January 19, 2016

I am extremely proud and pleased to share that the Joint Commission on Accredited Health Care Organizations (JCAHO) completed its week-long survey of Good Samaritan Hospital and its many ambulatory sites, including Good Samaritan Western Ridge, Good Samaritan Glenway, Good Samaritan Anderson and Good Samaritan Infusion sites – and the results were exceptional! 

Over the course of the past five days, five JCAHO surveyors conducted rigorous daily evaluations of every department, facility and treatment center at Good Sam, from top to bottom – assessing quality, safety, cleanliness, service and overall effectiveness of our processes, technologies, equipment, staff and patient care.  This survey included an intensive review of 299 standards, 1,079 elements of performance and 3,386 CMS conditions of participation – of which NO conditional deficiencies were found! 

The survey team was extremely complimentary throughout the process and presented its preliminary report earlier this afternoon.  It was outstanding, so we are confident it will result in full accreditation once it is received and processed by the national office of the Joint Commission over the next few days. 

Throughout the survey process, the JCAHO team was very consultative identifying many best practices throughout Good Sam and its related ambulatory campuses that are benchmarks for our industry.  They consistently commented that Good Sam and its staff were among the best and most cooperative hospitals they’ve surveyed nationwide – and specifically mentioned that “the hospital set the bar higher for everyone else!” 

Beyond recognition of Good Sam’s high quality facilities, equipment and processes, what left surveyors most impressed was the culture of patient-centered care – and the passion, pride and sense of purpose consistently displayed by each and every one of our staff!  A surveyor commented that “the mission and vision are a noticeable part of everything that’s done at Good Sam.”  You could not ask for a more glowing endorsement than that!!

All the thanks for this recognition lies squarely with our people and the leadership team at Good Sam! I’d like to recognize Jamie Easterling, Executive Director of Hospital Operations, Helen Koselka, MD FAC, Chairman, Department of Medicine, Paula Niederbaumer, MSN RN, NEA-BC, Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, and Melissa Helmer, TriHealth Accreditation Consultant as well as all of the staff, physicians, leaders, care givers and volunteers of TriHealth’s Good Sam Hospital and ambulatory campuses.   The entire Good Sam team consistently delivers the highest standards of clinical and service excellence, while fostering a faith-based culture marked by compassion, teamwork and continuous improvement!

My deep appreciation to the entire Good Sam team for everything they do – every single day – to create an exceptional care experience for our patients and their families. Congratulations on this well-deserved recognition of your outstanding work, and your unending commitment to improve the health of all those we serve!