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The experiences offered by BWH’s Deland Fellowship are second to none, as fellows have a sort of all-access pass to shadow some of BWH’s brightest minds and participate in the hospital’s biggest projects.
“The fellowship affords you access to so many different aspects of the hospital and people you wouldn’t otherwise meet,” said Colleen Burns Hernandez who, along with Joi Torrence and Sharlene Bagga, wrapped up a year-long fellowship in July. “In an organization as complex as BWH, it’s nice to have had that year to build relationships.”
Torrence and Burns Hernandez, who have accepted management positions at BWH, praised the unique experience provided by the fellowship, a one-year healthcare management and administrative training program for master’s program graduates.
One exciting project the fellows worked on was planning for the Carl J. and Ruth Shapiro Cardiovascular Center, slated to open in 2008. They interviewed staff and managers from Pharmacy, Dietary, Security, Materials Management, Engineering and other departments to determine their anticipated needs in the new center. “It took about three months to interview everyone, document our findings and provide feedback to the process of care team,” said Torrence, who participated in planning for inpatient floors, while Burns Hernandez worked with the design teams planning for L1 and L2, which include the operating rooms, radiology and interventional cardiology.
“Our work really highlighted the intersection of architectural design and hospital operations,” Burns Hernandez said. “Working with the cross-functional teams of nurses, doctors, IS and biomedical engineers planning for the Shapiro Center has been very interesting.”
In addition to Shapiro Center planning, the fellows spent time on a number of other projects. Torrence worked with Elizabeth Glaser, vice president of Clinical Services, Richard Zane, MD, vice chair of Emergency Medicine, and Tom O’Regan, director of Emergency Management, to assess the hospital’s current emergency preparedness and response state. She also worked on a team studying existing models for patient- and family-centered care.
Burns Hernandez worked on the multiyear planning process, through which departments develop a five-year plan looking at volume projections and anticipated service offerings. She also completed a process flow analysis for the Endoscopy suite, which assessed flow from the time a patient’s appointment is booked until the procedure note is documented.
In addition to the projects, the fellowship includes shadowing and sitting in on meetings. “Shadowing was equally as rich a learning experience as the projects,” said Burns Hernandez, whose mentor was John Fernandez, vice president of Surgical Services.
Torrence, who was mentored by chief nursing officer and senior vice president of Patient Care Services Mairead Hickey, agreed. “We really were embraced by the senior leadership team and felt comfortable asking questions. It made my year worthwhile and is especially valuable as I continue in my new role.”
Upon completion of the fellowship, Torrence accepted the position of administrative manager of the Cardiovascular Diagnostic and Interventional Center, and Burns Hernandez became the director of program development within Clinical Services. Bagga took a position doing research for the Advisory Board Company in Washington, D.C.