Ride Time With Hospital President

[Simusid]

I had an interesting opportunity yesterday to ride with the president of one of our local hospitals. We are serviced by two local hospitals and according to our logs, we send far fewer patients to his facility. He was very clear up front with us that his visit was to find out why this is (marketing!). We ended up talking about many different topics such as QA/QI ( how to formally convey pt status back to the crews), transition of care (speed/efficiency, continuity of therapy), hospital pharmacy procedures (inefficient), the need for a dedicated EMS room/location, and many other topics.

Overall, it was an excellent meeting and I now feel that my service is well engaged with their staff and that we have a voice for change. My question to you is, if you had this same meeting, what would you say/ask?

 

[Handsome Robb]

Clean your damn rooms so we don't constantly have to do it for your staff. That's what I'd say. We have a certain hospital that is terrible about it. Downright awful. No joke probably 9/10 times we bring someone in we are holding the wall and then going to a dirty room that we end up cleaning.

/rant.

Sounds like an awesome opportunity though and a good guy to go looking for ways to improve his hospital's relationship with EMS even if it was, more than likely, driven by marketing.

 

[WestMetroMedic]

We deal with about 20 hospitals, owned by about 7 different HMO's. We have 3 level I trauma center, 2 peds level 1s, outstanding neuro and cardiac services widespread (10 cath lab options), but we still run into the same issues.

My hospital is a public safety net hospital that does pretty much everything, and does it exceptionally well. Our management asks that we bring 40% of our patients back to our hospital, which isnt really that hard, and 95% of the time, the patient gets taken to their facility of choice. I bring patients to my hospital knowing that although, i may have to clean a bed or two, my patient will have all of the services they could need, easily accessable and they will be cared for in an often utilitarian, but decent way and the nurses, residents, physicians, ultrasonographers, techs, HUCs, and environmental services folks all have one mission in mind, the care of our patients. Of the hospitals we have access to, there are only 4 that i consistently enjoy taking patients to, and maybe 6 others that i dont regard as pre-mourge-ish.

Hospitals have tried multiple dirty tactics such as appealing to our job and trying to lure us with food (one hospital bought a slushee machine). At the end of the day, there is still one fundamental problem with some of these hospitals, they dont do as good of a job caring for the patients that we bring them. Sometimes it is being placed in a mental health room, despite advising them that the patient is suffering from an acute CVA, or sometimes it is as simple as the hospital staff just omitting our presence and just listening to the patienta and not our account of the evolution of the patients EMS course.

When hospital complain to our counties advisory board about us bypassing their facility, we are completely upfront about why we didnt go to their facilities, and have the data showing if it was the patients facility choice, the paramedics facility choice, a physician decision or a hospital divert. Much like when you must preclude a patients facility choice, you need to be prepared to explain what services they cannot receive at their facility of choice, that they will have access to at the alternate hospital.

At the end of the day, the things that annoy me the most are not incidental things, but generally a poor culture among the hospitals staff that doesnt always put the patient first.

 

[mycrofft]

I'd ask what her/his concerns were, what we can do to continue and repeat true conversation, and who key personnel are we can establish contact with for concerns and to convey kudos. I would convey issues with questions "What can I or we do about long waits/dirty rooms/our reports not being accepted?")
HOWEVER, probably this meeting was arranged by heads higher than mine would be, so as soon as I heard it was happening I'd have collared my boss and found out what the company line is so I could see if my time was being wasted, or my job put in jeopardy.

 

[bigbaldguy]

I had an interesting opportunity yesterday to ride with the president of one of our local hospitals. We are serviced by two local hospitals and according to our logs, we send far fewer patients to his facility. He was very clear up front with us that his visit was to find out why this is (marketing!). We ended up talking about many different topics such as QA/QI ( how to formally convey pt status back to the crews), transition of care (speed/efficiency, continuity of therapy), hospital pharmacy procedures (inefficient), the need for a dedicated EMS room/location, and many other topics.

Overall, it was an excellent meeting and I now feel that my service is well engaged with their staff and that we have a voice for change. My question to you is, if you had this same meeting, what would you say/ask?

Wow that was an awesome opportunity. It's great that you were honest with him and discussed real issues. I can guarantee that the reason he was there is because he had probably sent reps to do this before, talked to your higher ups and given out surveys and no one gave him a straight answer so he finally figured the only way it would work is if he went to the trenches and got to the bottom of it himself. Sounds like this guy is a true leader.

 

[Veneficus]

Clean your damn rooms so we don't constantly have to do it for your staff. That's what I'd say. We have a certain hospital that is terrible about it. Downright awful. No joke probably 9/10 times we bring someone in we are holding the wall and then going to a dirty room that we end up cleaning..

Welcome to EMS

I think that falls under "all other duties as needed/assigned."