By Donald Dawkins

Donald Dawkins has been contributing to the field of healthcare since 1986, when he began his nursing career. He has gone from bedside nursing to academia and back to bedside nursing. He also pursued a career in administration, and is currently TCMC’s administrator for cardiovascular services. Suffice it to say, the breadth of his experience has given Donald an unusually good perspective on both patient and employee needs.

Recently we asked Donald to discuss the quality of care at Tri-City Medical Center through the very wide lens of his experiences. Here is some of what he said.

“From the time the patient arrives, there is the sense that someone wants to help. Which is extremely important. When you’re sick, you want empathy. You want to be treated like family.

“In a strictly clinical sense, quality care is a constantly moving target. New technologies and modalities are continually emerging. So we have to have a real passion for continuous improvement, and we do. We are responsible for making sure that the science we are using is the most up-to-date available. It’s evident in our technology. And in our outcomes.

“But that other part of quality care, the human part, is what must be maintained regardless of other changes. The importance of patient/family relationships. Making sure patients know they can count on us. We do that every day, with every patient we care for. To me, that’s what makes Tri-City Medical Center different. Special. Not just the way we treat patients, but the way we treat people. All people. All the time.”