I am pleased to share the details of our recent review (November 2008) from the Joint Commission (formerly known as JCAHO).  This independent body of experts evaluates and accredits about 15,000 health care organizations and programs in the country with a focus on improving the quality and safety of care.  For more on the Joint Commission, I invite you to visit its website: www.jointcommission.org.

During each Joint Commission visit, surveyors are given complete access to a hospital and track very closely the care that is delivered to patients to ensure quality and safety.  If a surveyor has a concern about the process of care, an “RFI” (Requirement for Improvement) may be noted. 

We would like to share the Joint Commission’s findings at CGMH. We view this feedback as a way to improve the care we provide for our patients and their families.  There are 265 hospital performance standards. Of these, Cooper Green Mercy Hospital received 5 “RFI”s.  To provide some context, no hospital is immune from “RFI”s; our hospital is no different than others around the country in that we are all seeking solutions to the same complex challenges that generate the “RFI”s.  We all know that one is too many, but we also understand how this valuable information will challenge us to deliver a standard of excellence for which our hospital strives to maintain and continually improve. Cooper Green Mercy Hospital values the feedback we receive from the Joint Commission and we embrace the opportunity to learn and then improve upon our care, treatment and environment for our patients, their families, our employees and visitors.  We use the report from the Joint Commission to develop and monitor action plans in order to insure quality and safety of care for you, our patients.

Cooper Green Mercy Hospital (CGMH) had a very positive review during its November 2008 survey as the Joint Commission members commended our hospital and staff for the high quality of our care process.  The surveyors described our community as a group of extremely warm and caring professionals and noted, without exception, the extremely positive comments they received from our patients and their families.  I am very proud of our teams and staff at our hospital.  We have all worked very hard as a team to ensure that you are receiving high quality of care without compromising our mission.  The surveyors notified hospital leadership immediately after the survey that BWH would remain fully accredited.

Thank you for your continued support,

Sandral Hullett, MD

CEO and Medical Director

Cooper Green Mercy Hospital