ExperiaHealth Forms Network to Empower Rural Hospitals and Improve Patient Experience

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- ExperiaHealth, an advisory services firm that helps hospitals and health systems humanize the healthcare experience, today announced the launch of its Rural Health Experience Innovation Network, a one year program dedicated to designing and spreading new experience innovations in rural hospitals and healthcare systems. Supported by the Health Forum, an American Hospital Association company, the Experience Innovation Network guides forward-thinking rural hospitals and health systems in designing new experience frameworks that transform physician, staff and patient experience.

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Faced with new, mandatory pay-for-performance models that tie reimbursement to patient satisfaction, it is more important than ever for rural hospitals to consistently deliver positive patient experiences. ExperiaHealth's Experience Innovation Network equips rural hospitals with proven Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) improvement tactics, execution assistance, clinician leadership development and a proven framework and tool-kit to support ongoing experience improvement.

"Optimization of the patient, family and caregiver experience has become a strategic imperative for healthcare organizations nationwide," said Bridget Duffy, MD, chief executive officer at ExperiaHealth. "Organizations must embrace innovation and design new standards of care that create market differentiation and lasting loyalty. ExperiaHealth's proven methodology has yielded dramatic increases in employee engagement, physician alignment and, consequently, HCAHPS scores."

Success for the twelve month program will be measured by HCAHPS improvement and innovations that durably enhance patient, family, staff and physician experience. Participants will also create regional showcase sites to serve as demonstration models of exceptional patient and staff experience and the development of standardized patient experience metrics.

"Since partnering with ExperiaHealth approximately nine months ago, our HCAHPS scores have increased 25 percent and are still climbing," said Steve Pu, DO, medical director at Twin Rivers Regional Medical Center. "More importantly, however, we are creating culture transformations that provide our employees with the opportunity to get back to the initial reason they went into healthcare, which is caring for people."

Rural healthcare organizations interested in participating in the Experience Innovation Network are invited to join a complimentary informational webinar:

• Monday, November 5 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. PST
• Tuesday, November 6 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. PST
• Friday, November 16 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. PST

The deadline for enrollment is 5 p.m. PST on December 3, 2012. For additional information or to register for the program, please visit www.experiahealth.com/public/ruralhealth.

About ExperiaHealth

ExperiaHealth, a subsidiary of Vocera Communications, Inc. (VCRA), is an advisory services firm that helps hospitals and health systems humanize the healthcare experience. ExperiaHealth works with organizations around the globe to bridge gaps in patient and staff experience with proven solutions and technologies that enable our partners to innovate and prosper. ExperiaHealth's partners include academic medical centers, community hospitals, children's hospitals, integrated delivery systems, safety net clinics and public hospitals that rely on ExperiaHealth for innovative ideas, service excellence training, and consulting services to differentiate their organizations and become employers of choice in their communities.

For more information, visit www.experiahealth.com.

Media Contacts

Gidon Margolin
ExperiaHealth
415.364.6115
[email protected]

Victoria Holl
Vocera         
408.882.5656  
[email protected]

Thea Lavin
Schwartz MSL
415.512.0770
[email protected]

SOURCE ExperiaHealth