Tara Sheets
Columbia, MO 65202
E-mail:
Education
Westminster College, Fulton, MO, May 1999.
B.S. in Mathematics; Minor Concentration: Chemistry
Overall G.P.A: 3.80/4.0 Math: 3.92/4.0
Concordia University
Currently enrolled in a Masters in Public Health program
Computer Skills
Statistical Programs: ANOVA, Regression, T-tests, Graphs, Maple V, Chi-writer, etc.
Excel: Templates, Macros, Spreadsheets, Graphs, etc.
Access: Queries, tables, reports, programming, etc.
Plus Windows, Word, Power Point, and various other Microsoft programs
Local databases: CIMOR, EMT, ORYX, SRUI, Scorecard
Work Experience
Fulton State Hospital, Quality Management, Fulton, MO, November 2002-Present
Quality Assurance Specialist
Promoted three times. Participate in preparation and surveys for TJC and CMS. Assist with hospital policy process, reviewing, editing policies when needed. Keep abreast of changes in TJC and CMS standards for policy development and designing processes for compliance. Monitor and report on compliance of the clinical and support departments on TJC and CMS standards through review of charts and surveying of the wards and environments. Assist administration and Central Office in coordinating a new database for system risk management (EMT2.0) for data entry and analysis; develop and revise hospital policies and business guidelines around this. Attend committees representing the Quality Management Department: Facility Executive, Treatment and Organization Development, Medical Records, CIMOR Implementation, Effective Communication. Present reports on trends and their significance in these meetings and help with implementing monitoring strategies that allow for administrative involvement, good clinical decisions, and quality patient care. Work closely with disciplines and programs and leadership throughout the hospital. Assist with development of Performance Improvement (PI) projects, and work with Medical Staff, Nursing Staff, and other departments to develop improvement projects in areas of risk or where TJC compliance needed improved. Work with executive staff to create an annual summary for the hospital, including patient, employee, and environmental dimensions as indicators for the organization’s success, trending, evaluating, and recommending targets for this data. Continue developing new methods to collect, aggregate, and present data in a more user-friendly format that is helpful and explanatory for all staff involved and allows for implementing monitoring strategies. For example: I created a nursing database for the Chief Nurse Executive to help her ensure minimums are met and allow her to track staffing needs associated with acuity. Extensive local database knowledge and report writing ability allows me to continue to look for ways to improve efficiency in the Quality Management Department and other departments at the hospital and provide help to clinical staff. Currently leading the FMECA team on hand-off communication.
Supervise research analysts and the Chart Monitor. Review and evaluate projects from staff for quality and accuracy; providing education when necessary. Train and monitor data processing procedures, Excel and Access functions, graphs, report writing,designing queries and programming.
Continuing to develop leadership skills. Graduated from the Leadership Training Institute. Currently part of the Health Education Network (HEN). Missouri is partnering with hospitals around the country to find ways to improve clinical care at all hospitals. We have identified different missions and strategies, and we work with each other, discussing successes and failures. Through this partnership, I am involved in a Leadership Fellowship program and attend various seminars and workshops related to leadership.
Prior roles in department included: Developed monthly, quarterly, and annual reports, summarizing trends and evaluations of performance, including analyzing data for multi-facility benchmarking projects. Reports included: seclusion/restraint, medication errors, patient injuries, patient/employee satisfaction; creating tables, correlations, control charts, trends, benchmarking, and narrative summaries from these areas using Visual Basic and creating macros in Excel and Access. Created and maintained database systems, and programmed additional database functionality. Compiled and prepared data monthly for external reporting converting raw data to ORYX standards, collecting complex data from various sources to benchmark data against state and national rates maintaining TJC, NRI and CMS requirements. Provided technical support and assistance to research coordinators and other research staff as part of a multi-year grant research project funded by the National Technical Assistance Center (NTAC), a division of the National Association of State Mental Health Directors (NASMPHD). Corresponded with COO, unit directors, nurse managers, and administration on abuse/neglect investigation reports, corrective actions, and supervisory reviews, tracking progress and status to ensure timely and accurate reports.
University Hospital, Pathology Department, Columbia, MO, June 1998-October 2003
Lab Technician II
Performed quality control testing on machines, using various statistical methods, to verify accuracy of patient results, and to insure equipment runs smoothly. Repaired and maintained machines and lab equipment when needed. Operated lab machines such as Nova, Blood Gas, Dimension, Lithium, Axsym, and Osmometer. Read gram stain slides for microbiological testing. Conducted tests on specimen samples: blood, urine, and pleural fluids, testing levels of nutrients, drugs, and hormones in patients. Utilized databases to order, analyze, and interpret results.
Research Assistant, Westminster College, May-August 1999.
Assisted the professor with conducting chemical reaction experiments, using computer generated data and lab experimentation to discover and develop information on new oscillating reactions. Trouble-shooting, brainstorming, and analyzing to find comparisons, differences, problems, and solutions to the experimental and computer generated data. Created a journal to help further study on these reactions.
References Available Upon Request