Stories

Sharon Davis, RN, and Chris Osborn, PA-C, both members of UNAC/UHCP, prepare to screen patients and employees for signs of cold- and flu-like symptoms at South Bay Medical Center.

Who will care for the caregiver? Using human-centered design concepts, patients, their family members, frontline workers and KP leaders are finding ways to ensure patients are safe at home and caregivers get the support they need. 

The Woodland Hills Intensive Care Unit has built a speak up culture with interdisciplinary rounds on patients. As a result, the team has high morale, low turnover—and its patients suffer fewer hospital-acquired infections.

Southern California physicians Rebecca Deans, Osbourne Blake and Resa Caivano (left to right) are part of a project to aid patients with sickle cell disease, which disproportionately affects African-Americans. 

Brandon Johnson, a Kaiser Permanente member, gives Shirley Brown, RN, a member of UNAC/UHCP, a grateful hug. 

A diverse staff (like this team from the perioperative department at the Ontario Medical Center in Southern California) serving a diverse membership is a point of pride and strength for Kaiser Permanente. 

Anthony Frizzell, mental health assistant and member of OPEIU Local 2 says, "It is imperative that we relate to the patient in the way the patient wishes." 

"Why reinvent the wheel?" asks Marianne Henson, RN, the clinical operations manager at Falls Church, Virginia. "We already knew what worked."

The endoscopy team at KP's Falls Church facility has reduced appointment no-shows—which helps improve access—by borrowing a successful tactic from other teams: making phone calls to remind members of their upcoming appointments. 

Teo's stay in the NICU after he was born led dad Trav Ichinose to become an active member of the team's parent advisory council, contributing his voice to improving performance.