Physician satisfaction with the services we provide is a key indicator of our progress toward our vision. The FY 2011 Medical Staff Engagement Survey, which has been extended through Tuesday, June 7, requests your opinion regarding patient care quality, hospital / medical staff leadership, and access to information technology you need. Our goal is to achieve 85 percent participation. We are currently at 51 percent participation so if you have not taken the survey yet, you have one more week to do so. The survey provides an opportunity for you to give candid feedback to administrative and physician leaders and to identify areas for further improvement.
As survey responses are confidential, we do not know who has or has not yet completed the survey. Thank you to those of you who have taken the time to complete the survey providing feedback as to what is working well and opportunities for improvement.
Once again, Press Ganey Associates is administering the survey and individual responses will be confidential. The survey can be completed online or by paper and should only take 10-15 minutes to complete. You should have received a hard copy of the survey in the mail, along with a 16 character PIN number in case you prefer to complete the survey online at https://esurvey.pressganey.com.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
UpToDate Reminder
Last month, WellStar Health System purchased a System subscription to UpToDate®, the Internet-based clinical decision support system which includes CME credit. All Medical Staff members (physicians and advanced practitioners) are able to access UpToDate® from the Physician Portal.
If you currently have your own individual subscription, do not cancel your subscription until you transfer your CME credits to your new account. Unclaimed CME credits will not be available for processing once your individual subscription has been canceled. For assistance on how to merge your accounts, cancel your individual subscription and get a refund for unused months, please call UpToDate's Customer Service Department at 1-800-998-6374. You will also receive information from Petra Young, Director of CME and Library Services, explaining how to merge your accounts.
If you currently have your own individual subscription, do not cancel your subscription until you transfer your CME credits to your new account. Unclaimed CME credits will not be available for processing once your individual subscription has been canceled. For assistance on how to merge your accounts, cancel your individual subscription and get a refund for unused months, please call UpToDate's Customer Service Department at 1-800-998-6374. You will also receive information from Petra Young, Director of CME and Library Services, explaining how to merge your accounts.
New Medical Staff as Approved at the May WellStar Governing Board Meeting
For a complete list of new medical staff, click "Read more>>."
Wellstar Kennestone Hospital Receives “3 Star” Quality Rating!
WellStar Health System has received a “3 Star” rating from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS). STS has developed a comprehensive rating system for the quality of cardiac surgery among hospitals. Only 12-15 percent of hospitals across the country received the “3 Star” rating, which denotes the highest category of quality for clinical excellence based on National Quality Forum (NQF) standards.
In the current analysis of national data covering the period from January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010, the cardiac surgery performance of WellStar Kennestone Hospital was within the top tier thereby earning the STS - “3 Star” Rating.
Surgical Equipment, Technology and Supplies (SETS) Team Sets Priorities
The goal of the SETS Team is to assess and prioritize surgical equipment, technology and supply agreements or acquisitions to maximize the value (clinical efficacy/cost) to the WellStar Surgery Network. SETS does this through the following ways:
- Recommends opportunities and initiatives to increase quality and reduce cost through standardization of equipment, technologies and supplies.
- Reviews and approves new surgical equipment, technology and supplies that are more than $50,000.
- Makes recommendations to the Surgery Finance Team and Opportunities Innovation Assessment Committee for approval on products more than $500,000.
- Reviews new item requests from hospital and physician leaders as requested.
- Establish utilization protocols for high dollar impact supplies
- Identifies assesses, and prioritizes new and existing opportunities to increase value.
The team includes independent and WellStar Medical Group surgeons, administrators, nurses and materials management staff. For a list of SETS team members, click "Read more>>."
WellStar North Cobb Pediatrics to Begin Seeing Patients on Saturdays
As of June 4, WellStar North Cobb Pediatrics will be open on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Providers at this practice include:
Jeffrey Hasty, M.D.
Charles Hutchinson, M.D.
James Nalley, M.D.
Monica Moore, M.D.
Providers at this practice include:
Jeffrey Hasty, M.D.
Charles Hutchinson, M.D.
James Nalley, M.D.
Monica Moore, M.D.
- Pediatricians see patients from newborn to age 21 for well visits, sick visits, immunizations and sports physicals.
- Prenatal tours are available for expectant parents.
- The practice offers same day same day appointments and most patients can be seen in 45-minutes from check-in to check-out.
- Now accepting patients and most insurance plans.
Recovery Audit Contractor: Physician Issues
What are the RACs?
The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 established the Medicare Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) program covering healthcare entities such as hospitals and physician practices effective Jan. 1, 2010. The RAC program is a cost containment effort aimed at reducing improper payments (overpayments and underpayments) made by Medicare, as well as identifying process improvements to reduce or eliminate future improper payments. While hospitals have been receiving RAC denials for some time, we are beginning to see an increase in physician specific issues posted by the RAC.
