A multi-night stay last week at Showa University Hospital (site is Japanese) showed to me the awesome power, performance and fun of working with an organization positively aligned with
- requirements of the art and technology (accident surgery), almost no pain after day 2,
- well staffed and trained (5 patients per nurse by day, 15 by night),
- focused and able to see immediate needs, (anyone nearby gives a hand), and
- fully aiming to accommodate the patient's interests in the shared final outcome.
I mean: out of the many points of asking informed consent and among hundreds of interactions within nine days only one of my requests was ignored, one was delayed and fixed without my need to follow up, and I heard one white lie, by the anaesthesiologist. Probably I was not clear enough that I had read up overnight on the procedure he preferred and told him I agreed he use it, yet he tried to make me believe he'd use the other less invasive way. Thanks to his prior explanation of side effects for informed consent it was so easy to tell.
Oh, why did I say multi-night stay above? Because the service (not the food) compared to star hotels. The care and personal interactions exceeded it. I saw a lot of concern, smiles, laughter even, and not a single grumpy or harried face.
They have two kinds of meetings, 1. walking, as in the doctor's morning rounds. 2. standing in a loose circle, when the nurses hand over to the next shift. Patient records fully computerized, lots of checklists and dedicated execution, organized around patient's needs and wishes, with a smile. Their main feedback system is an Opinion/Risk/Proposal card used by staff, patients and visitors alike, and summarized in the internal monhtly newsletter.
If you have a choice, this is the kind of hospital I'd recommend.
Ah, yes, why was I there? Ski accident, compression fracture of femoral head, set and fixed with three screws now. Recuperating at home and on crutches until end of April.
For upcoming days, I plan on sharing part of my daily log.
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