Innovation (PI) is the Medical Center’s name for a process also known as “lean” and “Six Sigma” in other industries.

The Employee Opinion Survey is UMMC’s tool to get direct feedback from all staff members and measure progress in employee satisfaction. “[Employee opinion] drives change – I see it happening,” says Thomas Harris, unit secretary on 10 East. “When attending C2X forums, leadership lets you know what requests have been made by staff and how they are being implemented in different facets within the institution. I feel this alone lets the employees know their voices are being heard.”

The medical unit on 10 East has been using the PI process to make better use of staff time, so that nurses and other caregivers are delivering the maximum benefit to the patient.

For example, the unit worked with Patient Transportation and other departments to stage a few “Rapid Improvement Events,” or RIEs, that resulted in eliminating the problem of patients having to wait in the hallway outside their rooms to be transported to another part of the hospital, such as for an X-ray. The process had the secondary effect of raising staff opinions about their ability to communicate, their physical work environment, their capacity for teamwork and many other areas measured by the Employee Opinion Survey.

“The data from the EOS scores from 2010 to the scores in 2011 definitely show the impact of leading change and improving performance,” says Shawn Hendricks, MSN, RN, nurse manager of 10 East.

“Our scores in several areas increased and improved from 2010 to 2011, giving us a rating of ‘excellent’ in those categories,” she said.

Here are a few topics covered in the survey, followed by actions taken to improve employee satisfaction in those areas: Communication:

Relationship-based care (RBC) white boards installed in each patient’s room improved communication among staff, patients and families.

Because the nurses can’t always make it to the physician rounds, they now have the ability to review the RBC board for any pending test, consultations, education, etc. The info is updated daily, and used during the bedside report by the oncoming and off-going nurses, to include the patient in the discussion of the plan for the day, and during rounding by the medical teams to assist in disseminating discharge plans and pending tasks for the patient.

Also, Hendricks says, “We standardized and tweaked the text-paging format to decrease nurses’ less-urgent calls to the teams and texting pertinent info and adding the nurse’s name and call-back number to the pages we do send out.”

Teamwork:

Interdisciplinary groups working within the PI process to stage an RIE gave everyone better insight into one another’s roles, responsibilities and plights.

The EOS is the voice of the nurse and assists in driving change now and in the future.

Carolyn Washington-Bryant

Physical Work Environment:

It had been stressful for nurses to see patients waiting in the hallway on a stretcher or wheelchair for an hour or more to be transported to an X-ray or other procedure. But the patienttransportation RIE eliminated and solved this problem.

“We’ve had no patients have to wait in the hallway since that RIE last May,” Hendricks says.

Employee Engagement:

“We had participation from all disciplines engaged in the RIEs to assist in improvements on 10 East. We were able to get the persons who would be affected to be part of the discussions and work for improvements and changes,” Hendricks says.

Carolyn Washington-Bryant, BSN, RN, a senior clinical nurse on 10 East, says, “The EOS is the voice of the nurse and assists in driving change now and in the future.”

“You can only drive change when you engage those who actually do the day-to-day work,” says Ada Ibe Offurum, MD, assistant professor of medicine, who cares for patients on 10 East and has been actively involved in the RIE and performance improvement along with unit staff. “If the Employee Opinion Survey represents the individual and collective thoughts, opinions and suggestions about the working environment here at UMMC, then it is probably one of the more accurate ways to know which direction to go to effect change.”

When attending C2X forums, leadership lets you know what requests have been made by staff and how they are being implemented in different facets within the institution. I feel this alone lets the employees know their voices are being heard.

Thomas Harris

Employee Opinion Survey Highlights

Data from the 2011 Employee Opinion Survey results show that we have maintained the significant gains of the last four years. Here are a few highlights:

Robust response: Participation in the survey was great,

Here’s what we aced: The Employee Opinion Survey

with 74 percent (5,190) of the staff completing the anonymous

launched the same day that The Joint Commission arrived for

survey online.

the unannounced four-day thorough assessment of the hospital

High marks for communication: Staff members gave the

for reaccreditation, so it should come as no surprise that the

organization a very good score for communications, better than the national average by 6 percent, with 82 percent of employees agreeing that “When changes occur, reasons are explained.”

question that scored the highest was: “I understand my role in The Joint Commission survey.” A total of 97 percent of the staff gave a positive answer to that question.

