Medical Procedure Unit
January 2025
Medical Procedure Unit
Zablocki VA Health Care System
Milwaukee
,
WI
United States
The nursing staff in the Medical Procedures Unit has exemplified the ICARE values throughout this past year. Their consistent commitment to adopting change centered around veteran care has been remarkable. Within this past year, they have accepted new leadership, implemented countless performance improvement projects, and expanded program services, all while orchestrating an extensive move.
This team has had several leadership changes over the course of the past couple of years and has remained resilient and focused on improving patient care. Often, when there are leadership changes for a team, there’s a transition period that takes a lot of patience from the staff. Each leader brings a different perspective and even varying expectations, but this team embodied the VA spirit.
Performance improvement initiatives included a PDSA with patient safety and laboratory, Jabber, Annie App, Auto-mailing, semi-finalist for VHA Shark Tank and implementation of Provation, a national image capture software. The Program Manager for MPU was contacted by a patient safety officer related to transcription and order specimen labeling errors. These are especially concerning due to the potentially sensitive diagnoses from these specimens.
A Plan Do Study Act model was adopted to trial the implementation of installing label printers into each procedure room, and real-time order/labeling was completed. Zero errors have been recorded since the implementation.
MPU adopted three uses of technology to improve patient care. Jabber is a telephone answering service that the MPU adopted to improve scheduling efficiency. Annie App is a texting service implemented to increase instructions and decrease cancellations. MPU has successfully decreased procedure cancellations by 30%, MPU was the first program in Milwaukee VA to implement Annie App. Automailing is a resource available to allow the schedulers to focus on triaging consults and interacting with veterans instead of hand-filling envelopes.
MPU’s educator was a VHA Shark Tank semi-finalist for an innovative idea to eliminate the use of ice during Pulmonary Procedures. The implementation of Provation a national image capture software could have had a significant negative impact on patient care due to the intricacies, training and change in workflow. The staff’s efforts to minimize these impacts and help our NEWAC partners observe our lessons learned are commendable. The MPU was recently recognized for a best practice during a VISN visit for their electronic competency tracking dashboard.
The Medical Procedures staff has been the definition of flexible and expanding services beyond their program level. MPU staff collaborated with the OR Educator to increase knowledge related to Pulmonary procedures that occurred in the OR. Having MPU staff present during these procedures was recognized by Pulmonary, OR, and Anesthesia staff as best practice.
MPU Medical Instrument Technicians offered to learn phlebotomy and peripheral Intravenous placements. This partnership with VAT RNs was a great professional development opportunity, but it also expands to allowing additional support to other areas of the organization. During periods of high census and Emergency Department extended boarding situations, MPU MITs raised their hands to help their colleagues. MPU also supported a deployment of an RN to travel to FHCC Lovell during their Cerner go-live.
Gastroenterology services have expanded to include manometry and Bravo, decreasing outsourcing through Community Care. Offering these services in Milwaukee has also given the opportunity for those veterans within our VISN to remain within the VA for their care.
Integrity: MPU’s trust and confidence in the mission of the VA and willingness to consistently improve veteran care through the performance improvement initiatives.
Commitment and Respect: MPU staff’s commitment to expanding program services even without additional staffing resources is an example of ensuring veteran-centric care. Staff members always lead with respect when seeking to improve an element of care that involves another program through partnership.
Advocacy: Advocacy for veteran care and how to improve it was something MPU staff members excelled at. MPU’s Shared Governance was often an avenue for new ideas and challenging discussions on how to best implement projects.
Excellence: Throughout the consistent drive to improve patient care in the Medical Procedures Unit, there has been a 30% decrease in cancellations, an increase in GI Procedures, an increase in Pulmonary procedures, and sharing of best practices to VISN partners.
This team has had several leadership changes over the course of the past couple of years and has remained resilient and focused on improving patient care. Often, when there are leadership changes for a team, there’s a transition period that takes a lot of patience from the staff. Each leader brings a different perspective and even varying expectations, but this team embodied the VA spirit.
Performance improvement initiatives included a PDSA with patient safety and laboratory, Jabber, Annie App, Auto-mailing, semi-finalist for VHA Shark Tank and implementation of Provation, a national image capture software. The Program Manager for MPU was contacted by a patient safety officer related to transcription and order specimen labeling errors. These are especially concerning due to the potentially sensitive diagnoses from these specimens.
A Plan Do Study Act model was adopted to trial the implementation of installing label printers into each procedure room, and real-time order/labeling was completed. Zero errors have been recorded since the implementation.
MPU adopted three uses of technology to improve patient care. Jabber is a telephone answering service that the MPU adopted to improve scheduling efficiency. Annie App is a texting service implemented to increase instructions and decrease cancellations. MPU has successfully decreased procedure cancellations by 30%, MPU was the first program in Milwaukee VA to implement Annie App. Automailing is a resource available to allow the schedulers to focus on triaging consults and interacting with veterans instead of hand-filling envelopes.
MPU’s educator was a VHA Shark Tank semi-finalist for an innovative idea to eliminate the use of ice during Pulmonary Procedures. The implementation of Provation a national image capture software could have had a significant negative impact on patient care due to the intricacies, training and change in workflow. The staff’s efforts to minimize these impacts and help our NEWAC partners observe our lessons learned are commendable. The MPU was recently recognized for a best practice during a VISN visit for their electronic competency tracking dashboard.
The Medical Procedures staff has been the definition of flexible and expanding services beyond their program level. MPU staff collaborated with the OR Educator to increase knowledge related to Pulmonary procedures that occurred in the OR. Having MPU staff present during these procedures was recognized by Pulmonary, OR, and Anesthesia staff as best practice.
MPU Medical Instrument Technicians offered to learn phlebotomy and peripheral Intravenous placements. This partnership with VAT RNs was a great professional development opportunity, but it also expands to allowing additional support to other areas of the organization. During periods of high census and Emergency Department extended boarding situations, MPU MITs raised their hands to help their colleagues. MPU also supported a deployment of an RN to travel to FHCC Lovell during their Cerner go-live.
Gastroenterology services have expanded to include manometry and Bravo, decreasing outsourcing through Community Care. Offering these services in Milwaukee has also given the opportunity for those veterans within our VISN to remain within the VA for their care.
Integrity: MPU’s trust and confidence in the mission of the VA and willingness to consistently improve veteran care through the performance improvement initiatives.
Commitment and Respect: MPU staff’s commitment to expanding program services even without additional staffing resources is an example of ensuring veteran-centric care. Staff members always lead with respect when seeking to improve an element of care that involves another program through partnership.
Advocacy: Advocacy for veteran care and how to improve it was something MPU staff members excelled at. MPU’s Shared Governance was often an avenue for new ideas and challenging discussions on how to best implement projects.
Excellence: Throughout the consistent drive to improve patient care in the Medical Procedures Unit, there has been a 30% decrease in cancellations, an increase in GI Procedures, an increase in Pulmonary procedures, and sharing of best practices to VISN partners.