by Mary Wilson Trider
It has been another busy year for Lanark County Ambulance Service, Fairview Manor and Almonte General Hospital (AGH). We have responded to 15,000 ambulance calls, provided nearly 41,000 days of care to residents, delivered more than 400 babies, looked after 1,100 inpatients, treated almost 16,000 people in the Emergency Department, performed 950 surgical procedures and provided 1,900 Day Hospital visits.
The Ottawa Valley Family Health Team opened new offices at 95 Spring Street and 11 family physicians moved into the new space.
Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we completely renovated our Central Sterilization Reprocessing area over the summer.
The Ambulance Service’s ability to monitor and care for patients as they are being transported was improved with the purchase of 12 new defibrillators.
In June, we thanked Dr. Anne Oldfield for her three years of service as Chief of Staff and welcomed Dr. Michael Dolan to that role.
Our Board of Directors created an exciting new strategic plan, reflecting input from internal and external stakeholders. Under the leadership of Board Chair, Dr. Tom Todd, the plan will guide our activities and investments in four areas of focus over the next five years.
I was delighted that the commitment and caring of our Hospital staff was recognized in the NRC Picker patient satisfaction scores released last September, which named AGH as one of the top performing hospitals in Ontario. AGH scored in the 90th percentile of patient satisfaction with acute and emergency care.
And, in the first-ever reporting of long-term care quality indicators by Health Quality Ontario, Fairview Manor scored higher than the provincial average in all four areas.
We were also pleased to receive direct feedback from our patients, residents and their families. The compliments were shared with staff, physicians and volunteers. The concerns were investigated and improvements have been put in place as a result.
It was a great privilege for me to attend our long-service awards event in December, honouring 63 individuals who collectively have given 840 years of service.
I would to thank everyone associated with Almonte General Hospital, Fairview Manor and Lanark County Ambulance Service for their commitment to safe, high quality care for our patients and residents.
I would also like to express our collective gratitude to the communities we serve for your ongoing support. Your positive comments, constructive suggestions and gifts to the Foundation all contribute to helping us improve to serve you better. I wish all of you a Happy and Healthy New Year.
Mary Wilson Trider is the President and CEO of Almonte General Hospital
