Women Make History at Cone Health
Two women executives, hundreds of women patients, scores of women employees and 7 pregnant women equals a preeminent setting for one of life's ultimate experiences.
GREENSBORO, N.C., March 5, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- It sounded simple—come up with a replacement for the ageing Women's Hospital of Greensboro. Improve on what made Women's Hospital a favorite for new families for nearly 30-years—and don't break the budget. Anne Macner, vice president, reinventing care and Karin Henderson, RN, executive director, strategic management, stepped to the task. "Hospitals build buildings all of the time, but we wanted to build an experience," says Mary Jo Cagle, MD, COO, Cone Health. "And Anne and Karin did."
Macner and Henderson were the perfect pair for the challenge. Macner once led rehabilitation services. Henderson is a nurse. They brought lean methodology to design and construction. And they understood the importance of getting input from patients and staff. During a scouting trip to another hospital, Henderson noticed a life-sized model of a room made of cardboard. They procured a grocery store Cone Health planned to bulldoze and built operating rooms, NICU rooms, mother-baby rooms and hallways. They brought in real medical equipment and staff pushed it around in what became known as Cardboard City. Doctors, nurses and other staff repositioned cabinets, created cut throughs to reduce steps, moved electrical outlets and asked for more light. A bend was put in the design allowing more windows.
Former patients took part in emotional design sessions. "What was your childbirth experience like?" "How does this color make you feel?" It took 5 years to design and build the 196,000 sq. ft. addition to Moses Cone Hospital. But the $100 million Cone Health Women's & Children's Center at Moses Cone Hospital was ahead of schedule and under budget.
On a sunny February morning, 7 pregnant women cut the ribbon on the new center to thunderous applause. Nearly 500 people went online and signed up for a tour of the private NICU rooms, couplet care rooms and other features that coming Saturday.
Eleven days later, Cone Health Women's & Children's Center opened at 5:30 a.m. The first patient arrived at 5:31. Shenequia Bass later told reporters that after seeing the facility in the Saturday tour, she was determined to have her baby there.
Bass made history for having the first childbirth in the new facility. Macner and Henderson have made sure that the center will be making history for generations to come.
Cone Health is a national leader in quality, service and cost. The integrated health care network consists of Alamance Regional Medical Center, Annie Penn Hospital, Cone Health Behavioral Health Hospital, The Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital, Wesley Long Hospital, Cone Health Medical Group, MedCenter High Point, MedCenter Kernersville, MedCenter Mebane, Triad HealthCare Network and various outpatient clinics and programs. More than 12,000 exceptional people provide exceptional care to the people of Guilford, Alamance, Rockingham, Forsyth, Caswell and Randolph counties.
SOURCE Cone Health
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