Hospital highlights - ‘Dear David’ notes at hospital

One of the hospital’s core values is trustworthiness. This requires us to be open and honest with our patients, visitors and staff.

I sincerely hope that everyone feels they can approach any hospital staff member about any subject at any time. However, I know that people sometimes are reluctant to surface issues.

To help everyone express their thoughts, we recently installed suggestion/comment boxes in several locations around the hospital last week. There is a sign on each of these boxes that asks people to write me a “Dear David” note and tell me what is on their mind. The boxes are for anyone to use. This includes our patients, visitors, staff members.

Pens and envelopes along with Dear David note paper are provided at each box.

The notes will be private. They are collected each week and delivered directly to me. If people seal their note in one of the envelopes, no one else will see it. I will get back in touch with any note writer who wants a response. If I need to talk about a note to act on it, I will seek permission from the writer if I know who they are. If the note is anonymous, I will read it and consider it, but I may not be able to respond to it.

The boxes are located in the front lobby and the Harvest Home Cafe, and in the waiting rooms in the Emergency Department, Inpatient Unit, Rehabilitation, Surgery and by the Bluebird Gift shop.

I look forward to my mail!

Whitman Hospital & Medical Center