By June 1, employees will be able to call 526-9000 to listen to recorded weekly messages from Dick Pierson, Melissa Fontaine, or Dan Riley about events and issues at UAMS Medical Center.

As another step to better communication, quarterly forums will give employees opportunities to ask questions of senior management representatives and learn more about plans at UAMS Medical Center. Smaller, informal forums also will begin this month.

Follow UAMS Update online at intranet.uams.edu and in monthly print editions and the Clinical Programs Capsule for details about the forums.

Since the results of the 2002 survey were shared with senior management in February the overall organization results have been a focus of the Senior Management Task Force. The Task Force is comprised of Pierson, Fontaine, Riley, Mary Helen Forrest and Kathleen McComber. These five individuals have been working to review the survey results and understand what the overall organizations issues are in clinical programs.

The task force first met in March and reviewed the High Importance/Low Performance items in the survey results. The task force then established focus groups to learn more about employee responses to the survey questions. Twelve focus groups met and were asked to give their views on 13 questions related to how they answered the survey in November. The focus groups finished in early April and the information was complied and presented to the task force in late April.

In response to the focus groups and the survey, overall organization action plans are being developed around four main areas: communication, work environment/culture, recognition, and pay. The task force has developed action plans for communication and recognition. These plans include steps to address employees’ concerns, such as the weekly telephone announcements and the regular employee forums. Additional action plans being developed include better management communication and better communication between outpatient and inpatient areas.

Links on This Page:

Survey:http://www.uams.edu/today/2003/032803/UAMSRatesHighly.htm