REPORT TO OUR COMMUNITY
CHALLENGES ABOUND, BUT FOCUS IS CLEAR: OUR PATIENTS “ ...it all comes down to quality of the patient’s experience.”
What better décor for a new pediatric unit than children’s art? It complements the tricycle path in the secure, colorful courtyard in our new pediatric unit, where a tree is actually the children’s library and teens can play the latest games. All this is part of an upbeat look as TMC continues a redevelopment plan focused squarely on our patients, younger and older. Everything that grounds me as a CEO is based in one idea: taking care of patients and their families. Sure the rest is important, a strong balance sheet, good metrics, our kindness and expertise in everything we do, but it all comes down to quality of the patient’s experience. We live in a competitive healthcare community, in a state that is talking about decimating its Medicaid program. But every day, I marvel most at the fact that such excellent doctors and staff come to work here every day to demonstrate loud and clear to our patients all the things that are the measures of our success. This year we were named one of the top 50 cardiac hospitals in America in our grouping by Thomson Reuters. We are in good company with this designation, based on measurable outcomes for our patients. To stand so tall among 5,000 hospitals reflects the strength of all our programs. Please visit the new 16,000-square-foot pediatric unit; call 324-2018 to schedule a tour. This $12.5 million expansion, called TMC for Children, gives us 44 private rooms, some whimsical architecture and a colorful entryway along with places for parents to stay overnight near their children. We also now offer a new perimeter road, more than a mile of walking trails, and a new entry way off of Craycroft. Although the construction was grueling, we’re thrilled to have this done for our patients and our employees. And TMC, the largest hospital in Tucson, is looking forward to more milestones. We plan to build a state-of-the-art in-patient orthopedic unit on the west end of our campus. We will build new operating rooms and shut down some old ones, as teams of architects and staff work to design high-tech suites to perform every aspect of modern surgery. But the biggest challenge of all this year is our accountable care organization. You can see all the details elsewhere in this report. Several years ago, we came up with an exciting strategy that put TMC far ahead of the curve in American healthcare reform. We’ll launch this innovation during 2011. In short, we created a whole new model of how a hospital can network with its physicians in bold, measurable ways to improve our quality and lower our costs. It is a challenging but exciting time to be in health care, and as long as TMC stays focused on taking care of patients, our future looks bright indeed. Judy Rich President & CEO 1