I went to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston Friday for an outpatient invasive procedure. Pretty amazing. A well oiled production, well-informed, with amazing service. Upon arrival my wife and I received a pager to signal us when the prep nurse would be ready for us. We sat in an area asking us not to eat there to respect people who were NPO (nothing by mouth) while waiting for surgery. In 10 minutes we were called into the OR prep area and told what to expect while we were being prepped for the procedure. They had plastic tents labeled H&P (history and physical), OR consent, Anesthesia consent, site identification, medication reconciliation. As they completed each one, the tents were moved from one side of the table to the other. I was asked which side my procedure was going to be on, what was the procedure I was having (in my own words), I got a bracelet with my ID, one with my allergies, and one on the side of my surgery. The consents were in Plain English, were explained to me, time given for questions. Very smooth, quick, but didn’t seem rushed. During shift change, the hand-off was complete, verbal, and included me. Everyone was amazingly pleasant and personable except one person (who stood out in such contrast). This continued for all nurses, technicians, physicians, and assistants. The surgeon called my wife on her cell phone after the surgery to tell her everything. My instructions were clear, written, and repeated several times. I received a phone call the next morning to ask how I was doing and see if I had any questions. The procedure was not successful. I was so disappointed, but the possibility had been explained to me. The experience was a success. We’ve come such a long way over the years. Thanks all.
The procedure wasn’t successful, but the experience was
