FY08 Mercy Annual Report

FY09 Mercy Annual Report - Message to Our Community

In many ways, 2009 marked the beginning of a new era for Mercy Medical Center – Des Moines. The solidarity of the Mercy Family, strengthened by each physician and employee’s individual commitment to exceptional patient care and outcomes, allowed us to achieve new levels of excellence. This is important to us because we know when it comes to health care, the decision to choose a hospital or physician is a highly emotional, deeply personal one for many patients and families. As a result, we strive to provide the highest quality medical services possible to every patient who entrusts us with their care.

Recent honors, awards and accreditations suggest we are on track to meet this goal. In 2008, Mercy was ranked fourth in the nation for overall medical care, first in the nation for cardiac care and second in the nation for respiratory care by The Delta Group’s CareChex® Medical Quality Rating System. Mercy also was named one of the safest hospitals in country by forbes.com, placing it among the top five percent of hospitals in the nation. In addition, consumers in the Des Moines metro named Mercy one of the nation’s best hospitals in terms of overall quality and image for the tenth consecutive year, earning it the prestigious 2008/09 Consumer Choice Award presented by the National Research Corporation.

Mercy also expanded its presence in the community this year in several remarkable ways. Extensive building and renovation projects on Central Campus in downtown Des Moines increased our ability to provide state-of-the-art services to more patients needing emergency care and surgery, while our reputation for excellence enabled us to recruit some of the nation’s top orthopaedic traumatologists and neurosurgeons to enhance the breadth of services we offer. Additions to the Mercy Clinics system allowed us to improve access to quality care for all central Iowans, while a new partnership with the YMCA of Greater Des Moines led to the development of the YMCA Healthy Living Center™ – a completely innovative approach to health and fitness. And when we opened Mercy Medical Center – West Lakes in September, we brought West Des Moines its first full-service community hospital.

Despite our many successes, we continue to strive to do even better and attain even more, which is illustrated every day by the level of care and compassion the Mercy Family provides to our patients. This commitment to excellence began with the Sisters of Mercy when they founded our hospital in 1893, determined to create the most trusted health care organization in central Iowa. Their dedication lives in us today as we continue to work toward the best health outcomes for our patients and the communities we serve. In fiscal year 2009, the Mercy Family continued to fulfill its sacred mission of bringing reverence, integrity, compassion and excellence to health care. This annual report showcases a few of those stories and demonstrates the many ways Mercy is working together to achieve excellence, every day in every way.

David H. Vellinga
President & CEO
Mercy Medical Center – Des Moines

Steve Chapman
Chair, Board of Directors
Mercy Medical Center – Des Moines