I’ve been in Salem for six months now. Thank you all for the warm welcome my family and I have received. I was happy to enter this organization while the Executive Leadership Council (ELC) was embarking on a test of change where members were attending section meetings and meeting with section chiefs to move forward a healthy dialogue.
As part of getting to know the medical staff, Ralph Yates, MD, chief medical officer, and I, both members of ELC, were also reaching out to be part of all section meetings and interacting with physician leaders. Feedback through conversation and section chief surveys have revealed a very positive response to these interactions.
As anticipated, the dialogue also produced many opportunities for improvement, some which have been solved in the moment, some of which cannot be fully resolved, and some that will require more work.
We soon realized that as problems that could not quickly solved were coming in, there would need to be a system in place to best triage, resource, and communicate progress. Considered with other lists of problems identified through peer review, the QOC, and prior dialogues, it was evident that to truly make progress with this open communication the creation of a problem resolution system would need to occur. This endeavor will be captained by Jenny Williams, MD, physician chair of the multidisciplinary peer review committee, and Pam Cortez, director of patient safety and clinical support.
The goal is not to waste your time with just talk. We as an ELC team will continue to openly and frequently communicate about our interactions with the medical staff, but understand there may be times you are approached by more than one of us. We hope our positive intent shines through in these interactions. Thanks again for your time in creating a team-based culture, and feel free to contact me if I can be of assistance.