In today’s economy, many career industries are experiencing a decline. However, the healthcare industrycontinues to grow. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the field of healthcare will continue to grow for at least the next decade. To prepare students for this growing field, Miami Dade College, Medical Campus, offers several accredited, affordable short-term education options in healthcare. One such opportunity is the Massage Therapy Program. In addition to providing stress relief, students in the Massage Therapy Program at Miami Dade College will learn to treat clients by using touch to relieve pain, discomfort, muscle spasm, increase relaxation, and prevent disability.
 
As the practice of Massage Therapy continues to grow as a respected and appealing profession, employment of massage therapists is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations. Continued growth in the demand for massage services will lead to new opportunities for massage therapists (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). The Massage Therapy Program at Miami Dade College,
Medical Campus, trains individuals for self-employment and employment in an array of public and private settings, including resorts, physician offices, massage clinics, hospitals, nursing homes, fitness centers, spas, sports medicine facilities, and many more. Miami Dade College’s Massage Therapy program can be completed in two semesters or less and classes are offered during the day or evening.
 
Graduates of the Massage Therapy Program are eligible to apply for one of the National Certification Board examinations. Once the National Board Exam is successfully completed, graduates can apply to theFlorida Board of Massage Therapy for issuance of the State of Florida Massage Therapy License. Therefore, if you are looking for an affordable, short-term professional career in a growing industry, the Massage Therapy Program at Miami Dade College, Medical Campus, is for you! Fall term registration is underway.


With healthcare costs on a continuous upward trend, it’s not surprising that there is an underlying assumption that quality healthcare is expensive and that to improve the quality of care, you have to spend more. Recent experiences demonstrate that healthcare organizations can prove these assumptions false. By learning the Lean Six Sigma methodology and implementing Lean Healthcare, hospitals and even small doctor’s offices can reduce costs while improving service to their patients.
 
Once thought to be a management fad, Lean Six Sigma is now becoming the most successful process improvement methodology of all time. Over 50% of the Fortune 500 are using these tools and principles, and over 40% of hospitals report some level of Lean or Six Sigma deployment. The latest economic cycle has shown that healthcare providers and insurers alike need faster adoption of Lean Six Sigma and a corresponding shift in culture to be capable of getting maximum value from business process while reducing the ever-rising cost of healthcare.
 
There is a tremendous cost associated with the gap between current management practices at the front-line and ideal Lean management practices. These costs are evident not only in lost productivity and decreased quality, but also in low employee morale, patient dissatisfaction and lost business. Lean Healthcare organizations that are able to close this gap by enhancing the information and management tools utilized by their front-line managers will have a long- term competitive advantage in the marketplace.
 
The delivery of Lean Healthcare depends on people, process, and technology coming together. No matter how sophisticated the processes and technological investments, quality healthcare will always require effective management of these three things. Many front-line managers I encounter tend to focus on tasks and position themselves in a “fire-fighting” mode. They are typically less effective in the discipline of planning, forecasting, coordinating, leading and following-up on expectations. Often they lack the important tools and skills that are taught in Lean Six Sigma to manage the people, process, and technology in an effective manner.
 
Lives are at stake, and healthcare providers are there to ensure that everything surrounding the medical treatment of patients happens most efficiently and effectively; so that all patients receive the highest quality care a facility is able to provide without creating unnecessary costs. Healthcare providers and insurers continue to find solutions, such as those that I teach in the Nova Southeastern University Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt program, to improve efficiency, drive growth and position themselves for the future.
 
While Lean Healthcare through the Lean Six Sigma methodology is not a silver bullet for driving business performance improvement, it can be a key element of a high-performing healthcare ecosystem which provides the ongoing catalyst to drive innovation while also improving outcomes by creating solutions that matter and solutions that work!


Miami Dade College’s (MDC) Foundation recently announced it has received a $120,000 grant from the Health Foundation of South Florida to support the Medical Campus’ Dental Hygiene Program. The grant money will help to equip an entire clinical suite with new, state-of-the-art dental chairs, complete with networking capabilities for electronic medical records, chair-side data entry capabilities and a monitor for patients to view images and receive dental care education.


The Department of Veterans Affairs has a proven record of delivering Health Promotion Disease Prevention services to Veterans at a higher overall rate than that of non-VA health care entities. Many of these services are well-incorporated in VA facilities because of an established Health Promotion Disease Prevention Program (HPDP) that implements performance measures and reminders that prompt staff to discuss prevention along with discussing behavior change and setting goals with Veterans.
 
To encourage Veterans to choose healthy living behaviors and goals, VA’s across the country implemented nine key evidence based healthy living messages. These messages cover core prevention areas including nutrition, physical activity, weight management, smoking, alcohol use, stress management, clinical preventive services, safety, and health care communication. These topics were chosen because of their importance for reducing chronic disease morbidity and mortality and improving quality of life.
 
