MGHHOTLINEA PUBLICATION FOR EMPLOYEES AND STAFF OF THE MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL0

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OOn a sunny Wednesday under the Bulfinch Tent, Jeff Davis, senior vice president for Human Resources, read excerpts from nominations received for this year’s Pamela J. Ellis Memorial Secretarial Award.

“Motivated. Enthusiastic. Positive. Dedicated,” he read. “Beyond efficient. Has a smile for everyone.”

More than 140 nominations were received for the award, which honors the memory of Ellis, an executive secretary at the MGH from 1992 to 1996. It is given each year during the annual Administrative Support Staff Day Luncheon, held on April 24.

After the names of each nominee were read, Davis introduced the 2013 winner, Christine “Cindy” Alejunas, from the Infectious Disease Outpatient service. Alejunas accepted flowers and her award with tears in her eyes, as she told the crowd how grateful she is to work at the MGH. “I do my job not looking for accolades, but when hard work is acknowledged I appreciate it so much. No words can say.”

A complete list of nominees is featured in a framed plaque hanging on the wall opposite the MGH General Store. More than 3,000 administrative professionals attended this year’s luncheon. n

Going the extra mile

Hospital reopens historic surgical observation deck When the MGh LearninG LabOratOry moved into the Treadwell Library two years ago, it was hailed as the hospital’s newest and most sophisticated hands-on training venue. Simulation-mannequins fill patient beds in the lab’s “Simulation Ward,” offering a variety of conditions and situations on which to practice and refine patient care skills across disciplines. The facility, however, could not accommodate a realistic, full-scale operating room (OR).

On April 25, the lab celebrated the addition of dedicated OR and observation space for the simulation program at a ribbon-cutting ceremony. When the Lunder Building opened in 2011, several White Building ORs were temporarily closed, including those on White 5. This area is now currently reserved for simulation training. One room came with a bonus: a closed surgical observation deck that overlooks the OR and permits non-sterile visitors to watch the operation taking place in the room below. The deck, which had been closed for nearly 30 years, is the only remaining legacy of 10 original surgical observation decks outfitted during construction of the White Building in 1939. Its refurbishment was completed by the Learning Lab in collaboration with OR leadership.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony offered hospital, surgical and perioperative leadership and guests the chance to view a simulated cardiac surgery from the newly renovated deck. Observers included former MGH chiefs of Surgery W. Gerald Austen, MD, and Paul S. Russell, MD, both of whom reminisced about (Continued on page 3)

Above And beyond:MGH President Peter L. Slavin, MD, at left, and MGPO Chairman and CEO David Torchiana, MD, congratulate the Pamela J. Ellis Award winner Alejunas.

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Volunteers showcase musical talentsbOstOn university seniOr Mai dOan typically spends three hours a week at the MGH distributing books to patients from the hospital’s roving book cart. But on April 30, instead of literacy choices, the MGH volunteer held in her hands a guitar as she stood in front of the O’Keeffe Auditorium, singing Katy Perry’s “The One That Got Away.”

Doan was one of eight members of the MGH Volunteer Department who shared their musical skills during the group’s second annual talent show – part of national Volunteer Recognition Week, April 29 through May 3.

“We have 1,500 volunteers that join us at the MGH every year, and we get to see the talents they give to us on a daily basis – good intentions, their compassionate hearts and the way they embrace and help our families and staff,” said Wayne Newell, director of the Volunteer Department and Information Desks. “Those are all great talents, but we also knew they had a number of other talents when they take off their pink coats.”

The musical selections included Broadway tunes, classic rock and pop hits, with volunteers playing the piano, guitar and violin during the two-hour event. “I love performing and I’ve always been involved in music,” said Jonas St. Fleur, who sang “Worthy is the Land” by Hillsong. “Music has always been personal to me and I am glad to be able to share it today.”

the WindOW fOr a Joint Commission survey with a lab focus is now open and can occur at any time. The Joint Commission will send three surveyors for a five-day review of all MGH laboratory services. Surveyors will visit the MGH’s main campus, health centers and practices, and perform tracers in any location involved in laboratory service activities and transplant safety.The scope of the survey could include physicians, nurses, medical assistants, point-of-care testing personnel and laboratory employees.

