News Briefs Around Sentara 

Network: February/March 2009
Members of the Team

Sentara Hospitals Undergo Disaster Preparedness
In compliance with Joint Commission requirements, all Sentara Hospitals test the effectiveness of their Emergency Operations Plans by conducting two training exercises per year.

The design of the exercises tries to reflect a likely disaster and test the capability of the facility to continue to provide care, treatment and services. At least one of the emergency response exercises includes an influx of simulated patients, and one must include an escalating event in which the local community is unable to support the hospital. One of the exercises must involve participation with other community partners and is considered a regional event. All exercises must test the hospital's ability to evaluate its handling of communications, resources and assets, security, staff roles and responsibilities, utilities and patient care.

Designated individuals are assigned the role of evaluators to monitor performance and assist in documentation of an after action report which is used to identify any deficiencies and opportunities for improvement.  All Sentara hospitals use an incident command structure that is compliant with National Incident Management System (NIMS) requirements. The administrative staff in all Sentara hospitals have received NIMS training that helps ensure that emergency management and response personnel can function together effectively during an incident. All exercises require the activation of the hospital command center and use of their emergency operations plan.  

Sentara Leigh Hospital Introduces Young Women’s Breast Cancer Support Group
Sentara Leigh Hospital’s Comprehensive Breast Center initiated a new support group for young female breast cancer survivors under the age of 50. The goal is to provide increased support for women who develop breast cancer in their 20s, 30s or 40s and to address their unique needs as they attempt to juggle family obligations, young children, careers, education, body image, intimacy, sexuality and treatment. Meetings are planned for the second Thursday of each month from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Sentara Leigh Breast Center conference room. Dr. Jennifer Reed of Norfolk Surgical Group, will serve as medical director for the group and meetings will focus on education as well as emotional and psychological support. For more information, contact Laurie Jesz, Sentara Leigh patient navigator, at (757) 261-5404. Read more about Sentara support groups.  

Forensic Nurse Examiner Program Earns Grant
Congratulations to the Sentara Norfolk General Hospital Forensic Nurse Examiner Program for being awarded a competitive grant from the Department of Criminal Justice Services. The grant money will support various program needs such as victim advocate assistance, salaries for on call nurses, training and education and computer upgrades. The program operates under Medical Director Dr. Kelly Foley and Director Rusty Bradfield. Congratulations to all involved in the program including the forensic nurse examiners and thank you all for your hard work and dedication. Members of the Sentara Norfolk General Nurse Examiner Program include: Angie Laing, RN; Nicole Gray, RN; Julie Rogers, RN;  Debra Blakenship, RN; Dianna Cobb, RN; Tracey Santiful, RN; and Kristina Parvin, RN.

Nightingale Pilots Retire, New Pilots On Board
Richard Fedorowicz flew Nightingale’s first mission on Feb. 25, 1982, from Virginia Beach General Hospital to Portsmouth Naval Hospital at the height of rush hour. During his career with Sentara, Dick contributed greatly to Nightingale’s flawless safety record involving more than 16,000 flights. He retired recently,  as did another veteran, well-respected Nightingale pilot, Dave Bashista, last summer. In their places, crew members of the Nightingale Regional Air Ambulance welcomed two experienced pilots who have each logged more than 4,000 hours in the cockpit: Joe Sherman, an Air Force and Coast Guard veteran, and Jim Garrow, a former Navy pilot who continues to fly with the Naval Reserves.

Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital Receives Best Practice Award  
Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital has received the Best Practice Award for Infection Control from Courtemanche and Associates. With a focus on "back to basics," Sen­tara was able to reduce its rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infections in the ICU to below the national average. Courtemanche and Associates works with leaders at hospitals and health care organizations to achieve regulatory compliance and accreditation success while minimizing patient risks and improving organizational effectiveness. Each year, they hold an annual conference and recognize those health care institutions na­tionwide who have demonstrated superior excellence and best practices in sev­eral categories.

Sentara Holds Vendor Meeting
In an effort to maintain and enhance Sentara's vendor partnerships, Sentara Materials Management Division held a vendor policy review meeting on January 22, 2009, at the Holiday Inn Executive Center in Virginia Beach. The meeting was successful with more than 500 attendees representing various vendors that do business with Sentara. The audience heard from Dave Bernd, Sentara's chief executive officer, who addressed the economic pressures in healthcare and Sentara's need to maintain cost-containment in our product lines. Bert Reese, senior vice president/corporate services, updated the vendors on Sentara's 2009 goals. Carl Manley, vice president of Materials Management, as well as others from the division, updated the vendors on Sentara's priority initiative on global standards, important changes in the Vendor Code of Conduct policy, Sentara's smoke-free environment, and the revised recall policy and expense recovery process. At the end of the meeting, the team addressed vendors' questions/concerns about the changes.

Sentara Steps Up HIPAA Awareness Effort
In an effort to increase regular system-wide communication and day-to-day awareness about HIPAA, Sentara managers are now receiving regular reminders about HIPAA issues from Sentara Privacy Officer Marion Swaim. The communication is being sent from a new email address, privacy_officer@sentara.com, and will include scenario-based illustrations which may be used to support departmental training. “Sentara is serious about protecting our patients’ privacy,” said Swaim. “We want to provide our employees with some real life examples and how the privacy rule applies to those situations. It is hoped that managers will use these scenarios to have discussions with their team members and promote awareness."

 FIRRST Team Launched at Sentara CarePlex Hospital
In December 2008, Sentara CarePlex Hospital introduced the Family Initiated Rapid Response Safety Team (FIRRST), a tool for patients and families to further enhance Sentara’s culture of safety. FIRRST allows patients or family members to initiate an emergency call to the Safety Response Team from within the hospital if they detect subtle changes in a patient’s condition that may not be apparent to the health care team. It creates a partnership between patients, families, visitors, nurses and physicians and helps hospitals comply with national patient safety goals by encouraging patients to be actively involved in their own care. This systemwide patient safety initiative is now available at all Sentara hospitals.