Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable: A conversation with Marsha Sinanan-Vasishta

We find ourselves managing two critical moments and a powerful confluence of events, one a crisis in health. We are still facing the COVID crisis, and we are trying very hard to rely on evidence and truth that will lead us forward in addressing that in the best way possible. We are also in a crisis of humanity, one that has been simmering beneath the surface for years, the issue of systemic racism and disparities in healthcare, further highlighted by the COVID crisis. This article shares the conversation I had with Marsha Sinanan-Vasishta, MSN, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, CPXP, Deputy Chief Nursing Officer, Patient Care Services Mount Sinai/Morningside as part of The Beryl Institute’s bi-weekly community briefing series on the special topic of addressing systemic racism and health disparities in a time of crisis. Ultimately Marsha called us on to seize this moment to act, to find ways to get comfortable in being uncomfortable with relentlessness and ultimately to take this moment, which could be one of fear and doubt, to truly be brave. Experience Framework This article is associated with the Culture & Leadership lens of The Beryl Institute Experience Framework. (http://bit.ly/ExperienceFramework) Access other PXJ articles related to this lens. Access other resources related to this len

Four commitments for the future of healthcare: Reflecting on a decade of Patient Experience Journal

This issue closes the first decade of Patient Experience Journal’s (PXJ) contribution to evidence and innovation, to sharing stories and research, to elevating the conversation and pushing the boundaries of the experience movement. We have never hesitated to nudge at the status quo or to respond with agility to the challenging moments we have faced. We have welcomed diverse voices as contributors, and we have seen an even more diverse readership. In reviewing the pages of PXJ over the last decade, we see a true evolution of the experience movement itself. The words of our contributors have provided a lens into the expanding perspectives that encompass the growing experience conversation overall. So where does this lead us? What does the path for the next decade of PXJ look like? In many ways, that is up to you to decide. The voices of this community are the colors on the palette of PXJ. Your voices will paint the picture for the next decade. So this question is not a call to action for experience as an idea, per se, but rather a challenge for all of us committed to this collective movement. The decade this issue closes serves as the foundation on which we can build even greater things. While PXJ is an academic journal, it is more so a launching pad for ideas and opportunities, for hopes and possibilities. I believe there is great power in expressed ideas, there is even greater power found in a community that fosters those ideas for not only what they can become, but also what they will impact as a result. Experience Framework This article is associated with the Culture & Leadership lens of The Beryl Institute Experience Framework (https://theberylinstitute.org/experience-framework/). Access other PXJ articles related to this lens. Access other resources related to this lens

Moving forward to the future of healthcare

To say this moment in our shared global history feels shaky or uncertain for so many is not a statement of despair. Rather, it is acknowledging a reality through which we can best act and hopefully step through. As of the time this editorial will publish, well over 50 million cases of COVID-19 will have been reported. This is a reality all of humanity is sharing together; it is a challenge that healthcare is being called on to tackle. The work of people around the world to care for the sick, to find the right treatments and vaccines and the efforts of so many of our global citizens trying to do what they can to care for their families, friends and communities by doing the basics – wearing a face covering, maintaining physical distance, limiting the size of gatherings and more – is heroic. More so, I suggest it is human. Over the seven years of publishing PXJ, never could we have dreamt of this moment; but in many ways, we were always preparing for it. For in bringing together the diverse voices of our world, in weaving together ideas, stories and evidence we knew and now espouse, we are ready to support one another. We are truly stronger together. There is a time of work ahead as well as a time for healing, for working tirelessly to close gaps, to lower the temperature of rhetoric, for conversations on common ground and finding a path forward. Through your work in reading, contributing and engaging, we each can and will do our part. There are great possibilities ahead as we seek “a light of meaning,” and those possibilities must forever guide us. Experience Framework This article is associated with the Culture & Leadership lens of The Beryl Institute Experience Framework. (http://bit.ly/ExperienceFramework) Access other PXJ articles related to this lens. Access other resources related to this len

