Feb. 19, 1998

The MUSC Board of Trustees met Feb. 12 and 13, covering 61 agenda items, about 30 of which were related to the Medical Center. In an opening status report, I gave the board statistics on Medical Center operations. Patient days are up 4 percent, inpatient admissions are up 5 percent and outpatient visits are up 17 percent. We need to keep the board informed about this growth as we seek to solve our capacity problems.

Some of the presentations given at the board meeting have been included in recent communications meetings. For more information on these topics, refer to the issues of Currents noted or call Jane Smith at 972-4120 for a copy.

• Medical Center infrastructure initiatives. (See Jan. 29 Currents.) q Off-site medical record center. (See Jan. 15 Currents.)
• January University HealthSystem Consortium meeting. (See Jan. 22 Currents.) Board member Stanley C. Baker Jr., M.D., proposed that our strategic plan be looked at again with a plan to add new key issues to our initiatives.
• Latex-free policy. (See Dec. 18 Currents.) The new policy was passed by the board.
• Bloodborne Pathogen Committee report. The committee has been working on an update to the former “AIDS policy” developed in the 1980s. An update on this new policy will be presented at a future communications meeting.

The board approved two requests to submit “certificates of need.” One was for a joint pediatric and adult electrophysiology lab to be located in the Children’s Hospital. The other was for a nuclear medicine coincidence detection camera.

Ten purchases totaling $9 million also were approved, including: Keane system upgrade ($900,000); pharmacy system upgrade, ($450,000); off-site record center ($2.1 million); and diagnostic equipment totaling $4 million.

Also approved was a project to secure contracts for home health services. MUSC will submit requests for proposals and select two or three home health care companies to provide services for the Medical Center. The board approved the use of a two-year contract with three one-year extensions. It is estimated that MUSC patients will generate approximately $75 million worth of business for home health agencies over the next five years.

W. Stuart Smith Interim Vice President for Clinical Operations Interim CEO, MUSC Medical Center

Recognition

• Several units have recently been recognized by patients and their families for the good work they do. Staff members in the following areas received free desserts as a “thank you” from the Medical Center: Emergency Services, 9 West, Coronary Care Unit and Hospital Communications.
• John Franklin, director of Support Services, and Fred Miles, manager of hospital maintenance in Facilities Management, were included in a University HealthSystem Consortium publication on “Best Practices.” Franklin was recognized in the area of technical assessment and Miles in the area of facilities management.
• Dave Northrup, director of healthcare computing services in the Center for Computing and Information Technology, and staff members in CCIT were recognized for their efforts on the project to upgrade Oacis, one of the key elements of the planned electronic medical record. Installation of the new hardware went smoothly.

Employee Safety

• On Sunday, Feb. 15, at about 6:45 p.m., an employee was robbed in Parking Garage II near the Cannon Street entrance. The employee was approached by two people who sprayed some kind of substance in her face and robbed her. Her shouts were heard by a public safety officer who was stationed nearby, but the assailants escaped. The area was canvassed by police and public safety officers, but the suspects were not found. q Al Nesmith, director of Safety, Security and Volunteer Services said his department is working with the Department of Public Safety and with Parking Management to investigate the incident and to look at possible improvements to such things as parking area lighting. q Nesmith urged employees to call Public Safety or Hospital Security for an escort to or from their vehicles if they feel at all uncomfortable or unsafe. He said he is looking at ways to improve response time for escort requests. Nesmith also took this opportunity to remind staff members to be alert to their surroundings at all times, especially in the evening and in the morning before sunrise. He added that he’ll be giving the management team a report on the investigation into the recent incident in Emergency Services as soon as it is completed. (See Feb. 12 Currents.)