The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 established the Medicare Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) program covering healthcare entities such as hospitals and physician practices effective Jan. 1, 2010. The RAC program is a cost containment effort aimed at reducing improper payments (overpayments and underpayments) made by Medicare, as well as identifying process improvements to reduce or eliminate future improper payments. While hospitals have been receiving RAC denials for some time, we are beginning to see an increase in physician specific issues posted by the RAC.
WellStar Pulmonary Medicine Chooses Laura Peno-Green, M.D., to Anchor its Paulding Practice
Dr. Peno-Green received her Doctorate of Medicine from the University of South Alabama and she completed her residency and fellowship at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. She is board certified in Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care Medicine. Dr. Peno-Green has been with WellStar Pulmonary for 14 years.
Physician Leadership Academy
Click here for the PLA 3 schedule.
WellStar Physicians Make Lifestyle Magazine’s 2011 Top Docs List
Congratulations to the following WellStar physicians who were named to Lifestyles Magazine's 2011 Top Docs list.
WellStar Medical Group Physicians (as nominated by their peers)
Steve Cohen, M.D. – WellStar Cobb Medical Group
Paula Greaves, M.D. – WellStar Northwest Women's Care
David Parks, M.D. – ENT Associates of North Georgia
Arthur Reitman, M.D. – WellStar Cardiovascular Medicine
Christopher Riddell, M.D. – WellStar Psychiatry
Mitzi Rubin, M.D. – WellStar Family Medicine
David Schlosnagle, M.D. – WellStar Pathologists
Independent WellStar Affiliated Physicians:
Chris Andersen, M.D. – Summit Surgical Specialists
Ryan Chen, M.D. – Resurgens Orthopaedics
David Hafner, M.D. – Vascular Surgical Associates
Jeffrey Hines, M.D. – Southeastern Gynecologic Oncology
Joe Hormes, M.D. – Marietta Neurology & Headache Center
Michele Perez, M.D. – Resurgens Orthopaedics
William Redwood, M.D. – WellStar Kennestone Emergency Department
Todd Sacks, M.D. – Resurgens Orthopaedics
Robert Strauss, M.D. – Gastrointestinal Specialists of Georgia
Murphy Townsend, M.D. – Urological Surgery
Paul Zolty, M.D. – Georgia Lung
GE Centricity Perinatal System Launches at the WellStar Douglas Hospital Birthing Center
WellStar Women’s Services started a process of selecting a perinatal surveillance and documentation system several years ago. The GE Centricity Perinatal (CPN) system was selected and after months of planning and training, the GE CPN system went live at WellStar Douglas Hospital on May 3, 2011. Debbie Green, RN, and Linitra Montgomery, RN, have been the core team representatives for the Douglas Hospital Birthing Center and Rosemary Jones, project leader for the WHS team, led the entire process for a smooth implementation. All issues were immediately addressed by WHS’s Information technology team and the GE installation team. WellStar Cobb and Kennestone Women’s Services will go live on the system early this summer.
New features for external fetal monitoring (EFM) include remote surveillance from Emergency Department, Intensive Care Unit, Operating Room, Same Day Surgery, Post Anesthesia Care Unit, and GI lab. Pregnant mothers who require care in any of these areas within the hospital may be placed on EFM by the Birthing Center nurse, monitored locally and remotely and assessments documented electronically, all within the GE CPN system. Two mobile carts are ready as “flying workstations” and fully equipped for this application and use. In addition, OB physicians are able to remotely access fetal monitoring and review actual tracings on all patients in the system.
Other features in GE CPN are electronic documentation that is compliant with all new standards and allows elimination of at least 10 paper forms in the medical record. As Phase II is implemented later in 2011, physician documentation will eliminate an even greater amount of paper forms.
New features for external fetal monitoring (EFM) include remote surveillance from Emergency Department, Intensive Care Unit, Operating Room, Same Day Surgery, Post Anesthesia Care Unit, and GI lab. Pregnant mothers who require care in any of these areas within the hospital may be placed on EFM by the Birthing Center nurse, monitored locally and remotely and assessments documented electronically, all within the GE CPN system. Two mobile carts are ready as “flying workstations” and fully equipped for this application and use. In addition, OB physicians are able to remotely access fetal monitoring and review actual tracings on all patients in the system.
Other features in GE CPN are electronic documentation that is compliant with all new standards and allows elimination of at least 10 paper forms in the medical record. As Phase II is implemented later in 2011, physician documentation will eliminate an even greater amount of paper forms.
