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Currents To Medical Center Employees: The Medical Center’s tactical plan goals include: become a provider of choice (patient satisfaction); reduce costs and improve financial performance; improve care (quality and safety); become an employer of choice (employee satisfaction); and enhance information management including general communication and use of technology. A number of work groups are involved in addressing the tactical plan goals and specific objectives. Updates on progress are reported through the Medical Center Intranet and routine reports are presented at the weekly communications meeting by the tactical plan champions and work group chairs.    Our goals are very closely aligned with the “core pillars of excellence” (including service, finance, growth, quality, and people) adopted by  hospitals which have embraced Quint Studer’s Hardwiring Excellence best practices.  In the months ahead we will be fine tuning our tactical plan objectives and operational practices to hardwire best practices to meet our particular needs.  We have a great foundation to build upon.   Hardwiring Excellence emphasizes that goals are interrelated. For instance, it’s difficult to achieve high patient satisfaction without high employee satisfaction.   We need to be mindful of the interrelatedness of everything we do and everyone needs to understand the importance of their jobs to our overall goals.  As we fine tune our operational practices, we will seek to enhance internal communication and involvement of everyone toward achieving excellence in every aspect of our work.     On another matter related to our employer of choice goal, by July we expect to issue an employee satisfaction survey. We scheduled the survey for July in order to avoid confusion with the Magnet survey issued in April. The results from the employee satisfaction survey will be widely disseminated and will used to enhance operational policies and practices.    Thank you very much. W. Stuart Smith Vice President for Clinical Operations and Executive Director, MUSC Medical Center Parking, daycare, smoking discussed Updating on parking management, child care and smoking on campus, Lisa Montgomery reported an expected opening of the Ashley-Rutledge Garage in early to mid-June. The new garage will increase patient-visitor spaces on campus by approximately 600 spaces.   She said that patient and visitors will be transitioned out of the Rutledge garage to open spaces for employees. The transition will produce approximately 400-500 new employee assignments to the parking system.   To backfill the available spaces in the Rutledge garage, an open enrollment was held that produced 2,300 requests for reassignment to the Rutledge garage. Montgomery said that spaces in employee parking garage II will open up as a result and that they will be backfilled once the helicopter landing pad project is completed in July or August.   To determine parking needs on campus for the next five to 10 years, a parking consultant will begin work in June to conduct a parking master plan review.   A child care feasibility group has been at work for more than two years. An RFP was issued for a smaller pilot proposal that would operate a child care facility for MUSC at the Church of the Holy Communion. It became clear that a pilot project would have significant disadvantages. Before officially committing to the pilot, “We are also investigating the feasibility of a broader project at a location on or near campus,” Montgomery said. She said that once locations can be identified, MUSC will make every reasonable effort to make this work.       A committee has been at work for more than a year to study smoking concerns, especially those around the Horseshoe and in front of the hospital. As a result, an architect has been engaged to design aesthetically attractive smoking huts for appropriate placement on campus.  More details will be issued in the future.   She said that the MUSC Student Government Association is making an effort in Columbia to have the MUSC campus designated as a smoke-free campus. Employer of Choice Update Montgomery also gave an update for the Employer of Choice  Parking Workgroup.  The workgroup's  recommendations include improving communication of parking information by updating Parking Management's Web site and linking it to the Medical Center's Intranet site; conduct a survey to identify employees' specific parking concerns and to explore the possibility of some employee parking subsidization as part of our benefits package. Bed Capacity The number of hospital admissions at the MUSC Medical Center is still growing, said Bed Capacity Task Force chair Maureen McDaniel. She said that there were 8,707 scheduled admissions and 17,131 unscheduled admissions recorded for 2004 and that current admissions are up 9 percent during the past four years.   The Bed Capacity Task Force looks at complex discharges on patients, barriers to timely discharges, the time of day most discharges take place (the goal being to discharge before 3 p.m.), a 30-minute turnaround time from discharge to computer time for the Admit Transfer Center. A number of hospital units conduct “bed huddles” to keep abreast of bed capacities and potential discharges. A bed status Web site keeps an up-to-date tally of available ICU and hospital beds.   To answer “What’s next?” McDaniel said that the task force will: develop a Dash Board Prototype for Metrics required by JCAHO; develop a computerized resident sign out sheet; develop a protocol to expedite expired patients to the morgue for family viewing; look at a discharge holding area, explore physician extenders; prioritize labs and radiology on discharged patients; develop a unit-based discharge nurse; develop a telemetry box availability policy; develop a reference chart for unit-specific drips; develop an Emergency Department boarder policy; and acquire an automated bed board.   McDaniel reminded that there are only 951 more days to January 2008 when 156 beds will be added to the Medical Center’s bed capacity. Second Floor Flooring Renovation Rick Elder presented a plan for resurfacing the passages and halls of the hospital’s second floor saying that most of the work would be done in off hours and especially over weekends. YES Campaign Marilyn Schaffner announced that the YES Campaign has already reached 45 percent of its goal, but with only 5 percent participation. She said that full participation by Medical Center employees is important.   “We are hoping that everyone will consider “giving a buck” a week and committing to a donation of $52 for the year. We can all make a difference by participating in this campaign!” Financial Goal Lisa Montgomery announced that the Medical Center has exceeded its financial goal with a 3.5 percent margin. “We should finish the year in good shape,” she said. Friday, May 27, 2005 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to petersnd@musc.edu or catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Community Press at 849-1778.