September 23, 2009
SRMC Announces Positive Results from Comprehensive Survey by The Joint Commission
Sumner Regional Health Systems CEO Roger E. Kaiser, Jr., M.D., today announced positive results from a recent comprehensive review of Sumner Regional Medical Center’s practices by The Joint Commission, the national organization dedicated to improving the safety and quality of the nation’s health care practices through voluntary accreditation.
“In order to maintain our accreditation by The Joint Commission, the staff at Sumner Regional Medical Center must continually challenge themselves to meet the national standards for patient care,” said Dr. Kaiser. “Both our associates and our medical staff have obviously met that challenge and proven their commitment to making sure every patient receives safe, high quality care at Sumner Regional Medical Center.”
“I couldn’t be prouder of our entire staff team for the outstanding survey results we received. From our management team to our physicians, from our clinical associates to our cleaning staff, it takes an entire organization focused on performing at a high level on a daily basis to achieve the positive results we did during our survey,” Dr. Kaiser added.
To earn and maintain accreditation, a hospital must undergo an on-site survey by a Joint Commission survey team. Joint Commission surveys are unannounced and occur 18 to 39 months after the previous unannounced survey. The objective of the survey is not only to evaluate the hospital, but to provide education and guidance that will help staff continue to improve the hospital's performance. The survey process evaluates actual care processes by tracing patients through the care, treatment and services they received. It also analyzes key operational systems that directly impact the quality and safety of patient care.
Surveyors from The Joint Commission spent four days the week of September 14 at SRMC to complete their survey. During a summation conference at the end of the week, surveyors reported the preliminary results of their evaluation to the SRMC leadership team.
“The Joint Commission reported that hospital had an outstanding survey, and that it was obvious the recent changes in the organization have not affected the staff’s ability to provide high quality, safe care to our patients,” said Dr. Kaiser.
Specifically, one surveyor noted that the SRMC staff appears to enjoy working for the hospital and enjoys working together. Another reported how rare it was for a facility of SRMC’s size to have so few compliance issues relating to environment of care, demonstrating the hospital management’s and facilities departments’ dedication to following all policies and procedures to provide facilities that are clean, that prevent the spread of infection, and house equipment that is well maintained and fully operational.
“The community should be proud that Sumner Regional Medical Center is focused on the goal of continuously raising our quality and safety to higher levels,” Kaiser said. “While we still have a lot to do to ensure the long-term financial footing of our organization, the positive results of this survey are one more indication of our staff’s ongoing commitment to providing care that is safe and of high quality to the patients we serve.”
About The Joint Commission
The Joint Commission has accredited hospitals for more than 50 years and today it accredits approximately 4,250 general, children’s, long term acute, psychiatric, rehabilitation and surgical specialty hospitals, and accredits 358 critical access hospitals maintaining a unique accreditation program for these organizations. Approximately 88 percent of the nation's hospitals are currently accredited by The Joint Commission.
About Sumner Regional Medical Center
Sumner Regional Medical Center, an affiliate of Sumner Regional Health Systems, is a progressive, 155-bed acute care facility in Gallatin, Tenn. The hospital offers a full range of diagnostic, surgical, therapeutic, women’s and rehabilitative services. SRMC has served Sumner County for 49 years. For information about services or physicians, visit www.sumner.org.
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