Colleen Borrelli on The Burke Advantage Initiative & Patient Experience
We recently sat down with Colleen Borrelli, Vice President of Patient Experience at Burke Rehabilitation®, to discuss the newly launched initiative, “The Burke Advantage,” her role in shaping patient experience, and vision for advancing patient and family-centered services across the organization.
Can you describe your role as Vice President of Patient Experience, and what motivates you each day?
I’ve had the privilege of building the Patient Experience department from concept to full operation. What began as an idea to optimize our relationships with patients and caregivers has grown into the development of a department dedicated to the overall experience at our 150-bed hospital and 15 outpatient sites. A cornerstone of this work is The Marsal Caregiver Center, the first and only caregiver center within an acute rehabilitation hospital in the U.S., which now serves as an essential resource for families. Our focus has been to ensure patients and their loved ones feel supported, heard, and cared for as their loved ones receive Burke’s award-winning care.
Each day, I am inspired by how our efforts enrich the experiences of our patients and caregivers. A key part of this success comes from our multidisciplinary approach to care across the continuum. Nurses, therapists, physicians, social workers, and support staff collaborate to guide each patient’s journey. In 2024, Burke provided care for over 3,200 inpatients and served over 16,000 outpatients, reflecting our team’s dedication and shared commitment to providing the highest quality medical care and rehabilitation services. Being part of a team large enough to make a significant difference, yet small enough to enable quick, efficient collaboration ensures that the patient remains the central focus.
How did the idea for The Marsal Caregiver Center come about and how did it take shape?
The concept of a caregiver center was inspired by a personal experience visiting a family member and seeing firsthand the difference such a resource could make. At that moment, I realized how transformative a similar environment could be at Burke. Caregivers face significant challenges and deserve a space that honors their vital role and supports their wellbeing. When I shared this vision with leadership, they immediately recognized its value and encouraged me to bring The Marsal Caregiver Center to life as a dedicated space for caregivers’ respite, support, and resources. The center is both physical and symbolic. Located within our hospital, the center is run by a social worker who is uniquely qualified to support Burke’s caregivers with the assistance of highly trained volunteers who staff the beautiful space that offers caregivers a calming retreat exclusively for them. It is a place to recharge, make a phone call, reflect quietly, meet with a volunteer, or explore helpful resources on topics ranging from medical equipment to healthcare proxies.
What is The Burke Advantage initiative and its primary goals?
The Burke Advantage is designed to elevate every aspect of the patient journey by fostering an environment of compassion, engagement, and clinical excellence. By prioritizing patient-centered care and staff collaboration, this initiative ensures that every patient feels valued, heard, and supported throughout their experience leading to better health outcomes, improved satisfaction, and stronger recovery. Positive patient experiences are not just about comfort, they are proven drivers of treatment adherence, more effective recovery, and reduced hospital readmissions. When patients feel actively involved, respected, and cared for, they heal faster and regain independence more quickly.
We aim to translate our employee-chosen core values into specific behaviors that every employee at Burke can put into practice, regardless of their role or department. Through a 90-minute, interactive training session delivered in-house, staff explore how compassion, respect, and accountability shape patient care and reflect on their own role in the experience through various discussions, examples, and role plays. For example, a member of the environmental services team may connect their daily work to infection control, helping them gain a deeper understanding of the difference they make and the impact they have on patient outcomes, trust, and overall results." Each Burke Advantage training session ends with a powerful patient testimonial which really drives home the message: every one of us plays a role in the patient experience.
What are your future goals for improving Patient Experience across Burke’s inpatient and outpatient practices?
Looking ahead, the primary goal for improving Patient Experience across Burke’s inpatient and outpatient practices is to ensure every interaction consistently reflects our reputation for rehabilitation medicine excellence, strengthening the alignment between our national accolades such as being named a top rehabilitation hospital by U.S. News & World Report and Newsweek, and one of Westchester County’s Best Places to Work by 914INC., and the valuable insights from our Press Ganey patient satisfaction scores. According to the 2024 Press Ganey survey, Burke has earned exceptional patient satisfaction scores of 93 out of 100 (inpatient) and 98 out of 100 (outpatient) on likelihood to recommend. These patient satisfaction scores are the voice of those we serve, guiding our strategic quality improvement projects. We are committed to fostering consistent, intentional behaviors and to going above and beyond. A simple example is warmly greeting every patient and visitor and personally escorting them to their destination rather than just pointing. While this may seem small, it reflects our dedication to the Burke Advantage — and is just one of many ways we strive to set ourselves apart.
Stories from Burke patients and families regularly illustrate the transformative, positive effect of these moments, like addressing a small comfort or providing even more personalized care. Moving forward, our ongoing efforts will focus on making this exceptional level of service consistent and universal across all settings. By continuing to foster a culture deeply rooted in patient experience and aligned with our C.A.R.E.S. values and reputation, we will ensure that outstanding care is both recognized by our peers and felt by every patient and family we support.
