With the right leadership, collaborative teamwork can help achieve goals far more efficiently. The focus of this collaboration would be for effective workload sharing by delegation of tasks to those with the most suitable skill set. Teamwork and collaboration enhance trust amongst team members, improve group dynamics, and foster a positive and productive work environment. The outcome of this collaborative teamwork is evident within some teams who do not hesitate to go above and beyond in their quest for the highest level of healthcare and to secure the best experience for their patients. With this nomination, I would like to highlight the achievements of the nominated team and their project outcomes that are in perfect alignment with the Mission, Vision, and Values of this organization.

ACCOUNTABILITY- The OPD team has, on numerous occasions, worked with other departments consistently over the years to reduce patient waiting time with respect to diagnosis and to attain quality patient care. One such example is the transfer of the Fibroscan machine from Endoscopy unit to clinic 6 in OPD. Patients for Fibroscan had long waiting times due to the lack of staffing in endoscopy unit. The diagnosis was therefore delayed, which would have resulted in potential complications in the patient's disease process. The OPD team accepted responsibility for this important diagnostic testing by creating space in one of the clinics and arranging for quick staff training and orientation of the process. The backlog of patients for fibroscan has, therefore, been efficiently dealt with. This demonstrates the awareness and ownership of all operational responsibilities by the team in OPD and their ability to collaborate effectively with other areas to ensure the quality of healthcare delivery. Additionally, the team has accepted more responsibilities in the form of increasing dermatology clinics due to a shortage of Dermatology services in our community. A new service for Phototherapy sessions are now offered which required a super quick training undertaken by the team. Our patients now enjoy the benefits of this service, which has made a huge impact on skin disorder management in Jeddah and is led by Nurses. A few of the services, orthopedics, anesthesia, pulmonology, ophthalmology, Family medicine, and Emergency, were overwhelmed with long patient waiting times. These areas were bursting at the seams, and the only solution was to hold clinics after normal working hours to meet the backlog and deliver the required services efficiently. The team in OPD was not fazed at all! Teams of nursing staff were allocated to cover these after hour clinics, which commenced immediately after their long day shift. This resulted in a continuous 14 hour shift for nurses covering these clinics. Through long work hours and large volumes of patients, this team still persisted and currently has almost met all the waiting backlogs for affected clinics. Patient care was therefore delivered successfully and with great commitment by this team.

PATIENT CENTRIC- The focus on patient satisfaction in the Outpatient area is extremely high. OPD holds an ongoing SMILE campaign, which aims to show compassion and kindness to patients. The SMILE campaign has resulted in an immediate improvement in patient satisfaction results and created a greater awareness amongst nursing staff. The SMILE campaign was a result of journal club article critiques, which focused on finding the best practice in patient satisfaction methodologies. The Professional Development team is also currently reaching the end of their research study on Describing nursing courtesy and friendliness related to patient satisfaction in the Outpatient department setting. This Study aims to isolate problems that patients experience with nursing staff and to attend to each of these problems systematically. The team also did a PI project in the last 12 months that focused on improving Wayfinding for patients in the Outpatient Areas. This project was initiated due to a patient complaint received. This particular patient complained about being lost on the Ground Floor due to the lack of adequate signage for directions. As part of the PI Project, and in response to the complaint, A MAP of the floor area was quickly created which was also converted to QR codes for ease of access by all patients visiting the Outpatient Area. This MAP showed clear directions from every clinic to Pharmacy, Radiology, Laboratory, Endoscopy, DPU, DMU etc. The team worked on this project in collaboration with Patient experience office, Engineering Department, Pulmonary physician, Quality and Research department and public and media affairs. The completed PI project was a great success as demonstrated by the patient feedback received. The OPD Team places great importance in improving patient satisfaction, which is clearly depicted by the projects they have undertaken to this end.

EXCELLENCE- To attain excellence in Healthcare, Nursing has to be scientific in nature. Research methodologies must be implemented in the search for best practices. The OPD team is currently involved in many research projects that are all aimed at achieving excellence in healthcare. In March 2024, the team published their study titled "Physician, nurse and patient experience with telephone consultations." This study was done post Covid 19 to research experiences resulting from this changed practice so that inroads in innovation can be made in respect of patient consultation. Further innovative studies are planned this year in collaboration with other units. One such innovative study will be done with the Infection Control department and will involve the use of Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare. This study will hopefully take our institution to much higher levels of Excellence in Healthcare Innovation and result in higher levels of patient satisfaction.

It is with the greatest admiration that I must add that this OPD team functions like a well-oiled machine. The team consistently displays the highest level of commitment and loyalty to the Organizational Mission, Vision, and Values, as displayed in this nomination. The team dynamics are outstanding in their simplicity, and the level of dedication always amazes me. It is with utmost confidence that I can honestly report that if anything needs doing, this is the team that will do it!