CEO Column January 2013
Reflecting on a busy year
Alliston – January 1/13 - I am pleased to connect with readers of the Herald through this new monthly column. As President and CEO at Stevenson Memorial Hospital, I appreciate this opportunity to share information about our programs and services with our community and I welcome any feedback.
2012 was certainly a tremendous year at Stevenson as we continue to expand and upgrade the services we provide to meet the health care needs of this growing community.
I am excited to share some of our proudest successes with you, including the introduction of digital mammography services in March, our continued 100 per cent patient satisfaction rates in our obstetrics department and significantly reduced wait times in our Emergency Department. The hard work in Emergency was recognized with additional funding this year from the provincial Pay for Results funding program.
Excitement will grow this year, as our Future Health Care Committee continues work on a proposal to expand and modernize our Emergency Department and adjacent Operating Rooms, Diagnostic Imaging and Laboratory departments. This expansion is critically important and has been identified as a “top need” for this community.
Planning will be a long-term process and we will need approval from the Central Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to make it happen. We also need the support of residents as we continue to modernize our facility and open new, advanced screening and treatment programs in this community.
We will continue to keep our community informed in various ways, including a new website that will be launched within the next few weeks. Residents will be able to rely on this site for current and up-to-date information on the programs and services offered at Stevenson and all of our future plans.
Also, I invite you to follow us on Twitter @Stevenson_News. We are hoping that by utilizing social media, we will reach a greater number of people and share our news with a broader audience.
The Stevenson Board of Directors recently approved a strategic plan -- which was inspired by the people we serve – and will act as a road map for the next five years.
An important area of focus in our Strategic Plan is “Power in Partnerships.” A great example of how community partnerships make great things happen is a transfer agreement that we’ve recently adopted to improve outcomes for patients with hip fractures.
Three of our partner hospitals work with us to ensure fractured hips can be repaired as soon as possible. This important partnership enables the majority of patients to have hip surgery within 16 hours, when they might have waited up to six days in the past. The new process has helped ensure better care and individuals are transferred back to Stevenson within three days following surgery to continue receiving care close to home as they recover.
I will share more information from our Strategic Plan in this column over the upcoming months.
We continue to focus on providing safe, quality care as we work toward becoming the best small hospital in Ontario. Our staff, physicians and volunteers have a strong commitment to providing the best care, and recently recorded a 99 per cent rate of hand washing – a very significant accomplishment, especially considering the provincial average is 72 percent.
Remember to visit smhosp.on.ca to find out more about your hospital. Check back to browse the new site and learn about the programs, activities and accomplishments at Stevenson.
On behalf of our Board and staff, I extend best wishes for a happy and healthy New Year.
