August 2018 - Trish Lollo, BJWCH president, reflects on the transformation taking place at the hospital. 

There is a transformation taking place at BJWCH, and it is really quite extraordinary. Some of it can be seen because it is physical – the replacement hospital. A transformation in technology began early this year as our teams embraced and implemented Epic. Behind the scenes, another transformation aims to improve our organization through focused efforts on employee and patient safety and continuous improvement; daily start-up huddles; and dedicated clinical teams working on innovative models of care, even before the doors open to the new hospital.

A little more than a year ago, construction began on a new Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital (BJWCH). Team members, patients and visitors have the pleasure of witnessing the tremendous physical transformation as they drive onto the campus or look out the windows of the hospital and medical office buildings. From backhoes moving tons of dirt, the formation of concrete foundation walls and placement of the first structural steel beam in 2017, to the March 2018 topping out of steel and enclosure of the hospital with windows, stone and brick that continues today, construction of the new hospital is an impressive sight on Olive Blvd. in Creve Coeur.

BJWCH’s transformational journey continued with the successful implementation of Epic in early June. It was clear early on that everyone was committed to working as a team to learn new workflows and support one another while continuing to take exceptional care of our patients and their families – our top priority. The extraordinary efforts of team members leading to and during Epic Go-Live is a testament to their resilience and commitment to our organization.

Looking forward to the 2019 opening of the new hospital, our team members are engaged with performance improvement professionals preparing to transform the way we work in a new physical space. BJWCH will continue to specialize in low acuity, short-stay medical and surgical cases, with a blend of Washington University Physicians, BJC Medical Group and private physicians. The innovative and modern environment will enhance our efforts to continually improve safety and quality for both patients and team members. The physical layout of the new hospital, with 64 private patient rooms and 14 operating rooms, will provide operational efficiencies that is challenging in the current setting. Four intensive care unit rooms are adjacent to the emergency department and radiology.

This new BJWCH will be so much more than bricks and mortar and modern equipment. Buildings allow us to do what we do, but it is the people inside who make us extraordinary.  Our employees, physicians and leaders continue to be the foundation of our transformation. Together, they achieve our goals of providing safe, excellent care and advancing medicine for our patients. Our successes are a direct result of the engagement and commitment of each team member to the culture of continuous improvement of our organization.