anesthesia or managing pain. Then there's
the group that wants to be in the parking
lot by lunchtime.
The answer to that simple question
goes on a whiteboard and is included on
a temporary note in the patient's EMR.
Throughout the day, all the changing
faces who appear in front of the patient
will take note.
"What matters most to Johnny is
that he gets through the day," a pre-op
nurse will read off the white board,
"and we're here to help him do just
that." The anesthetists and surgeons
will pay special attention to the
answer on the whiteboard, and the nurse in the recovery room
will remember to reference it, as well.
The "Matters Most" method, endorsed by The Institute for
Healthcare Improvement, has been proven to help healthcare facilities
make a huge leap in patient satisfaction scores. The method helps
patients feel like they're more than a cog in an assembly line, and it
reminds clinicians to give their care that personal touch.
Text assurance
There's the communication that happens face-to-face in the OR,
and then there's the communication that happens online and over the
phone. Both are important for patient satisfaction.
Our patients can enroll in a text- or email-messaging service that
provides real-time answers about what they should expect throughout
the entire process. They can sign up their family members to receive
2
F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 9 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 1 9
• A SMOOTH INTRODUCTION Asking patients what
matters most to them upon admission can make a
big difference to put them at ease.