Shared sense of pride in our work: For the question, “I am proud to work for UMMC,” 96 percent of the staff gave a positive response.

Thinking Outside the Boxes Literally – to Streamline the Lab Over the years, the Laboratories of Pathology nerve center – the Core Lab – had grown and adapted incrementally on the second floor of the North Hospital, ultimately taking up a lot of space.

But all those incremental changes resulted in a space that gave the staff a daily challenge in completing tests quickly and getting the results to the patient care teams.

So a group of the scientists, technologists and supervisors in the Core Lab stepped away from the bench to take a fresh look at their work flow, using the lean principles of Performance Innovation.

Thanks to some creative rearranging – including the use of cardboard box models that allowed them to try out different floor plans – they designed a new layout to support a more efficient and logical flow of work. Microscopy is all in one part of the lab now, rather than having scientists at opposing ends of the room. Hematology is all in one place. Now, waiting more than an hour for a test result is the exception, not the rule.

The rate of tests completed within one hour of being received jumped from 12.8 percent to 76.5 percent. To reach the goal – 100 percent – a few more RIEs will be conducted to further refine the way work flows through the laboratories.

“There were a lot of things that the staff in the lab wanted to improve, but we didn’t have the resources for that until now,” says Jennifer Christophi, MS, MLS (ASCP), technical specialist in the Laboratories of Pathology.

For one thing, the lab floor plan as it was had not been designed by the people who actually work in the lab. The Performance Innovation process, however, brought together lab staff, as well as some partners from the pharmacy, nursing and facilities, to make the space work for the people who work in it.

“We had fragmented work areas, where people working on the same type of test were in two or more different parts of the lab,” says Erin Bellamy, BS, MT (ASCP), medical laboratory scientist and member of the Laboratory Integration Team.

That fragmentation led to a lot of wasted time and motion carrying a slide from one place to another, for example. It also wasted space. By using cardboard boxes roughly built to the dimensions of some of the large analyzers and other instrumentation, the planning team was able to move the models around until it devised an optimal arrangement.

For one section of the lab – “CUB,” which stands for coagulation, urinalysis and blood gases – using cardboard models allowed staff to produce a layout that took 165 square feet, compared to 400 square feet before the redesign. Saving space allowed them to redesign for the sake of function and work flow throughout the entire Core Lab.

Aiming for Quiet at Night

Newest C2X Team

Partners with Patient Care Services for a Better Patient Experience The “BEEP” of a monitor and the “THUMP” of a pneumatic tube that has just arrived from the lab join with other sounds in most patient units to make for a cumulative commotion that can keep patients awake. Doors open, and an equipment cart rolls in.

In a busy hospital, where myriad patient needs arise regardless of the hour, silence can be elusive. But things are about to get much quieter, says Kerry Sobol, MBA, RN, director of patient experience and Commitment to Excellence (C2X).

The newest of the C2X teams is the Service Partners Team, made up of staff from departments that are not part of Patient Care Services, but which have an impact on the patient’s experience.

The Service Partners Team has been exploring ways to reduce the noise level in units at night without any compromise on the activity needed to care for patients. It’s led by Albert Johnson, CPM, director of logistics and materials management. The team’s executive sponsor is Alison Brown, MPH, senior vice president for business development and system strategy.

On patient satisfaction surveys, an average of about 58 percent of patients perceived that the Medical Center is “always” quiet at night, but some individual units, such as Gudelsky 5 East and 9 West, managed to score much higher last quarter, at 75 percent and 73 percent, respectively. These

higher scores put Gudesky 5 East and 9 West in or above the 90th percentile ranking – so they stand as two in-house models for the rest of the hospital.

“Our Service Partners Team has taken on the challenge of understanding our patients’ perception of how quiet we are at night,” Sobol says. “This team was formed to strengthen the partnership between service teams and clinical staff, because they all have an impact on patient satisfaction. In other words, how does everyone who works at the Medical Center affect how our patients and families feel while they are in the building? The quiet-at-night question seemed like a logical first project for the team.” [ Turn to page 4 for more on this team. ]

Jennifer Christophi and Erin Bellamy (top, l. to r.) were among the Core Lab staff who used cardboard models of the coagulation, urinalysis and blood-gas instrumentation to redesign the area to allow more efficient work flow.