Latest Technology for C diff Testing Comes to Kennestone
Clostridium difficile (C. diff)is a gram positive, spore forming anaerobic bacillus that was first linked to disease in 1978. Infection with C diff ranges from diarrhea to severe life threatening pseudomembraneous colitis. Usual colon bacterial flora in a healthy adult is generally resistant to C. diff colonization. However, if the normal flora is altered (most commonly by exposure to high level antibiotics), resistance to this colonization is lost which may lead the C diff bacteria to overgrow in the colon. C. difficile’s virulence factor is due to cytotoxins A and B, with cytotoxin B being the most pathogenic. Not all strains of C. difficile contain the toxin genes. It is important to remember that disease onset is associated with the toxins that are only produced by the toxigenic strains.
WellStar Diabetes Services
WellStar Diabetes Services offers a wide variety of services to meet the needs of your diabetes patients.
Classes and programs offered:
Classes and programs offered:
- Comprehensive self-management education (10 hour ADA recognized course)
- Gestational diabetes education
- Pre-diabetes education
- Weight management/nutrition education
- Insulin pump and continuous glucose monitoring training
- Inpatient education at WellStar Kennestone and Cobb hospitals performed by diabetes educator best practice nurses
- Free telephonic disease management coaching (high risk patients and all WellStar Humana members)
- Free support groups
- 71 percent decrease in hospitalizations
- 55 percent decrease in Emergency Room visits
- 19 percent reduction in A1C
- 3 percent average weight loss per eight-week weight management session
- 96 percent patient satisfaction
WellStar Health System Partners with American Red Cross
WellStar has partnered with the American Red Cross to provide a dedicated website for team members to donate to the victims affected by the spring storms. To contribute this relief effort, go to http://american.redcross.org/wellstar-emp.
By using this site, we can track the total donations made by WellStar team members. Through this site, team members can also still make donations to the victims affected by the earthquake in Japan and the tsunami throughout the Pacific. We will keep you updated on our efforts.
By using this site, we can track the total donations made by WellStar team members. Through this site, team members can also still make donations to the victims affected by the earthquake in Japan and the tsunami throughout the Pacific. We will keep you updated on our efforts.
Thank you in advance for making a difference in people’s lives in Japan and the United States, just as you do every day here at WellStar.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
WellStar Medical Group to Open Pulmonary Medicine Location in East Cobb
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| Folu Akinnusi, M.D. |
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| Mark Schlosberg, M.D., FCCP |
WellStar Medical Group is pleased to announce the May 9 opening of its East Cobb Pulmonary Medicine office, at the intersection of Roswell Road and Indian Hills. The new office address is WellStar Pulmonary Medicine, 3939 Roswell Road, Suite 110, Marietta, GA 30062. The phone number is 770-422-1372. This location will serve as a satellite location to the existing practices and will open two days a week to accommodate patients in the area. If needed, patients seen at this practice will be admitted to WellStar Kennestone Hospital.
Folu Akinnusi, M.D. and Mark Schlosberg, M.D. will provide care for patients at this location. Drs. Akinnusi and Schlosberg are board certified in Pulmonary Disease, Critical Care Medicine and Internal Medicine.
WellStar Medical Group Opens First Allergy and Immunology Practice
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| Grace Chiang, M.D. |
Dr. Chiang cares for patients of all ages, with conditions such as asthma, allergic rhinitis (hayfever), sinusitis, eczema, food allergies, insect allergies, hives, anaphylaxis, and other allergic conditions.
Dr. Chiang graduated Phi Beta Kappa and received her Doctorate of Medicine from the University of Wisconsin. She then completed her residency in pediatrics at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, followed by an allergy/immunology fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis. Prior to joining WellStar Medical Group, she cared for patients in the Atlanta area in private practice. Dr. Chiang is board-certified in allergy/immunology and pediatrics.
WellStar Allergy & Immunology is located at 4480 Cooper Lake Rd SE, Suite 101 in Smyrna. Office hours are Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. For more information, please call 770-333-2027.
WellStar’s Clinical Laboratory Services Awarded CAP Re-accreditation
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid recognizes the CAP accreditation program as being equal to, or more stringent than, the federal government's own inspection program.
“CAP is widely-considered to be the world’s leader in laboratory quality assurance,” said David Schlosnagle, M.D., medical director of WellStar Kennestone Hospital’s Clinical Laboratory and chair of the WellStar Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. “We are proud of our teams’ efforts in achieving re-accreditation and honored by comments made by CAP site inspectors on how well run and organized our labs are. They also suggested that other labs could learn from our best practices.”
During the CAP accreditation process, inspectors examine the laboratory's records and quality control of procedures for the preceding two years. CAP inspectors also examine laboratory staff qualifications, management of the laboratory, as well as its equipment, facilities, safety program and record.
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