EMPLOYEES AND PHYSICIANS EARN PATIENT SAFETY AWARDS

By Sue Jones
CQI COORDINATOR

UF faculty physicians, residents and physician assistants gathered recently to be recognized for being nominated for their efforts to ensure customer satisfaction and patient safety.

Our highly successful Customer Service Is Key (CSIK) employee and physician recognition program has expanded to include recognition for those whose actions prevented serious patient harm. Since we began last fall, we’ve had more than 100 employee and physician Patient Safety Award honorees.

From the CSK nominations submitted last quarter by patients, family members, employees and physicians, 27 Patient Safety Award recipients were selected, including:

• Susan Lybarger, R.N. — She designed and created a “lap board” to help a patient on the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit track progress of their personal goal to walk a mile around the unit. The lap board has become a permanent fi砀ture to encourage other patients to celebrate their progress.
• Kyle Bongiovanni, monitor support tech — When a patient with a contagious disease was scheduled for a procedure in the Shands at UF Operating Room, Bongiovanni researched the protocols and precautions related to the disease and the procedures for the post-op cleaning of the OR suite. He communicated his finding to the entire OR team to assure the safety of the patient and everyone in the OR.
• Eloise Harman, M.D., pulmonary critical care medicine — Upon learning that a recent pulmonary patient was bed-bound and had no way to return to Shands at UF for a vital follow-up treatment, Dr. Harman made a home visit to ensure the patient received care.
• Henry Rohrs, M.D., pediatric endocrinology — Rd. Rohrs was nominated by a fellow physician for his help with a young patient with a rare condition. His colleague commended Dr. Rohrs for providing teaching, literature reviews, co-management of orders and collegial support that contributed to outstanding patient care.

Patient Safety Award nominees are recognized at award ceremonies attended by their peers and hospital and College of Medicine leadership.