Senior Director of Patient and Customer Experience

Tina

Please talk about your key roles and responsibilities while serving at your current organization 

My background as a physical therapist has really driven me as a professional. Even though I no longer actively practice as a physical therapist, I still contribute to people's health, wellness, and healing processes. Currently, I serve as the senior director of patient and customer experience at Lennox Hill Hospital, Northwell Health. Being the culture leader for Lennox Hill Hospital, I oversee patient experience and our holistic nursing program, which includes integrative wellness as well as spiritual services, and the volunteer experience program.

What are the major challenges that are impacting the workspace lately, and what measures have you taken to mitigate those challenges? 

Our transition out of the pandemic has really challenged us. The frontline healthcare workers who have experienced the pandemic and were really challenged by what they've been through are still committed to their profession and are showing up every day for work and taking care of patients and their families. They are asked to focus on many things, including providing an exceptional patient experience, a quality and safe experience, and taking care of their own health and wellness too.

I think that's really a challenge, but also a wonderful opportunity. In this senior leadership position, not only do I set the strategy for improving the patient experience, but I also work with my colleagues in many other departments to focus on employee wellness. The physical therapists, rehab team, and all of our frontline providers ensure that people have the resources they need to take care of themselves, their families, and their own health and wellness. 

Therefore, it's crucial to have an integrative health and wellness program here at Lennox Hill Hospital, along with a robust spiritual services program.

With these potential transformations and disruptions that are prevailing in the space, how do you envision the future of the industry? 

We need to continue to remember that we're human beings caring for other human beings. And if we remember that concept, then we're going to be in a better place moving forward. The healthcare environment is incredibly challenging, but if we continue to take care of our healthcare workers so that they can best take care of our patients and families, then we can all work together to get to a better place.

Would you like to talk about any project that you have been working on, and what are the processes you have leveraged to make the project successful?

A program developed by our Chief Experience Officer and our office of patients is widely used throughout Northwell Health, and we've adopted it here at Lennox Hill; it's called 'Team Lavender'. Our Team Lavender is a group of multidisciplinary individuals who come together to support one another when there's a need. And those needs stem from difficult situations on an inpatient unit, such as the death of a long-term patient or the death of a team member.

When a staff member asks for support, we come together as a team, and we bring aromatherapy. We also bring together a team to process the event, talk about it, and show that we're there for one another, in sickness and in health.

We bring a cart full of goodies like candies and also introduce different resources for employee assistance, including debriefing sessions. Sometimes a moment of spiritual prayer together brings relief. The approach and process vary depending on the situation. I'm incredibly proud of our Team Lavender program, and we've just expanded it to be 24 hours a day.

What would be your advice to other leaders and fellow peers to improve their workspace? 

Focus on people. People are our most valuable asset, and if we invest in and focus on them, the results will reflex growth and development. Physical and spiritual healing is possible with team synergy. Fostering an environment of empathy for our people will help us tremendously and lead to accountability from our team members in implementing new technological advances or other new programs or processes within the healthcare environment.