ESTEVAN - St. Joseph's Hospital is launching a survey so people can share their thoughts on the needs of the hospital.
The survey will be launched Oct. 30 and the hospital is providing a number of different avenues for the community to respond, said St. Joseph's Hospital executive director Candace Kopec. People can share their thoughts through an online Survey Monkey using a QR code. The hospital is also directing people to its website, stjosephsestevan.com, where they can find the QR code and the link to the survey.
"For those who don't feel comfortable doing it online, we do have paper copies available at the City of Estevan [office] as well as a number of RM offices," said Kopec.
For those who are still unable to complete the document but are interested in being part of the process, Kopec recommends they phone the hospital to speak to someone who will help them complete the forms.
"We really want it to be confidential so people feel comfortable sharing their thoughts about the facility, good or bad," said Kopec. "We don't want them to think that we're going to know who is giving those comments. Now there is an opportunity to include their contact information if they want to be part of a focus group later."
The hospital has hired a third-party consultant to help it through this process and to aggregate the responses. The summary will be provided to the hospital's leadership team and council. Results will be released after the hospital has engaged community members for additional input through working groups.
Kopec isn't aware of any community surveys by the hospital in the past.
If a quarter of the people in the Estevan area respond to the survey, Kopec said that would be a success. The hospital is also promoting the project among its staff, because Kopec said the employees have family and friends with a "vested interest" in the health care provided.
"I think what we want to find out is what is important to our community. Of the services we have, what are we doing well? What do we need improve on? What do I, as the executive director, and the leadership team, as well as the local council, have to advocate on behalf of the community if we do need to make improvements and need support by others to do that?"
The survey touches on a number of different programs at the hospital, and there are some open-ended questions so people can provide comments.
Ideally, people who consider St. Joe's to be their home facility will fill out the survey, because those are the people the hospital serves. Former residents of the Estevan area are also encouraged to participate. Kopec pointed out people come from significant distances for services, including the CT scanner, and the hospital's foundation is fundraising to bring an MRI scanner to the hospital that would meet the needs of the southeast.
Kopec said St. Joseph's Hospital is committed to improvements to offer the best care, and the hospital wants the communities to have a voice in this process.
"The more people we can get to complete survey, the better understanding we have of the community needs," said Kopec.
The deadline to complete the survey is Nov. 22.
