February 13, 2024
Hi Team –
Happy Mardi Gras or “Fat Tuesday!” For Catholics and many Christians, this is a day of celebration and enjoying those final indulgences before the start of the Lenten season of reflection, sacrifice, and self-improvement. And the 40-day Lenten season begins tomorrow on Ash Wednesday and culminates on Easter Sunday, March 31. Tomorrow, we also celebrate Valentine’s Day, another special day to “give from the heart” to all of those we love and care about.
At TriHealth, these holidays are yet another reminder of our own faith-based mission of service, which is guided by our values and a bold vision to Get Healthcare Right for those we serve and those who serve, always! And, here’s the latest roundup of our progress in doing just that...
Getting Healthcare Right
Bethesda North Opens New Technologically Advanced Inpatient Floor
Yesterday, I was joined by Tina Corson, Bethesda North Nurse Manager, Eugenia Thomas, major donor, Dr. Clint Hutson, President of Bethesda North, Dr. Doug Adams, Medical Director of Thoracic Surgery, John Ward, TriHealth SVP, and many others in a ribbon-cutting celebration for the new 8th floor Nursing Unit on the Bethesda North Campus (see pictures below). This marked the next milestone in the development of the Thomas Heart & Vascular Center on the campus. And this new unit is yet another example of how we are Getting Healthcare Right for those we serve!
I have talked regularly about how “Getting Healthcare Right” involves adoption of innovative health and wellness-focused care models aimed at prevention of illness, early detection of disease, and better management of chronic conditions – all to deliver better care, better health, and better value to every patient we serve. In addition, Getting Healthcare Right also requires “transformational” investment in our hospitals, ambulatory campuses, service lines, and physician practices to ensure that we consistently provide the right care at the right time in the right place to produce the right clinical outcomes at the right cost.
So, six years ago, we made the decision to pursue a bold, new clinical vision aimed at delivering the most advanced heart, vascular and thoracic services by embracing even more integrated and coordinated multidisciplinary care models and constructing the facilities that would support them. In doing so, we would bring our growing patient population convenient access to the highest quality, safest, and most advanced heart and vascular care close to home. And over time, we would become the region’s most trusted provider and the destination for heart and vascular care.
This vision began to take shape in 2018 with the difficult, but necessary, decision to consolidate our two “good” heart surgery programs, located at Good Samaritan and Bethesda North, into one fully integrated, “great” cardiac surgery program on the campus of Bethesda North. And just two years later, our newly combined cardiac surgery program was – and continues to be – recognized by the Society for Thoracic Surgeons (STS) as a Three-Star program (the highest possible rating based on morbidity, mortality and clinical outcomes). This places TriHealth in the top 10% of all such programs nationally – and among just a handful of STS Three-Star programs in Ohio!! And this was made possible ONLY because we took the steps to concentrate many of our most advanced clinical resources and expertise – cardiac surgery, intensivists, perfusionists, advanced heart failure, mechanical circulatory support, and others – into one location, where we are now consistently producing unparalleled clinical outcomes, improved safety, and an exceptional patient and family experience.
And we’ve continued to make impressive progress ever since, as evidenced by:
- Development of the Thomas Heart & Vascular Center – a state-of-the-art “hospital within a hospital” that has quickly become the trusted provider and destination for the most advanced and complex comprehensive cardiac care.
- Creation of TriHealth’s Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) surgical program for end-stage heart failure patients.
- Development of new and existing clinical programs, ranging from cardiac imaging, advanced heart failure, structural heart, chronic total occlusion, vascular heart surgery, and electrophysiology, among others.
- Construction of a new 30,000-square-foot cardiac catheter lab with nine procedure rooms, which opened in December 2022 to enable our physicians and team members to provide the highest quality, most advanced care to patients.
- Establishment of TriHealth’s landmark affiliation with the Cleveland Clinic Heart, Vascular and Thoracic Institute, the world’s leading heart program.
As we create the Thomas Heart & Vascular Center for the most specialized and complex care, we are also continuing to invest in and expand access to cardiology and vascular services throughout our entire system. One important example is the $240 million investment in Good Sam to transform the campus into a comprehensive inpatient and outpatient medical hub of the future. This state-of-the-art healthcare hub will also house a full range of heart and vascular services to provide Good Sam and West Side patients timely access to care. And similar investments have already been made to expand heart and vascular services at our major Western Ridge ambulatory campus.The new 8th floor Nursing Unit unveiled yesterday at Bethesda North is located in the “300 Tower” and will provide specialized care for patients recovering from cardiothoracic and oncologic surgery. The floor’s upgrades are designed to elevate patient safety through use of the latest physiologic monitoring and fall prevention technology. And with an eye toward enhancing the patient and visitor experience, the 44 new private rooms are larger than traditional hospital rooms to more comfortably accommodate visitors and create an environment where patients and families can feel “seen and heard” as an integral part of the healing and recovery process.
