Care Advocates to Help Patients, Employees, Physicians Find Answers
DANVILLE, VA - (May 18, 2006) - When Jane M.'s mother checked into the hospital for back surgery, she complained that her room was too hot. Jane tried to turn the air conditioning down, but nothing happened. On another floor, James S. could not get the cable television feed to work. He had his heart set on watching a basketball game while he visited with his brother, who was recovering from gall bladder surgery.
Left unsolved, these situations could lead to even more frustration for families with loved ones in the hospital. But at Danville Regional Medical Center, there's a special group of employees, PRIDE, which stands for People Responsible for DRMC Excellence, who will help find solutions. PRIDE gives attention in a timely manner to concerns like these so that the day-to-day issues don't become a challenge.
"Our goal is to contact the patient within an hour of receiving the call and let them know the plan to resolve their concern," said Katrina Jackson, R.N., chair of the PRIDE committee. "We want to address any concern - whether it's from a patient, an employee or a physician."
"Perhaps a physician needed a special reclining chair for a patient who was recovering from surgery - a chair with arms at a special height," Jackson said. "We want to make sure our busy physicians have the appropriate equipment - and would use our resources to find a chair for him from another floor."
"We formed PRIDE to let patients, associates and physicians know that we care," Jackson said. "Danville Regional Medical Center is my hometown hospital - we are committed to people to make their care experience as comfortable as possible. When they are experiencing a crisis, we want their healing and care to go smoothly."
PRIDE Committee members include: Barbara Stanfield, RN; Sharon Yeatts, RN; Denise Buckner, RN; Teri Wyatt, RN; Mike Moore, M.D.; Gary Miller, M.D.; and Jackson.
"This is the kind of care that DRMC is known for - the friendly, whatever you need, neighborly concern for each other," said Jess Judy, LifePoint executive responsible for Danville Regional Medical Center. "It's always been that way, and PRIDE is another way to remind the community that Danville Regional Medical Center is their hospital. While they are here in "our house," we will use our resources in every direction to make sure they receive outstanding care."
Danville Regional is the leading Medical Center in the Dan River Region of Virginia and North Carolina, providing open heart surgery and advanced cancer treatment. Approximately 140 physicians are on the Medical Staff. The Medical Center employs approximately 1,540 people.
