Rutland Regional Medical Center (RRMC)

Challenge

RRMC needed to design, develop and deliver a whole-system Performance Improvement (PI) initiative that would allow RRMC to re-engineer its core business processes, design a Leadership Effectiveness Program and improve the satisfaction levels of various stakeholder groups including physicians, staff and patients. It would also enable the organization to realize related initiatives that were key to achieving its vision of being the best hospital in New England.

Solution

Over two years, 15 project teams—supported by senior leadership—interviewed stakeholders, gathered and analyzed data and created innovations that had a significant impact on the operations of the hospital. IPI consultants used a Plan, Do, Check, Act methodology as the foundation, incorporating traditional quality tools as well as Appreciative Inquiry, change-management and Project-management tools. Topics included transition management, stakeholder engagement, data gathering and analysis, project management, team development and facilitation skills. This enabled teams and management to make sound decisions regarding whether, or how, to implement system-wide improvements.

Results

There was an 83 percent reduction in paper waste by going to paperless billing, patient satisfaction in the psychiatric ward was raised dramatically (Press Ganey results showed that RRMC jumped from the 30th to the 90th percentile), the level of accuracy in care increased by 16 percent to 92 percent and patients admitted through the Emergency Department were admitted to beds 70 percent faster. The results also supported the opening of additional beds.

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