Knoxville (Tenn.) Orthopaedic Surgery Center is one of the 37 ASCs recognized by The Leapfrog Group for patient safety, and leaders at the center say the award reflects years of intentional work to build a culture around consistency, communication and accountability.
Beth Russell, vice president of surgical services at Knoxville Orthopaedic Surgery Center, joined Becker’s to discuss how the team approaches quality and patient safety.
Editor’s note: This interview was edited lightly for clarity and length.
Question: How does your ASC team approach quality and patient safety on an ongoing basis? What role does consistency, and culture play in that work?
Beth Russell: Culture and consistency are two words I use a lot with my management team, and they use them with their staff. Safety is part of our everyday work processes. It’s not about just following a policy or doing something because a surveyor is here. It’s truly about everyone in the building taking ownership of patient care and quality, and everything else follows from that. It makes me really proud of my team, because I think it speaks to what we do every day.
Everyone shows up for each other — the physicians, the staff and the management team. Everyone feels comfortable speaking up. Leadership is visible, always around and listening, so when concerns are brought up, they’re addressed quickly and thoughtfully. People aren’t afraid to bring things to leadership. That’s something we actively encourage.
Q: Why is it so important for staff to feel comfortable speaking up — especially when it comes to patient safety?
BR: It’s incredibly important and really starts from the top down. Staff have to feel comfortable speaking to leadership and physicians. They can’t be afraid to bring something forward — whether it’s something a physician did or something someone said.
Patient care falls into place when staff feel comfortable speaking up. I have a great example. We had a surveyor in the building a couple of months ago, and the surveyor was standing too close to the sterile field. The staff member who was scrubbed in told the surveyor they needed to step back.
The surveyor actually gave us kudos. She said a lot of people are scared of surveyors, and the fact that the staff member felt comfortable enough to speak up at that level really showed the culture in our building. She said she could tell immediately when she was asked to move away from the back table.
Q: How do you integrate new hires into that safety culture, and your overall work culture?
BR: About a year ago, we implemented a new onboarding process. New hires are paired with one person for about three months. It varies by department, but they do everything with that one person instead of being bounced around and seeing things done 10 different ways.
Another thing we do is have them follow a patient through the entire process — from check-in, pre-op, surgery, and recovery. Even if they work in surgery, they spend time in the business office and other areas. It helps them see how everything flows together.
Q: Looking back at the last year, what are you most proud of your team for?
BR: They do so many great things. I’m proud of how they show up for the small, everyday moments — things we sometimes take for granted in patient care. I’m also very proud of this award. I think it speaks volumes about the team we have.
Just this morning, I walked through the lobby and saw one of my pre-op nurses sitting with a family member who was nervous about their loved one’s surgery. We are extremely busy right now, but she took the time to sit with him and help him feel better.
That really stood out to me. It was going above and beyond.
