Overview
Bergan Mercy Medical Center is one of five metro Omaha/Council Bluffs hospitals that comprise Alegent Health, the largest not-for-profit, faith-based healthcare system in Nebraska and southwestern Iowa. This 400-bed facility was recently recognized by Modern Healthcare magazine as one of the nation’s Top 100 Hospitals, and acknowledged by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) as one of 15 "Hospitals with a Heart".
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Embracing Access
Renae Manning, the day Clinical Lead for the Intensive Care Unit at Bergan Mercy Medical Center, is breathing a bit easier these days as the once mountainous piles of paper consuming her desk have been reduced to mole hills. In September of 2008, Manning’s high volume unit went live with Staff Member Access, the automated and paperless staff communication tool embedded within Smart Square.
"With the number of staff members we have, all of whom have busy lives, our process before Staff Member Access bordered on mayhem," Manning said. "It was a real train wreck of paper. With a unit as busy as ours, it was a real challenge to stay on top of all the paperwork."
Forms misplaced, not filled out clearly or correctly, the need to track down staff members to clarify misunderstandings and the simply overwhelming amount of requests led to delayed decisions, upset employees and frustrated managers.
"It was a nightmare," said Ali Bruckner, Operations Director for the Intensive Care Unit. "To have my Clinical Leads bogged down with so much paperwork, in addition to their responsibilities to the staff and to our patients, was a real waste of their time and talents."
With Staff Member Access, supervisors can manage schedule requests and shift changes/trades, post notifications to staff members, and receive updates on the Smart Square software from any computer with internet access at any hour of the day or night.
"It’s a delicate reality. I want happy staff, but I need a balanced schedule." |
"It really couldn’t be any easier to use," Bruckner said. "My managers now get several hours back each week that they can devote to their real jobs, caring for our patients and mentoring our staff."
With the ability to view multiple weeks on a single screen, and clearly see future staffing needs anticipated by the Predictive Model, the engine that powers Smart Square’s proactive staffing capabilities, managers have the peace of mind knowing their decisions regarding staff requests are supported by accurate data.
"It’s a delicate reality," Manning said. "I want happy staff, but I need a balanced schedule. This is much easier to accomplish now. My staff doesn’t have to wait to get to work to manage their schedule or submit a request. They just log in from home, or anywhere else, and do what they need to do. It saves a ton of time and paper. Paperless is beautiful."
"I simply don’t know how we ever managed our schedules before getting Staff Member Access," said Jessica Moore, RN. "Being able to just send a request to a coworker or my manager through Smart Square has taken all the silly running around and calling everyone to see if they can make a trade out of the equation. It has really simplified the process."
In addition to processing employee requests and trades, Staff Member Access also serves as a messaging tool for managers to communicate with their staff. Managers can post messages to all staff, select groups of staff or certain individuals. These communications greet staff members when they log-in to Smart Square. Managers can monitor the status of any delivered message to easily determine who has or has not yet read the posted message.
"We have all the information we need right at our fingertips." |
"This sort of tracking is invaluable," Bruckner said. "There is no more guess work wondering whether or not staff have checked their e-mail or have read the posted notices. My managers and I don’t have the time to wait around and play guessing games, and thanks to Smart Square, we don’t have to. We have all the information we need right at our fingertips."
About Avantas
Avantas is an Omaha, Nebraska-based company recognized for its proven best-practice work strategies for the health industry. Majority owner, Alegent Health also serves as the test environment for Avantas products and services. Blending state-of-the-art technology and sound business processes, Avantas Work Strategies create a precise balance of labor supply to patient demand across the client enterprise, regardless of size or geographic location.
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