UNC Health System Update
Over the last year, UNC Health has prepared itself for success in the new world of healthcare. As we continue to emerge from COVID-19, our industry and our world are forever changed. There will never be a return to how it was before. Teammates from across UNC Health have embraced that reality and are positioning the system for success in the years ahead.
Five-Star Quality.
While UNC Health aspires to move healthcare forward through innovation and research, it means nothing if we are not providing North Carolinians with the high-quality care they deserve. A focus on quality and safety are the underpinnings of our clinical care throughout the state and continuing to raise our already high standards has been a focus area over the last year. This hard work was recognized in 2023’s CMS quality ratings. UNC Medical Center improved to a 5-Star ranking for the first time – a notable achievement for a complex tertiary and quaternary care center. UNC Rex and Appalachian Regional were also rated as 5-Stars. UNC Health is the only system in North Carolina with three 5-star facilities.
Expanding Behavioral Health Access.
North Carolina is currently rated extremely low on access to child and adolescent behavioral health access. In fact, only 25% of youth who experience a major depressive episode are receiving consistent treatment. As North Carolina’s healthcare system, UNC Health has made expanding access a systemwide priority and achieved results over this last year.
In December 2022, UNC Health announced a partnership with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to convert the R.J. Blackley Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment Center in Butner to a child and adolescent behavioral health hospital. Since the announcement in December, our teams have been working diligently to ensure the facility is renovated to fit its new function. After nearly a full year of work, the facility was opened in early November. The 54-bed facility is staffed by psychiatrists, psychologists, pediatricians, social workers, and nurses who have expertise in serving youth and adolescents aged 12-17.
In addition, we have expanded virtual psychiatric services to emergency departments within UNC Health. As a part of this effort, patients can receive a consult from a UNC psychiatrist while in the emergency department of seven UNC Health entities across the state. Where these patients may have previously waited days to be seen in person, our teams are now able to offer virtual care in an average of four hours. We expect to bring this service to additional entities in the coming months.
UNC Health continues to establish itself as a national leader in healthcare technology.
Leading Through Technology.
In 2023, UNC Health continued to establish itself as a national leader in healthcare technology. System leaders and physicians are particularly excited about a partnership with Epic that places UNC Health as one of the early adopters of a new Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool.
The program uses AI to auto-draft responses to some of the most common and time-intensive patient messages. The integrated AI tools in Epic@UNC could auto-draft a response to a patient’s My UNC Chart message. Then, the physician must review and can edit the message before sending. It will begin with a small subset of “more administrative” type messages, similar to how your phone can suggest responses to texts. You can accept the suggestions or write your own. This technology won’t replace the clinician’s judgment. There is always a person reading and sending the message. It simply saves keystrokes.
Future Tar Heel Doctors
Appropriation for the General Assembly
Expanding Medical Education.
This has been an exciting year of growth in both medical education and research. In July, the UNC School of Medicine welcomed 204 future Tar Heel Doctors, its largest ever class. The class-size expansion was partially funded by an $8 million appropriation from the General Assembly and will allow the UNC School of Medicine to train more physicians to meet the growing health workforce challenges in our state. A major milestone in our educational mission is the opening of Roper Hall where students began working and learning together this fall. From advanced simulation labs to gathering spaces for group learning, Roper Hall will help prepare our students for the challenges that they will face in practice and ensure that they are ready to care for patients in North Carolina and beyond.
Supporting Our Teammates.
This year, UNC Health launched the UNC Health for Me initiative which is meant to support our teammates from recruitment through retirement. Through this comprehensive effort we have streamlined the onboarding and orientation process, provided tools and trainings to our managers with the goal of retaining top talent, enhanced professional coaching and skills development, and strengthened our well-being focus to support teammates.
Numerous teammates have taken advantage of these professional development opportunities. Two cohorts of teammates have completed the Coach Training Academy, with 29 teammates named certified Develop Me Leadership Coaches. In addition, four different cohorts of emerging leaders completed a four-week talent mobility course. All of these efforts are focused on developing and retaining UNC Health’s talented workforce and improving their overall experience.
