Benson Tran, DNP, RN, NE-BC, CMSRN, joined Kaiser Permanente 7 years ago and is the Service Unit Department Manager for Adult and Family Medicine at the Petaluma Medical Office.
The nursing field captivated his attention from an early age. Growing up, Tran overcame much adversity, which taught him the meaning of hard work. The passing of family members began his journey to search for answers in health care.
Inspiration for Nursing
“My nursing colleagues inspire me every day through their personal experiences, triumphs and struggles, abilities and limitations, and their strength and resilience,” said Tran.
The birth of his son also reinvigorated a sense of inspiration, purpose, and patience. “As a father, I am committed to lifelong learning and believe that love, empathy, and education can coexist,” added Tran.
Leading with Purpose
“To be truly effective, I determine what those around me need so they have the tools to provide our patients with high-quality service. Leading with purpose is a collaborative effort, allowing for autonomy and dialogue,” mentioned Tran.
He credits his purpose with taking care of the patients, but his role can only be successful with the support of his team. “It is important to foster a culture where everyone cares for one another to help overcome challenges.”
Delivering Care Excellence
“In January 2023, I transitioned to my current role as a Hypertension (HTN) Pharmacist, and Benson and I started working closely together,” said Shirley Heinemann, Ambulatory Care Pharmacist at the San Rafael Medical Center.
That same year, the Petaluma facility ranked last regionally in the Crossing the Quality Chasm HTN metric at a rate of 73%. By December 2023, the Petaluma facility not only met the quality metric of 83% in HTN but increased the number of patients using the pharmacy by 30%, explained Heinemann.
“Benson was an integral part of the facility’s turnaround,” said Heinemann.
He worked with the HTN Pharmacy Service Department to review workflows, discussed the importance of blood pressure control in daily huddles, improved the environment for back-office blood pressure checks, and worked with Petaluma Adult Family Medicine to review physician performance regularly.
“I would rank Benson among the top in his dedication, responsiveness, organization, and most of all, his personal touch to staff, colleagues, and patients,” stated Heinemann.