Nathan Jeffers/photo

Pictured are several Pleasant Valley Hospital staff members and administrators.

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POINT PLEASANT — In part of a pursuit to improve hospital procedures and customer satisfaction across the country, Pleasant Valley Hospital (PVH) was recently given their scores on their progress.

According to Tracy Stewart Call, Director of Marketing and Community Relations, PVH is 29 percent above the national average and 42 percent above the average for hospitals the state of West Virginia.

Tom Schauer, CEO of PVH, as well as Call and other PVH administrators and staff gathered on Tuesday to discuss their score and what they have done to improve their patients’ experience at the hospital. It was stated there is a set of standards that all hospitals are required to meet and PVH’s scores are based on a combination of meeting those standards and their patient satisfaction. It was also noted that the standards were comprised of items that are problem areas for all hospitals, not just PVH.

Some of the hospital standards discussed on Tuesday included giving patients the appropriate care within a certain time frame as well as educating the staff on the proper procedures and standards and ensuring those needs are being met.

It was also noted since many patients are Medicare and Medicaid recipients, the improvement on the treatment procedures are also tied with PVH’s reimbursement from Medicare and Medicaid. It was noted during the meeting that PVH would be reimbursed more due to their higher scores.

In addition to the set standards for hospitals that PVH worked to meet, there are also some programs specific to PVH to help improve patient satisfaction. Some of the improvements are simple, such as the cleanliness of the bathrooms and whether or not there is a lot of noise during the night. Another program PVH has implemented is the “No Pass Zone.” In this program, when a PVH staff member sees a patient’s call light on, they are not supposed to pass by, but rather always stop to help or find the correct person needed to assist the patient. Schauer also stated on Tuesday he has also stopped in the hallway when he saw a call light on and timed how long it took for a staff member to respond.

Even with all of these improvements PVH has already made, it was also noted during the meeting that there will be new standards given to hospitals to meet and there will also always be more PVH staff can do to improve customer satisfaction.

“We have to continue to improve,” Schauer said.

In addition to Call and Schauer, others attending the meeting were Richard Hogan, CFO; William A. Barker, Jr., Senior Vice President; David A. Brown, Director of Human Resources; Connie David, Senior Director of Ancillary Services; Amber Findley, Senior Director of Nursing Services and Nursing Home Administrator; Jackie Stewart, Director of Nursing; Dana Richardson, Controller; Linda Lieving, Director of Quality.