Jane Gentry

Rush Memorial Hospital has been my employer since March 2010. I actually started working at Rush prior to that through an externship program at Ivy Tech where I was studying Office Administration with a medical background. I was placed in the Health Information department where I worked half days three days a week performing chart analysis on paper records. My duties included putting the charts in order, identifying and flagging any deficiencies and moving them on to the medical coders. As luck would have it, a full-time position opened up in the Health Information department. I was able to obtain the job. I learned a lot about the workings of the hospital while in the Health Information department. I learned even though we all have individual roles, we are all connected and what one does affects another. Teamwork and communication are vital in a hospital.

In 2014, the paper medical record was replaced by the electronic record and I eventually moved into the Clinical Abstractor position within the Quality department. My knowledge really expanded as I learned about payer programs, state requirements for critical access hospitals and the list goes on. A few years later, the Lean Project Facilitator position opened up. Although I had previous hands-on knowledge of Lean, I did not have formal training. RMH provided me the opportunity to become certified as a Lean Practitioner as well as an LDI facilitator through Purdue Healthcare Advisors. I really enjoy what I do. In my role, I get the opportunity to work and interact with many members of our staff. Process improvement and helping others to identify gaps in our processes excites me! I like to problem-solve. Above my desk is a sign that has a fill-in-the-blank. The sign reads “I do what I do because _______.” My response to the fill-in-the-blank is “I want to make a difference.” Rush Memorial has provided me with that opportunity. What better way to make a difference than getting the opportunity to work with a great team of people doing what we do best, taking care of the community and our patients.