East Alabama Medical Center - Building Trust...One Employee at a Time
In 1983 when Terry Andrus became the President of East Alabama Medical Center (EAMC) in Opelika, Alabama, it was known as “a place where you only go to die.” Financially troubled when Andrus arrived, he set about to put the hospital on a sound financial basis…to get the business and financial processes on track and to increase the operating margin by adjusting the fee structure. He began improving organizational performance; he succeeded in getting the hospital out of fiscal hot water. And over time he began to make progress on deeper problems...the less than stellar patient satisfaction statistics.
He began almost immediately practicing a leadership philosophy known as Management by Walking Around (MBWA)--an early employee engagement strategy. To this day, he walks around the hospital every morning on his way to his office. He spends time every day stopping by to talk with folks. People were suspicious at first. He began to get to know people…he listened to their challenges at work; he listened to their joys and fears at home.
Through his MBWA, he began to take note of challenges that people were facing in doing their job. He listened and he acted. He developed a collaborative leadership model. Soon, a culture evolved of engaging employees to solve problems…it became an environment where managers listened to their employees. Andrus and his colleagues focused on improving the patient experience in the hospital. They created an operating philosophy that directly linked the patient experience to the employee experience. Employees who were treated well would in turn treat customers well. The patient experience began to improve dramatically. A customer service code entitled What we Expect from Every Employee was adopted that outlined every employee’s commitment to the patients:
- Assist people in finding their way; escort them to their destination if necessary
- Greet others in hallways, elevators and workstations with a kind word or smile.
- End each encounter with a warm and positive smile.
- Anticipate patients’ needs so they will not have to use their call lights.Listen carefully; do not interrupt; give other people your full attention.
Customer service forums were created. Humorous videos were used in training courses…to highlight good, bad, and ugly customer service practices. Patient satisfaction scores rose dramatically. At about the same time, the hospital adopted a quality management program. Seeking best practices from other hospitals and educating employees in high performance practices is a key part of the campaign.
In 2001, EAMC was the first public organization to get on Fortune Magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list. In 2002, it was #18 on the list. In May 2005, they were named the top performer in Alabama (Alabama Quality Assurance Foundation). Today, EAMC’s patient satisfaction scores are in the 95-99th percentile. They have achieved sustainable excellence.
Last year, I told my friend Mike about the hospital. With a big smile on his face, Mike told me that he had admitted his ailing father to East Alabama Medical Center the week prior. On his third day at the hospital, walking thru the lobby on his way to his father’s room, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned, and a woman asked: “Mr. Mears how’s your dad.” My friend was in awe as he told me the story. Never had he received such care and attention in a hospital. He went on to tell me that the woman who greeted him had checked him into the hospital two days earlier.
My friend’s story demonstrated a simple fact. Showing that you care about your employees—Terry Andrus’ morning walks thru the hospital—can build a tremendous reservoir of trust which can heal very sick organizations...even at places where “you only go to die."
