Report from President of the Medical Staff
As I enter my second year as Medical Staff President, I would like to commend all of Backus Hospital's nearly 300 physicians for all that they have done in the past year to continue our mission of providing the very best in patient care.
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Kolala R. Sridhar, MD |
It has been a year of change — and accomplishments.
The most visible change is the completion of the hospital's $50-million expansion. Our physicians should be commended for their focus on patient-centered care, even when the census was high and the noise and inconvenience of construction were unavoidable. A better Backus is the result, and our patients are the beneficiaries.
Less visible, but extremely important, was physician involvement in planning for the hospital's future. Physician input is essential to the hospital's long-term success. In the past year, physicians worked closely with hospital administration on the hospital's strategic plan.
We launched a new communications vehicle, Progress Notes. The goal of this newsletter is to keep physicians informed about issues relevant to them — patient safety, quality, satisfaction, bylaws and more. The publication, which has been very well received, includes a Medical Executive Committee update.
A convocation, in which physicians, members of the Board of Trustees and hospital administrators identified common issues and a plan to work toward mutual goals, was another new form of communication and enhanced dialog.
When we put the patient first, everything else seems to fall into place. Here are some examples:
- The Joint Commission conducted its first-ever unannounced visit at Backus, and we performed exceptionally well. I am especially proud that we achieved our accreditation and were deemed to be in full compliance with all of the National Patient Safety Goals, including those that are highly dependant on physicians: abbreviations, surgical timeouts and medication reconciliation.
- Backus physicians focused on the upcoming nationwide inpatient satisfaction survey, and patient experience scores for physician communication improved. These include important issues, such as treating patients with courtesy and respect, listening carefully to them and explaining things understandably.
- Public reporting of healthcare information is a reality. To date, Backus has performed extremely well in the measures reported by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services in acute myocardial infarction, heart failure and pneumonia care. Backus performed at or above the state average in 14 of 18 categories in which we were measured.
I am privileged to work with a very talented group of physicians who are dedicated to their patients and the hospital's mission of improving the health of the community. On behalf of all of them, I want to express sincere appreciation for the hospital's dedicated healthcare workers and volunteers who provide us support every day.
To our hospital's Administration, and Board of Trustees, thank you for your support and leadership. I look forward to working with you in 2008.
Kolala R. Sridhar, MD
Medical Staff President