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Revenue Cycle: Culture Drives Success

Revenue Cycle Support Services is the backbone of Utah’s financial system – from insurance prior authorizations to processing billions of dollars in claims and payments. Their leadership team, led by administrative director Kathy Delis, has been on a years-long journey to make this work better both for patients and employees. Here, she shares how she brought meaning, purpose, and a sense of community to the team.

Improving Wellness: 40 Teams and Another 12 Months of Progress

University of Utah Health is committed to tackling a major problem in health care today: burnout. Last year, 40 teams spread across an enormous health system took on the challenge. We sat down with family physician and co-director of the Resiliency Center Amy Locke to learn about what works in improving faculty and staff wellness.

Leading Change: Ask, Listen, Learn and Engage

In 2011, Utah’s Intermediate Care Unit (IMCU) decided to improve patient safety through a new approach: engage the entire team in identifying and implementing the improvement. Clinical Operations Director Trell Inzunza shares the 4-step process that engaged the entire team to improve.

Using Adversity & Teamwork to Transform Patients’ Experiences

Parkway medical director Brett Clayson leads one of the highest patient-rated clinics at U of U Health – but it wasn’t always that way. Here are the five leadership principles he used to transform his small, out-of-the-way clinic. Hint: Start with your strengths.

How One Team Tackled Wait Time

Waiting is such a firmly entrenched feature of health care that it is often expected. The solution starts with the team. Orthopaedic athletic trainer Ian Crossett details the 4-step, team-driven process that sends a message of respect for everyone: provider, patient and team.

How Utah Cardiology Improved Value By Reducing Drug Costs

Scope is a powerful tool when changing practice. Rather than trying to revamp in one large swoop, scoping an improvement down to palatable stages can overcome resistance and lead to meaningful results for future improvement cycles. Although new improvers may feel this approach delays impact, repeated improvement cycles often lead to sustained care transformation. Dr. Theophilus Owan demonstrated this principle in his quest to improve value by standardizing anti-thrombotic medications given to patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

3 Ways To Build Mindful Habits

Health care is complicated, emotionally challenging work. Thriving in complexity requires two things: continuous system improvement and building individual resilience. This article focuses on three ways we can build habits that support individual resilience from three experts who do it every day.

Practice: S.T.O.P.

Mindfulness instructors Trinh Mai and Rob Davies guide us through S.T.O.P., a simple mindfulness practice to help mitigate our stress response.

Practice: Body Scan

Mindfulness instructors Rob Davies and Heidi O’Donoghue guide us through the body scan, a simple meditation that helps relax the body — and as a bonus, can also help you sleep.

Practice: Awareness of Breath

Mindfulness instructors Heidi O’Donoghue and Trinh Mai guide us through a simple breathing exercise. Practiced regularly, this meditation cultivates awareness, concentration, and calmness.

Diagnostic Error

A missed diagnosis can delay treatment or result in inappropriate treatment, causing unnecessary pain, suffering, and often financial hardship for our patients. Internist and hospitalist Peter Yarbrough helps explain why diagnostic errors happen with strategies to prevent them.

Battling Burnout: What Is Truly Meaningful To You?

Surgeon Rob Glasgow reflects on the national conversation around physician burnout and calls for a connection to purpose. His advice: never stop asking what brings meaning to your life and your profession.