This is the third in a three-part series about the UTMB Health Friendswood Primary and Specialty Care Clinic, focused on operationalization. Read the first installment on design here and the second installment on construction here.
When it comes to opening and operating health care clinics, UTMB’s Ambulatory Operations leadership draws from a strong history of bringing expert care into the communities they serve.
This experience and success have served the team well in opening the UTMB Health Friendswood Primary and Specialty Care Clinic – a brand-new facility that promises the same high-quality primary care the Friendswood community has known, enhanced with specialty services and an onsite pharmacy.
Stephenie Pharr, Director of Ambulatory Operations, remembers the wish list for the previous clinic location at 128 Parkwood – starting with “more space” – and the evolution of plans for a new location. Once it was determined that UTMB would move into the new construction at 1715 S. Friendswood Drive, the bigger vision to bring specialty services to Friendswood was set to become reality.
“We looked at exactly what we were sending out of the Friendswood market as far as referrals. What are our highest hitters? What are we looking for to support our primary care clinic functions?” Pharr recalls. “That helped us determine what type of providers we were going to bring into the market.”
With orthopedics, cardiology, neurology, gastroenterology, and an outpatient pharmacy slated to join the existing adult and pediatric primary care and psychiatry services, the team set out to incorporate resources within the clinic that would best support these services. Enhancements that would make a difference to the patient experience were a top priority.
“One of the big things that we looked at was, how can the providers have more face-to-face contact with the patient while also completing their required documentation? The rooms are bigger, and they have been configured to be able to support that function,” Pharr says.
The addition of a pharmacy is another big enhancement, allowing patients to see their providers and potentially leave with any prescribed medications in one trip – something Pharr recognizes as especially important to parents. There is also a separate waiting room for pediatrics at the new clinic, outfitted with children’s furniture and toys, something that was less practical in the previous location’s shared waiting room.
The clinic also has facilities for blood draws, electrocardiograms, stress tests, and imaging that may be ordered by a physician, making the location as close to a one-stop shop for patients as possible.
Some enhancements are positive for providers and staff as well, like designated spaces where they can take breaks and decompress out of the view of patients.
Additional staffing has been needed to support the move to a larger space and additional specialties. Hiring for these positions began several months before the clinic’s opening, ensuring adequate time for training. New and existing staff alike have also needed time to familiarize themselves with the space.
UTMB’s Ambulatory Support Services team has also been a key player to ensure the readiness of the space. The team had been engaged in the project since the design phase, supporting coordination of the clinical needs with design and construction deliverables.
“We are kind of like an arbiter because we have knowledge on both sides. We understand the challenges of the contractor and construction side, and we also understand the needs of the clinic,” says Sharon Chapman, Director of Ambulatory Support Services. “Our primary goal is to make sure that what happens in the clinic brings the best possible outcome for the patients.”
As opening day approached, Chapman’s team oversaw activation of the space with a checklist developed over years of experience with clinic openings. This includes making sure the new location is set up in Epic, setting up and testing emergency systems, making sure all requirements of the Joint Commission are fulfilled, and more.
The Ambulatory Support team’s work is not over on the day the clinic opens, however. Chapman says it can be four to six weeks after opening before everything on the checklist is actually complete.
“Also, once people start using the space they see things that aren’t ideal. Adjustments are possible to make the flow better once they are using it – like moving items, adding a computer, or adding an outlet, for example,” she says. “We can’t always say yes, but when it’s possible we do what we can to make the patient flow better or make our providers happier.”
The collaborative efforts of many led to the successful opening of primary care services on Monday, March 10. Specialties began welcoming patients in the following weeks.
Feedback from the community leading up to the opening reaffirms to Pharr that this expansion of UTMB’s services is needed in the Friendswood area.
“When the signs went up there was a lot of excitement,” Pharr says. “The people I have talked to in the community are looking forward to the additional resources, and they won’t have to drive to Clear Lake or League City for their cardiology appointments or orthopedic needs. Everyone is excited to see the new space.”
Read the press release announcing the Friendswood Primary and Specialty Care Clinic.
View a selection of photos from the clinic below.
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