Right, medical laboratory scientist Yen Phan works in the new area.

Candy Knowles, Leader in Human Resources, Joins Medical Center and Medical System

C

andy Knowles, MS, SPHR, FACHE, joined the Medical

Center in March as the new senior vice president for human resources and chief human resources officer (CHRO) for both the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) and the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS).

And just four days after she and her family moved here from Dallas, her husband fell and broke his kneecap while walking the dog.

“Fortunately, I knew where to bring him,” Knowles says. “I got a very in-depth orientation into the UMMC culture right away, and I have to say that at every level, everyone was wonderful to both of us. We felt one big organizational hug!”

“It is a pleasure and a privilege to be part of such a renowned organization and leadership team,” she says. “I have found that people who join the health care industry do so because it is a calling to help others. This industry, this organization, this leadership team fit my values.”

“Candy brings us the experience, vision and strategic leadership we need to continue to build our employee base as a local, regional and national destination for top-quality health care,” says Jeffrey A. Rivest, president and CEO of the University of Maryland Medical Center.

“A leader with Candy’s expertise will help ensure we have

>>>>

Healthstream Training Deadline May 1 <<<<

Have You Completed Your Healthstream Training? Time is running out, and those who wait until the last minute may find the online training site inaccessible, as it can handle only a certain number of users at any one time.

UMMC launched a new, shorter version of Healthstream annual training in February. All employees except residents and fellows must complete their annual training by May 1.

Anyone who has not completed training by then, according to the Annual Training Policy (HRM-119), will be placed on unpaid leave starting May 2. The policy further states that if the employee fails to complete annual training within 14 calendar days, he or she will be terminated.

Staff members who have any questions should contact their supervisors or Tanya Berry in Learning & Organization Development, at 8-7412 or tberry3@umm.edu.

the best human resources practices in place for the near term and the future.”

Knowles comes to the Medical System from Parkland Health and Hospital in Dallas, Texas, where she had been chief human resources officer since 2008. She has previously held senior-level HR positions at Parkview Health in Fort Wayne, Ind.; Phoebe Putney Health System in Atlanta, Ga., and Battle Creek Health System in Michigan.

She earned a BA in business administration and marketing from Lakeland College and an MS from Cardinal Stritch University, both in Wisconsin. She is certified by the Society for Human Resources Management and is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

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The C2X teams are one of the many ways staff can participate in spreading service excellence across the whole organization, for patients and their families, and for each other as colleagues.

C2X Communication Forum Team

Christine Byerly Donna Charlton Gwendolyn Fraling Melanie Matthews Frank Moorman Kerry Sobol

Neonatal Intensive Care OBGYN Guest Services Express Care Communications and Public Affairs Operations

C2X Celebrations Team

Mindy Athas Monika Bauman Tanya Berry Nancy Gambill Heather Gibson Theresa Furrow Frank Moorman Kevia Patterson Mariellen Synan Danier Thompson Sherri Tracey Priya Viswanatha Jennifer Weissmueller

Clinical Nutrition Women’s and Children’s Ambulatory Services Human Resources Greenebaum Cancer Center Ambulatory Services Children’s Heart Program Communications and Public Affairs UM Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology Marketing Human Resources Women’s and Children’s Health Weinberg 5, Acute Care Surgery UMMS Foundation

C2X Communication forum

service awards March 1, 2012

C2X Service Partners Team

Rakael Carr Keli Chongasing Alisha Dennis Gwendolyn Fraling Al Johnson Frank Moorman Karanja Smith Eva-Lynn Stevens Linda Weinstock Kwame Wright

Health Information Management Strategic Planning Materials Management Guest Services Materials Management Communications and Public Affairs Housekeeping Hospitality Services Food Hospitality Services Human Resources Materials Management

C2X employee engagement team

Kaleena Anderson Katie Baick Karen Ballet Laetitia Demarest Erica Dolgoff Dino Gaetani Diana Johnson Jennifer Karr Chris Lindsley Mark Paige Todd Pratt Beth Sherfy David Sobiech Cynthia Sterling-Harley

Greenebaum Cancer Center Rehabilitation Services Human Resources Finance Rehabilitation Services Respiratory Services Rehabilitation Services Laboratories of Pathology Communications and Public Affairs Housekeeping Hospitality Services Human Resources Pediatric Cardiology Radiology Shock Trauma Center

C2X Celebrations Team

Night-shift nurses on Gudelsky 5 East, such as Andrea Danielson, BSN, RN, (in scrubs), and her nurse manager Ronetta Lambert, MS, RN, (center) now have partners in their quest to keep patient units quiet at night. The C2X Service Partners Team includes Al Johnson, left, director of materials management, and from right to left, Alison Brown, senior vice president and executive sponsor of the group; Eva-Lynn Stevens, assistant director of Food and Hospitality Services, and Kerry Sobol, director of patient experience and C2X.

