Patient and family partner involvement in staff interviews: Designing, implementing, and evaluating a new hiring process

Healthcare organizations in Canada and the United States are seeking to enhance their ability to offer patient and family centred care (PFCC). One aspect of PFCC is the participation of Patient and Family Partners (PFPs) in a variety of roles within healthcare organizations. This article describes the creation and evaluation of a hiring process that utilized a PFCC interview tool (PFCCIT) and collaborated with PFPs in interviewing candidates for healthcare positions. An evaluation of the new hiring process was designed, including an on-line survey of candidates and semi-structured interviews with healthcare leaders and PFPs. Survey results indicated candidates felt the new process helped them understand the importance of PFCC at the organization. In interviews with leaders, comments were overwhelmingly positive, with leaders urging the spread of this hiring process throughout the organization. Similarly, the four PFPs who were interviewed felt their participation was valuable, and useful in furthering the organization’s commitment to PFCC. The implementation of a staff hiring process utilizing PFPs and the PFCCIT provides a valuable tool for healthcare organizations working to enhance PFCC to better meet the needs of their patients and families. Further study is required to validate the long-term impact of this initiative and determine whether it improves recruitment and retention of staff sharing the organization’s commitment to PFCC

Evaluation of a cardiac rehabilitation program

Cardiac rehabilitation, an important component of the treatment for coronary artery disease, is provided by a multidisciplinary team in the Healthy Heart Program. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the Healthy Heart Program on maintenance of healthy lifestyle behaviors and hospital readmission rates, to increase our understanding of the effectiveness of the program, and to make recommendations for improvement of the program. The study began with a retrospective chart review to select study participants, and from which data was collected on demographics and rate of achievement of healthy lifestyle goals during the program. Analysis of the data revealed that the majority of participants were able to successfully achieve their goals during the program. A telephone interview was then conducted with graduates of the program to determine if healthy lifestyle behaviors were maintained and the rate of and reasons for visits to hospital. Analysis of the data revealed that sustained behavior change did occur for at least six months after exiting the program. Analysis of the data also revealed that few Healthy Heart Program participants required visits to the emergency department or admission to hospital for cardiac reasons. Recommendations for improvement to this program include improved stress management, diet management and smoking cessation strategies. As well, strategies to provide more individualized programs for modification of cardiac risk factors would be useful. Ongoing evaluation on cardiac rehabilitation programs for maintenance of healthy lifestyle behaviors is also necessary.Applied Science, Faculty ofNursing, School ofGraduat

Strategies to Improve Patient Satisfaction and Organizational Performance in Health Care

Hospital leaders who fail to respond to poor patient satisfaction reports may experience lower organizational performance. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore strategies of leaders in private health care settings to improve patient satisfaction. This study may provide strategies that health care leaders in the public setting can apply to improve patient satisfaction and organizational performance. One private health care provider operating in Vancouver, British Columbia, Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta, was selected as both private and public healthcare centers are located in these areas. Data were gathered from 12 participant interviews and from an examination of available physical artifacts such as organizational documents provided by the participants and the company website. Transformational leadership was the underlying conceptual framework for this research. Triangulation was used to ensure the rigorousness of the study. In the study, themes were identified after member checking the transcribed open-ended interview questions. The 5 themes identified were cohesive culture of employee engagement, patient-focused model of care, timely access and follow-up of results and coordination of care, continuous system quality improvement, and employee accountability. These themes underscore the importance of a culture of employee engagement; they also illuminate care that focuses on the patient-care that ensures timely access, follow-up and coordination of care, quality improvement based on patient feedback, and employee accountability. Current publicly-funded hospitals and health care centers may apply these findings to improve patient satisfaction and organizational performance