To Medical Center Employees:
We have very recently kicked off a statewide communications campaign to educate South Carolinians on the amazing things going on at MUSC. Dr. Ray Greenberg, MUSC president, recently issued a letter to all employees to explain the purpose of the campaign and to point out as an academic medical center we are “changing what’s possible” in heath care.
 
Aside from educating the citizens of our state, the campaign includes a video designed primarily for internal use. This video, which features faculty and staff, is intended to generate enthusiasm and promote awareness of the range of exceptional care and services at MUSC.  The entire video can be viewed at http://www.musc.edu/ourmusc.
 
I want to express my deep appreciation to the faculty and staff who were willing to contribute to the campaign. I want to thank Public Relations, Center for Academic and Research Computing, the Development Office and other departments throughout the campus for all of their support to make the campaign happen. I want to commend the Business Development & Marketing Department for their tireless and ongoing efforts to develop and roll out the campaign.
 
Finally, I want to thank everyone for your work to create a great story to share.

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

Wins

• June Darby, Neurosciences Service Line administrator, read a letter posted by a patient with meningiomas (small tumors that develop in the brain and spinal cord) who praised MUSC medical center employees for his care. Darby recognized physicians and staff in radiation oncology, neurosciences and neurosurgery. 

• Karen Ingram, Peds Subspecialty/7B nurse manager, related a story involving the transplant service and a 19-year old Chester area patient that needed a bone marrow transplant. In initiating the prep work for her match donor, the patient’s 22-year old sister, they discovered that the sister also was diagnosed with leukemia and received treatment at MUSC. Meanwhile, the transplant team was able to coordinate hospital and medical services for the sister who was preparing to return to school. Another matching donor was found and the patient underwent a successful bone marrow transplant in late July.
  

HR update
Helena Bastian, Medical University Hospital Authority HR director, presented the following topics:

• Performance Evaluations and planning acknowledgement forms are due Aug. 31. As of Aug. 17, only 21 percent have been completed. As a reminder, employees hired after April 1 will not receive an evaluation during this review period.

• The new leader orientation program has been restructured. New leaders will receive an informational packet on the first day of the Organizational Orientation. Orientation sessions have been revised.
  

New leader orientation schedule
Session 2 (60 days) Sept. 16
Session 3 (90 days) Oct. 28
Registration via CATTS

Benefit of the Month—Medical Spending Accounts

• Permits eligible employees to pay for many out-of-pocket medical expenses with pre-tax dollars—federal, state and FICA-bigger tax breaks than a 401K.

• In October, employees estimate their 2011 anticipated expenses and sign up to have that amount deducted from their paycheck throughout the year. Claims are submitted for reimbursement through a state-contracted vendor, i.e. FBMC.

• Beware of the use it or lose it provision.

• Eligible expenses include dental, vision, medical insurance and prescription drug co pays and deductibles, experimental treatments that are medically necessary.

• Option to take the EZ reimburse MasterCard which avoids the need to pay for these expenses up front.

• New enrollees must complete an enrollment form (paper). Renewals may be completed online.
  

Benefit of the Month—Labor & Delivery
Employees who are mothers-to-be and their spouses are encouraged to deliver their baby at MUSC’s Labor & Delivery Unit. Under the Standard State Health Plan (BCBS) at MUSC, covered employees and their spouses can save as much as $1,000 in out-of-pocket hospital expenses. This does not apply to BCBS’s high deductible plan.
 
Karen Stephenson, R.N., Labor & Delivery nurse manager, gave a comparison breakdown showing an employee’s discount applying to childbirth at MUSC. Total out-of-pocket expenses for a single birth delivery at MUSC is $400 versus a different location which is estimated at $1,400. That’s a savings of $1,000.
 
MUSC Women & Infant Services feature new birthing suite that provide privacy and flat screen TVs; rooms for both mom and baby; online birth plans; convenient campus location for appointments; childbirth education classes with certified instructors who are labor and delivery registered nurses; Daddy Boot Camp classes for fathers; complete prenatal care, screenings and diagnostics; features female providers; Women’s Speak blog and a U.S. News & World Report ranking as “One of America’s Best Hospitals” for Gynecology.

• The hospital considers deductibles and co-insurance for covered hospital services as part of the benefit and they are waived

• For hospital services that are not covered and no BCBS State Plan adjustment is taken, the hospital gives the employee the 50 percent self-pay discount
  

On Sept. 7 from 2 to 3 p.m., Labor & Delivery will host an open house on 5W University Hospital for employees showcasing their renovations and new features.

Patient privacy
Kelly Shaw, MUHA compliance manager, addressed privacy audits of access to patient  medical records. Due to a number of recent medical cases in the news (TV newspaper, etc.), the Compliance Office has performed audits of employee access to the medical records of these individuals. Shaw reminded managers to review policies with employees related to authorized access, patient privacy and medical records. Ongoing audits of cases in the news will continue. Any unit or department that would like training on this topic can contact Reece Smith, smithre@musc.edu.

Quality—Providing quality patient care in a safe environment
Lana Beckley, R.N., physical therapist, clinical nurse leader in Therapeutic Services and Project FIRM Ground resource nurse, introduced details about a new program aimed at promoting patient safety and reducing the incidence of falls.
 
The With Out One Fall (WOOF) award was established by MUHA’s Patient Safety and Mobility Committee. The team wanted to recognize hospital units who did not have any patient falls from April to June. Recognized were ART/Chest Pain Clinic, May to June; 2JRU, May and June; Neuroservices (NSI), May and June; PACU, June; 6East, June; 2North, April to June; 7C/CH, April to June; 8F, CH, May and June; A3EI-6W, May and June; A3EX-SCCU, April to June; A4WX-CCU, April to June and A4WY-CTICU, May and June.

Announcements

• ART Medical-Surgical ICU Interim nurse manager Chris Zensen, R.N., announced the renaming of her area due to a service line realignment. Her area was  renamed as the Medical-Surgical ICU AEBI and AEBS.

• Kelly Anne Caraviello, R.N., was named nurse manager of the Digestive Disease Service Line as of Aug. 1. Caraviello, who has been at MUSC since 2006, will be responsible for GI Surgery and GI Medicine Outpatient Clinics, DDSL scheduling and nurse coordinators, Bariatric Surgery and Islet Cell Transplantation programs.

• MUSC’s new campaign, “MUSC. Changing what’s possible,” was launched Aug. 12. Chris Murray, Business Development & Marketing Services director, reminded employees to watch for MUSC television commercials scheduled in prime time slots and other statewide markets and radio spots scheduled on National Public Radio.

• The next meeting is Sept. 7.
  

Friday, Aug. 20, 2010