Denise Anderson
November 2018
Denise
Anderson
,
RN
Quality Department (Patient Safety/Risk Manager)
CHI Health Mercy Council Bluffs
Council Bluffs
,
IA
United States

 

 

 

Denise has been with CHI Health for many years. Denise is loyal, dedicated, and a true Mercy champion. In Denise's role in patient safety/risk management, she strives to promote a safe environment for patients, families, visitors, employees, staff, and providers. Denise does a great job in her role, and I have seen her grow in this role over the last few years. Denise is a content expert and seen as one of the go-to people in this role across CHI Health.
When Denise identifies a possible serious safety event, she notifies the appropriate people, and she immediately focuses on the patient, if there was harm, etc. Then Denise focuses on the staff involved, and what she can do to assist them. Some staff need EAP counseling, some need her support to assure that their voice will be heard. Denise does an excellent job in working with staff to not place blame, and to listen to them. Denise does a thorough job in her root cause analyses. She presents this information to our core team in a fair, non-judgmental way. She assists in developing action plans so that this type of event does not impact other patients at Mercy or CHI Health.
Denise represents Mercy and CHI Health in a positive way. She attends the Patient Safety conference every year in Des Moines to show support for our program. She also ensures we have a project to submit in our quest for excellence in patient safety, and we have been winners the last 3 years.
Feedback from fellow co-workers: She has a keen eye to spot problems before they occur. She is honest and genuine. Denise keeps safety in the forefront, knowing that if all staff keep safety in mind, our jobs, duties, and care for our patient will be of the highest quality; Denise always has the safety of our staff and patients on her mind. She voices her concerns and is accountable. She is dedicated to the Mission of our hospital and represents Mercy well. She is an excellent team member to work with and shares ideas; Denise is in tune to all aspects of patient safety and risk related issues. She always keeps the patient as the focus but never forgets to include how this issue may have affected staff, family or providers. Denise has a soft approach that is non-threatening, and interviews all involved to make sure that all aspects of the situation are covered. She is well respected at Mercy and by her peers at the other hospitals.