Practice Support Team Provides Valuable Resource for Newton Family Physicians - Managing Difficult Patient Situations

One of Northwest AHEC's practices in located in Catawba County recently received a training from Practice Support staff on Managing Difficult Patient Situations. Practice Administrator for Newton Family Physicians P.A., Melissa White,  commended our staff and services "NWAHEC is a valuable resource for us and recently assisted us in some valuable training for my staff."

Northwest AHEC Practice Support Services supports practices across a 17-county region. Our experienced and knowledgeable coaches provide on-site training and assistance on the tools and systems practices need to offer high-quality care. Each of our coaches brings a unique set of skills and the ability to facilitate solutions via the statewide AHEC practice support team, AHEC resources and service lines, and collaborative partnerships with professional associations, payors, provider networks, federal and state governments, and local community organizations.

During a regular practice coaching visit, our Practice Support Coaches learned about the practice’s need for coaching and resources to assist providers and staff when difficult patient situations arise. Northwest AHEC staff members Lara Dickerson and Medina Wilson (Practice Support Coaches), along with Leslie McDowell (Quality Improvement Curriculum Coordinator) teamed up to create a comprehensive staff training and resource guide for providers and staff at Newton Family Physicians.   

Many practice settings are experiencing angry, hostile and even aggressive behavior from patients, parents, caregivers and others. This online course is designed for teams within healthcare practices who interface with patients and other customers. Background and context of the problem are discussed, and practical tips, suggestions and resources are presented.  

The training materials are currently being updated based on initial feedback and will be widely available soon. Check the additional resources list on our blog for this and many other valuable tools. 

OBJECTIVES
upon completing this activity, the learner will be able to:

• Recognize how your own behavior impacts a crisis
• Identify and respond to challenging patient behaviors
• Describe safety intervention strategies that minimize harm

Authors: Leslie Doroski McDowell, DNP, ANP-BC, RN and Lara Dickerson, BA, AAS

Below is Kudos to our team which was posted to the North Carolina Medical Group Managers (NCMGM)....

"I wanted to give a BIG SHOUT OUT to our AHEC folks. They are valuable resources for us so if you don't know who your people are, find out. Especially big SHOUT OUT to our NWAHEC as they recently assisted us in some valuable training for my staff. They worked with us to determine our needs. Their team delivered some valuable training and tactics for "How to handle the Disruptive Patient" and how to handle uncomfortable situations while maintaining professionalism and continuing to care for our patients and most important our staff. Once again thanks Lara and Medina." 
- Melissa H. White, Practice Administrator, Newton Family Physicians, P.A.