Hospital ups employee satisfaction 33 percent with 'on screen' internal communications

In Washington, DC, The George Washington University Hospital's (GWUH) internal survey shows employee satisfaction with hospital communication increased by 33 percent.

The increase is a result of communication with hospital staff, visitors and patients via a mixture of interactive PC screensavers and Digital Signage presentations. The solution also includes an Emergency Alert functionality to alert all in critical emergencies.

The new communication method, based on Netpresenter communication software, allows GWUH to inform and motivate staff, update visitors and patients and warn all with one single system. The messages are targeted to the audience or monitor location: the latest hospital and healthcare news is broadcasted on all 1,200 personal computer (PC) work stations as an interactive screensaver and on large monitors in the staff elevator bays. Targeted messages are also published on big screens in the visitor elevator bays, main lobby, and physician lounges.

An internal survey now shows employee satisfaction with hospital communication improved by 33 percent in the first few months after roll out of this new solution. Interviewed hospital staff appreciate the fact that that there is now one central tool containing hospital-wide information. Some of the staff did not have access to e-mail, but because there are now screens near the elevators, they are updated with the latest internal and external news, while waiting for the elevator.

"We were looking for a solution that everyone in the hospital could access and that required no end-user training. Messages also needed to be easy to post. Finally, it had to reduce clutter by replacing posters and paper flyers. We found Netpresenter met all these requirements. It was also reasonably priced and used existing computer infrastructure, which made it an easy choice," says Gretchen Tegethoff, Chief Information Officer/Director of Information Technology, at GWUH.

"Taking communication with physicians and nursing staff, visitors and patients to the next level, The George Washington University Hospital sets a great example for other hospitals. GWUH clearly demonstrates what effective communication can do for organizations: improve hospital safety, gain and maintain patients trust and increase employee satisfaction significantly - as the internal research underlines," says Frank Hoen, Netpresenter CEO.

Broadcasts on all staff PCs and on the large screens in restricted areas includes internal hospital news, urgent news such as IT upgrades expected to disrupt the workflow, news on drug issues from suppliers, and a few healthcare news items automatically imported from an online news site. The monitors in public sites are used to bring more marketing focused material to the attention of visitors and patients. The large flat screen in the lobby is used for broadcasting a word of welcome to the visitors, information on opening hours of the gift shop and cafeteria, etcetera.

Tegethoff: "Currently, we are preparing to start using the system's Emergency Alert functionality, to alert staff in critical emergencies, such as fires, floods and evacuations. The Netpresenter tool is documented as part of our emergency management plan."