Your Voice Matters at Baptist Health
Compassionate Care That Puts You at the Center
Inside Baptist, every day, hundreds of highly trained individuals work together as a team to heal illness and restore health. But amidst all the communication and consultation, there is one voice more important than any other: yours.
At Baptist Health, your voice matters. We reinforce compassionate, patient-focused medical care that recognizes and hears your voice. And we respond by listening carefully and following up on your ideas and concerns, including you, first and foremost, in decisions about your care.
We encourage both you and your caregivers – your family members or friends who advocate for you while you’re in treatment – to ask questions and expect answers from your nurses, doctors, and other treatment team members. Learn more about self and caregiver advocacy.
Keeping the Focus Where It Belongs
Baptist Health’s commitment to hearing your voice is more than just talk. We have processes in place to ensure that patients remain at the center of our organizational mission:
Informed consent. One of the best means of involving patients in their healthcare is through the practice of informed consent. Informed consent is, at its core, the ongoing discussion between a patient and healthcare practitioner about a proposed medical treatment and its consequences, benefits, risks, and alternatives.
Code H. Code H is a hotline system that enables patients or their caregivers to summon urgent medical care at their discretion, without waiting for the intervention of medical staff. All Baptist Health hospitals participate in the Code H program. Look for the Code H information on your next visit at one of our hospitals.
Patient Advisory Councils. Every Baptist Health hospital has a Patient Advisory Council composed of community members, former patients, and hospital leaders. Councils meet regularly to ensure that the voices of those we serve are represented in fulfilling the Baptist Health mission. Patient Advisory Councils play an active role in providing the patient’s perspective on a variety of topics from process changes to new artwork, and actively shape recommendations for improving hospital programs.
Cultivating a Just Culture
Baptist Health is fully committed to maintaining a safe environment for patients, family members, and hospital staff. Our approach to cultivating this kind of environment is referred to as a culture of safety. Our culture encourages employees to come forward with information that can improve patient safety. Our culture emphasizes fixing issues rather than assigning blame.
If you have a patient-safety or related concern either during or after your stay at a Baptist Health facility, you can call the phone number that is listed below. Your comments will be treated with the utmost respect. You may also request to remain anonymous.
- BH Corbin - 606.523.8584
- BH Floyd - 812.981.6510
- BH Hardin - 270.706.1327
- BH La Grange - 502.222.8660
- BH Lexington - 859.260.6168
- BH Louisville - 502.897.8210
- BH Madisonville - 270.825.5281
- BH Paducah - 270.575.2848
- BH Richmond - 859.625.3446
Speak Up Patient Safety Program
Baptist Health participates actively in The Joint Commission’s Speak Up™ Patient Safety Program. This program encourages patients to play an active role in their healthcare. Speak Up is an acronym for:
- Speak up if you have questions or concerns.
- Pay attention to the care you get.
- Educate yourself about your illness.
- Ask a trusted family member or friend to be your advocate.
- Know what medicines you take and why you take them.
- Use a healthcare organization that has been carefully checked out.
- Participate in all decisions about your treatment.