Sharp Grossmont Hospital of La Mesa, CA, is expanding an on-demand communication and television service that provides patients access to hospital services and entertainment at the touch of a button. Now, more than 200 patient rooms are wired to the system with additional tools, and the hospital plans to expand its health education video library.

"The new system encourages patients and their families to take part in care," says Michele Tarbet, CEO of Sharp Grossmont Hospital. "It also improves communication between staff and patients, and allows our nurses to greatly enhance productivity and spend more time on what they do best-provide superior clinical care."

The program, called Skylight ACCESS Interactive Patient System, is a two-way communication tool that gives patients immediate access to hospital and clinical information, patient rights and safety guidelines, educational resources, hospital services, and entertainment. Patients navigate ACCESS using a pillow speaker control or a wireless keyboard. The hospital launched the service in 2005 in a limited number of patient rooms with limited services.

Sharp Grossmont Hospital implemented fundamental tools, such as Service Alerts and a Feedback Center, to streamline patient care processes, improve organizational efficiencies, and enhance patient experiences. Service Alerts allow patients to send automatic requests directly to key members of the hospital team. For example, patients can send a Service Alert to Housekeeping if their room is in need of attention or to Food Services if there is a question about meals or nutrition.

"ACCESS is designed to engage and empower patients, allowing them to be active participants in their healthcare experience," says Mark Monson, VP of Clinical Services of Sharp Grossmont Hospital. "If at any time a patient is not completely satisfied, they can let us know by providing real-time comments through the system. This way, we are given the opportunity to address their issues immediately and make the most impact."

The ACCESS Feedback Center gives patients the ability to comment in real-time. Patients can answer questions from seven key areas of focus about their overall experience. When the questions are submitted, an alert is sent to staff members and if there is a concern, it is promptly addressed, giving Sharp Grossmont an opportunity for service recovery.

"As an early adopter of the ACCESS system, Sharp Grossmont Hospital is recognized for leading the way into a new era of patient care," says David Schofield, President and CEO of Skylight. "We share Sharp Grossmont's commitment to patient satisfaction and support their efforts to provide world-class tools for their staff, patients, and their families. Working together with the visionary leadership at Sharp has allowed us to establish the technological foundation to improve quality of care, now and into the future."

Source: Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, www.aami.org