New Texas hospital focusing on patient experience

Walnut Hill, a recently opened Dallas hospital, is focusing on the patient experience to give it an edge in a highly competitive market, according to an article on the Healthcare Finance News website.

Walnut Hill is hoping that ideas borrowed from Ritz Carlton and a warm, natural light-filled building design will attract patients.

“We are completely banking on the patient experience and exceptional quality, and as long as we do everything right for the patients, the finances will fall into place,” said Cory Countryman, Walnut Hill CEO, said in the article.

Patients will have private rooms with 42-inch plasma screen televisions, complimentary valet parking, iPads and free Wi-Fi, a bistro where clinicians are encouraged to dine with patients and families, a Starbucks, a movie theatre and 100 pieces of original artwork commissioned by the hospital.

The hospital has borrowed from customer-focused industries, the article said. For instance, the Ritz Carlton’s “15-5” rule has been adopted at Walnut Hill. Hospital staff will smile at patients from 15 feet away and greet them at five feet.

One design theme the hospital used is natural light — something that’s gaining traction in buildings, like hospitals, that are meant to be places for healing. 

Read the article.