PROVIDENCE – Ever wonder who’s caring for you in the hospital and how that compares to another hospital’s caregiving? Data summarizing the number of health care workers, as well as their specific expertise (phlebotomy, nursing, pharmacy, etc.), assigned to a specific shift and department on a hospital-specific basis is available at PatientCareLink, a regional health care website providing patients, families and caregivers up-to-date and detailed information about health care provided by participating hospitals. Jean Marie Rocha, Hospital Association of Rhode Island vice president, clinical affairs, told Providence Business News that she’s not aware of any other public initiative providing such staffing information data.
Members of the public can now easily access information from PatientCareLink about 2016 staffing levels and 2017 staffing plans for Massachusetts hospitals. HARI member hospitals – Butler, Kent, L & M Westerly, Memorial, Our Lady of Fatima, South County and Women & Infants hospitals as well as Prime Healthcare’s Landmark Medical Center and Rehabilitation Hospital of Rhode Island and Roger Williams Medical Center – also recently submitted their 2016 and 2017 staffing levels to PatientCareLink. HARI will meet soon with Eleanor Slater Hospital, which joined the hospital organization April 1, to discuss the merits of submitting data to PatientCareLink, said Rocha.
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According to its website, PatientCareLink is committed to health care quality and patient safety, providing hospital staffing that meets patient needs, making health care data and performance measures transparent and publicly available, workforce development and promoting a safe, respective and supportive working environment.
In July 2015, HARI joined PCL and, last year, its member hospitals began submitting data last year to increase the transparency regarding staffing levels, Rocha told Providence Business News. “The website … assists patients and their families in becoming more active participants in the care they receive.” Hospitals submit the data, and participation in PatientCareLink is a HARI benefit; there’s no additional fee imposed on hospitals submitting data, Rocha reported.
For more information, visit patientcarelink.org.
Nancy Kirsch is a PBN contributing writer.
