By: Ann Weinacker
In this age of easily updated websites; Facebook; Twitter; iPad apps for newspapers, magazines, and journals; and even simple email, a paper version of “news” that comes out after the news is no longer new is increasingly old-fashioned. In an effort to keep up with the times and provide you with news and features that are engaging, useful, and truly up-to-date, the Medical Staff Update is being completely re-designed. Within the next few months we will make the transition to an entirely electronic version of the Update, and plan to add Facebook and Twitter pages for medical staff. We may even develop an iPad app for the Update!
For those of you who like to hold the paper in your hands, we will make the electronic version printable (although it will look different) so you can still turn real pages. But as we try to come into the 21st century we want a way to communicate that is modern and can be interactive — with links to other resources, and even to my email address if you want to comment on something while you’re reading. As an added benefit we will be more “green” and will save a lot of paper that I know often goes directly from the mailbox into the recycle bin (hopefully not the trash!).
We also want to make the Update more interesting to more people on the Medical Staff by including updates on recent clinical advances, exciting research taking place right here, and interesting things going on in our community. And of course we’ll keep you informed about things various members of the Medical Staff are involved in, new additions to the Medical Staff, and School of Medicine appointments and promotions.
So stay tuned for more information as it evolves, and feel free to let me know how you feel about this, and what things interest you enough to read about in the Update.
Get involved
There’s a lot going on around here now that is intended to make things better for patients, and it is often easy to lose sight of the fact that we need to ensure that we make things better for ourselves, as well. The good news is that those two things aren’t mutually exclusive. In fact, if more members of the Medical Staff get involved in the projects that are currently under way to improve patient satisfaction, we can guarantee that our own satisfaction is improved in the process.
Am I being naïve? I don’t think so. For example, there are projects [see related story] to alleviate crowding (the Crowding Prevention and Response Plan), to improve coordination of care and throughput (Team Care), and to improve the functioning of the operating rooms (Project STORM). For some of us each of these seem to be just one more thing that someone is telling us to do, to work harder and faster, do more in less time, and do it better.
But in reality, the opposite is true. By looking at our work processes, we can actually reduce the amount of unnecessary work we’re doing and make more time for valuable, satisfying work. If these projects are truly successful we will be less frustrated, not more. If you are currently worried about the direction these projects are taking, get involved, make your voice heard, offer suggestions that will benefit patients and make your own life easier, too.
For example, does it drive you crazy when you have to round on your admitted patient in the Emergency Department because there are no beds in the hospital? Then get involved in Team Care and help ensure that multidisciplinary rounds evolve into something sustainable and functional for you, your team, and your patients, something that helps you get your work done rather than interferes with it. One of the goals of Team Care is to anticipate patient discharges so last minute planning doesn’t result in additional hours or days in the hospital, thereby helping you get your patient out of the ED and into a bed sooner.
Do you hate it when your OR cases get started late or you don’t have the equipment listed on your card? Well, you can continue to protest that nothing ever gets fixed, that you’ve been asking for whatever it is for years and nobody listens, or you can get involved in Project STORM, an initiative that Stanford Hospital has put a lot of resources into and wants to succeed.
Are you frustrated with the pace of your clinic? Then get involved in developing a solution! Work with your clinic chief and clinic manager to make things run the way you and your colleagues would like them to. There is a Clinic Advisory Council, comprised of clinic chiefs and hospital leadership, whose goal is to make the clinics run more efficiently, to solve problems, and to ensure that patients are happy and receive care that is second to none. If you have something to offer, please do!
You’re really too busy for this, right? Well, maybe so. Who has time for all of this? But maybe if you spend a little time now working to make things run as well and as efficiently as possible – just in your own corner of the hospital — the payoff will be worth it and will actually save you time in the long run.
One person really can make a difference. Team Cards are an example of a good idea that was started by one medicine resident (Troy Leo) and one medicine attending (Lisa Shieh). It was such a good idea it has “gone viral” in our hospital. Patients love Team Cards, and other institutions in the country are considering using them based on our success here.
So if you have a good idea for how to make things better for yourself and other physicians, hospital staff, or patients, but don’t know how to implement it or who to talk to about it, let me know. I may not have an immediate answer, but I know how to find out. And if you’ve tried and failed, let me know and I’ll try to help. Sometimes the best ideas fail the first time. (Does anybody remember hula hoops?)
And yes, there’s a lot going on around here. But what do you expect? This is Stanford!
As always, please tell me what you think. You can email me at aweinacker@stanfordmed.org or stop by H3105 and tell me in person.
