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In March
of 2001, the Cherry Hill, NJ (CH) Office of Bayada Nurses embarked on
a challenging Performance Improvement Project. Hearing complaints from
field employees about the lack of clear/comprehensive directions to
their clients' homes, the office staff decided to take action.
It took about a year for CH to incorporate a new system for giving better
directions into their standards of practice. However, feedback obtained
from Field Nurses indicates a remarkable increase in their satisfaction
with Bayada Nurses, and our concern for their personal safety. 90% of
respondents report that directions are now routinely given. 86% of those
who returned a post-test survey claim that mile markers are included
with the directions, and 100% state that landmarks are included with
the directions.
The process began when CH circulated an initial Employee Opinion Survey.
The office discovered that 59% of returned surveys indicated that field
employees rarely if ever got any directions to a client's home, and
55% of respondents stated that if they got directions, they were either
inaccurate or incomplete (no mile markings or landmarks given). They
relied on this information, along with the results of a random chart
review (on the presence of written directions to the client's home)
for their pre-test data.
Springing into action, the CH Office decided to use an Internet search
engine as a means of obtaining a map, with written directions and mile
markers to each of their clients' homes. They converted this data into
an individual, client-specific Word Processing document. The document
was then printed, and given to the client's Nursing Supervisors.
The Nursing Supervisors utilized these maps during their next scheduled
visit to the client's home. They edited them, and added landmarks. The
document was returned to office staff members who made the necessary
corrections, and then cut and paste the text portion of the document
into the client's BEARS Client File Notes screen.
When asked to comment on the success of this worthwhile venture, Ann
O'Malley (Office Director) simply said: "I don't know why we didn't
do it sooner. Employees are so much happier if they get better client
information."
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