An OR leader at the Wyoming Medical Center in Casper, Wyoming has got it right!  Sue and I spent some time with their leaders a few weeks ago. While there, we spent a day with their emerging leaders. One of them works in the Materials Management, or general distribution department.

As we go into healthcare organizations across the country, we are observers. Observers of lots of things, big and small. One seemingly small thing that always seems to catch our eye is the name badge. They serve so many purposes beyond displaying the name of the employee. Yet, in many organizations, they don’t serve that one primary purpose very well because: 1) the nametag is often flipped over; 2) the nametag is hanging on a lanyard below eye level, and/or; 3) the font of the name is too small.  Some easy fixes include standardizing the location of badge as part of the dress code, and putting the name (first name only is usually recommended for most employees and Dr. LastName for physicians) in a large bold font on both sides of the nametag, or have the badge attached such that it won’t flip over.