In Town Halls, Conversation with Leaders, and Leadership Assemblies, Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) employees are hearing the theme of “Make Care Seamless.”
We want our patients to feel that the care we provide them is seamless from one appointment to the next. We also want our VUMC employees to have IT support systems that feel intuitive and integrated. For the last six months more than 750 VUMC physicians, nurses, administrators, developers, researchers and staff have been evaluating our current IT systems and reviewing potential IT vendors.
Successfully introducing a new IT system requires an effective blend of good technical and good organizational skills. VUMC’s own Nancy Lorenzi co-authored research on managing this type of change. One of the primary success factors she identified for large IT implementations is effective communication. We are committed to the following sound communication strategies:
• Effective outgoing communication — We will keep you informed throughout the implementation process about what is happening and what is coming next. We want you to know what affects your job and the jobs of the people you work with and serve.
• Purposeful listening — We will go out of our way to solicit input and listen for actionable feedback. This goes beyond just being receptive to suggestions. It involves listening actively and addressing concerns honestly and comprehensively.
• Preparing you for the new system — We will make sure that everyone understands why changes are being made along with the desired benefits. We will communicate constantly the vision for the new system and solicit feedback.
The first part of our communication commitment is to recruit and partner with 500 Ambassadors. Ambassadors are volunteers who want to be in-the-know and who are willing to be active listeners and transparent communicators. As a benefit we will provide communication and leadership training to all CS 2.0 Ambassadors. To learn more about becoming an Ambassador, attend an info-session posted in the VUMC Learning Exchange or email us at cs@vanderbilt.edu.
— Kevin Johnson, M.D.
Chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics
