Mission Health's Unique Immersion Day For Board, Journalists And Policy Makers Provides Necessary Insight For Governance And Policy

ASHEVILLE, N.C., March 30, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Mission Health's innovative Immersion Day program creates new paths for key stakeholders to better understand the real challenges and opportunities facing health systems.  It has resulted in improved insights on how to lead, regulate and report on the most complex health care issues facing the nation.  A description of the program entitled, "Immersion Day – Transforming Governance and Policy by Putting on Scrubs," co-written by Ronald A. Paulus, MD, President and CEO of Mission Health and Richard W. Bock, MD, Immersion Advisors is published in the March 31, 2016 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). It outlines how Mission's unique, three-year-old program has strengthened governance and engendered trust in our community, staff and physicians. The article is available here.

"We realized the obvious when deciding that there was no better way to inform our board members, community and policy makers about the real challenges and opportunities our caregivers and health system face than by simply letting them see for themselves in an unscripted, transparent manner.  Our Immersion Program has been incredibly successful in leading to greater understanding and producing real change and we believe that it has implications nationally," said Dr. Paulus. "Programs like this continue to provide new opportunities to provide the highest quality care for our patients and the best work environment for our staff."  

"This unprecedented level of access and ability to hear directly from our doctors, nurses and patients is not only eye-opening but also incredibly valuable in enabling our Board to make better, more informed decisions to meet the needs of our communities and caregivers," said Wyatt S. Stevens, Chair, Mission Health Board of Directors.

"As day turns to night we head to the emergency department where a woman is having difficulty breathing. She deteriorates quickly, no respirations, no pulse. Everyone is doing their jobs, airway established, CPR has begun, and the ER doctor is calmly and confidently giving instructions. Does she have insurance? Can she pay for her treatments? No asks, no one cares, the goal is to save a life, and they succeed. What did I learn and what do I want to share? Western North Carolina is in good hands. Mission provides state-of-the-art care regardless of ability to pay, without passing judgment on the behaviors that brought them in the door, and in spite of the regulatory and compliance burdens place on them by the state and federal government," said Representative Brian Turner of his Immersion Day experience.

In the program, each participant spends a 9 to 12 hours immersed in the front-line nuances of care delivery – in the operating room, emergency department, staff lounge and at the bedside.  After initially being created to improve its own Board's understanding of the needs of our patients and caregivers, the program has been expanded to include journalists and legislators who report on, create policy and provide funding for the nearly 900,000 people who Mission serves across western North Carolina.

About the Study
The study, titled, "Immersion Day – Transforming Governance and Policy by Putting on Scrubs" by Ronald A. Paulus, MD and Richard W. Bock, MD reported on the benefits of an immersion day for board members, journalists, legislators and regulators to put on scrubs and spend 9 to 12 hours behind the scenes, immersed in the nuances of care delivery so that they can see first-hand the daily work that occurs in our health care system and understand our operations as deeply and fully as possible.  The program – now in its third year – has improved insights on how to lead, regulate and report on the most complex health care issues facing the nearly 900,000 people who are cared for at Mission Health.

About Mission Health
Mission Health, based in Asheville, North Carolina, is the state's sixth-largest health system and the region's only not-for-profit, independent community hospital system governed and managed exclusively in western North Carolina. One of the nation's Top 15 Health Systems since 2012, Mission Health is the only health system in the nation to receive this recognition from Truven Health Analytics for four years in a row.  Additionally, it is the only health system in North Carolina to achieve Top 15 recognition. 

Mission Health, which traces its roots in the region back to 1885, operates six hospitals, numerous outpatient and surgery centers, post-acute care provider CarePartners, long-term acute care provider Asheville Specialty Hospital and the region's only dedicated Level II trauma center. Its medical staff consists of more than 1,000 physicians and is certified in more than 50 medical specialties and sub-specialties. Mission Health has seven Centers of Excellence: Cancer, Heart, Mission Children's Hospital, Neurosciences, Orthopedics, Trauma and Women's Health. Mission Hospital, located in Asheville, is the system's flagship hospital and is licensed for 763 beds. It is the regional referral center for tertiary and quaternary care. It also includes Mission Children's Hospital – the region's only children's hospital. Other Mission Health member hospitals include Angel Medical Center in Franklin, Blue Ridge Regional Hospital in Spruce Pine, Highlands-Cashiers Hospital in Highlands, McDowell Hospital in Marion and Transylvania Regional Hospital in Brevard. With approximately 10,700 employees and 2,000 volunteers, Mission Health is dedicated to improving the health and wellness of the people of western North Carolina. For more information, please visit mission-health.org or @MissionHealthNC.

SOURCE Mission Health

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