FARMINGTON — Surgical Services Director Rebecca Wood was recently named Caregiver of the Year for Franklin Memorial Hospital according to a press release from Gerald Cayer, executive vice president. Cayer made the announcement during a recent manager’s meeting, praising Wood’s 14 years of service at the facility.

As surgical services director, Wood oversees: day surgery, operating room, post-anesthesia care unit, pre-admission testing, endoscopy and pain clinic. These busy departments combined treat approximately 4,600 patients each year.

Wood’s nomination cited a collaborative project with anesthesia providers and surgeons, in which nursing staff implemented a comprehensive surgical checklist to reduce preventable mistakes that may occur in ORs. This checklist represents best practices for preprocedure check in, sign in, time out and sign out. Since its employ, the surgical team is more engaged with one another, and surgical defects have declined toward the goal of zero.

In addition, a patient education program that helps guide patients through the surgical process was implemented. Patients start out in the surgeon’s office and are given a surgical folder with educational information inside including procedure expectations, anesthesia types, pain management and a magnet with tips for proper post-op care. Patients bring this folder with them to all appointments — engaging them in their care and having organized and quick access to all their surgical information.

As the FMH representative, Wood was considered among 39 nominees for the 2013 Maine Hospital Association Caregiver of the Year Award.