The Voice of the Patient: Meet Sierra View Medical Center’s Patient Experience Team

Health care can be complicated, and becoming hospitalized during the pandemic has been challenging for patients, families, and hospital staff. But did you know that Sierra View Medical Center (SVMC) has a team dedicated to helping improve our patient’s experience while receiving care at Sierra View?

The goal of the Patient Experience Team is to listen to any concerns or feedback you may have. They are here to advocate for you and your loved ones and are committed to finding out what matters most to you during your hospital stay. Our goal is to provide safe, quality and compassionate care while delivering the best possible experience within our hospital.

Did something go just as planned, or maybe not quite as you expected? We want to hear about it and help improve your experience and share any feedback you may have with our health care teams.

Sierra View Medical Center is a patient-centered organization and, as such, we want to do everything we can to make sure you know who you can reach out to at any time to seek help while at the hospital.

Daniel Blazar is SVMC’s Patient Experience Officer. He has been at SVMC since 2014. Dan’s main concern is making sure that SVMC’s patients receive high-quality care respectfully and compassionately. For Dan, every interaction our patients have within the hospital matters. His daily routine includes making visits to hospitalized patients to ask how their stay is going. “Our patients have a great story to tell, we need to listen to them,” says Dan. And he is here to do just that. If something is not working out as it should be, Dan works with clinical and support departments to resolve any issues. Before coming to Sierra View, Dan spent much of his health care career at Kaiser Permanente in Walnut Creek and Antioch, Calif. and Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

Gabriela Alvarez works closely with Dan Blazar as SVMC’s Patient and Family Advocate. In this role, Gaby also visits hospitalized patients and is a go-to person for English and Spanish speakers alike to help resolve any issues patients and families may have with their care. Her goal is to help patients leave Sierra View happier than they arrived. She helps patients by compassionately listening to their feedback and, together with Dan, communicates with hospital teams to improve care. Gaby is the amplified voice of the patient and families Sierra View Medical Center cares for. Gaby’s background is in health care, and she is passionate about helping the Porterville community. “I feel it is important to help those in need who might be scared to voice their concerns, especially members of the Spanish-speaking community who cannot communicate due to language barriers,” says Gaby.

The next time you or a loved one visits the hospital, keep Dan and Gaby’s names in mind. They can quickly help you get positive feedback to teams as well as resolve any issues with care. We thank you for your patience during this pandemic as we continue to find creative ways to deliver high-quality care while dealing with visitor restrictions, pandemic guidelines, and many more changes to the way we do things. Dan Blazar can be reached at (559) 788-9272 or by email: (DBlazar@sierra-view.com). Gaby Alvarez can be reached at (559) 788-7225, or by email (GAlvarez@sierra-view.com).