Family Ties - Tampa Shriners Hospitals for Children Newsletter Vol. 1 Issue 5, Page 3

Bits & Pieces
by Alice Langford, RN, MSN, ONC, CNAA Director of Patient Services

Shining Stars!! Once again the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals (JCAHO) has given our staff and facilities their mark of excellence. We received a score of 98 out of a possible 100 and obtained accreditation for another three years. The JCAHO surveys all of the Hospitals in the United States and scores our hospital on hundreds of strict standards in the following areas: patient rights and organizational ethics, assessments of patients, care of patients, education, continuum of care, improving organizational performance, leadership, management of the environment of care, management of human resources, management of information, surveillance, prevention, and control of infection as well as governance, management, medical staff, and nursing. The staff, volunteers, and Board of Governors of this hospital work very hard to achieve this type of excellence and we welcome this opportunity to shine. Congratulate the staff and volunteers, the next time you are at the hospital. We truly feel that they are the Shining Stars!

Patient! family satisfaction continues to be very high according to the Picker Surveys that our discharged inpatients are filling out and returning to the survey company. We appreciate all the families who take the time to fill out these surveys. We know this takes more effort on your part, but we truly want to know how we can improve in any area. We really love to read your comments. Keep helping us get better! We want to be able to exceed your expectations when you visit our hospital!

You will be seeing some new faces when you come to clinic and/or are being admitted into the hospital. These new faces will be those of the new Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioners (ARNPs) and Physician Assistant (PA). Our hospital will no longer be involved in the orthopaedic residency programs as we have in the past. The ARNPs and PA will be filling a similar type of role as the physician residents did previously. We are disappointed in losing our residency teaching program, but nationally there are fewer residents available due to the managed care environment in health care today. However, the good news is that the ARNPs and PA will be our employees and this will give you more continuity in your care and a familiar face to see when you are at the hospital. The ARNPs and PA will be working very closely with the attending orthopedic surgeons and our pediatrician. They will be seeing you in clinic and be following you during your hospital admission. We hope you will like this new system. As always, let us know what you think.

Piccadilly's "Home Away from Home" Program Kicks-off
by Alicia Argiz
Director of Public Relations & Volunteer Services

Piccadilly managers and United Cab kick off
"Home Away from Home" Program at Shriners Hospital

Shriners Hospitals for Children in Tampa introduced Piccadilly Cafeteria’s new charitable program, "Home Away from Home," to patients and their families on May 5.

The "Home Away from Home" program is directed towards out-of-town families who have a hospitalized child. Upon the child’s admission to Shriners Hospital, the Family Services and Nursing Departments identify families meeting established criteria and register them for the program.

Executive Vice President and District Manager of Piccadilly Cafeteria Frank Frantom and six managers from the Tampa area visited Shriners Hospital to tour the facility and help kick off the "Home Away from Home" program on May 5. United Cab General Manager Nancy Castellano and Marketing Director Victor D’Maio also participated by arranging transportation to Piccadilly for the patients and families.

Piccadilly managers were introduced to Shriners Hospitals patient Victoria Martinez and her mother Graciela Martinez, from Uraguay. They were the first family to participate in "Home Away From Home." Graciela and another patient’s mom were treated to lunch at Piccadilly as part of the "Home Away From Home" program and they really enjoyed their visit to the Piccadilly near the hospital.

Several other patient moms especially appreciated the program on Mother’s Day when they enjoyed a delicious meal at Piccadilly with visiting family members.

More than 20 families have participated in the program since it started as a test market at the Shriners Hospital in Tampa. Families receive a "Home Away From Home" folder that includes a numbered identification card and book of vouchers entitling them to one free dining visit to Piccadilly per voucher.

Shriners Hospital is very grateful to Piccadilly and United Cab Company for participating in this valuable community partnership to enhance the lives of our patients and their families.

New CP Coordinator
Appointed
byAnne Kelly RN Director of Quality &
Risk Management

Some of you may be thinking that Shriners Hospital Cerebral Palsy Coordinator Susan Angelos looks very familiar. Well, you wouldn’t be wrong.

Prior to her marriage, Susan worked at Tampa General’s NICU with some of our patients and their families. Her name at that time was Susan Fernandez.

She says,"It has been such a nice surprise to see these same children and families and to be able to follow-up with them here at Shriners Hospital."

Susan is a native of Tampa and graduated from the University of South Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. She worked at Tampa General Hospital for 14 years and then worked at a pediatric community based agency in Tampa for four years. Susan speaks Spanish and is already helping us develop a teaching guide for our Spanish speaking families.

She is very pleased to be working at Shriners where she states, "We don’t have the financial restrictions encountered by other hospitals. The result," she states, "is that we can provide the care and services that the children need."

Her personal goal in her new role is just that to see that the children receive the continuum of care and that they receive the services they need. When she is not at work, Susan enjoys being with her family. Together, her husband and her 21-month old son enjoy traveling, going to the beach, and just spending time together.

Please join us in welcoming Susan to Shriners and to her role as CP Coordinator. If she looks familiar to you, stop and talk to her. She really enjoys seeing the children and families that she worked with as part of her otherjobs.