Surveyors will cover all the steps in performing laboratory tests and blood transfusions: documentation and practice for ordering tests, collecting specimens, managing results, performing point-of-care tests and fully documenting all blood transfusions. Common point-of-care tests include fecal occult blood, fingerstick glucose, urine dipstick, urine HCG, rapid strep and provider performed microscopy – including both wet preps and urine sediment. MGH laboratories have designated patient identification and specimen collection quality and safety as priorities for 2013.

To help MGH services have a successful survey staff should:

1. Be prepared to describe the process for:• Drawing blood from a patient;• Verifying and completing orders for

laboratory testing;• Managing critical values;

• Ensuring proper patient identification and specimen collection; and

• Performing point-of-care tests.

2. Ensure that two patient identifiers are always verified and used:

• In the presence of the patient;• On all specimen containers and requisitions; and• On all point-of-care devices and slides, even if the test is

performed in the exam room with the patient.

3. Ensure that all orders and results are documented in the patient electronic record:

• Document and read back the communication of all critical values to the responding clinician.

• Document orders/protocols and results for point-of-care tests. Verbal orders and results are not sufficient.

4. Perform mini-tracers:• Perform a mini-tracer of a patient test and check

for: order, result, competency assessment, quality control and temperature record. Please note that a physician performing point-of-care tests must have documented competency assessments.As with all survey processes, this is an opportunity

for the MGH to demonstrate the excellent care staff provides to patients every day. For more information about the survey or about specific locations contact Cynthia Mansfield at cmansfield1@partners.org or 617-726-8172. n

Window opens for 2013 Joint Commission hospital lab-focused survey

A song from the heArt: Actress Lauren Potter from the “Glee” television show cast visited Techiyah Ben-David and other pediatric patients at the MassGeneral Hospital for Children (MGHfC) on May 1. Potter is seen here between Brian Skotko, MD, co-director of the MGHfC Down Syndrome Program, at far right, and Michael Cohen, MD, from the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. Potter also took a tour of the Down Syndrome Program’s clinic. The program is one of the only comprehensive adult and pediatric Down syndrome care centers in the nation.

MGHHOTLINE

— Learning Lab(Continued from page 1)their experiences on the decks during their tenures at the hospital. Cardiac surgeon Jennifer Walker, MD, moderated an overview of the “operation,” faithfully replicated by a full cardiac team working on a realistic beating heart model.

The event also hosted an exhibit of surgical instruments from the Paul S. Russell, MD Museum of Medical History and Innovation. In addition, hands-on demonstrations of cutting-edge simulation technology were performed for the attendees.

James Gordon, MD, director of the Learning Lab and chief of the Emergency Department’s Division of Medical Simulation, served as host of the event, which also recognized the lab’s recent accreditation as a Level I Educational Institute by the American College of Surgeons. “This classic new addition to the simulation program opens up enormous opportunities for expanding simulation training in the OR and for better understanding the impact of such work on quality and safety across the institution,” Gordon said. “Being able to perform interprofessional simulation training in an actual operating room provides critical access and context for those undergoing the training and presents powerful new opportunities for direct faculty observation and feedback from the deck.”

For additional information about simulation programming opportunities, email mghsimulation@partners.org.

CMS celebrates new homethe Center fOr MediCaL siMuLatiOn (CMs) hosted an open house on March 27 in its new home on the fourth floor of Charlestown Navy Yard’s Building 39. Attendees enjoyed jazz music, food and tours of the facility – which recently relocated from the Partners Research Building in Cambridge. Led by Founder and Executive Director Jeff Cooper, PhD, CMS is one of the pioneering organizations that provides realistic simulation for training health care professionals. While it is an independent nonprofit operation originally established to serve all of the Harvard-affiliated hospitals, nearly all of its faculty and staff are members of the MGH Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine. CMS has been instrumental in helping to establish the MGH’s growing simulation program, under the leadership of James Gordon, MD, director of the MGH Learning Lab and chief of the Emergency Department’s Division of Medical Simulation. During the event, CMS was also honored by the MGH’s Center for Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology (CIMIT) for outstanding leadership and enduring contributions to the field of simulation. n

hAnds-on LeArnIng: Attendees play a teamwork game during the open house.

a yOunG bOy is in the midst of an asthma attack. A middle-aged woman is having a heart attack. An elderly man presenting for surgery has veins that are nearly impossible to locate. What are the next steps that need to be taken?

These scenarios were just a few of the situations 23 area high school students faced as part of a recent four-week pilot program aimed at introducing youth to the many careers available in the field of health care. The program was offered by the MGH Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine and the MGH Center for Community Health Improvement.