C2X patient experience team

Nicole Bailey Sean Barrett Ruth Borkoski Jim Chang Glenna Coleridge-Taylor Dianne Degon Christine Dobmeier Cheryl Dodd Marmie Fishel Brenda Fosler-Johnson Katherine Frampton Diane Gregg Malka Isbee Diana MacFarlane Carmel McComiskey Lucy Miner Katherine Mulligan Anne Naunton Jennifer Nishioka Connie Noll Stephanie Pons Laura Riley Lisa Rowen Kathy Schuetz Chris Smith Kerry Sobol Gena Stanek

Guest Services Patient Transportation N10W and 13 East & West Safety Patient Resource Center Ambulatory Care/Otorhinolaryngology Clinical Nutrition Medical ICU Patient Advocacy Destination Medicine Services Rehabilitation Services Social Work and Human Services Rehabilitation Services Lab Integration Team Nurse Practitioners 13 East and West Shock Trauma Center Clinical Practice and Professional Development Pharmacy Services Psychiatry Ambulatory Care Cancer Center Outpatient Patient Care Services Communications and Public Affairs Security Operations Shock Trauma

C2X employee engagement Team

sean barrett and Nicole bailey, C2X Patient experience team

Diversity Council The Diversity Council identifies cultural trends that have an impact on health care and helps Medical Center leaders with the integration of cultural competence into daily operations. The council identifies and develops resources â&#x20AC;&#x201C; such as policies â&#x20AC;&#x201C; that advance the UMMC Strategic Plan.

Staff Nurse Council The Staff Nurse Council is co-chaired by Lisa Rowen, DNSc, RN, FAAN, senior vice president and chief nursing officer, and Christine Byerly, BSN, RNC-NIC, senior clinical nurse II in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The council members identify and implement strategies to improve patient safety and quality of care, patient outcomes, nursing practice, nurse satisfaction and patient satisfaction. The council also works to promote, sustain and strengthen a culture of nursing excellence and a healthy work environment.

Margaret Aeschlimam Taibat Nikki Alao Marcia Assanah Cheryll Baja Mack Carolyn Bando Chris Byerly Estrell Cabebe Ellaine Rose Camonayan Erica Carlson Cheryl Colvin Nancy Corbitt Cynthia Cosgrove Samantha Dayberry Kim Dierdorf Michele Duvall Dedra Campbell Laura Evans Evette Everett Gladys Fields Deborah Galloway Michelle Garwood Alex Ghabranious Alexis Gillespie Cheryl Gourley Wilhemenia Greer Danette Hare Alexandra Harrison Tisha Harrison Shanna Hartman Christopher Himes Barbara Huber Jeanine Hunt Timothy Jones Kathy Maloney Rachel Maranzano Ijeoma Mbagwu Carin McCabe Todd Milliron Marcela Montenegro Shari Moody Anne Naunton Nicole Pedersen Victoria Phelps Tina Rodman Ivy Klein Lisa Rowen Patricia Ryan (Lannon) Angela Sintes Victoria Sipes Nikki Slater Mytha Sherry Somorostro Liam St. John Lynn Stambaugh Stacey Trotman Chris Wentker Adrienne Yorker Maria Carmen Young