This is just one of many major milestones now completed or underway as part of the Thomas Heart & Vascular Center and Bethesda North Campus transformation, including:
- The renovation of all Cardiovascular Intensive Care Units (CVICUs), with added bathrooms and showers.
- The addition of a second patient transport elevator to improve patient flow and enhance patient safety.
- The opening of the newly located and expanded Cath Lab patient and family waiting room, which is significantly improving the patient and family experience.
- The activation in early January of the first 14 of 27 newly renovated pre-/post-recovery bays, with the remaining 13 scheduled to be completed in early May.
- Improvements to the exterior of the Emergency Department (ED), which will be completed this spring, providing clear identification, easier entry and exit, and a covered drop-off area.
- Soon-to-begin work to create a new main entrance and lobby for Bethesda North with enhanced wayfinding and new branding of the Thomas Heart & Vascular Center, along with a direct pathway and enhanced access to the Center on Bethesda North’s Campus. Other improvements as part of this project include:
o Relocation of the pharmacy for easier patient access
o Combining the café and gift shop in a single space for an enhanced visitor experience.
Look for regular updates on our Bethesda North Campus transformation progress, as well as other important projects underway throughout the system, in upcoming Weekly Updates and Town Halls.
Black History Month
TriHealth’s celebration of Black History Month is off to a good start with a number of fun and engaging activities already in full swing. Whether it’s unique lunch offerings from Black-owned food trucks or great shopping experiences with Black-owned businesses, we’ve had many opportunities to learn more about the culture and significant contributions of African Americans, and there is more to come!And speaking of what’s ahead, I hope you will join me, Dr. Shockley, and other TriHealth leaders, team members, and physicians on Wednesday, February 28 from 1-2pm at the Legacy Conference Room at TriHealth Baldwin (or via livestream) for what promises to be an important and enlightening panel discussion titled, "Honoring Black History in Healthcare – Past, Present, and the Future." During this program, we will examine the subject of health equity and discuss how and why TriHealth is leading the way to eliminate health disparities throughout our community – important work that is grounded in our mission and guided by our vision to Get Healthcare Right. The session will be livestreamed on Bridge and recorded for those unable to view live or attend in person. Click here to learn more.
TriHealth Recognized with Healthy Worksite Award
Getting Healthcare Right in many ways starts with supporting the health and wellbeing of our team members and physicians. Why? Because it’s the “right thing to do,” and also because being “at our best” allows us to “do our best” for all those we serve and those we serve beside. So at TriHealth, we take this responsibility seriously and have been working hard to enhance the health and wellbeing of our team members and physicians – and create a culture of trust and wellbeing – in ways you’ve told us are most important to you. And that’s why we were excited to recently learn that TriHealth has been awarded the 2023 Healthy Worksite Gold Level distinction from the Healthy Business Council of Ohio. The Healthy Worksite Award recognizes exemplary employers in Ohio who demonstrate a commitment to employee wellness through comprehensive worksite health promotion and wellness programs. Special thanks to our Corporate Health and TriHealth LifeStyles teams for leading the way in fostering a healthy work environment throughout our system for our team members and physicians.
Recognizing Our Team with a New Year of More Great Ways to Say Thank You!
With the new year comes new opportunities to cheer on our local sports teams, and also recognize our own team members and physicians by offering complimentary tickets and fun raffles and giveaways!! The Reds will soon report to Spring Training and, once again, we will be providing every TriHealth team member and physician a pair of free tickets to enjoy a home game at Great American Ball Park this season on TriHealth! But first, we want to give you a chance to cheer on our other championship team, FC Cincinnati! Coming off a thrilling season and first place conference finish last year, we’re all looking forward to another exciting season of FC Cincinnati soccer again this year. So, to kick off the new year, TriHealth will be sending eight lucky team members and their guests to FCC’s first match of the 2024 season on Sunday, February 25 at TQL Stadium versus Toronto FC. To register for your chance to win a pair of suite tickets, simply click here to complete the short entry form before the deadline on Friday, February 16 at 9am. We’ll randomly draw the names of eight team members and announce them in my next Weekly Update! Good Luck!!
Join Us for Our February Team Member Town Hall Next Tuesday
Please make plans to join us next week – Tuesday, February 20 at noon on Bridge for our next Team Member Town Hall livestream. We will share important updates on our work to Get Healthcare Right, celebrate wins, discuss challenges facing TriHealth and our industry, and answer your questions – with some cool TriHealth prizes for those who join the conversation! So be sure to email your questions to TownHall@trihealth.com.
I hope you have a Happy Valentine’s Day tomorrow, and as always thank you for putting your “heart” into everything you do here at TriHealth! I recognize that it’s not always easy, but together we are making a real and positive difference in so many ways for our community and our patients who are increasingly choosing TriHealth and YOU as their preferred healthcare provider!
Together, we are Getting Healthcare Right! Our patients are healthier, our services are more accessible, and our care is more affordable…and it’s all because of you!