Big Enough to Care

Judy G. is a Shady Grove patient who struggled with infertility for ten years. “I’ve been through all of those emotions that fertility patients go through. I switched from a small clinic, because they didn’t actually ‘care’ any more.”

“The thing I love about SG…the receptionists, the ladies who draw blood, the nurses, all knew my name; they remembered me, even when I came back, a year and a half after my first SG baby.”

Judy recommends, “Get to know your nurse. Your individual nurse will call you and talk to you. They’ll relay your fears and concerns to your doctor. They want you to have a good experience, a good outcome.”

“I had as much time as I needed with my doctor. If I need access to my doctor, it’s available to me. Dr. Sagoskin was totally open to my feedback on my protocol, and the medicines. I’m pretty happy about that. My friends can’t believe I have that kind of rapport with my doctor; they’re amazed that we communicate on that level.”

After a recent weekend appointment that was longer than expected, Judy was surprised to receive a call back from Clinical Quality Development nurse Kathy Bugge. “They took the time to let me know they heard about the difficulty, and what was being done about it.” Judy related. Kathy has a role in patient satisfaction, and customer service. Hearing about issues that patients and staff may encounter moves this nurse into action, to evaluate the situation, and engage resources if changes are needed. This ‘clinical quality’ role also leads into educational outreach via the webcasts on the Shady Grove website.

“I absolutely feel that I’m heard; Shady Grove is open to feedback. There’s a reason I drive as far as I do, to go to Shady Grove. I just hope people don’t wait as long as I did to seek treatment,” Judy finishes.