Building on a decade of hope: Why we must champion the human experience

The pages of PXJ have served a primary purpose, to expand the evidence on patient experience and push the boundaries of innovation in this critical work. But through this commitment, PXJ has seen much more happen. The contributions of our thousands of authors, reviewers and editors have also fostered an environment of connection. PXJ has emerged as something more than just a journal. It has become a place for conversation. It has served as a conduit for expanding excellence in practice. It has fostered new thinking. And it has broadened our global community. There is something very special found on these pages. It is a shared sense of purpose and of possibility. And it is even more critical as our focus is ensuring excellence in the human experience in healthcare. For this reason, we thrive on the ability to share and learn, apply and evolve, act and improve. We do so with strategic focus, intentional listening, respect for differences and a commitment to agility. This carrying forth of hope and all that lies ahead is not something that just happens in the natural order of things; it takes intention and commitment, vulnerability and openness, and clarity and focus. It also takes the strength to stand up in the face of what some may say is unimportant, intangible or simply impossible. It takes champions of human experience to build on a decade of hope

Human experience is not a line item

Our humanity is fundamentally defined in context with others, in our relationships that reinforce or bend who we are, in the interactions through which we wither or grow. It is these interactions that rest squarely at the heart of the healthcare experience. For over a decade, we have defined experience in The Beryl Institute community as the sum of all interactions, shaped by an organization’s culture that influence patient perceptions across the continuum of care. The power of the simple, yet significant nature of these words reinforces the idea that experience happens primarily at the touch point between people. These experiences, ultimately, are framed by the kinds of organizations we build, cultures we foster, behaviors and choices we encourage and expect. The humanity we build into our healthcare system is the basis for every experience one has. The conduit for these experiences is the healthcare workforce itself. The context for experience happens in the communities that healthcare serves. These ideas are not simply an idealized state but also have tangible and measurable impacts on healthcare itself. This special issue helps us to see some of the implications and actions of the healthcare workforce experience on our capacity to deliver the best in care overall. Experience is not a line item - for an investment in experience efforts creates a culture shift that has direct bearing on the quality outcomes realized, the patient and family loyalty sought, the community reputation desired and the vibrant workforce that healthcare leaders strive to ensure every day. Experience Framework This article is associated with the Culture & Leadership lens of The Beryl Institute Experience Framework (https://www.theberylinstitute.org/ExperienceFramework). Access other PXJ articles related to this lens. Access other resources related to this len

In divided times, a focus on human experience connects us

The realities of the time in which we find ourselves, not only in healthcare, but in society overall, have exposed so much of what was simmering beneath the surface of our humanity. Issues of equity and inclusion, of stress and burnout, of division and misconception and even the existence of alternative “truths” have caused rifts in our connection, weakened our societal foundations and pulled on the seams of the healthcare system itself. We close our eighth volume of Patient Experience Journal (PXJ) under this veil, yet I believe we have an opportunity to use this moment as a place from which to build. I do not suggest this work will be easy., but a conversation on experience is a clear and common ground. It challenges those who seek to dismantle versus build. It provides a space to look and act above the noise and does not let us overlook that it needs to be challenged and addressed. When we focus on the human experience found underneath all the rhetoric, we find opportunity and inspiration. A focus on human experience connects us

A call to action for human experience

As we open the 8th volume of Patient Experience Journal (PXJ), we all stand in a world much different than we did just a year ago. A year ago we were in the height of crisis, facing unknowns and uncertainty. We didn’t know if we were tackling an issue that was weeks, months or years in front of us. We were truly not even sure what tomorrow might bring. As I shared in opening Volume 7, we were already experiencing something special in the midst of real tragedy. We were seeing light peeking through heavy clouds. I opened that issue sharing, “At the heart of healthcare, we are human beings caring for human beings, [and] at the heart of the actions and efforts of so many at this time of crisis, we find the true essence of the humanness of healthcare. Yes, the clinical excellence at healthcare’s roots will ensure we save lives, but the efforts we are seeing to elevate the human experience now will ensure we honor those lives through and beyond this crisis as well.” While this crisis challenged us in ways we have never seen, it equally highlighted the realities we knew already existed but had yet to fully address. The opportunity this reveals provides a significant moment of choice: do we perpetuate our efforts of the past or do we bend the arc for a new future? We are at a unique moment for our community, for our world…one we must not miss. Please join us in transforming the human experience by sharing your ideas via PXJ, taking action in your organizations, working to impact the communities in which you live and work, by signing and acting on the Declaration for Human Experience. That is the least we can do for one another in an industry, and I dare say a world, where we must forever be human beings caring for human beings. We are the human experience, and now is the time to act

