Starting From Ground Zero:
West Los Angeles UPR gives team a boost
Melody Navarro, RN, doesn’t have fond memories of her first months as management co-lead of the West Los Angeles Oncology UBT.
No one wanted to attend meetings or join the team, which represents two departments—the Oncology/Hematology Clinic and the Ambulatory Treatment Center. Navarro manages both departments, which offer infusion services to different patient populations.
Accustomed to working with a high-level team in her former department, Navarro was dismayed by what she saw. Uncertain how best to proceed, she reached out to Annamarie Marin, a union partnership representative.
In need of help
Sometimes Marin works with teams because she’s assigned to work with them. Other times, she is responding to those who reach out and ask for help.
“The UBT was not a functioning UBT,” says Navarro. “With the help of Annamarie, our team moved from what looked like a Level 0 to a Level 4.”
The department did not have a strong partnership culture before Navarro came on board, says Rosa Camacho, RN, the team’s union co-lead and a member of UNAC/UHCP.
“We were very understaffed and we lacked teamwork,” Camacho recalls. “Everyone was doing their own job.”
Shared understanding
Marin helped the 28-member team with some core pieces that all successful unit-based teams need to have in place, including a shared understanding of their roles and responsibilities. She attended team meetings and trained employees how to use the UBT Tracker, the online tool that teams use to report their work.
She also worked with them on how to incorporate the Rapid Improvement Model into their work and use small tests of change to improve performance. That led to a successful project last year that streamlined central line supplies. Instead of ordering expensive kits, now the department orders only what it needs, saving more than $2,600 yearly.
“She’s very hands-on and patient,” says Camacho. “She’s always around whenever we need help.”
