Russell Hoffmann, PhD, director of pediatric psychology, has assumed additional responsibilities at St. Louis Children’s Hospital (SLCH) as director of cultural change initiatives. In this role, he is working with Peggy Gordin, vice president, patient care services, and David Cook, vice president, human resources, to develop a culture that promotes a Superior Patient Experience for all SLCH patients and their families. Key components of the Superior Patient Experience concept are:
- Quality and safety—Consistently achieving exceptional clinical outcomes and preventing patient harm through teamwork that includes patients, families, staff and physicians.
- Patient and family satisfaction—Exceeding the expectations of our patients and families in every unit and department.
- Employee engagement—Staff are committed to doing what’s right for kids, feel recognized and appreciated for their efforts, and go above and beyond to look for ways to make it even better.
- Physician partnership—Physicians, hospital staff and leaders working collaboratively in the pursuit of clinical excellence through teamwork to help patients.
- Financial responsibility—Using resources wisely and growing fundraising support so SLCH can further invest in patient care, medical advances, staff and facilities.
“All patients and their families at St. Louis Children’s Hospital experience moments of excellent care. We want to ensure those moments expand to encompass their whole visit, from the instant they arrive until they complete their care with us,” says Dr. Hoffmann. “We want to capitalize on our existing best practices in care and spread those throughout the hospital. In addition, we are working to remove barriers that interfere with our staff’s ability to deliver superior care to our patients and families. The foundation of our work rests in the talented staffs at SLCH and the Medical School. In partnership with our community physician practices, we share a common goal of improving the health and well-being of others. Together, we will deliver on our commitment to consistently provide excellent care to our patients and their families.
According to Gordin, over the past year Dr. Hoffmann has been extensively involved in bringing the Superior Patient Experience initiative to life through direct collaboration with the hospital’s senior staff, directors and physicians. Adds Cook, “Dr. Hoffmann has been a vital resource in developing our organizational learning events. His talent for designing action learning and translating abstract concepts into everyday language has been invaluable.”