The crises of Covid-19 and police brutality have highlighted systemic racial inequity in the United States and the need to consciously dismantle the forces that cause racial health disparities. PA students Scarlett Reyes and Jocelyn Cortez brought together Black patients at the University of Utah to share their experiences. Their advice: build cultural competence and be mindful of microaggressions.
Hospitalist Ryan Murphy introduces quality improvement (QI): The systematic and continuous approach to improvement.
Performing a rapid critical appraisal helps evaluate a study for its worth by ensuring validity, meaningful data, and significance to the patient. Contributors Barb Wilson, Mary Jean Austria, and Tallie Casucci share a checklist of questions to complete a rapid critical appraisal efficiently and effectively.
We all do it. We draw a blank on our password, get locked out of login, “…duo what?” and so on. And then we wait for a University of Utah Health service desk saint who makes our machine work again. To help lighten their load a bit—and make our lives easier—we asked ITS Manager Mike Madsen for his “Top 4” preventive measures to avoid a call.
Patient Experience Program Coordinator Corrie Harris and Project Administrator Emily Izzo explain how to get valuable patient feedback early in your improvement efforts by meeting with the U of U Health Patient Design Studio and Advise Utah.
How are we building digital literacy? Chief Information Officer Donna Roach and Sr. Director of Patient Experience Mari Ransco share how using design thinking and seeing care through the eyes of our patients is a great place to start.
Every summer, senior value engineer Cindy Spangler stocks our offices with an abundance of tomatoes, zucchini, and squash. We asked her to share how improvement thinking influences her gardening. Turns out, there are parallels–learn from others, stick to your scope, and learn from the mistakes.
Every summer, Utahns head to the mountains for camping, biking, rafting and other activities. And every summer, many a family is left without a stove, or a helmet, or a…because it was left at home. Thrill-seeker and value engineer Cindy Spangler wants to prevent your next packing mishap with a customized camping checklist.
When a medical error occurs, the patient is not the only person affected. Pediatric intensivist Brian Flaherty and psychologist Megan Call describe how caregivers can be impacted by medical error and provide strategies to cope.
How do you design a digital strategy? Chief Information Officer Donna Roach explains that it all begins with listening to your customer. Here, she guides us step-by-step through designing Utah’s digital roadmap.
Rural and frontier communities have a harder time accessing care due to long distances and a shortage of medical resources in their own communities. The leaders of the Rural & Underserved Utah Training Experience (RUUTE) program, Kylie Christensen (medical school) and Sri Koduri (residency programs/GME), share what they’ve learned about improving access for rural communities now and into the future.
The Zero Suicide initiative has been shown to significantly reduce suicides—and working toward zero suicides is our mission. Rachael Jasperson, Zero Suicide program manager, shares the framework for how we strive for this aspirational goal.
