In Southern California’s sprawling Inland Empire, health plan members are no strangers to driving distances. But when those who lived in the remote high desert needed to apply for disability insurance, they were understandably upset that they had to drive 75 miles roundtrip through the sometimes windswept, sometimes snowy Cajon Pass to the Fontana Medical Center to pick up and drop off crucial documents.

That all changed after a high-spirited unit-based team opened a new patient support services office at the Victorville Medical Office Building, a much easier location to get to for the area’s more far-flung members. Patient satisfaction surveys are now glowing.

“The patients are really happy,” said Josie Heredia, a member of Steelworkers Local 7600 and a patient support representative who works at the new office. “They say, ‘We’re glad you’re up here.’”

Dissatisfied members

Members weren’t always so complimentary.

Before the new patient support services satellite office opened, “Patients were complaining and frustrated,” said Christina Galvan, the UBT’s labor co-lead, a member of Steelworkers Local 7600. “Things could get pretty vulgar. We’ve had people yell and scream and bang their fists against the counter.”

It was especially difficult on patients when they had to make repeated trips to the Fontana office, which could happen if they forgot to bring a key document. Because many of the documents had to be the original—not faxed or copied—or required a doctor’s signature, there was often no alternative to a long drive if they wanted to get their insurance payments started as quickly as possible.

“People are ill and injured, and then they have to drive long distances,” said Mary Jo Kunkel, the team’s management co-lead. “It was a huge customer service dissatisfaction. Patients would walk in the door and spew disgust. They’d say, ‘I’m sick of driving all this way.’”

Tracking the work

The UBT in Fontana began by tracking the volume of work it was doing on behalf of high desert patients and found it was about 13 percent. Team members then came up with a plan to deploy two of the 25 patient support representatives to Victorville.

As it happened, two staffers already lived in the area—but there were many hurdles to clear before the plan could work. The UBT came up with a list of what was needed: Office space in Victorville (managers at the medical office building helped them get that), equipment, blank forms and access to technology. The team found volunteers for backfill and ensured their plans honored the seniority clauses in the union contract.

Inundated with satisfied members

The new satellite office in Victorville opened in March.

“We were inundated with patients,” said Kunkel.

There was not a single complaint on patient satisfaction surveys about the new office. If the stream of patients into Victorville slowed, workers in Fontana could send their Victorville colleagues work by fax or by interoffice mail to keep things flowing. Other medical centers are considering following this UBT’s example.

Well-rounded look

Having a UBT, Kunkel said, “gave us the ability to bring all aspects and all brains together”—the employees who deal with members daily, the union leaders with expertise about contract issues, and administrators with an eye on the budget.

“It’s a collaborative effort that allows the team most familiar with the process to really work together to solve the problem,” she said.

“There’s been a big change,” said Fontana-based patient rep Galvan. “I hear less swearing (from patients)….Just to know we can help (them), we know we’re going to make their day.”