Fire Starter of the Month

Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, Maine is the Fire Starter of the Month for July.

What's Right in Health Care Presentations

Click here to view and download the full agenda and breakout sessions, along with descriptions and presentations, from this year's What's Right in Health Care^SM national conference.

Alignment, Action, and Accountability: Getting Results in a Down Economy

This evidence-based assessment can help align goals, align behaviors, and ensure accountability, even under economic stress. At a Glance:

• A disconnect often exists between the way external pressures are viewed by senior leaders and middle managers
• This disconnect creates a situation where the organization may have difficulty moving quickly in the face of change or responding appropriately to the external environment
• Senior leaders can improve performance through efforts aimed at aligning goals, aligning behaviors, and ensuring accountability.

To read the entire article click here.

Engaging Physicians: The Nine Stages to Partnering with Physicians to Drive Organizational Change

(excerpted from newly released Engaging Physicians; A Manual to Physician Partnership by Stephen C. Beeson, M.D.)

The process of engaging physicians is among the most important strategies to transform healthcare performance. Physicians will make or break the culture, performance, and reputation of the institution and can accelerate or unravel quality, safety, and service efforts.

Today and tomorrow are about physician partnership, collaboration, and leadership to deliver evidence-based medicine, superior outcomes, and exceptional service where nurses, physicians, and administration work together to achieve shared goals.

Click here to read the complete excerpt sharing how engaging physicians to make them partner can drive true organizational change. Click here for more information on Engaging Physicians: A Manual to Physician Partnership by Stephen C. Beeson, M.D. author of best selling Practicing Excellence.

Selecting and Retaining the Right Talent in Healthcare Organizations. What is the right forumula for success?

Studer Group recently completed a pilot study of several organizations that have implemented "Selecting Talent" tactics in their organization, including Pre-screening with Standards of Behavior, Behavioral and Peer Interviewing, and 30-day and 90-day meetings. Here is a summary of one the organizations impressive results after only six months of implementation:

• 30% + decrease in pilot departments' turnover
• Significant cost savings in recruiting, on-boarding and orientation expenses

In addition, studies suggest that a reduction in employee turnover leads to lower mortality rates, shorter length of stay by patients, reduced cost of discharge and increased employee satisfaction. Bottom line is that with improved selection and retention tactics clinical and operational outcomes will improve.

Starting July 15th, one of Studer Group's most sought after speakers, Beth Keane, will be hosting a webinar on the topic of "Selecting Talent – Peer Interviewing Works!" This webinar will be available on-demand to your team 24/7 for a full year. Click here for more information on this webinar.

Interested in developing a comprehensive selection and retention process in your organization? Click Here for more information on Selecting Talent DVD and training module. Studer Group coaches and speakers are also available to present on Selecting Talent or to coach your organization on the Selecting Talent process. Click Here to request additional information.

Congratulations to Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire, WI!

Studer Group congratulates it’s partner, Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire, WI, for receiving the WFA Excellence Award.

The Wisconsin Forward Award program was created in 1997 to promote significant achievements in continuous improvement and performance excellence—business practices that ensure the economic vitality of Wisconsin organizations and the communities they serve.

Healthcare "tweets" on Twitter

Studer Group is following important discussion topics posted each day by hundreds of healthcare organizations, physicians and associations on Twitter. We will also be posting key outcomes and information presented by the national speakers and expert presenters at our What's Right in Health Care national conference in Chicago later this month.

Click here to follow our Twitter "tweets."

Our Calling is Caring: Featured Testimonial

The CEO of North Colorado Medical Center gave the direction to the nurse leaders to start discharge phone calls Jan. 5th as the last step in implementing rounding. Pat, the director of amedical/telemetry unit, did not want to make these calls. She wasn't sure where she would find the time. She implemented it as a directive, and wasn't supportive of the proposed intended value.

Click here to read more.

Forecasting the Future of Healthcare: How the Informed Consumer Will Impact Healthcare

(excerpted from newly released Leadership and Medicine by Floyd D. Loop, M.D.)

Today, people spend more time researching a new TV set than they do selecting a physician. One survey found that only 12 percent of Americans study the cost or quality of healthcare. Even among those with heart disease, 42 percent sought no information on their medical condition or treatments. However, as understandable information becomes available to the consumer, patients will become more knowledgeable and they should demand higher quality. This informed consumerism means greater patient sovereignty.

Informed consumerism embraces the concept of wellness, which is based on health improvement and elimination of preventable conditions. The whole patient experience must be made more navigable and effective therapeutically. These improvements rely on a more informed patient who has a heightened consciousness of his or her personal health status. For serious illnesses, they should seek second opinions. Owning your health record will be the norm. Advances in genomics will lead to "personalized" diagnoses and treatments.

Click here to read the complete excerpt sharing how the informed consumer along with 3 other interactive factors will affect providers, payers and patients over the next 10 years. Click here for more information on Leadership and Medicine by Floyd D. Loop, M.D.

The Power of Combining Leader Rounding & Discharge Phone Calls

An article in the March edition of The Journal of Nursing Administration touts the value of bundling discharge phone calls with leader rounding. Co-authored by Nina Setia from Studer Group partner hospital Hackensack University Medical Center (NJ), the article shows how combining these two tactics can dramatically improve quality of care and patient perception of care, which currently stands at the 99th percentile nationally for several indicators. Click here to read the article.

For more information on how to accelerate the process of discharge phone calls via Discharge Call Manager™, click here.

External Environment Assessment

Click here to download Studer Group's External Environment Assessment.

Read Quint's related article in the February 9, 2009 edition of Modern Healthcare.

Studer Group's Daily Featured Stories

What's Right in Health Care: 365 Stories of Purpose, Worthwhile Work, and Making a Difference is a collaborative effort. This 742 page book shares a story a day submitted by your friends and colleagues. It is a daily reminder about why we answered this calling and why we stay with it-to serve a purpose, to do worthwhile work, and to make a difference.

Input your email address below to receive Studer Group's daily inspirational stories delivered directly to your inbox.