North 10 West Medical IMC Weinberg 5 Surgery 10 East Medicine Adult ED Gudelsky 8 Transplant Neonatal ICU Gudelsky 4 East NeuroCare IMC Mother-Baby Unit Weinberg 6 Cardiac Surgery ICU North OR North 8 West Oncology STC Neurotrauma ICU STC Multitrauma IMC Gudelsky 7 West NeuroCare ICU STC TRU 11 West/12 West Adult Psychiatry Gudelsky 3 West Cardiac Care Unit Medical Endoscopy General PACU 11 East Medicine Pediatric ED Gudelsky 6 East Cardiac Surgery Telemetry Radiation Oncology STC Ambulatory P4G Child Psychiatry STC Neurotrauma IMC Gudelsky 9 East Surgical IMC Neurology Ambulatory Center STC Acute Care Pain Service Non-Invasive Cardiology Ambulatory Surgery Care Unit STC Multitrauma ICU Gudelsky 6 East Cardiac Surgery Telemetry Gudelsky 4 West Surgical ICU Gudelsky 6 West Orthopedics STC Trauma Select IMC Cancer Center Ambulatory Infusion Center STC PACU Pediatric ICU/IMCU Clinical Practice and Professional Development Center for Advanced Fetal Care Gudelsky 5 East Medical/Surgical PCU Pediatric Surgical Center General Pediatrics Nursing and Patient Care Services Gudelsky 3 East Progressive Care Unit Clinical Practice and Professional Development Gudelsky 9 West BMT Cardiac Care Prep & Recovery Gudelsky 9 East Surgical IMC General OR Labor and Delivery 13 East/West Medicine Supplemental Staffing Weinberg 6 Cardiac Surgery ICU Gudelsky 5 West Surgery

professional partners

Sue Kinter Bethany Shelbourne Kerry Sobol

Risk Management Inpatient Pharmacy Patient Experience/Guest Services

Albert Askew Omer Awan Doris Balis Rodney Bellamy Katie Daley Bea Grant Anne Haddad Derryl Johnson Jeremy Kirlew Stephanie Knight Jeff Knox Tien Langlee Kimber Lee Monica Moore Kimberleigh Nash Connie Noll Francisca Nwugwo Michael Parker Eryl Quilao Chuck Schevitz Dani Thompson Alex Tinsley Cynthia Turner Keith Webb Jo-Ann Williams Patricia Wilson Terrie Young Cheryl Zalieckas

Executive Office, USH Radiology Psychiatry Human Resources Adult Emergency Department Human Resources Communications and Public Affairs Adult Emergency Department Cardiology Psychiatry Radiology Medical Records Human Resources Psychiatry Human Resources Adult Psychiatry Transplant IMC Human Resources Adult Emergency Department Human Resources Human Resources Human Resources Pulmonary Function Lab Information Technology Human Resources Clinical Practice and Professional Development Nursing/Executive Office, USH Rehabilitative Medicine

Employee Advisory Council The Employee Advisory Council represents a cross-section of staff and departments across the Medical Center, and was formed in 2006 to ensure communication between staff and senior leaders. Members recommend improvements and serve as a sounding board for UMMC leaders.

Job Alugula M. Susanne Anderson Mindy Athas Susana Baieva Erin Bellamy Kathy Berge Margaret Broady-Scofield Catherine Brown Cynthia Cosgrove Christina Crossley Keith Geffen Theresa Hicks Justin Johnson Charles Jones Kim Kearney Alexis LaCroce Heather League Bill Levey Ava Mackall Amber Martin Vatrice McKoy Kimberly Monagle Patricia Ryan Renee Satterfield Peter Saunders Jennifer Servary Susan Shlala Shereena Sorrell Christopher Stevens David Whigham Rosalyn Williams Kisha Winston-Watkins

Pastoral Care Clinical Practice and Professional Development Clinical Nutrition Biomedical Engineering Rapid Response Lab Psychiatric Occupational Therapy North OR Prep & Recovery UM Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology STC, Neurotrauma CC Patient Financial Services: Business Practices Facilities Project Management Acute Care N10E Patient Transportation Child Inpatient Psychiatry Greenebaum Cancer Center BMT Support Strategic Planning Pharmacy Administration Community Psychiatry Cardiac Care Unit 3W Rapid Response Team PSS Central Sterile Processing Center for Advanced Fetal Care Cardiac Care Unit 3E Surgery Clinics Respiratory Care Facility Buildings Operations Pharmacy Administration NeuroCare ICU & IMC Main Operating Room Radiology CT Scan Security Outpatient Addiction Services

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Spring Sparks a Surge in Staff Community Involvement

]

Forum Follow-up: We Heard You! Staff members who participate in the Q-and-A sessions at the Employee

March was National Reading Month and National Nutrition Month, and UMMC

Communication Forums bring up many issues that are important to them or to

staff were doubly generous, donating 100 children’s books to a book drive for

their patients. In each issue of Working Together, we’ll try to highlight some

the Library Project in city schools, as well as money to the Maryland Food Bank

things that changed, thanks to this kind of staff engagement.

in the first all-virtual food drive this year.

