Know My Voice®
November 24, 2024 | healthcare, Nursing, patient, patient experience
“I am going to have you sign the consent form.”
I heard this while checking into my Primary Care Provider (PCP) appointment a few weeks ago. When I go into a healthcare appointment, I am always looking around for opportunities to improve on the patient experience. However, I never expect what I do encounter.
This visit had been rescheduled and I was happy I got into my PCP within a couple of weeks of making the phone call! The receptionist checked me in for my appointment. She then told me I needed to sign the consent form.
I looked down and there was no paper nor any form of a device for me to see the consent form. I thought she would have given me something to read in either a paper or electronic form.
I asked, “Where am I signing this?”
She pointed me to the pen pad for signature. I realized I was not going to see the consent form before signing it.
I asked, “Can I read the consent form?”
Now I know in general what I expect to see in the consent form. There is language about HIPAA, Consent to Treat, Payment Responsibility, and more. However, I also know that I should have the ability to read the form before I sign and acknowledge that I read it.
The receptionist got up and got a master copy from a folder and gave it to me to read. I then asked if I could get a copy. She did print out a copy for me to take with me after I read and signed it.
Had I not asked, I may not have read it nor had an opportunity to get a copy to take with me.
Now, I do not think that the practice aims to not provide the consent forms. More than likely, the intended workflow has slowly eroded over time from what is expected to occur.
As a patient, you cannot change the workflow, but you can (and should) ask questions!
May 06, 2015 |
“Where’s my sheet?!”
Nurses, you know the sheet I’m referring to…you also know the feeling of panic that rushes over you when you can’t find it. “Where did I leave it? I need that to know my patients!” This sheet is a piece of paper that is the nurses’ daily lifeline to knowing their patients.
May 06, 2015 |
Hopefully that sentence resonates with you. Everyone has ideas that come to us – all of a sudden – and usually when we are faced with a challenge. Ideas are important because they are the currency for innovating – for developing new solutions to existing problems. Without ideas we would be limited in creativity, change, and improvements in our lives. In health care, ideas have led to new solutions that transform the way we collect, communicate, exchange, analyze, and evaluate information. Yet, we need more ideas that lead to new solutions that can even further improve the structure, process, and outcomes of quality health care delivery.
A few months ago, I was invited to guest lecture to graduate nursing students at Northeastern University about innovation. I asked each student to formulate a problem that they see each day while working and bring it to class. During class we identified each problem and then I asked each nursing student to formulate a potential solution. Every student had a very real problem they are faced with each day at work – some were more complex than others – but we were able to form solutions that were reasonable and achievable with the right support, enthusiasm, and guidance. The nursing students felt empowered to work to address the identified problems. I hope that they did follow up and begin the process toward improving the desired outcomes.
I offer this scenario to encourage others to develop their ideas and foster further innovation in health care. Each day I see new problems that need to be solved. This blog, Know My Voice™ started as an idea. I wanted a way to share my informatics perspective, or voice, with a larger and broader audience than I could physically reach in the same amount of time. I look forward to seeing the future developments and impact of Know My Voice™ over time.
Dr. Kelley has 23 years of nursing experience. She spent the last 20 years working in the field of nursing informatics. Read more
