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"Education, Advocacy, Leadership"
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Dear Colleagues,
Hospital and health system board members can and do make a difference in the health of their communities. This month, I am encouraging trustees to ask one question: "Have we adopted the standard wristband colors that are being used in 25 states, including Texas?” It is a simple question but setting a policy to voluntarily adopt these standards will provide health care professionals with a better workplace and patients with a safer environment.
Wristband Standardization Initiative – Free Toolkit Available
Texas hospitals are undertaking a voluntary effort to improve patient safety by adopting standard wristband colors. The effort is being led by the Texas Hospital Association, Texas Organization of Nurse Executives, Texas A&M Health Science Center Rural and Community Health Institute, and TMF Health Quality Institute. Three color-coded “alert” wristbands are being used in Texas as well as in hospitals in more than 25 other states. Red means allergy alert. Yellow means a risk of falls. Purple means the physician has written a do-not-resuscitate order based on the patient's advance directives. The patient safety benefits of standardizing wristband colors are well documented. The investment in standard color-coded wristbands and staff education will improve the workplace and provide patients with a safer care environment.
In September, THA released its free Color-coded Wristband
Standardization Project in Texas: Implementation Toolkit. Through an agreement with the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association, THA created the Texas-specific toolkit to help hospitals implement a standardized color-coded alert wristband program consistent with more than 25 other states. Prepared as a benefit of THA members, the CD-ROM format toolkit is available for free download from the THA Web site at www.texashospitalsonline.org/wristband/.
Corporate Compliance – A Unique Challenge
Obviously, health care is a heavily regulated environment with a variety of risk areas. Besides the challenges associated with direct patient care, hospitals must operate within a complex and extensive set of federal and state rules governing coverage and reimbursement.
To help mitigate risk, an effective compliance program is a must. The Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the American Health Lawyers Association suggest that trustees ask the following questions about their facilities:
- How is the compliance program structured and who are the key employees responsible for its implementation and operations? How is the board structured to oversee compliance issues?
- How does the organization's compliance reporting system work? How often does the board receive reports about compliance issues?
- What are the goals of the compliance program? What are the inherent limitations? How does the organization address these limitations?
- Does the compliance program address the significant risks of the organization? How were those risks determined and how are new risks identified and incorporated into the program?
- How has management determined the adequacy of the resources dedicated to implementing and sustaining the compliance program?
Texas Hospitals Reinvest Savings from Medical Liability Reform
Five years after the state implemented sweeping medical liability reforms, Texas hospitals continue to report much lower liability costs and to reinvest the savings in programs that benefit patients and their communities. Hospitals surveyed by the Texas Hospital Association in July cited a total decrease in annual hospital liability premiums of more than $100 million between 2003 and 2008-2009. More than eight in 10 respondents found it easier to recruit medical specialists and sub-specialists, while 69 percent had maintained or expanded services because of declining hospital liability costs. “Patients are the ultimate beneficiaries of the tort reform measures passed in 2003,” said THA President and CEO Dan Stultz, M.D., FACP, FACHE. “It's clear that hospitals are able to attract more specialty physicians and offer new or expanded services that have enhanced patients' access to care and saved lives.”
Trustee Education at THA Leadership Conference!
Mark your calendar and join us at the THA Leadership Conference in Austin, Jan. 21-22, 2009. On Jan. 21, THT will offer an afternoon of education designed specifically for hospital trustees. Timely topics will include legislative, labor and physician retention issues. On Jan. 22, we will host a morning AHA session featuring William Kreisberg of Schrayer and Associates, Inc., in Washington, D.C .
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Governing to Greatness
Board Meeting Tip: At your next board of directors meeting, write a 60-90 second elevator speech or talking points for your hospital that each trustee can use in the community. If time is short, staff can provide the speech and board members can practice it and become familiar with the key points. Consider including the amount of uncompensated care your facility provides, any new equipment or technology acquired, when the hospital was founded, quality scores, etc. Some common questions used to formulate the elevator speech are: “Where has the organization been?” “Where does the organization plan to go in the future?” and “What have been some of the organization's major accomplishments recently?” When you are working in the community, be prepared to speak about your work at the hospital.
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Stacy Cantu, CAE
President/CEO
Texas Healthcare Trustees |
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