Upon counting kudos cards, Dr. Jackson discovered Cassandra Baxter, RN on 5 West had received more kudos cards than any other employee in the entire hospital. Watch this interview on Chris’ Corner to find out how she keeps hand hygiene top of mind.
Q: How long have you worked at HMSL?
A: April marked my 8th month here at HMSL, and I am a part of the GN residency program.
Q: What unit do you work on?
A: 5 West!
Q: What do you like about working here?
A: The people! All the staff I’ve come in contact with, my 5 West colleagues especially, have all been so encouraging and supportive to help me acclimate to the Houston Methodist way of doing things. One of my other favorite things about working here is the reputation that follows. Any time I tell someone I work at Houston Methodist people are impressed and tell stories of the good experiences they’ve had with us.
Q: Are you aware that HMSL is leading our system in Hand Hygiene?
A: It doesn’t surprise me! Like I said, Methodist has a reputation around here for being the best.
Q: Tell us about the kudos cards. How did you learn about them?
A: The kudos cards are cards given to patients on admission (and more later on if they request) to fill out every time they see staff members washing their hands. One day a patient filled one out and handed to me and I wasn’t exactly sure what to do with it, so I went to my charge nurse to ask her what it was and that’s when I learned about them. I knew we had hand hygiene raffles/bonuses, but I never knew it was related to the kudos cards until recently.
Q: Do you think the kudos cards program is good for patient safety and why?
A: Absolutely; anything that encourages staff to be consistent in hand hygiene is a step in the right direction for patient safety. It also encourages patients and families to be more aware of their surroundings and to advocate for their own safety, while also being able to thank staff for their diligence.
Q: You have received more kudos cards than any other employee in the entire hospital. What is your secret to success?
A: Practice makes perfect, and repetition becomes habit. Eventually, it becomes second nature and you find your hand reaching for the sanitizer/soap without even thinking about it.
Q: You recently were a kudos card drawing winner and received a pair of AMC movie tickets. What movie are you going to see?
A: I went to see Beauty and the Beast as soon as I could!
Q: What do you know about the Forward Thinking/Hygiene+ hand hygiene pilot?
A: As far as I know, along with the kudos cards, when I started here at Houston Methodist they were trying out comparing motion sensors in the hand sanitizers/soap dispensers to a motion sensor just inside the door of patient’s room to see how often people were foaming in and out. I also recently learned they would be participating in a pilot where we are adding a sensor to our badges and including employees from other department as well so we can more closely see where improvement could be made in hand hygiene.
Q: Are you looking forward to leading the hospital and our hospital system in a hand hygiene pilot program?
A: Of course! No time like the present to make a little history–could be my stamp on Houston Methodist!