Morris Hospital and Healthcare Centers is quite small: an independent, rural system of clinics including an 89-bed hospital. Yet the system is the largest employer in Morris, IL. In this interview, Kim Landers, their Vice President of Patient Care and Chief Nurse Executive, explains how they remain relevant and solvent, and the aid provided by moving to the MEDITECH Expanse online platform.
Landers says that surveys have shown nursing to be “the most trusted but least engaged profession.” After losing 40% of their hospital staff during the early COVID-19 period to less dangerous settings, Morris turned its team around, winning awards in nurse engagement in 2023 and 2024. The system kept its nursing leadership intact during that period as well.
While always having used MEDITECH as their EHR, Morris went online with Expanse in 2023. This move brought together all departments, which had previously used four different platforms. The unification of records was especially important in pulling together the ambulatory and in-patient settings.
Their success in rebuilding their staff lies in maintaining a positive work environment (a “family atmosphere,” according to Landers), because they can’t pay as much as some larger institutions.
Community involvement has been critical. They offer abatements, have a “huge” transportation program, and offer a lot of specialized services at a local YMCA. They have an ACO and deal with population health.
Morris is testing some AI applications, particularly ambient listening for nursing.
Landers is also involved in bigger initiatives. Morris joined the KLAS Arch Collaborative program, which runs surveys and, benchmarking. She helped start a “digital transformation committee” in 2022 at the American Organization of Nurse Leaders, where she represents rural providers. The organization published six “guiding principles” (such as “use the data”—don’t just depend on stories) in the February 2024 Nurse Leader journal.
Watch the video for more details about managing a successful, small rural hospital.
Learn more about Morris Hospital: https://www.morrishospital.org/
Learn more about MEDITECH: https://ehr.meditech.com/
Listen and subscribe to the Healthcare IT Today Interviews Podcast to hear all the latest insights from experts in healthcare IT.
And for an exclusive look at our top stories, subscribe to our newsletter and YouTube.
Tell us what you think. Contact us here or on Twitter at @hcitoday. And if you’re interested in advertising with us, check out our various advertising packages and request our Media Kit.
MEDITECH is a proud sponsor of Healthcare Scene.
No comments:
Post a Comment