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An award winning newsletter for Orange Regional Medical Center employees, physicians and volunteers
January 2017
From The President & CEO Last year was an exceptional year for Orange Regional! We exceeded our patient satisfaction goals for inpatient care and the Emergency Department, exceeded our clinical excellence goals, achieved our highest employee engagement score to date and performed well financially. We were nationally recognized for numerous awards, we underwent a great Joint Commission survey and completed two major building projects. As we move into 2017, there is much speculation regarding the fate of the Affordable Care Act with President Donald Trump vowing to repeal and replace ObamaCare. This is a large and complex program that will Scott Batulis President & CEO likely take some time to change. As it relates to Orange Regional, most people in our community have health insurance, so we are not expecting any major changes in the law that would impact us this year. Our focus will be on operational excellence in patient satisfaction, quality outcomes, employee engagement and financial performance. While we performed well financially in 2016 as a whole, we did not perform as well as expected during the last three months of the year. To be sure we are starting 2017 on the right foot, it is necessary for expenses to be monitored very carefully. Lately, we have experienced very high inpatient volumes which can present numerous challenges including overcrowding in our Emergency Department (ED). When ED overcrowding occurs, our readiness to treat and care for significant emergencies decreases. We need to be prepared to handle any emergency at all times. Currently, we are working on a major initiative to improve the flow of patients from admission to discharge which will enhance overall operations and help to alleviate current ED overcrowding. While we do not have substantial construction projects planned for this year, we will invest in a few significant endeavors such as an upgrade to the Epic system and a new imaging system as well as initiatives in surgery and customer service training. Thank you for your dedication and hard work. I look forward to another great and successful year ahead. Please have a safe and happy 2017. Sincerely, Scott Batulis, President & CEO
Clinical Decision Area Opens A new Clinical Decision Area (CDA) is located in the Same Day Surgical Unit - rooms 3 through 15. The Unit is open 24 hours a day/seven days a week. The CDA was designed in response to our high census in both the Emergency Department (ED) and inpatient units. It provides an alternative for short stay admissions and has clinical benefits for our patients and financial benefits for the Hospital. We anticipate it will enhance the flow of our ED and will help avoid unnecessary admissions. The unit will serve a very specific population of patients including those with abdominal and chest pain who are hemodynamically stable. The unit’s admission criteria are very specific and patients must meet it. The length of stay goal for these patients is 15 hours, but no less than 8 hours. Dr. Pamela Murphy is the Medical Director, Justine Geisler RN, MSN, CMSRN is the Nursing Unit Director, and Jennifer DiMascio RN, CMSRN is the Clinical Coordinator for the CDA. A team of enthusiastic RNs and CDA technicians have also been appointed to the Unit and have been oriented to the competencies necessary for this unit including phlebotomy. Thank you to all staff who helped create this new clinical area. For more information, contact Justine Geisler at 333-5435 or jgeisler@ormc.org.