Can you pass this test on employee satisfaction?
Your patients are happy, your doctors are satisfied, but what about your staff? Their gripes may reflect morale problems or even operational weaknesses.
Press, Ganey Associates of South Bend, IN, has developed a 40-question employee satisfaction survey. They ask employees to rate the adequacy of their training, their satisfaction with compensation, and their sense of pride, among other issues.
The questionnaires often are distributed in paychecks, then returned anonymously to a post office box or a lock box in the facility. Press, Ganey provides an analysis, including benchmark information from other health care facilities. Because the product was just released in July, the database is still small. As it grows, Press, Ganey expects to be able to compare survey results at surgery centers.
The employee survey costs $2,500 for one annual report, including any customized questions a surgery center or hospital may want to add. There is also a charge of 30 cents per survey.
For more information, contact Tania Arthur, Corporate Marketing and Sales Assistant, Press, Ganey Associates, 1657 Commerce Drive, South Bend, IN 46628. Telephone: (219) 232-3387. Fax: (219) 232-3485.
Are they sleeping? Here’s how to tell
A new monitor can tell your anesthesiologists something they’ve never known for certain: whether patients are really unconscious while under general anesthesia.
The A-1050 EEG Monitor manufactured by Aspect Medical Systems of Natick, MA, uses a Bispectral Index to determine the patient’s level of consciousness. On a scale from 0 to 100, a score of greater than 70 indicates that the patient is awake. A score of less than 60 indicates unconsciousness.
An estimated 30,000 to 150,000 patients each year may experience some level of awareness during surgery that is performed under general anesthesia, according to the company.
"Anesthesiologists have monitors to measure the circulatory system, the respiratory system, and cardiac function, but they haven’t had a way to monitor the brain, which is the target of the anesthetic agents," says Jean Nelson, vice president of marketing for Aspect Medical Systems. "This is the first time they’ve had a window to the brain."
The monitor may help anesthesiologists determine the appropriate dosage of anesthetic agents, allowing them to use less anesthesia and have faster wake-up times, Nelson says.
The monitor lists for $9,900, plus a per-case supply cost of $6.25. The company is making lease arrangements, Nelson says. For more information on the A-1050 EEG Monitor with Bispectral Index, contact Patricia Ellis, Product Manager, A-1050 Monitor, Aspect Medical Systems, 2 Vision Drive, Natick, MA 01760. Telephone: (800) 442-7688. Fax: (508) 653-6788. E-mail: [email protected].
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