Does QualityPath really deliver an outstanding patient experience? Valerie Shields says “yes.”
Valerie was one of our early QualityPath patients. She recently shared her story so other potential patients will know what it’s like to use QualityPath before they make a decision about where to have a knee replacement, total hip replacement or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG).
Here’s what she has to say.
Patient has ‘amazing’ QualityPath experience
From a patient’s perspective, the QualityPath program is “amazing,” from beginning to end.
Valerie Shields of Stoughton, Wis., was the first patient to use QualityPath for a joint replacement. A self-employed registered nurse who provides home care services, Valerie knew she was likely to need a knee replacement to relieve severe, constant knee pain.
Valerie is covered by her husband’s benefit plan as an employee at Webcrafters in Madison, Wis. Her husband, Rick, brought home a letter from Webcrafters explaining that QualityPath offers high-quality care for high-stakes procedures.
QualityPath gives patients 100 percent coverage for medical procedure costs and a 90-day warranty to cover complications when they use designated doctors and hospitals. Valerie immediately recognized that QualityPath linked her to high-quality care with substantial savings on out-of-pocket costs.
“I told Rick, let’s sign me up before they change their minds,” Valerie said.
‘I Know What’s Important’
Because Valerie is self-employed, she doesn’t get paid when she doesn’t work. That meant she needed a high-quality caregiver to help her get back to work as soon as possible. QualityPath doctors and hospitals must meet national quality measures and use processes shown to improve patient outcomes.
“I’m in the medical profession, so I know what’s important,” Valerie said. “This program really impressed me.”
Patients are required to call Patient Experience Manager Margie Czechowicz as their first step to participating in QualityPath. Valerie praised Margie’s work to help organize her care.
“Everything is organized for you on day one,” Valerie said. “It was just amazing to me.”
‘I’m Very Happy With the Outcome’
The results of surgery were equally positive.
“It’s really quite amazing,” Valerie said. “It was immediate that I realized the pain was different. It was manageable pain.”
Today, Valerie is back at work as a nurse. She is happy to share the story of how QualityPath guided her to health care that improved her life without draining her family’s finances.
“I’m very happy with the outcome,” Valerie said.
I’m pleased that Valerie chose to have her procedure through the QualityPath program. QualityPath identifies doctors and hospitals that – when working together – meet or exceed national standards for delivering quality care for knee replacement, total hip replacement and coronary artery bypass graft, or heart bypass surgery.
Learn More about the QualityPath Experience
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- Watch a video featuring Margie Czechowicz, patient experience manager
- Learn more about QualityPath for patients
- Read about Plan Design for QualityPath
- Six Tips for Boosting Employee Participation in QualityPath
