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Dr. Kyle Rehder authored a Jan. 30th blog post for The Joint Commission on the prevalence and impact of disruptive behaviors in the healthcare environment. The post highlights the recent research by Rehder and others from the Center team, which calls attention the routine exposure of healthcare workers to disruptive behaviors and the negative effects this can have on employee well-being and patient care.

Duke Health is committed to upholding professional behavior in the workplace. The Center hosts programs on professionalism, well-being, and teamwork to help team members from any organization, including Duke, become champions of a safe work environment.

This fall, Duke Regional Hospital team members came together to share letters of gratitude with each other. This well-being exercise is a powerful (and heartwarming!) tool for enhancing the resilience of caregivers. Check out the video to see the gratitude in action.

The Duke Center for Healthcare Safety and Quality has been certified as a Duke Green Workplace! The certification, which is coordinated by the Duke Office of Sustainability, evaluates workplaces on a variety of environmentally-conscious practices including recycling, energy usage, and communication of green practices.

The Center is committed to ensuring quality and safety for our patients, their caregivers, and each other, which means ensuring the environment we all live and work in is also safe and healthy. We take our responsibility to maintain the health of our environment seriously and are proud to be recognized for these efforts.

In 2015, Kimberly Dixon underwent knee replacement surgeries at Duke Raleigh Hospital. However, bi-lateral artificial knees did not stop Kimberly from dedicating herself to her own personal health and the well-being of others.

Kimberly has participated in several volunteer organizations, including the Duke Raleigh Patient and Family Advisory Council (PFAC). She has even written a book about the experience of undergoing knee surgery, which she dedicated to her Duke Raleigh surgeon.

Whether I am serving on PFAC or providing care packages to the homeless, my mission is to let others know that they are not invisible and that someone truly cares for them and their well-being. – Kimberly Dixon

This year, Kimberly’s extraordinary work in her community has been recognized with major awards. She is the recipient of the 2019 ACHI Magazine Volunteer of the Year Award and the Health and Wellness Award.  Congratulations to Kimberly for these well-deserved awards!

Last month, the members of Duke Health’s Patient and Family Advisory Councils (PFACs) came together for an evening of food and fun. After a day-long retreat, the council volunteers and staff co-chairs joined Duke Health’s senior leadership and members of the Duke Center for Healthcare Safety and Quality team for a special gala celebrating their many impactful accomplishments. The PFAC members are critical to Duke Health’s ability to deliver effective, high-quality and compassionate care to its patients.

See more photos from the PFAC Gala

Interested in volunteering? Contact Shannon Haney at shannon.haney@duke.edu

On September 18, The Duke Center for Healthcare Safety and Quality invited our Duke colleagues who attended the Center’s resilience courses back for an evening of sharing successes and networking. The evening was packed with inspiring presentations and stories from those who took what they learned in class and used it to enhance the well-being of their teams. From celebrating National Talk Like a Pirate Day to organizing team volunteer opportunities, the Ambassadors showcased the many creative ways that someone can become a champion of well-being.

See more photos from the event

A new article from Magnify, the Duke School of Medicine’s latest publication, focuses on burnout among healthcare workers. Burnout is major healthcare issue, affecting the emotional, physical and mental health of the very people who we need at their best to care for others. Duke as a whole has been actively researching and implementing evidence-based tools to tackle burnout and promote a healthy work culture. To be the best for our patients, we must take care of ourselves.

The Duke Center for Healthcare Safety and Quality is proud to lend its expertise to the issue of burnout. Through data collection, education, coaching and toolkit implementation, the Center works hard to help Duke’s healthcare team realize a greater sense of well-being.

To see the full article, which includes a shout-out to the Center and a quote from Duke’s Patient Safety lead, Dr. Jonathan Bae, click here.

Duke’s Patient and Family Advisors played a key role recently in naming Duke University Hospital’s new bed tower, currently under construction. The advisors provided one of the final approvals of the new name alongside the health system’s senior leadership. Thank you to all of our advisors for their dedication to improving the patient experience!

Read the full article here (Duke login required)

Find out more about the Duke Patient and Family Advisory Councils

Last week, Center Director Dr. Bryan Sexton visited the Institute for Patient Safety and Quality at the SingHealth/ Duke-NUS Academic Medical Center in Singapore.

While visiting, Dr. Sexton taught a 2-day Train-the-Trainer Workshop  on Resilience in Academic Medicine to a packed audience. The course was based on our popular Enhancing Caregiver Resilience course offered quarterly in Durham, NC.

Special thank you to our SingHealth colleagues for hosting Dr. Sexton!