Check out October’s snapshots highlighting how
we put Human Understanding™ into practice.

Maine Medical Center has nothing ‘bundt’ love and appreciation for employees

How do you nourish team morale and recognize healthcare providers for the unique ways in which they care for patients? If you’re the PX leaders at Maine Medical Center, you get creative in how you demonstrate appreciation for the patient experience your caregivers provide.  

In January 2021, Maine Medical Center launched a monthly pilot program for its inpatient, radiology, and emergency departments to deliver gorgeously ornate Nothing Bundt Cake “Bundtlets”—individually packaged personal gourmet bundt cakes with frosting—to celebrate team members who are mentioned by name in NRC Health’s patient surveys.  

“I had seen a similar program at another health system earlier in my career, and I was struck by how well care-team members had responded to it,” says Jennifer McCarthy, the organization’s chief operating officer. “I thought the connection between exemplary care and patient experience, and the fact that patients remembered a care-team member’s name—even while undergoing the complexity of an inpatient stay—would really resonate with our team here at Maine Medical Center.” 

And McCarthy’s hunch paid off, as care teams quickly embraced “Care So Good They Remembered My Name.” 

Find out more about how you could create a program that honors exceptional moments for special patient comments.  

How recognition can be the path to resilience

Now more than ever, healthcare faces more stressed and worried employees, who are less engaged and leave the workforce in record numbers. Depressing? Not if we recognize that organizations have the power and responsibility to improve their employees’ well-being, and can do so when they cultivate the whole person at work—not just the employee. 

Consider these facts:  

• According to a 2021 Deloitte poll, employee productivity, performance, and engagement are 14% higher in organizations with recognition programs than in organizations without them.  
• A 2019 SHRM study found that 79% of millennials surveyed said that increasing rewards would make them more loyal to their employer.  
• A February 2022 study by Morning Consult and Axios showed that 31% of employees found hiring more workers to be effective at keeping them happy at their jobs, versus 38% who said that more frequent praise from bosses kept them happy. 

2022 NRC Health Symposium speaker Nick DeStefano, M.S., Service Experience Process Manager with McLeod Health, says that while keeping employees happy can be an uphill battle, resilience is not just something you either have or don’t have—it’s a skill that can be learned. 

Discover what successful recognition programs have in common, along with how to use NRC Health’s feedback to fuel recognition, in DeSefano’s presentation. 

Don’t forget to save the date for NRC Health’s 29th Annual Symposium 2023 in Boston!

Do you know what the 5th Revolution is that will re-humanize healthcare?

Why do some apple pies taste better than others? It’s all about people and process.  

The latest episode of the Patient No Longer podcast, “The Fifth Revolution,” features Jorge Torres, Culture Architect for Mount Sinai Medical Center and co-author of the book Hardwiring Magic. 

Jorge Torres is a former mechanical and electrical engineer who has studied business systems across the globe, including in the airline industry, where he advised the biggest merger the industry had ever seen. Drawn to healthcare’s potential and complexity, Torres lays out his vision for the Fifth Revolution in healthcare, zooming in on the details that help great organizations overcome incredible challenges and zooming out to the big ideas that will restore healthcare to its initial purpose: fostering human relationships rather than dehumanized transactions.  

“Organizations that can switch to create a strong sense of purpose—a strong sense of relevance, relationship, and personal time—are the ones that will survive by attracting and retaining employees, which is one of the biggest issues healthcare is having right now,” Torres says. 

Learn how to start a transformation from the bottom up in this episode of Patient No Longer.  

Register for NRC Health’s 2023 Pediatric Collaborative in Phoenix 

NRC Health is excited to partner with Phoenix Children’s for the 2023 Pediatric Collaborative on March 28 and 29. NRC Health’s Pediatric Collaborative creates opportunities for partners to connect, learn something new, and leave inspired to make a positive change. Don’t miss a chance to make invaluable pediatric connections, dive deeper into strategic education, and reignite your passion with inspiring speakers.