As the healthcare sector shifts into the value-based care model, the need to engage the patient and improve care outcomes increases. For larger hospitals especially, there’s a definite need for a leader who can tap into transforming the patient experience.

Enter the Chief Experience and Innovation Officer, or CXO.

For University of Chicago Medicine CXO Susan Murphy, her role began just looking through patient surveys, which advanced into a much bigger position to look into value-based care and length of stay, among others.

“The benefit for the organization is really around understanding best practices in healthcare and capturing data,” said Murphy.

To gain the understanding, Murphy pulled information from patient feedback surveys, which the organization is now advancing into real-time rounding, care experience and the like. But it’s not just about data, it’s important to be acting together as a team by developing a relationship with key leaders, connecting and equipping appropriate people with that awareness.

“This program isn’t about doing it and walking away. Rather, how do we get that into the culture of the department?” Murphy said. “The role of the CXO isn’t about just getting feedback. It’s about engaging the patients, along with the staff to improve outcomes above and beyond the survey score. We want to make sure staff feel we’re looking at our overall care quality and patient experience.”

To Murphy, part of that improvement includes how the organization cares for its staff -- such as reducing physician burnout. As such, part of her role is to stimulate the enterprise by empowering providers to improve patient experiences.

Murphy works closely with the teams she supports. She’s tasked with developing team communication and evaluating how the organization is doing as a whole -- what Murphy called employee engagement.

Technology is an enabler for education, explained Murphy. And the “patient voice is helping us create the tech for them.”

“It’s the movement of shared decision making with patients and families, as part of the decisions around care, along with engagement with our clinicians,” Murphy said. 

Susan Murphy will be speaking in the session, “Chief Experience Officer: New Leader Driving Innovation to Transform Healthcare,” at 4 p.m. March 7 in the Venetian, Delfino 4002.

Twitter: @JessieFDavis
Email the writer: jessica.davis@himssmedia.com