Many hospitals and health systems are realizing that patient safety and quality are not the products of a single initiative or project, but the results of a patient-centered culture that emphasizes safe, evidence-based practices. Maple Grove (Minn.) Hospital is building its culture on trusting relationships between hospital staff members and patients. One way the hospital is developing these relationships is by streamlining communication between patients and staff members, according to Craig Wolgemuth, senior project manager at Maple Grove.
Patient-staff communication
Maple Grove Hospital aims to elevate the relationship between patients and staff from a transactional to a personal level, according to Mr. Wolgemuth. "At the core of what we're doing in terms of staff communication with patients is developing that relationship, because when you develop trust and a level of comfort between the patient and the staff member, it makes interactions easier, which leads to much more satisfied patients," he says.
To make communication between patients and staff more efficient, Maple Grove Hospital routes patients' call lights and alarms directly to the nurse or aid responsible for the patient. This direct communication cuts out the unnecessary steps of calling a secretary at a general nurse desk, who would find the correct provider and deliver the message, and then the provider would respond to the patient. The quicker, point-to-point patient request enables the most appropriate provider to help the patient as quickly as possible. For example, a patient who wants a glass of water presses a button near the bed, which automatically contacts the nurse's aid for that patient. If the patient needs more pain control, the patient presses a different button that would alert the nurse, because protocol requires a nurse to administer pain medication.
The role of technology in hospital culture
While this process involves technology, the more important factor is how the technology supports the hospital's culture by enabling direct communication between provider and patient, according to Mr. Wolgemuth. "Technology is a tool that helps us better facilitate a relationship between a patient and a care provider. The technology becomes a multiplier to culture development," he says.
The communication technology can improve patient satisfaction — not necessarily because the hospital has a certain technology, but because patients' needs are met more quickly. "What makes patients satisfied is often all these little things — how quickly they receive water, how quickly their needs are responded to," says Brian Edds, director of product strategy at Amcom Software, which helps run communications at Maple Grove. In addition, the direct communication improves satisfaction by reducing noise in the hospital, according to Mr. Edds.
Staff-manager relationships
Although the direct communication technology eliminates inefficiencies associated with the "middle men" of a patient's request, nurses and other staff still face a challenge of workload — responding to the volume of patient requests. The answer to this challenge also lies in technology-facilitated relationships, but this time, between staff and managers, Mr. Wolgemuth says.
The hospital has computer programs that calculate the anticipated workload of each patient, but a real understanding of staff members' patient load is complemented by the manager's relationship with staff, he says. "The biggest part of [overcoming the workload challenge] is front-line nursing managers remaining engaged with staff and understanding what's happening on the floor. When you look at a report from the computer system about how busy people are, it often does not tell the whole story. The relationship between staff and managers, being on the floor and getting a sense of how things are going, coupled with data they can use to support that, help us to maintain a balance [in workload]."
Relationship-building as a vision for hospital culture
The implementation of technology to streamline patient-provider communication is part of Maple Grove Hospital's leaders' vision of a patient-centered culture, according to Mr. Wolgemuth. The hospital was built three years ago, enabling leaders to incorporate novel processes and technologies that existing hospitals had to transition to. "Our CEO's laser focus and crystal clear vision was to develop a culture different than what has been typical in healthcare," Mr. Wolgemuth says. "We developed a model and a set of expectations that staff would be held to, and made that very clear during the recruitment process. People knew when they started working here what the expectations were around accountability, culture and relationships."
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| Brian Edds |
Maple Grove Hospital aims to elevate the relationship between patients and staff from a transactional to a personal level, according to Mr. Wolgemuth. "At the core of what we're doing in terms of staff communication with patients is developing that relationship, because when you develop trust and a level of comfort between the patient and the staff member, it makes interactions easier, which leads to much more satisfied patients," he says.
To make communication between patients and staff more efficient, Maple Grove Hospital routes patients' call lights and alarms directly to the nurse or aid responsible for the patient. This direct communication cuts out the unnecessary steps of calling a secretary at a general nurse desk, who would find the correct provider and deliver the message, and then the provider would respond to the patient. The quicker, point-to-point patient request enables the most appropriate provider to help the patient as quickly as possible. For example, a patient who wants a glass of water presses a button near the bed, which automatically contacts the nurse's aid for that patient. If the patient needs more pain control, the patient presses a different button that would alert the nurse, because protocol requires a nurse to administer pain medication.
The role of technology in hospital culture
 |
| Craig Wolgemuth |
The communication technology can improve patient satisfaction — not necessarily because the hospital has a certain technology, but because patients' needs are met more quickly. "What makes patients satisfied is often all these little things — how quickly they receive water, how quickly their needs are responded to," says Brian Edds, director of product strategy at Amcom Software, which helps run communications at Maple Grove. In addition, the direct communication improves satisfaction by reducing noise in the hospital, according to Mr. Edds.
Staff-manager relationships
Although the direct communication technology eliminates inefficiencies associated with the "middle men" of a patient's request, nurses and other staff still face a challenge of workload — responding to the volume of patient requests. The answer to this challenge also lies in technology-facilitated relationships, but this time, between staff and managers, Mr. Wolgemuth says.
The hospital has computer programs that calculate the anticipated workload of each patient, but a real understanding of staff members' patient load is complemented by the manager's relationship with staff, he says. "The biggest part of [overcoming the workload challenge] is front-line nursing managers remaining engaged with staff and understanding what's happening on the floor. When you look at a report from the computer system about how busy people are, it often does not tell the whole story. The relationship between staff and managers, being on the floor and getting a sense of how things are going, coupled with data they can use to support that, help us to maintain a balance [in workload]."
Relationship-building as a vision for hospital culture
The implementation of technology to streamline patient-provider communication is part of Maple Grove Hospital's leaders' vision of a patient-centered culture, according to Mr. Wolgemuth. The hospital was built three years ago, enabling leaders to incorporate novel processes and technologies that existing hospitals had to transition to. "Our CEO's laser focus and crystal clear vision was to develop a culture different than what has been typical in healthcare," Mr. Wolgemuth says. "We developed a model and a set of expectations that staff would be held to, and made that very clear during the recruitment process. People knew when they started working here what the expectations were around accountability, culture and relationships."
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