24/7 Access

Okay, it is the 1970’s. I remember how cool it was to get a beeper (pager) back in the 1970’s. I was the administrative resident at a 1000 bed hospital and I was now sharing call with 10 other senior administrators at the hospital. This was my week. I looked important. Maybe people would think I was one of the medical residents. I just prayed it wouldn’t go off. All I remember is that one day it did. Something bad was happening, a SWAT team was called and they needed the administrator on call…I thought they were looking for someone to sacrifice…I survived. On another on-call incident, our computer system, a singer something with 23k that ran 23 hours a day to do payroll, couldn’t print checks for our 3000 plus employees. My last memory of the early on-call days, is a bit more personal (sorry Nancy.) Yes, as luck would have it, I’m on call and my wife goes into labor. There we are in the delivery room just moments away from the arrival of one of our daughters… No, the beeper didn’t go off…a person from the admitting office knocks, comes in and announces my wife had not signed the admitting form and could she have a signature…I am not sure Nancy remembers what she said, but I do remember the doctors' words…Get me the damn administrator on call right now… and now flash forward.

This morning my phone rings and I answer. A customer of the hospital wants to voice two concerns about services received; the first at a private physician's office, the second regarding a clinic at the hospital. Both are non-clinical in nature. Actually, it will be a simple matter to follow up on and allow us and the physician’s office an easy way to customize and enhance our services. The real reasons I chose to write about 24/7 access are about to be told. This individual told me that one of our Colleagues at the hospital had given her their business card. All Colleagues who work here have one (we should probably make sure all volunteers do, too). Their name is written on the front along with their Director's name and contact information. On the back of the card is our most important strategy regarding service and service recovery, the key question.. Below that is my personal e-mail address and cell number. You guessed it. I am available 24/7 to back up our Colleagues and their Directors. It used to be at the hospital years ago that when the administrator showed up to follow up on a complaint someone was going to get in trouble. Now, Colleagues are inviting us when they can’t resolve the matter on their own and we are there to back them up. So, today, we got some free consulting advice from a loyal customer. The call ended with the following comments…You know on my last visit to the hospital I needed rehab…a friend of mine recently decided to try the new CCC, so I did, too…they spoiled me rotten…the nurses, the food (special ordered room service when I wanted it), and the compassion and caring. One young lady, after I had made a mess and we had cleaned everything up, hugged me and meant it… I felt like I was with family…This is good, and that is what ACH Planetree is all about… more to come soon.

Stan