“The Center for Community Health Improvement focuses on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education and we built off of that,” says Peter Demary, administrative coordinator in the Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine. “We want them to understand how many different roles there are in a hospital. It was really exciting, engaging and a lot of fun for all of us.”

During the program, students spent two hours a week participating in lectures with anesthesia technicians, critical care nurses, nurse anesthetists and residents. They also took part in mock exercises to diagnose and create a care plan for patients and got hands-on experience using laryngoscopes, blood pressure cuffs and other equipment in the field, all while learning resuscitation and intubation techniques. The program culminated with a trip to the Paul S. Russell, MD Museum of Medical History and Innovation where the students practiced what they had learned on the simulation mannequins.

Demary says the program was extremely successful and will be expanded and offered again in the fall. Students surveyed following the class agreed, noting – “I loved the fact that it was so hands-on with all of the real equipment from the hospital” and “Before, I had almost no clue what anesthesia was, but now I am much more educated.” n

Students get hands-on approach to learning

EditorColleen Marshall

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i n G e n e r a Ldaniel B. Kopans, md, senior radiologist in the Breast Imaging Division, has been elected chairman of the Fellows of the Society of Breast Imaging, a group of leading experts dedicated to improving breast cancer detection and diagnosis in the U.S.

William Farinelli, senior laser technician in the Wellman Center for Photomedicine for the past 38 years, received the Caroline and William Mark Award honoring his lifetime of contributions to the field during the annual American Society for Lasers in Surgery and Medicine conference in Boston on April 6. During the conference, Farinelli also shared a personal retrospective lecture, “Biomedical Laser Research: The Triumphs and Pitfalls.”

Three MGHers have been elected to the 2013 class of American Academy of Arts and Sciences: david matthew altshuler, md, Phd, of the Department of Molecular Biology and Department of Medicine; Xandra owens Breakefield, Phd, geneticist in Neurology and Radiology Services; and John Parrish, md, chief executive officer at the Center for Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology (CIMIT). The society, which was established in 1780 by John Adams and other founders of the U.S., is one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies. The new class of members, comprising leaders from academia, business, public affairs, the humanities and the arts, will be inducted at a ceremony in October at the organization’s headquarters in Cambridge, Mass.  

the mGH was recognized on the Becker’s Hospital Review and Becker’s ASC Review magazines’ 2013 list of the “100 Great Places to Work in Healthcare.” The annual list honors institutions that offer robust benefits, wellness initiatives, professional development opportunities and work environments that promote employee collaboration and satisfaction.

the mGH was ranked on the DiversityInc list of Top 10 Hospital Systems for 2013 recognizing the hospital’s commitment to workforce diversity shown by MGH President Peter L. Slavin, MD. DiversityInc is a leading publication on diversity and business.

the mGH has received the Partner Recognition Award from Practice Greenhealth, the nation’s leading health care membership community that empowers its members to increase their efficiencies and environmental stewardship while improving patient safety and care. The award is given annually to health care facilities that have begun to work on environmental improvements, have achieved some progress, and have at least a 10 percent recycling rate for their total waste streams. During the ceremony, four other Partners HealthCare hospitals also were honored for their sustainability efforts. Representing the MGH was Bill Banchiere, director of Environmental Services, at far right.

maurizio Fava, md, executive vice chair of the Department of Psychiatry, was honored with the 2012 John T. Potts Jr., MD, Faculty Mentoring Award during an April 10 celebration in the Trustees Room. The award – given annually by the Center for Faculty Development – recognizes senior faculty members with 10 or more years of mentoring experience at the MGH. It was created to honor Potts, who served as chairman of the Department of Medicine and physician-in-chief from 1981 to 1996, and as director of Research from 1995 to 2004. “Having known and admired Dr. Potts for years, I am extremely honored by this award,” Fava said. “Dr. Potts has been a role model for all of us at MGH, and I am very grateful to all my trainees for having given me the opportunity to mentor them and for their kind and thoughtful nominations.”

mentorIng exceLLence: From left, Anne Klibanski, MD, director of the Center for Faculty Development; Jerrold Rosenbaum, MD, chief of the Department of Psychiatry; Potts; Fava; MGH President Peter L. Slavin, MD; and David F. Torchiana, MD, chairman and CEO of the MGPO.