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January 31, 2013 - Already a month behind us....some updates

Jan 31, 2013 by Marc Strode, CEO

Folks,
Did that happen fast or what? Seems like I was just opening Christmas gifts w/ the kids yesterday....well, tomorrow we'll be in February! It has been an extremely busy month for VVRMC, and I thank you again for making it happen--busy or not!

Our patient satisfaction on our bedded units again was outstanding in January. While we won't have the final January numbers til next week, it would appear the ICU, Women's and Med/Surg collectively will hit top quartile scoring overall for 3 out of 4 months! Well-played!

Please take note of the new doctor pictures near 2nd station--two familiar faces, two new roles. Please welcome Dr. Chartrand as our new Chief of Staff-a post he will hold for 2 years. Also Dr. Shafiu as Vice Chief of Staff for the same tenure and in line for the Big Boy Seat after that! I look forward to working w/ our medical staff leadership this year to keep us growing and keep us (the doctors and the hospital) more aligned than ever.

A week ago this evening, VVRMC held our Service Awards. It was a record attendance for the event. We had about 150 of the team and their family and most of our Hospital Board was in attendance. If you add it all up, it was nearly 900 years of service we were celebrating. The highlight of the event was recognizing Olivia Castro from Women's who passed her 40-year milestone with the hospital. Not only did she get here picture taken, but she also received a $2,000 check! Only a small token of our appreciation for all those years of taking great care of our patients.

Yesterday was a monumental day for VVRMC as both of our Boards approved capital funding of just over $6 million for improvements here in the hospital! We talked about it at Town Halls, and now it is official. A significant chunk of this is tied into our computer system. There are significant improvements--aside from just McKesson--on the way! Also in this bundle is major improvements to our heating and cooling systems. ICU room #7...hot and cold no more I am told! Medical Records....relief is coming! We have new sterilization in the OR, a new ambulance, digital mammography and much more. We'll be sharing with our Directors the full list so that at staff meetings ya'll are in the know about what all is coming and when. Hip, hip, hooray!

Lastly and sadly, I wanted to make sure that you were all aware a special person in our family passed away earlier this month. Nestor Hernandez died at the age of 86. I had the privilege to visit with him on a couple of occasions when he was nice enough just to drop in and say "hello". I've heard great stories of the wonderful work he did here over the course of his 39-year career at VVRMC. He will be greatly missed. The services will be tomorrow evening and then graveside on Saturday morning.

Keep the Spirit,
Marc

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