West Palm Beach VA Health Promotion Disease Prevention Program trains Primary Care staff to utilize effective brief interventions for weight management, tobacco cessation and other patient education topics for Veterans. Helping patients achieve weight loss and make dietary and physical activity improvements is difficult; some patients need more intense behavioral counseling. A review of behavioral counseling interventions for healthy diet, physical activity, or a combined lifestyle can result in small but significant improvements in the amount of salt, fat, fruits/vegetables, and calories; minutes of physical activity per week, and physiologic measures of body mass index, blood pressure and cholesterol.
 
The National Center for Health Promotion Disease Prevention suggests that establishing a strong relationship with patients and using communication techniques such as motivational interviewing, health coaching, and shared decision making can help patients make better choices around behaviors that can impact health, such as physical activity, eating habits, tobacco cessation, and alcohol misuse.
 
The premise of this approach, which is termed patient-centered care, is to elicit the patient’s priorities and goals, rather than telling the patient what those priorities should be. This approach allows patients to prioritize and decide what they are ready to change and has been shown to be effective in promoting behavior change. With practice, these types of conversations can be conducted efficiently and effectively.
 
Training staff in patient-centered communication skills have proven successful in promoting and supporting tobacco cessation and can be expanded to address physical activity and diet choices. Staff are able to emphasize the importance of these behaviors in preventing and managing chronic diseases and to offer more information on such topics if the Veteran expresses interest.
 
HPDP Program Managers and Health Behavior Coordinators (HBCs), in collaboration with Veterans Health Education Coordinators, play a critical role in training staff in effective communication strategies to promote prevention through health behavior change. The first of the two courses is TEACH for Success. TEACH guides clinicians in how to use evidence-based health education, counseling, and communication skills with patients and their family members.
 
The second course covers motivational interviewing. Derived from work with patients with substance abuse issues, motivational interviewing is now being widely used in the general health care setting. The philosophy of the motivational communication approach is to assume that it is natural for people to have mixed feelings (ambivalence) about making changes in their health-related behaviors. To successfully assist patients in making healthy lifestyle changes, health care staff establish a collaborative, empathetic relationship with their clients. The approach helps patients explore their ambivalence about health issues and change by teaching skills to resist lecturing, exploring patient motivations, partnering with patients through effective listening, and empowering patients by helping them explore how they can make a difference in their own health.


Curriculum updates prepare students to face new challenges
 
This fall the Division of Nursing at Barry University’s College of Health Sciences begins its Doctor of Nursing Practice specialization in anesthesiology. Last spring it introduced an enhanced post-master’s DNP curriculum with specializations in nurse administration and nurse practitioner. The College of Health Sciences faculty is also working to enhance other programs, including those in cardiovascular perfusion and occupational therapy. With the ever changing health care industry, universities have an obligation to graduate skilled professionals who can meet new challenges.
 
“Our goal is to prepare the next generation of health care leaders who are able to confidently address the challenges of our system and the unique needs of our patients,” said John McFadden, Ph.D., the interim dean at Barry’s College of Health Sciences.
 
In order to do this, the Barry health care faculty continually works to improve curricula to prepare future practitioners. Improvements are based on several factors, Dr. McFadden explained, including feedback from students, clinical affiliates, alumni and their employers; scholarly reports, white papers, and publications about industry trends and issues; and recommendations and requirements issued by the degree programs’ accrediting bodies. These evaluations may result in a faculty member incorporating a new assignment, students engaging in a new experiential learning component, or the department creating a new course.
 
For example, Dr. McFadden said, the movement toward an evidence-based approach to clinical decision making has had a direct impact. “Traditionally, we taught research methodology. In the past decade, we have enhanced our teaching of research to emphasize the application or translation of research to practice,” Dr. McFadden said. The increased use of computers, software, and databases has also led to an increased number of assignments, readings, and courses that focus on informatics.
 
These proposals undergo a thorough vetting process at the program, college, and university level, and may include professional and regional accrediting bodies.
 
“In this way, all curricular enhancements are thought through carefully and are well planned,” Dr. McFadden said.
 
“We are not only educating safe, competent practitioners, but also teaching the skills necessary to possess a broader perspective on our industry and engage in lifelong learning.”
 
Nursing Summer Camp is a Success
In June, Barry University’s Division of Nursing held its first summer camp for high school students interested in a nursing career. Twelve Miami-Dade students participated in the three-day program at Barry’s main campus in Miami Shores.
 
“We wanted to develop an early interest in nursing and give them an early university experience,” said Barry nursing instructor Sharon Rafalko, who led the camp. Students researched various nursing roles, participated in a chemistry experiment, checked heart and respiratory rates using mannequins, and completed the American Heart Association’s Friend & Family CPR course. Barry nursing faculty and students were there to help every step of the way.
 
The program was geared toward students in Miami-Dade health sciences magnet schools. To apply, they had to submit a one-page essay describing their interest in the health care field. The response was positive, Rafalko said, and she hopes to continue the nursing camp next year.