The Reverend and CST: Having faith in people

As the days tick down to go-live on April 28 at Lions Gate and Squamish General hospitals, Rev. Andres Rebane is delving deep into his faith – in people – that CST will be a success.

It might come as a surprise to some, but Andres, LGH’s Spiritual Health Care Practitioner and Chaplain, is also a CST Peer Mentor who completed six familiarization modules before stepping into classroom training last month.

“I encourage everyone to do their familiarization modules – they really do enhance the learning that comes during classroom training,” he says. “The classroom training gave me the chance to discover what the new Cerner charting program looks and feels like. It made me look forward to the day when we actually start using the new platform.”

Chaplain happy to be part of CST peer support

Andres is also happy that Spiritual Health Practitioners have been included in the CST Peer Support group members training.

“Now I can, with confidence, support other patient care team colleagues,” he says. “I don’t know all the aspects of the platform that nurses,  doctors and other staff might need to know, but I’m still confident, that based on what I’ve learned so far, I can provide some support and encouragement to others when needed.”

Accessing/reading charts will be faster & easier

Like other care team members, the Spiritual Health Practitioner accesses a patient’s chart to get a clear and detailed picture of the patient’s story, says Andres, who will be able to access the information no matter his location in the hospital.

Similar to the process currently in place, CST will give every patient/resident a clear option to record their own spiritual/religious affiliation as well as an option for Aboriginal/Indigenous designation in the electronic medical record.

“The patient care team members, including Spiritual Care, needs to work closely and communicate appropriately among themselves for the purpose of providing the best care possible for the patient,” says Andres. “It will take some time for me to get more used to the program, but I liked what I saw and experienced in the classroom. CST will help us all in health care, the Spiritual Care profession included.”

CST fast facts – this is why

• Improved safety, quality and consistency of patient care
• Faster, more effective critical care
• More up-to-date, in-the-moment communication
• More face time with patients, less chase time on charts

Visit our.cstproject.ca for more information.

See related CST stories:

• Mother’s hospitalization in Calgary brings new level of appreciation for CST’s electronic patient record
• CST: Patients-in-transition sessions give Coastal teams a first look at end-to-end system
• CST Video: Mark’s Patient Journey looks at the future of clinical care
•  Tiffany Trownson’s surprising sepsis diagnosis, and her long, painful patient journey