“The Book Drive, in partnership with the Weinberg Foundation, has been a great way to give back to the local community to support the development of children and reading skills,” says Karen Doyle, MBA, MS, RN, vice president for nursing and operations at the Shock Trauma Center, who co-chaired the drive with Christina Cafeo, director of nursing for medical/surgical acute care.

Why all-virtual for the food drive? To produce more value for the money, says Ellen Loreck, MS, RD, LDN, director of clinical nutrition at UMMC.

“The Maryland Food Bank prefers the virtual donations, which allow the organization to purchase strategically what clients need most,” Loreck says. “And because the Food Bank buys food from commissaries, it is able to produce two meals for every dollar donated. Lastly, managing the barrels of donated cans and packages took up significant time from UMMC staff. We decided to try this year to direct donors to the website to contribute.”

Making Blood Drives More Convenient for Staff With the level of trauma care, organ transplant, surgery and cancer care that make UMMC a world-class hospital, the staff members here know the critical need for blood donation on a continual basis.

But even with the best of intentions, obstacles can prevent hospital staff from turning out for scheduled blood drives. So, some of the most dedicated blood donors at UMMC have been teaming up to make it easier or more attractive for their colleagues to donate blood. Some of the goals include: faster turnaround times, extended hours, rewards such as discounts on lunch, and educational materials with more detail about why donating blood is one more way that individual staff can save lives. It’s working so well, that participation has increased – and so have the waiting times, but the Medical Center and American Red Cross are working on that.

Q:

There’s a lack of security at the back employee entrance, near the Emergency entrance. Anyone can walk in. The security officer at the Emergency entrance isn’t always checking IDs. Update: Thanks to employee concerns at the fall 2011 forums, the Security Department decided to put up signs at video-monitored entrances to reassure staff who use those entrances and to deter anyone who is not an employee from using them.

Stephen Moyer, director of security, working with Facilities, installed signs at these entrances letting everyone know these areas are patrolled and under camera surveillance.

“We have 12,000 guests a week come through the hospital,” Moyer says. “That staff entrance on Lombard Street is intended only for employees and it has cameras. The Security Department has brought in national security consultants to conduct audits on hospital entrances and gave a 95 percent [compliance score] to that employee entrance on Lombard Street. We have also collaborated with the Baltimore and UM campus police forces, and a police officer is assigned to the Shock Trauma Center and the Emergency Department at night.”

Q:

There has been increased waiting time for lab results. Every time I follow up on a lab result they would say that a machine broke down. What can we do to fix this problem?

See page 2 for an article on the Core Lab’s success in using Performance Innovation tools to vastly improve the turnaround time for test results.

Update:

At the forums, clinical leaders responded to the question:

“We are working on improvement efforts, although turnaround time for lab results is pretty strong. Two machines were replaced within the last two weeks, and we have some brand new instrumentation, so these would hopefully make the situation better.”

Service awards >>>>> March 31, 2012

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To help in planning for the next several months, here is a list of blood drives. Mark them on your calendar and go to www.umm.edu/blood to schedule a donation for the next one and to better understand what is involved in donating blood, why doing so is so important and the reasons why some UMMC staff give the gift of life.

Gudelsky Lobby

Paca-Pratt Building, lower level

8 am to 8 pm on these Tuesdays:

9 am to 5 pm on these Thursdays:

May 8, 2012

May 31, 2012

July 3, 2012

July 26, 2012

August 28, 2012

September 20, 2012

October 23, 2012

November 15, 2012

December 18, 2012

January 10, 2013

February 12, 2013

March 7, 2013

April 9, 2013

May 2, 2013

June 4, 2013

June 27, 2013

July 30, 2013

August 22, 2013

September 24, 2013

October 17, 2013

November 19, 2013

December 12, 2013

45 years of service 40 years of service

The University of Maryland Medical Center is an equal opportunity employer and proud supporter of an environment of diversity.

This publication is printed on recycled paper.