City of Hope recently received two national awards for excellence in inpatient care — the 2019 Guardian of Excellence award and the 2019 Pinnacle of Excellence award — from Press Ganey.
The prestigious Press Ganey awards are based on survey questions that hundreds of City of Hope patients answer after being discharged from hospital care on a variety of topics related to their hospital stay, including general satisfaction with services, speediness of admission, room cleanliness and staff courtesy. The institution uses that information to enhance the hospital experience for patients and caregivers.
Press Ganey is a patient-experience organization utilized by more than 50% of U.S. hospitals to help improve clinical outcomes. Working with data from Press Ganey has helped City of Hope achieve the highest HCAHPS scores. HCAHPS is a survey instrument and data collection methodology for measuring patients’ perceptions of their hospital experience.
Testament to Excellent Care and Compassion
The Guardian of Excellence award honors health care organizations that rank in the 95th percentile for patient experience. The Pinnacle of Excellence award is given to the top-performing organizations showing extraordinary achievement in consistently high levels of excellence in patient experience over three years.
“To receive award recognition based on feedback from our patients is a true testament to the excellent care and compassion that we deliver. How we take care of patients and how we remove all of the avoidable obstacles is what really matters,” said Vijay Trisal, M.D., the Dr. Norman & Melinda Payson Professor in Medicine, surgical oncologist and chief medical officer at City of Hope. “When we receive praise, it is the result of our staff focusing on each patient as a priority.”
Susan Brown, Ph.D., M.S.N., R.N., senior vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer at City of Hope, agrees, and said, “Awards like those bestowed by Press Ganey reaffirm our commitment to continually improving the experience for our patients and the care we provide.”
Examples of feedback received from the survey includes:
- Every person I have been in contact with at City of Hope has been so friendly and helpful. From the surgeons to the housekeeping staff, they all put forth totally positive vibes. While I hope I never have to come back, should the need arise there is no facility anywhere I would rather be than City of Hope. The name is so appropriate.
- The operating room nurse and other medical staff, including anesthesiologist, were so friendly and fun. I didn’t believe they were done because I was still laughing and joking with them the entire time.
- I’m not just being nice, I believe it. Every employee treats you so nice. Cancer is scary. But the staff was so loving. They seem to know what you need.
PX Rounds Celebrates One-Year Anniversary
PX Rounds is another way that City of Hope leaders and staff engage with patients, inquire about their experience, identify supportive resources, document and fix any obstacles, show compassion and strengthen patients’ confidence in City of Hope. Each month, frontline leaders from patient care and nonpatient care departments participate in PX Rounds by walking around the Duarte, California, campus, greeting patients, gathering feedback and identifying solutions.
“Patients come to City of Hope because we save lives. We are rated the best cancer hospital in Southern California and the West for our cancer treatments and research center,” said Tony Padilla, M.B.A., vice president of patient experience. “All of the personal touches that patients experience while they are in our care is what makes our institution special. Each time we reach out to a patient to ask how they are, answer their questions or help them with issues and concerns, we strengthen their trust in City of Hope.”
Maria Flores was 33 and in the care of another hospital when her worst nightmare was confirmed: She had breast cancer. She made her way to City of Hope, and as a patient here, she said her experience could not have been more different.
“Everyone in front and behind the scenes, including other locations — and I mean everyone at City of Hope — has a magic,” Flores said. “They smile, they nod, wave, stop to take a minute to say hi, even when they aren’t part of the medical team. This place has something special that other hospitals just don’t.”
A Heartfelt Thank You Letter
Yanghee Woo, M.D., associate clinical professor in the Department of Surgery, recently received a heartfelt, beautifully written letter from a grateful patient she had recently operated on for gastric cancer (he is now cancer free).
“You not only inspired me to remain strong through moments of pain and anxiety, but you also became my family’s invincible life-saver and hero,” he said. “From the day I became your patient, through my treatment and recovery phases, your team was there every step of the way. They rescued me from the jaws of deadly gastric cancer. I want to convey my special gratitude to your highly skilled nursing staff and lab technicians for their diligent support and uplifting my spirit.”