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The Patient-Centered Value System (PCVS)  is a comprehensive relationship-based approach to transform healthcare. Orthopaedic surgeon Anthony M. DiGioia, MD developed this methodology at UPMC Magee- Womens Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. PCVS bridges the gap between all stakeholders involved in a care experience from the person who answers the phone, to the person being treated. The successful implementation of this methodology utilizes Co-Design tools and Team building capacity. At the heart of PCVS all care is viewed through the lens of patients and families with compassion for all people, and the desire to examine a patient's needs holistically in order to develop a customized care delivery system. Many patients confine their care experience to the walls of the hospital. PCVS disrupts this ideology by focusing on the complete experience, as a result health outcomes are improved and patients are more prepared. This new healthcare methodology has the flexibility to be implemented in every healthcare system globally.

Co-design tools and the Team-building framework can be customized for any care or work experience. Co-design tools include “What matters to you?” surveys, Shadowing & Shadowing training, Perception mapping, and Co-producing the “ideal story”. These specific tools will ensure everyone in a patient’s care experience can identify the bright spots and pain points of their journey. Co-design is creating and developing processes alongside those who matter most.  This methodology is unique in that it asks those who live the experience to have an active role in improving the experience. A successful co-design process requires people, culture, action, and tools. People must have a desire to be an active changemaker and demonstrate this through empathy, adaptability, passion, and open-mindedness. The culture of an organization must create an environment where it is safe to fail, challenge assumptions, and develop creative and innovative solutions. Action must be taken to bring ideas, accept challenges, and establish large goals. Lastly, Co-design tools are simple to use and essential for sustainable change. 

The unique structure of PCVS ensures project teams are able to successfully improve and sustain processes. Leadership champions, a working group, and multiple project teams represent the ideal employee led PCVS team. Team-building includes engaging patients and families in high-performance teams, coaching teams to manage process improvement, identifying measurable goals and values, and guiding teams in creating sustainable improvements. The following tips and tools will assist your organization in connecting priorities and achieving goals. Begin team building today by selecting leadership champions to support improvement activities. A diverse group of champions should be considered in clinical, non-clinical, and administrative positions. Recruiting working group members from several encounters throughout a patient or staff member’s experience is essential. Lastly, select the projects and project group members from both working group members and nonmembers. The keys to building a successful PCVS team are having a clearly defined purpose that aligns with your organization’s mission and values, a shared vision of the goal, value of transparency in all communication, and actively seeking diverse perspectives. 

PCVS  focuses on Press Ganey data, department goals, experience initiatives, value initiatives, and HCAHPS Scores simultaneously. These goals and initiatives are constantly competing against each other for increased time, personnel, space, and money. Unification will produce better results once an organized framework is established. PCVS’s 4 phases of change will allow your organization to implement sustainable improvements as soon as possible:

• Phase 1: Identify what matters and customize an action plan 
• Phase 2: Discover current state, and collaboration kick-off
• Phase 3: Champion engagement, and strategic goal alignment
• Phase 4: Tests of change, and document measurable outcomes 

Get started today using the Person-Centered Value System, the new operating system for care delivery and to learn more visit the https://www.learnpcvs.org/