Hartford HealthCare wins recognition from Joint Commission for excellence in compliance documentation with Brightly’s TheWorxHub

Concerns

Healthcare regulations change continually, and as Hartford HealthCare expanded its footprint, the system needed a robust but easy-to-use solution for managing regulatory compliance. The company has always employed professionals to inspect equipment and facilities, but not every inspector knew what to look for. When they found issues that needed attention, there was no easy process for keeping track of those items and whether they were corrected.

“In the old days, we just walked around with a clipboard and a notepad,” says Gregory Rich, facilities manager at Hartford HealthCare. “Documenting and following up was not easy.” Hartford’s inspectors needed a system that would provide checklists to make sure nothing is missing and would require documentation of corrective actions made.

The Solution

Gregory Rich had used TheWorxHub in a former position at another hospital, and he advocated for Hartford to adopt TheWorxHub too. “Some programs are so plug-and-play that they don’t allow for any customizing,” he says. “TWH is intuitive, but also offers the ability to change things in order to suit our needs. I believe it has the best balance between adaptability and user friendliness.”

The Brightly team implemented TheWorxHub for Hartford HealthCare two years ago, and Gregory Rich is working with all facilities to get up to speed on the software and to use it to guarantee compliance system-wide.

The Results

While some Hartford HealthCare facilities are still in the process of rolling out TheWorxHub, those that have completed implementation are seeing positive results. “Any facility that has completely rolled out and using it doesn’t get cited when a regulatory agency shows up,” Gregory Rich says. “And a number of citations we’ve had over the past couple of years would have been completely prevented if TheWorxHub had been up and running.”

In the old days, we just walked around with a clipboard and a notepad. Documenting and following up was not easy.

Gregory Rich

Facilities Manager, Hartford HealthCare

“The software ensures compliance because it’s practically foolproof,” he says. There are a number of performance elements that are required regularly for each facility, and Gregory Rich created about

60 templates for scheduled work orders to satisfy compliance for each of those elements. A user must complete all the tasks before they can close the program, and when something is found to be noncompliant, there is a corrective action work order template tailored to match.

The software regularly alerts users about compliance tasks that need to be completed. “If you have a miss on a regulatory requirement, it’s because you’re not logging in and looking,” he says. “There’s no way anything can sneak up on you.”

While TheWorxHub makes it difficult to make mistakes, it also has built-in safeguards to make mistakes correctible. For example, “you can’t delete an asset, you can only retire it,” he says. “And you can’t delete a PM, you can only unschedule it. Those elements are handy to make sure any mistakes are recoverable.”

Gregory Rich and the Hartford HealthCare team works consistently to continue providing training and education about the software to help them maximize its functionality. He regularly visits facilities for hands-on help and has a standing meeting on Mondays for people to ask questions about TheWorxHub. “It’s a great product, and we’re becoming more proficient with-it day by day,” he says.

The software ensures compliance because it’s practically foolproof. If you have a miss on a regulatory requirement, it’s because you’re not logging in and looking. There’s no way anything can sneak up on you.

As a result of the system’s use of TheWorxHub to manage and track compliance, Hartford HealthCare has been recognized by the Joint Commission and others for excellence in compliance documentation.

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