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May 11, 1999

The MUSC Hospitals and Clinics Authority Bill remains under consideration. (The purpose of the bill is to provide flexibility for the management and operation of the Medical Center. Our hospitals and clinics would be exempt from state laws governing procurement, capital improvement and personnel regulations.) The bill is on the state House of Representatives' calendar for a second reading. The Senate Education Subcommittee considered the bill on May 11. The full Education Committee is scheduled to consider the bill on May 19. Assuming the Education Committee acts favorably, the bill will be put on the Senate's calendar. The video gambling issue is requiring lengthy debate, and time is running short for consideration of the authority bill. We hope that the General Assembly will pass the authority bill by the end of the legislative session next month.

In the May 4 issue of Currents, I noted that May 9 was National Hospital Week, a time to reflect on our mission and accomplishments. The dozens of heartwarming letters we receive each month from patients and families regarding the outstanding care they received are good examples of our accomplishments. Excerpts from letters are listed below. Thank you for a job well done.

• “As a very critical observer, I can tell you that the entire organization projects an impression of competence and caring...”
• “Not only was I put at ease before the surgery, but the follow-up call [from an Eye Institute physician] to my home two days later far exceeded my expectations...It is indeed a great comfort to have MUSC in the Charleston area...”
• “The inpatient staff, the staff of the chemotherapy department, and the staff of radiation oncology could not have been more caring and professional. One might think that because of the size of MUSC, patients would become a number. This never happened to us.”
• “They [intensive care nurses] were there to help the family members, answer questions and ensure ... the best possible care. They understood what the family was going through, yet maintained their compassion and professionalism toward their patient.”
• “It is without a doubt that I will be one of the best advocates of the Medical University of South Carolina. Thank you for providing what is rare and precious to those in great need: a safe and caring haven to weather the storm.”
• “The medical care that I witnessed given ... cannot go unnoticed. I have never seen such compassion, coordination and professionalism of staff members and doctors working so closely.”
• “And in the hospital it is the nursing and support staff who are the real face and personality of the institution. It is these people who provide the lasting impression, good or bad, on the patient. They always responded quickly to my needs, and through their actions made me know that I was getting the best and most compassionate care in the world. I cannot thank them enough.”

W. Stuart Smith Vice President for Clinical Operations Executive Director, MUSC Medical Center

Nursing Excellence Awards

• In honor of National Nurses' Week, Pam Cipriano, Ph.D., administrator for Clinical Services, recognized the following nurses who were selected by their peers for their outstanding service and commitment to excellence:
• Critical Care and Emergency
• Division Winner: Roger Slane, Emergency Services Unit Winners: Rosemary Smith, MEDUCARE; Denise Falkiewicz, MICU
• Digestive Diseases, Oncology and Medicine
• Division Winner: Laura Perdue, 8 West Unit Winners: Anne Redick, 10 East; Raylene Gries, 10 West
• University Medical Associates
• Division Winner: Kathy Jacques, Pediatric Ambulatory Care Children's Services Division Winner: Sonja Muckenfuss, 7B
• Unit Winners: Carrie Larsen, 7A; Christie Jacobin, 7C; Kathy Chase, NNICU; Sharon Kelly, 8D; Debbie O'Rear, GCRC; Muriel LaBonte, PICU
• Surgery, Women's and Infants
• Division Winner: Weatherly Rogers, Labor and Delivery/Antepartum
• Unit Winners: Phyllis O'Neal, Operating Room; Mary Beth Chaulk, PACU; Lori Langston, Ambulatory Surgery Recovery; Rikki Moye, 6 East
• Therapeutic Services
• Division Winner: Kelly Berg, 7 East
• Unit Winners: Marianne Schumacher, 2 East; Tracey Guerry, Dialysis; Zonya Moore, 7 West; Unit Winner: Laquines Brown, TCU
• Institute of Psychiatry
• Division Winner: Martha Sutton, CDAP
• Unit Winners: Gwen Beaile, Youth Services; Myrna Divinagracia, Adult Services

Market Share

• Chris Murray, director of Marketing Services, and Chloe Singleton, Ph.D., division leader for Market Research, presented information about MUSC's market share for inpatient services. MUSC's tri-county market share continues to grow, even as the tri-county market increases in size.
• Forty percent of MUSC's inpatient business comes from outside the tri-county area, compared to an average of 12 percent for other local hospitals.
• Murray said this information clearly indicates the importance of ease of access, timely communication, and health care professional referral sources such as referring physicians and transferring hospitals.

Announcements

• Cashier's Office Change
• Sue Pletcher, director of Patient Access Services, announced that effective June 1, the cashier's office will no longer cash employees' checks.

Y2K

• Visit MUSC's Y2K Web site at www.musc.edu/y2k.