“We understood early on that HCAHPS performance would quickly become a major focal point for our hospital partners, and as a company, we are committed to developing the solutions our partners need to consistently achieve strong HCAHPS results,” Williams explains.

“This commitment to providing our partners with customized solutions for their specific challenges is one of the key factors that sets HHS apart from our competitors, and it’s been critical to our success,” Williams explains.

HHS’s active, private ownership group began looking for new and innovative ways to address patient satisfaction and HCAHPS challenges in 2006. In order to be successful in consistently achieving high HCAHPS scores, HHS’s leadership group knew that they would have to remain flexible as a company, and be able to “turn on a dime” to meet the unique HCAHPS challenges facing their acute-care partners, according to Williams.

Over the next six years, HHS’s leadership group would invest countless man hours and financial resources to develop a corporate culture of stewardship, integrity, and service.As a national, privately-held company competing largely with multi-industry, multi-national corporations, HHS’s leadership group says that they knew that their unique corporate flexibility helped to position the company to be a leader in HCAHPS improvement.

From overhauling recruiting efforts to focus on hiring  rising stars from throughout the hospitality industries, to implementing a Disney Institute team member “self-selection” approach and  developing extensive  training, coaching, and incentive programs for hourly team members and managers alike, HHS has dedicated significant corporate resources to build  a  patient satisfaction program from the ground up that will drive superior HCAHPS results.

Williams says this new approach has already proven to be successful in ensuring that each member of HHS’s team—from corporate leadership to front-line housekeepers—not only has the knowledge and  resources to be successful, but also the cultural “buy-in” and personal drive to truly improve the experience of the patients they serve.

“HHS is proud to be a company of difference makers,” Williams says.

The resulting program incorporates a multi-pronged approach to HCAHPS improvement, including:

• Additional daily patient room cleanings and “Freshen Up” visits to address high-touch areas;
• Dedicated Patient Ambassadors trained to engage with patients and ensure their satisfaction;
• A national HCAHPS Specialist dedicated to assisting managers with specific issues as needed, and to continue to develop industry-leading HCAHPS initiatives;
• Daily management rounds with each patient to address any issues and ensure their complete satisfaction;
• Extensive, patient-focused training and coaching materials and resources available to all team members, including “Hospitality 101” and “HHS University;”
• Daily management rounds with each team member to ensure they consistently meet or exceed performance expectations in regard to patient satisfaction;  and,
• The “I Make a Difference” team member incentive program, which rewards those team members; who are recognized in writing by a patient or guest for going above and beyond while providing service, and making a difference in that patient’s life.
   

HHS’s robust new patient satisfaction and HCAHPS improvement program began implementation in partner hospitals in early 2010. As of September 1, 2012, Williams announces that over the past two-and-a-half years, the company has improved HCAHPS scores across the board by six full percentage points, and that for the first time in the company’s history, hospital partners that have worked with HHS for more than 12 months now average above the 50th percentile.

“Our partners understand the tremendous importance of HCAHPS success—not only in regard to patient perception and retention, but also in regard to federal reimbursement dollars,” Williams says, “which is why they choose to bring HHS’s team of industry experts in to help identify specific areas needing improvement and realign processes in order to resolve those issues.”   

For more information, please contact marketing@hhs1.com.