Healthcare Can Learn a lot from Racing

Daytona International Speedway is the ultimate racing experience for many race fans throughout the world.

This past weekend I had the privilege and opportunity to attend the Advance Auto Parts Clash in Daytona.

Watching an event on television and watching it in person is vastly different. The experience literally begins when you first step onto the grounds. Walking toward the stadium is impressive. The massive structure reaches directly out to you. Visually, the attention to detail is everywhere. The striking use of color grabs your attention, moving your eye along the entire structural landscape. Even from a distance, your attention is focused on the main design elements - from information to advertising for ticket sales, museum access and gate locations.

Actual race cars, both in the museum and outside, create a vertically stunning entrance to the middle gate that is captivating. Between the stairs and the escalator, all you can do is to look at the brightly colored race cars and hearing the chatter from the crowd about each vehicle is entertaining. Florida Hospital has an incredibly eye catching section with multi-colored dimensional shapes with a positive message "Be Inspired" right on the front of the entry. How could you be anything other than inspired when entering any of these areas?

It really doesn't matter where you are inside the structure, the continuity of information, attention to detail, and use of color and positive messages are everywhere. It would be simple and very cost-effective to have great sections of untouched gray concrete and steel everywhere. This is not the case. Look up and see the evolving seasons transition with the digital seasons on the ceiling. Walk around the corner and read the history of racing, or check out the most current healthcare information. Keep walking and pose for a great picture of this moment of your experience. For free you can have that photo emailed to you directly. Don't like the first picture, retake it. Great photo memory!

In the stands you are part of the integrated experience. Attention to detail is everywhere. The seats are brightly colored, and the infield is decorated to perfection. The infield experience is captivating and you are so close to everything and everyone that you might think you are part of the race team for just a moment. Once the race starts, the vibration of the cars can be felt throughout your entire body and even in the seat you are in. The excitement and cheering of the crowd is contagious. The announcer is fluid and transitions the race to the episodes of track clean-up and repair. The restart is just as exciting at times as the first start.

• Forget something? There's a vendor for that.
• Need something? Ask someone. There's a smiling face everywhere you look.
• Hungry? Look around. Vendors are on every level.
• Looking for a location? Signage is easily seen at eye level, higher up and also directly on the floor. It is also color coded to the location.
• Accident on the track? Fire Rescue is already on the way.
• Raining on the track? Custom drying trucks driving in tandem.
• Damage to the fence? Fence repair experts already in action.
• Emergency in stands? Healthcare dispatch is already sending a team.
• Online the website is easy to navigate. Buy tickets, need information for events, want to look around for hotel rooms or places to eat - it's all right here. Easy.

This is not a travel brochure - it is a call out to healthcare.

It is time to rethink how we do business: What we look like, how we sound, what we teach, how we interact not only with our target population to provide healthcare, but also those communities that support them, and most importantly teamwork.

Statistics & Numbers: Billion dollar industries relate to both the Sports Industry as well as Healthcare. The minutia detail on this is staggering. Online you can dissect the cost of advertising, insurance, infrastructure, return on investment, etc. The cost of teamwork is also translatable in team performance, management, manpower, turnover, etc. Purposefully I have not gone into that for this article.

Teamwork, Competency & Perception. Ultimately, a large degree of what we do comes down to these 3 things. This is the challenge of every organization, and is especially true for service industries. Globally, healthcare is one of the largest industries. Ultimately our product is patient care. Definitely a broad term, defining and delivering "health care" consists of all aspects of the human experience. It can be stated that health care begins before conception, definitely throughout the entire pregnancy status, delivery, post-partum, development, pubescence, adulthood, aging, geriatrics and death. The continuum is endless. It is also multi-dimensional with families and significant others, and geographically interactive.

The success, and/or failure, of any service industry relates to the degree of service that is provided. Excellent ratings in healthcare in today's world translates into overall patient satisfaction scores that directly relate back to reimbursement. There is not always a linear translation into the absolute exactness or precision of care, but relates to the "perception" of care during the overall care continuum.

Metrics do exist for mortality, morbidity, infection and return visits. However, it is the patient response to the surveys for HCAHPS (the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) and Press Ganey scores directly reported that relate to reimbursement. There are metrics on every single unit of care provided within the hospital setting; others apply to out-patient care areas, surgical centers and physician's offices.

