ANNUAL - Hendricks Regional Health

North expansion showcases high-techand high-touch philosophiesIn April 2004 Hendricks Regional Health opened a $24.5 millionexpansion project in the northern portion of its Danville campus.Highlighting the construction was a new state-of-the-art medical unitand emergency department.The medical unit includes37 private rooms to increaseprivacy and patient comfort.Many features of the unit weretailored to meet the needs ofan increasingly diverse patientpopulation. Adapted facilitieswere included to accommodatepatients with special needs.Two negative air flow roomswere built for patients needing isolation and the unit also includesamenities for family members to stay overnight, which is especiallyimportant for patients from out of town and those under hospice care.Occupying the second floor of the expansion, the unit was the pilot areafor a new computerized medicationrecord system that later went housewide.Additional space also was builtfor ancillary support staff such asdietitians and care coordinators toallow them closer access to patients.Occupying the first floor of theproject, the emergency departmentfeatures 27 private patient rooms,including three critical care roomsfor cardiac, pediatric and traumaemergencies. The design team spent18 months looking at features inseveral existing emergencydepartments and combined them allto build a facility equipped with thelatest technology and private,spacious patient areas. Otherfeatures include three privatetriage areas, a decontaminationshower system and a women’s healthroom with special accommodationsfor victims of assault.Technology Highlights of 2004Introduced many technologyupgrades including an electronicpatient tracking system,computerized patienttriage, electronicdischarge instructions,wireless cardiacmonitors and a newnurse call system.Installed PACS, an alldigitalsystem, in theradiology departmentimproving efficiency andpatient care.Increased productivity with theelimination of paper insurance bills.Patients in the new emergency department now enjoy faster, more efficientcare thanks to bedside registration and an all-digital radiology system. Theradiology equipment includes the PACS system, which enables digital picturearchiving and communication. The emergency department also has a new$180,000 computerized patient tracking system to further increase efficiency.Affiliate emergency medical technicians from local EMS agencies greatly benefitfrom the new facility. The department offers spacious training facilities,and a covered ambulance bay built to accommodate eight to ten ambulances.Folks went fishin’ as service excellencemoved front and centerCaring for people has always been a competitive advantage, but 2004 gave thata new focus. To reinforce this idea, FISH! training was brought to every associateand new hire. FISH! was chosen because of excellent outcomes from otherorganizations, and its components are the corporate philosophy for interactingwith patients and co-workers. Now more than ever, associates strive to:Be there. Make their day. Choose your attitude. Play! As a result of theservice excellence program, Hendricks Regional Health achieved a patientsatisfaction score of 4.72 of five on a five-point scale. And 99.6 percent ofpatients surveyed indicated they would absolutely or probably return toHendricks Regional Health for services in the future.Upgraded medication dispensingtechnology with the installationof 18 new machines – ensuringincreased medication review andincreasing patient safety.Went live with a webbaseddrug informationsystem which providesthe latest medicationinformation to all careproviders.Completed installation of three newCT machines, located at the Avonand Danville campuses.Began using Intensity ModulatedRadiation Therapy in the CancerCenter, which delivers the mosteffective radiation dose whilehelping to protect healthytissue surrounding thetumor.Improved patient carewith a pneumatic tubesystem and servicethrough staff satisfactionand efficiencies.Installed a new emergency powersource to keep pace with the rapidgrowth of information systems’computer facilities and equipment.Hendricks Regional Health recognizedas a leader in Performance ImprovementOnly one Indiana health careorganization was named to the 2004Solucient 100 Top Hospitals ® : PerformanceImprovement Leaders list publishedin Modern Healthcare. That hospitalwas Hendricks Regional Health.According to Solucient, a health care business intelligence agency,hospitals named to the list “exhibited an organization-wide cultureof change” in the areas of quality of care, operational efficiency andfinancial performance.Community BenefitWith a mission to improve the health of the community, HendricksRegional Health provided many services to the public throughoutreach, hospital tours, health education classes and seminars, healthscreenings and community sponsorships. The staff members willinglygave much of their time and attention to helping the residents of thecommunity.Increased speed and efficiency inthe cafeteria with the introductionof the DFM Point of Sale system,which allows debit card or payrolldeduction for physicians andassociates.Brought wirelesscomputer linkagesto several physicianpractices, allowing forfaster access to healthinformation and test results.Implemented web usage for referrals,benefits and pre-certificationsin physician offices.In 2004:• 89,157 people receivedcommunity benefit fromHendricks Regional Health.• 10,238 free health screeningtests were provided to thepublic.• 77,908 people were reachedby a community sponsorship.• 1,779 hours of time weredonated by associates.• $97,629 was investedin direct expenses forcommunity benefit.• $132,678 was contributedfor community benefit.