slideshow

I have been asked to write an article in The Herald Independent several times a month to let our citizens know what is going on with Fairfield Memorial Hospital.

I am delighted to do this. There are many good things happening at your local county hospital and I want to keep you informed.

We have just completed our joint commission survey.

This is something every hospital that receives Medicare must go through and it takes place every three years.

The joint commission accredits and certifies more than 19,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States; in fact, they survey over 90 percent of all the hospitals in the United States.

Their accreditation and certification is recognized nationwide as a symbol of quality that reflects an organization’s commitment to meeting certain performance standards.

Again this year, FMH had a successful survey! We will let you know what our score is as soon as we receive the official paperwork from the joint commission.

Fairfield Memorial Hospital has a great record for excellent scoring with the joint commission.

Our Caring Neighbors Home Health Agency also must go through their own joint commission survey and traditionally, they always score high.

Our lab is required to be surveyed every two years by the joint commission. They have an excellent track record for high scores also.

I report all this to you to convey our sincere desire to excel in providing safe and effective care of the highest quality and value.

Our patients expect quality care from us and we work hard every day to guarantee this kind of care.

The hospital has a new website and I invite you to visit us at www.fairfieldmemorial.com and see all the services we offer for our county.

You will find pictures of our doctors, board and many of our employees. This website offers much information about FMH, some of which you may not be aware.

FMH now has a foundation. The Fairfield Memorial Hospital Foundation was founded in May of 2010.

Its purpose is to encourage donations from the businesses and industries in Fairfield County. Many of our employees and citizens in our community also donate to the foundation.

The monies raised by the foundation are used to fund capital equipment needs for the hospital.

The most recent purchase by the foundation has been the new nurse call system for our inpatient floor.

This system was much needed and our nursing staff and our patients are enjoying much better communication!

Visit the hospital’s website and select “foundation”.

There is a lot of information there about the foundation and their board.

Thank you, and I look forward to our next cha”.