Frontline Physicians

• Creating ID system for new members, such as highly visible yellow stickers on member cards
• Training staff and doctors about the importance of new members and how to make them feel welcome
• Making outreach calls for the new member's first appointment

What can your team do to welcome new members to KP? 

• Assessing on-hand pharmaceutical supplies for need
• Working with providers to reduce cost and amount of needed drugs
• Reducing number of on-hand meds

What can your team do to order and use supplies wisely? What else could your team do to help keep KP affordable for members and patients?

• Reviewing upcoming ultrasound appointments to schedule reminder calls
• Dividing call duties among different assigned staffers to ensure privacy
• Calling a day in advance of appointments to discuss patient instructions

What can your team do to reach out to patients? And how could your team work with other teams to improve service? 

• Assigning a point person to work with physicians and departments to ensure patients have the needed lab orders
• Coordinating efforts across the multiple departments that engage in a patient's treatment
• Assigning a backup assistant to ensure the point duties are covered

What can your team do to identify where things "fall through the cracks"? What else could your team do to put the patient at the center? 

• Standardizing note-taking styles across the team
• Assigning a financial counselor to each in-need patient
• Working with Admitting Department to identify patients who need assistance and provide counseling

What can your team do to reduce unneeded variation? And what can your team do to work with other teams to improve service? 

• Creating computer spreadsheet to track inventory and order supplies
• Labeling shelves and supplies more clearly to reduce clutter
• Eliminating hoarding and rarely used supplies, and consolidating orders

What can your team do to harness the power of technology? What else could your team do to centralize information that is scattered? 

• Assessing the problem and working together to a solution
• Converting extra closet space into a dressing room for patients
• Realizing even small solutions pay large dividends

 What can your team do to use your physical space more efficiently? 

• Creating call lists for patients at risk for hypertension
• Targeting diabetic patients, who often overlook high blood pressure symptoms
• Having clinical assistants chip in to check blood pressure and outreach

What can your team do to reach out to patients proactively? What else could your team do to help patients manage chronic conditions?

• Using a checklist of important topics as a teaching tool for new parents at discharge with their new baby
• Speaking with them at a time when they are most likely to understand and take in the information
• Creating a script for nurses that doesn't feel rehearsed or fake

What can your team do to improve your communication with patients?