Hospitals and healthcare facilities across the United States are celebrating Patient Experience Week this week, April 25-29, to honor their staff for impacting patients’ experiences in a positive way. This is the third annual Patient Experience (PX) Week, a program created by global organization The Beryl Institute.

“Our teammates dedicate all 52 weeks in a year to supporting the health and wellbeing of this community,” Ken Shull, chief executive officer of St. Luke’s Hospital, said, “so taking one week out of the year to honor their dedication is the least we can do.”

St. Luke’s Hospital is one of hundreds of participating hospitals around the country.

The Beryl Institute, an international community of healthcare professionals that began PX Week in 2014, defines patient experience as “the sum of all interactions… that influence patient perceptions across the continuum of care.” The Institute encourages participating facilities, like St. Luke’s Hospital, to celebrate not only medical staff, but executives, administrators, patients, families and the community at large.

“We understand that everyone here contributes in one way or another to our patients’ experience at St. Luke’s: physicians, nurses, therapists, food service workers, engineers, assistants and volunteers,” Shull said. “Each and every one of us is the reason our care is both exceptional and close to home.”

St. Luke’s Hospital is celebrating its team with giveaways and interactive activities, like a collective piece of art made of traced hands since “all teammates have a hand” in creating the patient experience. Staff will also share their greatest patient experience stories with signs that will be photographed and shared via social media.

In addition, St. Luke’s teammates are celebrating a milestone, earning recognition for three quarters in a row as a Top Performer for high Patient Satisfaction scores in the Carolinas HealthCare System region.

“We’ve grown quite competitive to keep the recognition banners here at St. Luke’s Hospital,” Shull said. “Our committee meets monthly to review survey scores and discuss ways to improve the hospital experience, and we’re initiating a Patient-Family Advisory Council to better hear our patients’ voices and perspectives. It all adds up to an exceptional patient experience.”

For more information about St. Luke’s Hospital, call 828-894-0972 or email kathy.woodham@slhnc.org.

– Submitted by Cody Owens