AAMC Recognizes Patient Advisors

PATIENT AND FAMILY ADVISOR Kermitt Wright has had more than his fair share of health problems, from cancer and heart surgery to gallbladder removal. Now in remission, he's giving back by serving as a patient advisor for the hospital. Once a month, Wright speaks to the new employee orientation class at AAMC.

"I tell them to be the best people they can be in this job," says the 60-year-old, who was born and raised in Annapolis. "Sometimes you'll run into patients who are dealing with some heart-wrenching situations. Always remember: You have the power to make their day."

Learn more.

-Award Ceremony Honors Those Who Contributed to Improvements in Care-

ANNAPOLIS, MD (November 22, 2011)- On October 19, Anne Arundel Medical Center (AAMC) recognized advisors for the Patient and Family Centered Care initiative for their collaborative efforts over the past year. Initiative leaders Rita Linnenkamp, RN, and Katie Boston, RN, hosted the dinner, which included several stories by patients and administrators about the program’s progress since its launch one year ago. Several prospective advisors attended the dinner as well.

“Patients and their families are at the core of our organization’s vision of Living Healthier Together,” noted Victoria Bayless, CEO. “Advisors are helping us improve our services through direct feedback and giving their perspectives on the way they see our care delivery.”

Advisors volunteer their time to make improvements through the following workgroups and committees:

Wayfinding: Instrumental in developing our campus map and in helping us to rename our garages. Thanks to Louis Aebischer, Jr., Richard Ay, Karen Goldman, Amparo Harquail, Jack Mastranglo, Mary Melvin, Jamie Sheffer and Barbara MacLeod.

Revisiting Visiting Hours: Developed our new open visiting policy and assisted with the developing and delivering the education needed to begin this change process. Thanks to Christa Grim, Richard Hohn, Dennis King, Barbara MacLeod, Chuch Roydhouse and Jodi Shade.

Patient Family Advisory Council: Hospital-wide general committee with various general tasks. The new council includes Judith Crane, Noreen Cullen, Karen Goldman, Christa Grim, Richard Hohn, Barbara MacLeod, Jodi Shade, Chuck Roydhouse, Jerry Wyble and Kermitt Wright.

Diversity: Making recommendations for a staff mentor program as well as giving advice on signage and other initiatives. Thanks to Pastor Karen Johnson, Gloria Nelson, and Dr. Carol Parham.

Picker Grant Steering Committee: Important members to assist us with looking at bedside shift report, open charting and discharge protocols. Members include Barry Cahen, Ida Heck, Barbara Truntich and Susan Walden. In addition, several community members also were part of a focus group for this grant, including Robert Gavazzi, Steve Machoian, Deidre McNair, Sandy Mosso and Robert Morales.

Safety Committee: Provided valuable insight as to how we can improve our processes for medication safety. Thanks to Lucretia Jackson and Jerry Wyble.

EARTH: Brought in the farmers market to the hospital twice a week. Thanks to Chris Hopkinson.

IRB: Long standing partners in reviewing clinical trials. Thanks to Eve DeVaro-Fowler, Avis Halberstadt and Henry Meneely.

Pathways Community Taskforce: Building a prevention education curriculum to be offered in AACPS. Thanks to Will Bartz, Amy Beller, Anne Chambers, Kay Franey, Lesley Geisel, Marcie Gibbons and Lee Schreitz.

Falls Committee: Provided ideas and participated in discussions on how we can prevent patient falls. Thanks to Noreen Cullen.

Stroke: An existing internal committee that coordinated the opening of our new neurocare unit. Thanks to Judith Crane for her input that improved patient educational processes.

Advisor Recruitment and Placement: This new role includes attending new employee orientation and reinforcing why patients and family are valuable part of process. Thanks to Kermit Wright who helped place new advisors on committees.

SBAR (Communication Tool): This workgroup provides ideas and feedback on how to best complete change of shift reports for patients and families. Thanks to Amelia Hopkins.

To learn more, visit online at www.aahs.org/advisors.