Summer 2019 is all about safety in numbers! In this Issue: A new Community Education Course Two New Projects Three New Board Members Four New Volunteers in our eAdvisory Group Five Important Words: Set Aside Funding for Engagement 10th Biennial Conference

A New Community Education Course Medical error continues to be a national public health issue. MAPS increases awareness and education with our community. Starting in the fall, MAPS staff will be teaching “Healthcare Safety: You Are Your Own Best Medicine”, a Community Education Adult Enrichment Course through St. Paul Public Schools. We’ll teach effective ways for individuals to partner with their healthcare team to stay safe as they navigate within our healthcare systems. MAPS will also provide information about volunteering with local health systems as partners and advisors to help improve care delivery. Contact Catherine Hinz , MAPS Executive Director, to learn more or to see if your organization would benefit from any partner/advisor volunteer referrals.

Two New Projects MAPS is pleased to launch two new projects, one rooted in a rural community to research diagnostic error prevention and the other to more intentionally engage individuals living in assisted living to positively impact quality and safety. “Stop Dropping the Ball: Improving Diagnosis Across Transitions of Care in Rural Communities” will bring together Lakewood Health System in Staples, researcher Dr. Andrew Olson from the University of Minnesota, and MAPS to reduce diagnostic error. We will engage community members and patients to co-design processes for improved diagnostic test management following an emergency department visit. Funding for this project comes from Constellation/MMIC and a Stratis Health Building Healthier Communities award.

“Establishing Engaged Community Advisory Boards in Assisted Living” is offered in partnership with Care Providers of Minnesota and will take place at three pilot sites to build on best practices for engagement. This work ultimately will inform a replicable statewide model and result in better outcomes and experiences for tenants, families, and staff. Funding for this work comes from Care Providers via a Stratis Health Building Healthier Communities award.

Three New Board Members In April 2019, the MAPS Board welcomed three new Board members, including two consumer members. We extend a warm welcome to our new Board members!

Abigail Greenheck  has been a caregiver and advocate for her mother who had a complicated health journey and died last year following a stroke. Abigail witnessed and experienced multiple healthcare system breakdowns. She is a group vice president at Beehive Strategic Communication. When asked why she would like to serve on the MAPS board, she stated: "I'm applying for this role for my mom, and for the members of the sandwich generation, in hopes of helping create a safer, more successful healthcare experience for people of all ages, needs, and abilities."

Abraham Jacob is the chief quality officer for M Health Fairview, and a staff attending for general pediatrics at MN Masonic Children's Hospital and internal medicine at MN Masonic Hospital. When he was chief medical officer, Dr. Jacob spearheaded efforts at UMMCH to advance a culture of safety using high reliability methods and is now guiding the entire M Health Fairview system to do so.

Karine Semmer  lost both her husband and brother-in-law to cancer and her father to operating room procedure negligence. Karine also is the legal guardian for her mentally and physically incapacitated aunt. She is dedicated to making a difference in her community and raised over $1M to support cancer research for the Phillip G. Semmer Prostate Cancer Research Fund at the University of Minnesota. Her career includes leadership roles at Medtronic, General Mills, and the United States Air Force.  When asked why she would like to serve on the MAPS board, Karine stated: "To ensure patients, their family, and friends have a voice and resources throughout their healthcare experiences."

Four New Volunteers in our eAdvisory Group MAPS is engaging community in its mission to advance safe care everywhere. We are kicking off the formation of an eAdvisory Group of community members that we will invite to share opinions and give feedback from the patient/family member/resident perspective. This may include ad hoc in-person focus groups or meetings as schedules allow. Sometime in the next year, we envision this eAdvisory Group will hold regularly scheduled in-person meetings. eAdvisors will be able to cope well with their health care experiences and see beyond their personal experiences. They also are willing to talk about their experiences and share insights and information that others can learn from. They demonstrate a passion for improving health care for others and can help represent a broad cross-section of our community’s population. We are pleased that the following community member volunteers have joined this group and we are grateful for their time and expertise: Kelly House, Ronn Lehmann, Paulette Levasseur, and Kristine Sundberg. We welcome you to join us or send your referrals of current patient partners/advisors. Please email us to learn more.

Five Important Words: Set Aside Funding for Engagement Starting in 2020, MAPS will be offering services to support healthcare organizations and communities to bring the patient/resident/family voice more powerfully into safety improvement. Our services will strengthen your patient/resident/family advisor and partner programs. Now is the time to make sure you have funds budgeted for these services. Please plan ahead and earmark funds so that you are able to fully participate. Your staff, partners, and volunteers must become more knowledgeable to advance safety in our organization – don’t miss out! MAPS member organizations will have reduced rates for services and workshops. Contact Catherine Hinz , Executive Director, to discuss estimates for your specific organization.

Our 10 th Biennial Conference We are less than a year away from our celebratory 10 th biennial Conference (to be held April 30 & May 1, 2020). Event planning has kicked off. Please save the date and stay tuned for conference updates. The conference will once again be at the Minneapolis Marriott Northwest.