Jan. 14, 2015: Strategic Plan Update on Patient- and Family-Centered Care

Dear Colleagues,

Making sure we deliver safe, excellent treatment and that our patients consistently have a positive hospital stay are top priorities. Regardless of our role, we all are responsible for providing the best possible patient- and family-centered care.

Lisa Allen, who recently joined us as the chief patient experience officer, will lead this important effort to elevate service excellence across Johns Hopkins Medicine. She will work with staff, our patient experience officers, and Patient and Family Advisory Councils to create a culture of care.

At the heart of this effort will be a reinvigoration of the Language of Caring training, which emphasizes the importance of always treating our patients with respect and compassion, as if they were our own beloved family members. Here is some progress we would like to highlight surrounding patient- and family-centered care:

• All of our hospitals have now introduced a 24/7 visitation policy for families and guests, which will create a better healing environment for our patients.
• Our efforts continue to reduce the number of patients who are readmitted to the hospital days after discharge. Our Bridge to Home program will support the transition from the hospital to home by offering print, video and personal instruction on key aspects of self-care management—from understanding how to take medications to knowing when to call for advice or assistance. As part of this program, patients are encouraged to select a family member or friend to serve as their "health buddy" to provide added support during recovery and follow-up care. This program is being launched at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center.
• Consumers in search of quality medical care are always looking for a way to compare hospitals. We will align the way we measure the patient experience with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' transition to a star rating system. The criteria include communication with doctors and nurses, pain management, and hospital cleanliness. This system will make it easier for consumers to use the information on the hospital comparison websites. 

Countless other patient-focused initiatives are taking place across the institution—from standardizing our protocols for spine and joint surgery, blood management, and other areas, to the Patient Access Line, where nurses are contacting patients to review post-discharge instructions and provide additional education and support. We also are reinforcing our efforts to improve our patient experience, particularly with cohesive patient education materials and transparent patient safety scores. We look forward to accomplishing much more.

Whether you are a direct care provider, support staff member or not involved in patient care at all, thank you for all you do to make Johns Hopkins a destination of choice for exceptional, cutting-edge care. We would like to take this opportunity to wish you a happy new year!

Paul B. Rothman, M.D.
Dean of the Medical Faculty
CEO, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Ronald R. Peterson
President
The Johns Hopkins Hospital and Health System
EVP, Johns Hopkins Medicine