Naval Health Clinic (NHC) Corpus Christi showcased a collection of ongoing departmental Performance Improvement (PI) and Lean Six Sigma (LSS) initiatives during the first PI Fair, Feb. 24.

It was the first event of its kind at NHC Corpus Christi.

Initiated by Jeannine Hardwick -- registered nurse, the clinic's performance improvement/risk management/patient safety/accreditation coordinator and trained LSS Black Belt -- and her team, it offered staff a unique opportunity to tell their PI stories with the aid of tabletop displays.

Other Process Improvements (OPI) departmental, and LSS Project categories each focused on the concepts and applications of PI and high reliability. Along with the displays, additional opportunities offered a competitive and spirited PI learning environment.

Examining each project and asking questions, staff had the opportunity to provide input about their preference for the People's Choice award in each group. First and second place winners were chosen by the triad, with Capt. Guido F. Valdes, commanding officer, publicly praising the participants.

"I am extremely pleased with the inaugural NHCCC Performance Improvement Fair," said Valdes. "It was an extraordinary display of how the clinic team is at work every day, coming up with new and better ways of doing business and fulfilling our mission to provide safe, quality health care for our patients. It is also a reflection of striving to accomplish our vision to become the leading high-reliability organization for all of military medicine; a reliable organization is solid, dependable, trusted, and safe."

Twenty display boards exhibiting intradepartmental improvement efforts were judged on methodology and rationale for initiative, for example, mission related; the effect the project will have on patient safety and high reliability; ability to be employed in other places of the area of responsibility (AOR) or at higher-level authority, and presentation of data -- baseline, analyzing, trending, or display, for example.

Staff Education and Training (SEAT), Patient Experience Strategic Goal and Team STEPPS won OPI departmental category first, second, and People's Choice, respectively.

Five LSS displays demonstrating team-driven improvement initiatives were judged on best use of methodology (LSS Principle applied); best scientific rigor -- degree of effort LSS belt and team; best presentation of data -- baseline, analyzing, trending, or display, for example; and most significant improvement -- most value added or greatest degree of risk reduction.

Low back pain, orthopedic referral throughput, and cervical cancer screening won LSS Project category first, second, and People's Choice, respectively.

Besides building camaraderie through friendly competition, Hardwick pointed out another benefit for staff participation.

"The reason we did the PI Fair is because we have a lot of process improvement initiatives ongoing through the facility," said Hardwick, "and for those people who don't sit in the Quality Council or the Executive Steering Committee, they might not otherwise have the opportunity to learn what good things that the staff here at Naval Health Clinic Corpus Christi are doing to improve our high reliability, and to improve safe patient outcomes."

Planning for the event began in January, and Hardwick's team originally anticipated only 15 entries. Communication initiatives that included frequent staff email updates from her shop helped generate extra interest that propelled participation.

"The preparation went very well; we got a lot of buy-in from the staff, [and] you can see that they have put on their creative imaginations and come up with some really fantastic presentations to share," said Hardwick.

But few creative and worthwhile events occur without challenges. In the case of the NHC Corpus Christi PI Fair, Hardwick conveyed they were minor.

"I think the greatest obstacle is just, this is our first time -- our first experience at this -- so it's kind of a learn as you go," said Hardwick. "Next year I would anticipate that it would be a little bit smoother. We didn't anticipate the number of display boards that we needed, so we had some last-minute ordering going on to get more, but everything worked out."

Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Donald Lee Tobias, from Magnolia, Texas, presented the Optometry Clinic PI initiatives, and shared his opinion of the event.

"I think it's a good idea; to my knowledge we've never had one before," remarked Tobias. "The Process Improvement Fair brings everything out in the open for everyone to see. And it just makes all the improvements that various clinics have made maybe less obscure, so everyone can say, 'Okay, wow, they've done this, and they've done that,' and it makes the clinic look so much better."

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