Leadership matters: A conversation with Dr. James Hildreth

I was extremely honored at this moment in the midst of our current health crisis to have a conversation with Dr. James Hildreth, president and chief executive officer of Meharry Medical College. The focus and commitment expressed by Dr. Hildreth reflects the very mission statement of Meharry Medical College itself, to advance health equity through innovative research, transformative education, exceptional and compassionate health services and policy-influencing thought leadership. As equally important is the alignment of Meharry’s purpose with our very own at the Institute, as Meharry’s mission continues to empower diverse populations to improve the well-being of humankind. Dr. Hildreth challenges us to find common context, follow the science and recognize that leadership matters. He calls on us to stop making assumptions and find a place of understanding, acknowledgment and action. Experience Framework This article is associated with the Culture & Leadership lens of The Beryl Institute Experience Framework. (http://bit.ly/ExperienceFramework) Access other PXJ articles related to this lens. Access other resources related to this len

The essential nature of experience in a time of crisis and beyond

As we have engaged with community members around the world, the last few weeks have provided a unique window into the face of this crisis as we have seen not only the deadliest days on record, but have also had some of the most hopeful conversations at the same time. While we are and still will face challenges in the weeks to come, we too have seen humanity elevated in profound and powerful ways. While it can be offered with little argument that things will never be the same, in moving forward, we too can assert and I believe, that the ideas that have been fundamental to healthcare experience will remain essential for all served by and serving in healthcare. The themes that emerge in this issue, while not planned for this crisis, quite appropriately reinforce what we have seen elevated by this moment in history in which we find ourselves; that all voices matter, that collaboration and partnership matter, that listening and acting matter, that learning and agility matter, and that perseverance matters. To say we are in a time of challenge would not do this moment justice. We are facing tragedy and suffering. We are seeing inequity and systemic weaknesses revealed. We are seeing support elevated and commitment fortified. And we are experiencing a global community drawn together around a shared experience in ways few alive have ever experienced nor deemed possible. That reality, our shared reality, is where we find the essential nature of experience. In the ability to ensure the best in connectedness in a disconnected world; to see deeper into patients’ eyes and into our neighbors’ souls. These are all fundamental building blocks to a shared human experience. One we can all attest is imperfect, but one we too should all agree deserves our greatest attention. Experience Framework This article is associated with the Culture & Leadership lens of The Beryl Institute Experience Framework. (http://bit.ly/ExperienceFramework) Access other PXJ articles related to this lens. Access other resources related to this len

The frontier for human experience is closer than we think

When we think of frontiers, we think of boundaries between the known and unknown, the edge we see in the distance, something that is always just over the horizon. Yet when we step into what was once the frontier, the horizon moves on us, with new distances to cross, edges to reach. It is this dynamic of frontiers, wrapped in our individual and shared experiences of the last few years that shape this very special issue. It is also why now more than ever frontiers are an important part of our transformation. Frontiers that push us beyond where we can see, and frontiers of rediscovering so much of what we may need to rebuild. The experience movement is a journey through frontiers, around us, in front of us and inside of us. They connect us and push us, the reveal our power and purpose and we must never let them be the reasons we do not take that next step. The frontiers of experience are closer than we think. They are, because of what each of you do each day for one another. And that care, that hope, may be the greatest outcome of all. Experience Framework This article is associated with the Culture & Leadership lens of The Beryl Institute Experience Framework (https://theberylinstitute.org/experience-framework/). Access other PXJ articles related to this lens. Access other resources related to this lens