A Message from Our President and CEO
James A. Diegel, FACHE
Most of us have felt the frustration of trying to get a simple question answered from a large corporation. Try to call on the phone and you get lost in the maze of a computerized answering service. Log onto a company website and you find that "click here" leads to a dead end.
At Cascade Healthcare Community, we want to be different. As we have grown to become a complex regional health system, we are faced with a difficult question: How do we continue to meet the needs of our growing population, while still offering our patients and caregivers the personalized care of local hospitals and medical centers?
Our answer is simple. It's all about openness and staying connected to the communities we serve. From the patients walking into our doors to the nurses caring for them, we want everyone to have a remarkable experience at our affiliated hospitals - whether it's in Bend, Redmond, Madras, or Prineville. For that to happen, we must be sure our hospitals are friendly and accessible. Our communities need to be informed on what services we offer and how we plan to meet the demands of the future.
Providing the Information You Deserve
This Web site is an important step in reaching our goals. Here, you will find the information you want to access care at all the hospitals in the region and the resources you need to help support your medical care.
You will also find our unique Quality Reporting information. As part of CHC's commitment to transparency, we are posting data that will show how well we are doing and where we can improve.
Why should we be more open than the average company? For one, we are a not-for-profit corporation. Every dollar we receive is invested in services and facilities for the community and the region.
Through the St. Charles Foundation, we depend on financial support from the community to help fund programs and services. We also rely on the leadership of our community members who serve on our volunteer Board of Directors. In other words, Central Oregon residents have great ownership in their local hospitals.
CHC has a unique position as the sole provider of hospital services in the region. We believe we have a sacred trust with communities, and we don't take that lightly. As Central Oregon continues to grow at a fast rate, we need to make sure we are adding services in a responsible manner.
Looking Ahead at CHC
What's next for Cascade Healthcare Community?
We have embarked on a three-year strategic plan that focuses on five important initiatives including:
- Quality: Improve quality and outcomes in patient care and patient satisfaction.
- Workforce: Develop state-of-the-art human resources systems to help us hire and retain quality caregivers.
- Physicians: Improve and develop relationships with physicians to strengthen interdependence and trust.
- HealthSync: Create a regional health information system that will allow physicians and hospitals across central Oregon to immediately access important health information when they need it most.
- Finance: Improve CHC's financial performance to ensure long-term stability and responsiveness to community growth.
As we move forward with these initiatives, I pledge to keep you informed of our progress. You deserve to know.
James A. Diegel, FACHE
President and CEO
Cascade Healthcare Community, Inc.
You may reach James A. Diegel at (541) 706 -5842 or email Jim Diegel.