An artist rendering illustrates the future Walter Reed National Military Medical Center upon its completion in September 2011.

Implementation of the FY 2009 Annual Plan brought about several successes. Nine Goal Champions and 21 Team Leaders with teams ranging from six to 30 members each addressed the objectives for each goal and measured their successes via metrics presented to the BOD monthly and reported in The Journal quarterly.

The year-end report measures Progress to Plan: how well did the teams meet their projections and what they will carry over into this fiscal year’s strategic plan.

Quality Goal: We deliver comprehensive world-class health care during transition and construction.

One of the 2009 Quality objective teams achieved successes in the following Patient and Family-Centered Care (PFCC) accomplishments: familiarization via Department Head Course, Training Day Kickoff with 64.7 percent attendance, Performax Module deployed, incorporated into Command Customer Service Orientation, Excellence Awards Presented & Posted, Intranet Web site launched, leadership staff sent for advanced training, Carry Cards distributed and PFCC Ward Working Group inaugurated. This Quality objective team is now focusing on a sustained marketing program and a PFCC ‘‘pledge” to patients.

In 2009, the research objective team’s accomplishments included: establishing the Interdepartmental Collaborative Bethesda Research Group (ICEBERG), implementing a Web-based protocol tracking system, holding a research competition with WRAMC, drafting a proposal for a ‘‘Research Club,” identifying SME resources and coordinating various training opportunities with WRAMC and NIH. The team recommends further development in these areas, and exploring more opportunities to publish clinical performance data.

Other changes in the Quality Goal include the Professional Development objective having been successfully completed, and the addition of an improving Continuous Survey Readiness objective.

Readiness Goal: We are ready to meet our mission anywhere, anytime.

This year’s accomplishments for the Readiness objective teams included: maintaining Readiness Indeterminate (RI -not ready) at lower than 8 percent, and achieved 5 percent RI during June-July 2009, renovations to the Health Readiness Clinic, deployment of AHLTA Dental, development of a QA process to ensure accuracy of data migration and implementation of a scheduled review of records and rosters. To address the workplace stress objective, Yoga classes and three successful seminars on reducing stress and updated civilian health promotion instruction were launched.

Another 2009 Readiness team expanded the contacting of deployed service members and their families and improved our pre-and post-deployment services to ensure monthly contact with deployed staff and their families and created a reference guide for sponsors of deploying staff. This team’s recommendations include implementation of a semi-monthly Hail & Farewell program and enhancing pre- and post-deployment services for service members and their families.

Access Goal: Ensure that Active-Duty and Prime enrollees get to the right provider, at the right time and at the right place.

The Access objective team updated Call Center SOPs, sent monthly reminders to Clinic Managers and DHs regarding six week advance scheduling, reviewed patient satisfaction data, and identified barriers to access. The team also conducted a multidisciplinary Work Out for a standardized phone tree, reviewed Clinic Business Rules and developed a Marketing Plan for the Call Center. The team recommends these efforts continue, and that the core clinic phone system structure be standardized.

Integration Goal: Advance integration by defining, aligning and marketing our present and future medical center.

The Integration objective teams accomplished much, including a three part survey that showed increasing staff favorability about BRAC and integration. A team helped sponsor the first ‘‘integrated” picnic and Team-Spirit softball game, developed an integration video for Command Orientation, displayed ‘‘all-service” rank posters in clinical areas and posted the Monday Morning Message to the entire command.

Integration objective teams conducted a study of differing organizational structures between the Med-Cens, an instruction tracker and electronic policy tracking program and a color palette plan. The Integration teams recommend a continuation of positive marketing of BRAC⁄Integration and Transition Plan information, and a more streamlined approach for policy review to align policies as we merge into a single facility. The team also plans to continue palette design with designer contract support.

Additional information about the FY-2010 Annual Plan will be available online via NNMC’s Intranet this week. Check it out!