Page 51 - Harnessing the Management Secrets of Disney in Your Company

32 The Disney Way

Our Featured Organization: Griffin Hospital

WHERE IS THE HOSPITAL?

It was early in the morning when we arrived at Griffin Hospital. Visitors and
day-shift hospital staff were still at home having breakfast. We parked our
car in the lot several hundred yards from the entrance. As we started walking
toward the building, a strange feeling came over us and we wondered, is this
really a hospital? For starters, the pavement was impeccably clean and there
was tranquil music wafting from concealed speakers along the walkway.
Did we get on the wrong flight? Were we really at Walt Disney World?
We checked our tickets and, indeed, we were in Derby, Connecticut. This
Disneyesque experience continued as we wandered into the softly lit lobby
adorned with beautiful art work, a grand piano, and a reception desk that
looked like it belonged in the Four Seasons Hotel of New York. We were
nearly an hour early for our appointment with Patrick Charmel, Griffin’s
president and CEO, so we decided to experience the cafeteria. We found
that the Disney similarities were not merely limited to the physical elements
of brass and glass. Of the six or seven employees we encountered on our way
to the cafeteria, each, without exception, either said “Good Morning,” or
stopped to ask if they could be of assistance to us.
But things were not always this “magical” at Griffin Hospital. In 1980
the community perception of Griffin was less than stellar; in fact, 30 per-
cent surveyed said they would avoid Griffin Hospital at all costs. Of the
eight local hospitals surveyed, Griffin was the lowest on the list. Patrick
Charmel told us, “On top of this bad rating, the hospital was struggling
financially, so there was a serious question about our future viability. We
knew we couldn’t compete, based on the clinical prowess of other area
hospitals that are much larger and have greater capabilities, so we decided
to become extremely consumer-focused and responsive. This was a pretty
radical concept for healthcare 20 years ago.” 7
The transformation began in 1987 with an innovative renovation of
the Childbirth Center and continued into the 1990s with hospital-wide
improvements. But the road to becoming the hospital of choice in the area
involved more than brick, mortar, and ingenious architecture. Employee
pride became the roadmap to patient satisfaction. Rallying around a com-
mon vision consistent with the personal values of the employees, looking at
patient care from the patient’s perspective, and eliminating fear were goals