Elizabeth Reed

"I always knew I wanted to be in healthcare; I just didn't know what that looked like." Elizabeth came to Shriners Children's Texas as a child after a devastating burn injury. Today, she's pursuing a career in healthcare working toward a degree in healthcare administration. Read more of her journey from patient to aspiring healthcare professional: https://ow.ly/qY6E50ZqgPl #ShrinersChildrens #PatientAlumni #BurnSurvivor

Meet Dr. Branski 👋✨ We’re honored to spotlight one of our amazing pediatric plastic and reconstructive surgeons who is dedicated to helping children. To learn more about Dr. Branski, visit: https://lnkd.in/gN7-i87a

After over 10 years of dedicated service, I want to share that our Executive Director, John Whittemore, for ACHE of North Texas has announced his retirement. On behalf of the ACHE of North Texas Board, volunteers, and all of our chapter members, I extend our sincere gratitude for his dedicated leadership, steadfast commitment, and the MANY contributions he has made to strengthen our chapter and advance our mission. His impact will be felt for years to come! As we celebrate his service and wish him the very best in retirement, we are also beginning the process to identify our next Executive Director. The position is now open, and we encourage qualified candidates to apply by sending your resume and/or cover letter to info@achentx.org and help lead ACHE of North Texas into its next chapter. Ajith Pai, PharmD, FACHE Tim Bowen, FACHE Michael Talley, RRT, MHA, FACHE Jared H. Lange, MBA, FACHE Cassandra Self, FACHE Lee Ann Benson, FACHE Crystal V. Brown, MBA, LSSYB John P. Carter, MBA, MS, FACHE, FACHDM Chad M. Collins, MHA, FACHE, CHFP Felixia Colón, MBA, FACHE Phil DeBruzzi, FACHE Barton Gill Brandon Goertz, PhD, FACHE Nick Kagal, FACHE, FHIMSS Christina Mathis Jared Shelton, FACHE Timothy Wilson, MA Laura Parsons-Yanez, MBA Angela Vincent Michael FACHE LSSBB CPHQ

Patient Access is one of the most undervalued roles in healthcare. And somehow… also one of the most critical. We are the first impression. We set the tone for the entire patient experience. We catch errors before they become billing issues. We navigate frustrated patients, insurance confusion, and broken workflows in real time. All while being expected to move fast, smile, and not make mistakes. A strong Patient Access team can make a hospital run smoothly. A weak one? You feel it everywhere. Delays. Denials. Complaints. Revenue loss. And yet… it is often treated like an entry-level stepping stone instead of the operational backbone that it really is. I came from Patient Access. From the ED. That experience shaped how I think, troubleshoot, and build today. You learn how things actually work, not just how they are supposed to work. If you know, you know. To everyone still in those roles holding it all together… you are seen. And you are far more valuable than most organizations realize. #Healthcare #PatientAccess #HealthIT #Epic #WomenInTech #CareerGrowth #HealthcareOperations

I show up at the hospital at 2 AM every quarter. Unannounced. No entourage. Just me walking the floors while most of the management team is asleep. I've learned more about how our hospital actually runs in these visits than in any leadership meeting or dashboard review. Here's what I found. The night shift shows you the truth. During the day, everything looks good. Managers are around. Resources are available. Problems get escalated and solved quickly. Everyone follows the official process. But at 2 AM? That's when you see what actually happens when nobody's watching. That's when you see the real culture of your organization. Last Tuesday at 2:15 AM, I found a nurse using her personal credit card to order an Uber for a patient. The patient had just been discharged. She was 78 years old, lived alone, and had no family to pick her up. Our official process says we call a medical transport service, but they don't run after midnight. The nurse knew if this woman sat in the waiting room until 6 AM for the morning transport, she'd probably fall or have another medical issue. So the nurse spent $43 of her own money to get her home safely. She told me she does this about twice a month. I asked why she never reported it. She said, "I tried once. Got told it's not policy. So I just stopped asking." We reimbursed her that day. We also changed our transport policy within a week. I don't announce that I'm coming. I just show up around 2 AM and walk the floors for 3-4 hours. I talk to anyone who's working: nurses, physicians, techs, housekeeping, security, whoever I run into. I ask three questions:  What's harder to do at night than during the day?  What workaround did you use tonight that you wish you didn't have to use?  If you could fix one thing that would make your job easier at night, what would it be? Then I take notes. Lots of notes. And I actually fix things. None of these were expensive. The total cost was about $340,000 annually. But the impact has been huge. Night shift satisfaction scores went up 38 points. Workaround incidents dropped by 71%. And we're retaining night staff much better because they don't feel abandoned anymore. If you run a hospital or health system, try this: Show up at 2 AM next week. Don't tell anyone you're coming. Just walk around for a few hours. Talk to people. Ask what's hard. Watch what they're actually doing versus what the policy says they should do. You'll be surprised at what you find. And if you're not surprised, you're not paying attention. What's happening at your hospital at 2 AM?