The healthcare industry must not only be accurate in the overall delivery of care, they must also be effective and efficient in the translation of dollars to that scored perception.

Healthcare can learn a lot from racing.

Here is a quick list of the lessons I learned from the past weekend:

1. Impressions begin before you ever enter the facility. The outside of the building is important. The message that you are sending to those arriving should create a sensation of organization and confidence. Color sets the tone. Signs are critical. The more organized the building is on the outside, the perception is the more organized they are on the inside.

2. Entry into the facility should be easy to navigate. Traffic flow follows logic decision tree pathways. Emergency care goes one way and non-emergency related goes another. Routine out-patient visits for diagnostic procedures &/or lab work need to be clearly marked. In-patient visitors also should have expedited access. Every area should have access for all ages, especially the elderly &/or access impaired.

The sorting and directing of the traffic pattern needs to be intuitive and not rely on the 1:1 interaction with manpower. In today's world of security issues, all of these recommendations do not come at the expense at screening. Even at Daytona you have to go through the gate.

Signage needs to be at least eye level for someone of standard height, repeated at intervals higher up with option to also repeat directly on the floor. Color coding areas would be excellent.

3. Confidence, Color & Cleanliness. Information can be found on the walls for location, and for information. Signs, FYI's, digital terminals, computer access for patient status and location progression, computer connections for personal devices and telephones and other modalities are easily elements to incorporate. Cleanliness is not just jargon; it reflects the care we provide to the patient and how the staff operates.

Confidence is created through the recurrent theme that we reinforce. Words represent only a small percentage of the "take away" message that represents the overall experience.

4. Forget something? There should be an option for that.

5. Need something? Ask someone. There's a smiling face everywhere you look.

6. Hungry? Look around. Not every facility has 24/7/365 cafeteria access. Optimally, there needs to be several locations throughout the facility visitors can access on every level. This may be in the form of vending machines. Choices need to be varied to include a variety of traditional snacks to healthy alternatives.

7. Healthcare Websites should be easy to navigate. Large consistent patterns, with color coding, make the site easy to read. Drop down menus in large enough to read font make the website friendly and usable. Search engines within the web site help to direct questions and/or provide additional information.

Several websites are now networking with patient portals to actively engage the patient for direct input of medical history with current medications. The importability of this information directly into the medical record EHR increases the efficiency of the health care team member.

Looking forward.

Ultimately, the provision of healthcare is not an exact science. But it is a science.

There is more to providing health care than treating a disease, or a disorder or even an injury. Much of what is done is judged by the "total patient care experience", and this includes entry to exit. It also includes all elements of our senses.

The ease of the experience combined with the pleasant atmosphere created through clear navigational directions, signage, use of color and access to necessities are key elements. Teamwork is essential and is a core basic element. There is also more to teamwork than working directly with each other in a direct care scenario. It relates to the structural facility, indirect and direct care.

Finely tuned as the operation of a professional race team.

An excellent opportunity to see the possibilities is how I review the weekend. A great adventure into the delivery of streamlined customer service and providing a wonderful product that exceeded all expectations. As a member of the health care community, there is a lot that can be learned from racing.

Local recognition.

Locally, right here in Brevard County, we have several individuals that I would like to take a moment to recognize. Chris Chadwick is a Firefighter, and also Scott Praetorius Paramedic & Instructor, both volunteer for the Daytona International Speedway. Debbie Kicinski is the premier BLS & Baby Sitter safety instructor for the region. David Schmitt was recognized as the State of Florida Educator of the year for 2016. Brevard County Fire Rescue team members represented us proudly at Melbourne Airport for the President Trump's visit to Melbourne.

These are excellent example of the impact of teamwork and the contribution of the multi-dimensional healthcare professionals. I would like to at least take a moment to thank each of them for their service, as well as all of the Fire Fighters, EMS Rescue members, police & health care providers in our community and throughout our nation.

Teamwork / Advertising / Customer Service / Emergency Response / Healthcare: Daytona International Speedway = Rating: Highest Possible Marks

Bonnie Varney, RN, MBA, MS-HSM - Melbourne, Florida