A Culture of Safety: Patient Transport Success at Novant Health Rowan Medical Center

The Patient Transport team at Novant Health Rowan Medical Center is a strong example of Crothall’s commitment to workplace safety in action. 

Crothall Healthcare’s Patient Transport team, located in Salisbury, N.C., makes over 68,000 trips a year and has achieved impressive safety milestones: no major injuries since January 2017 and no ‘Red Rule’ violations for more than eight years.  

“To be injury-free for nine years, and ‘Red Rule’ free for nearly as long, the team needs to be laser-focused on their mission and highly engaged,” says Regional Vice President Sam Olsen.  

Experience Counts 

A key factor in these successes is Patient Transport Director Brittney Livengood, who began as a transporter at Rowan in 2009 and worked her way to Director in 2018, gaining firsthand patient care experience along the way. 

Brittney progressed to Patient Flow Coordinator, entered the Manager-in-Training program, and became Director in 2018. 

“Brittney has walked well more than a mile in the shoes of her frontline team members, and this has given her the critical insight she needs to best lead them,” Olsen says. “This experience has given her the ability to communicate flawlessly both to her leadership team and to her frontline, ensuring that everyone is in sync with department and hospital goals and initiatives.” 

The Importance of Quality Training  

Livengood credits her training team and associates’ vigilance for their safety record and hazard avoidance. 

Because transporters move patients frequently, initial training emphasizes preventing back injuries. “We focus on body mechanics and safe transfers to avoid strains and injury,” Livengood says. 

They receive two weeks of hands-on training from Velma Johnson, the 16-year team lead. Each associate must master safety measures, from correctly using PPE to transporting patients with special needs. 

On the job, Brittney accompanies each transporter monthly to ensure they use proper lifting and transfer techniques. 

She also reminds staff to wear PPE correctly with isolation patients, who can easily transmit illness through droplets or skin contact.  

Livengood says transporters rely on teamwork to prevent injuries. For example, if a battery-powered bed loses power, making it hard to push, transporters call for help instead of moving it alone. 

Olsen says training at Novant Health Rowan Medical Center matches other accounts, but Brittney’s attention to safety helps reinforce the strong safety culture built into Crothall’s patient transport operations. 

“Brittney deserves a ton of credit for this accomplishment, but it takes the entire village to ensure it is practiced with each and every transport. Every Patient Transport team member at Novant Health Rowan Medical Center has played a vital role in achieving this incredible accomplishment and deserves to be recognized.” 

– Regional Vice President Sam Olsen

The Oxygen Olympics 

The Patient Transport team also joins Novant Health’s annual Oxygen Olympics, a 10-day safety contest focused on proper handoff and oxygen tank handling. 

Transporters earn points in the competition by using the oxygen handoff tool properly and answering daily trivia. 

In the most recent contest, all top three Rowan Medical Center winners were Patient Transport: Velma Johnson (first), Maurice Harrison (second), and Tyler Solomon (third). 

The competition often pays off in a transporter’s daily tasks. Recently, Devon Stewart’s oxygen know-how helped a patient. 

Before transferring a patient from the Emergency Department, DeVon heard an oxygen tank alarm. He alerted a nurse, who quickly replaced the tank so the patient stayed oxygenated. 

Culture of Safety 

Novant Health Rowan Medical Center leadership recognizes the team’s impact. In 2024, Livengood won the Atlas award for Professional & Support Services, nominated by other department leaders. 

“Brittney is seen as a hospital leader by everyone,” says Olsen. “She and her team prove patients benefit when we set high standards.” 

Brittney and her team show what’s possible when strong training, accountability, and a shared commitment to safety come together. Values that define Crothall teams across the country.