The University of New Mexico Hospital has implemented a new initiative called Commit to Sit, aiming to improve patient experiences through direct and personal interactions between healthcare providers and patients. The program, which began in 2023, encourages doctors and nurses to take time to sit with patients during their hospital stay.
Justin Miller, MD, vice-section chief for Hospital Medicine at UNM Hospital, explained the reasoning behind the program: “These little moments where you're able to reach out and connect with a patient, you get to see them as a person and not just a patient, but they also get a chance to see us as people and not just physicians.”
Miller noted that these brief conversations create a less rushed environment for discussing care. He observed improved treatment outcomes because sitting with patients often reveals issues that might otherwise go unaddressed. “There are a lot of things that come up that would not have necessarily come up otherwise, that greatly impact patient care,” Miller said. “Whether it's having some problems at home or troubles affording medication, or even just transportation to and from appointments, and those are things we can help with.”
Patient experience data collected by UNM Hospital supports the positive impact of Commit to Sit. Before its implementation in 2022, nurse communication was scored at 72.6% while doctor communication was at 69%, according to Jennifer Rice, UNM Hospital’s patient experience manager. Since then, nurse communication scores have risen to 78% and doctor communication has increased to 81%.
Rice reported that since September 2024, the hospital began asking discharged patients if any providers took time to sit with them. Survey data shows that 83% of patients indicated someone asked to sit with them during their stay. This feedback led the hospital to expand Commit to Sit beyond its initial pilot in Progressive Care Units into inpatient floors as well as Adult Urgent Care, Pediatric Urgent Care, and the Pediatric Emergency Department.
Staff participation has also been tracked using voluntary surveys via QR codes posted throughout the hospital. According to data from the Patient Relations Office, staff reported being able to sit with patients 94% of the time.
Positive feedback from patients has accompanied these changes. One survey comment stated: “Dr. Paterson is the absolute best in health care and surgery. He sits down and LISTENS to my questions and concerns and helps ME develop a plan.”
Brianna McCann, RN unit based educator at UNM Hospital, discussed how challenging it was during the COVID-19 pandemic for healthcare workers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) to make meaningful connections with patients: “For some patients, that's all they really need,” McCann said. “They're alone for X-number of hours, sometimes all day and sometimes they don't even have family.” She added that after years of distance created by PPE requirements during COVID-19 restrictions, programs like Commit to Sit have helped restore more human connections in healthcare settings.
Miller reflected on this shift back toward direct interaction: “During COVID, we were working in an environment where a lot of our trainees and young professionals were not in an environment where something like sitting with our patients was how things used to be,” he said. He believes initiatives like Commit to Sit help bring back humanism lost during pandemic-era protocols: “That’s the original reason why you go into medicine in the first place,” he said.
More information about Commit to Sit at UNM Hospital can be found on their official website.
