San Joaquin Community Hospital The Next Level
Published Date: 06/25/2006
San Joaquin Community Hospital
The next level
To make sure that SJCH’s level of quality matches its state-of-the-art facility, Beehler and his team have embarked on the Quint Studer journey to take the hospital into the top tier of patient care.
Just six months into the journey, Beehler said the hospital is already seeing results: SJCH has aligned its strategic objectives to the five pillars of people, service, quality, stewardship, and growth; a large investment has been made in leadership development; and service teams comprised of employees throughout the hospital are being organized to advance communication, patient satisfaction, and service recovery.
Through working with the Studer Group, Beehler said the organization’s managers have learned how to identify high-, middle-, and under-performing employees to ensure a dedicated and effective workforce. Further, hospital administrators have added a unique twist to rounding with managers on the floor.
“We start by meeting with the department managers and learning what’s going on on their floor,” Beehler said. “Then when we make the rounds, we’re able to recognize a staff person and make it clear their manager told us about the good things that they’ve been doing. That goes a long way in building relationships between managers and staff, and that’s something we’re focused on doing.”
The Studer journey is expected to be complete by the time SJCH opens the doors to the new addition in 2007. Through the combined efforts to enhance the facility and the quality of service at the hospital, Beehler said he is confident SJCH will become the choice for healthcare for residents of Bakersfield.
“The addition is not just another building downtown, but an investment in people’s lives and their futures,” Beehler said. “We could have built a new hospital in a more financially lucrative neighborhood, but that wouldn’t be true to our mission to take care of the entire community. By investing in our staff and a new addition, we’re investing in the community and the residents of Bakersfield.”
