Grace Cottage Hospital’s 2009 Hospital Report Card
2008 Strategic Initiatives and Process for Public Participation

Strategic Planning
Grace Cottage Hospital has an annually updated five (5) year strategic plan that is developed with input from four (4) constituencies:

1. Randomly selected patients at Grace Cottage Hospital are surveyed throughout the year by Press Ganey. Grace Cottage Hospital contracts with this commercial surveying company to send patients of Grace Cottage Hospital a confidential survey of their experience at the hospital. Press Ganey collates the responses and sends the results to Grace Cottage. The same company surveys patients of all Vermont’s hospitals. An analysis of these 2008 Press Ganey patient surveys is available on the BISHCA website.
2. Grace Cottage periodically conducts a survey of the general public. The last survey was conducted in the spring of 2007. In 2008 two (2) of the health care needs identified - an expanded radiology department and more health education classes – were addressed.
3. The staff at Grace Cottage is surveyed through an annual employee survey and Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Teams are formed to address the key issues identified.
4. The Board, Medical Staff and Management Team periodically spend a full day at a Strategic Planning Retreat in which all the people attending give input into a 5-year strategic plan with measurable goals.

Activities Open to Public Participation & Contact Information
Grace Cottage Hospital opened its doors in 1949 through the dedicated support of the surrounding community. Currently Vermont’s smallest hospital, with 19 beds, Grace Cottage is literally a community hospital – volunteers provide a myriad of essential services, from grounds keeping to pastoral care, strategic planning to fundraising, plus many other activities.

The point person for volunteers at Grace Cottage is the Human Resource Specialist who can be reached at 365-3605 or hr@gracecottage.org

The following is a sampling of volunteer opportunities available at Grace Cottage Hospital:

• Clerical Support
• Courier Service
• Flea Market Parking Donation Collection
• Gardens & Grounds
• Grace Cottage Hospital Auxiliary & Fair Day
• Grace Cottage Foundation Board of Directors
• OHCC/Grace Cottage Hospital Board of Trustees
• Pastoral Care
• Special Events

The Trustees view themselves as community representatives responsible for the effective management of the Otis Health Care Center and Grace Cottage Hospital, working to meet the healthcare needs of the people living in, working in and visiting the towns of southeastern Vermont.

The hospital’s strategic planning is the responsibility of the Board of Trustees. Trustees seek the input of others in the community as they come into daily contact with people within the hospital’s geographic service area, as well as through the more formal means mentioned above. Various public meetings are held annually in a further effort to solicit public input into the hospital’s strategic planning process. Announcements for these meetings are published in the local press, via flyers posted in prominent locations, and on this website.

Contact Information:
The Board of Trustees selects and appoints an Administrator/Chief Executive Officer, who can be reached at (802) 365-7357 or admin@gracecottage.org or PO Box 216, Townshend VT 05353.

2008 Health Care Initiatives Developed from the current Strategic Plan
Grace Cottage Hospital’s 5-year strategic plan - illustrated in the graphic shown below - is built on five (5) pillars, with each pillar supporting two (2) goals.

1) Strategic Plan’s Quality Pillar (see graphic above)
Goal: Improve the patient medication process

Qualitative indicators: Medication administration is a complex process and the medical staff and nursing staff expressed frustration with using the computer software in a busy work environment. A continuous quality improvement (CQI) team was formed to analyze the medication process.

Quantitative indicators:
a) A computerized medication dispensing system, Pyxis, was introduced
b) A specialized technology position was added to the hospital staff.
c) A CQI team consisting of staff members from both the nursing and pharmacy departments was formed to share ideas and discuss medication administration improvements.
d) Grace Cottage Hospital contracted with a “night pharmacy” organization so that a pharmacist is able to electronically review mediation orders when the hospital in-house pharmacy is closed.

2) Strategic Plan’s Quality Pillar (see graphic above)
Goal: Improve health care services for patients in the Radiology Department

Qualitative indicators: Requests were made by patients and providers for an expanded Radiology Department. The entire department was upgraded to a digital system so that x-rays and body scans can be taken at all times of the day and night, the digital pictures sent electronically to a radiologist at another facility to read, who then sends a diagnostic report back to Grace Cottage Hospital.

Quantitative indicators:
• A previously-used CT scan was purchased and the radiology staff trained in its use.
• A dedicated transmission line was added at the hospital to reduce the cycle time between scan and diagnosis.
• The number of CT scans performed at Grace Cottage for the tracking periods of 2007 and 2008:

3) Strategic Plan’s Growth Pillar (see graphic above)
Goal: Meet the needs of the local population

Grace Cottage has seen a large increase in requests for health education classes and activities. The hospital continues to offer the popular courses - Tobacco Cessation, Osteoporosis Prevention, Arthritis Self-Help, relaxation yoga and Weight Watchers, CPR and First Aid classes, and the annual special events - Poker Walk and Tour de Grace Bicycle Rally.

New courses and workshops added in 2008 were belly dancing, a nutrition & exercise class called “Eat Better Move More”, a single mother’s support group with child care, and Tai Chi.
Grace Cottage is a member of the Community Health Education Committee, made up of representatives from Grace

Cottage, Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, the Brattleboro Retreat, Brattleboro Area Hospice, and Brattleboro’s Brooks Memorial Library. The committee meets regularly to brainstorm and plan a collaborative wellness program. Twice a year, a wellness calendar, “Wellness in Windham County” is published and 33,000 copies are distributed via area newspapers and various local venues, with detailed information about the numerous workshops and programs open to the public. Grace Cottage Hospital and Brattleboro Memorial Hospital are 18 miles apart, so it makes sense for these hospitals to work collaboratively to avoid redundancy.

Qualitative indicators: Requests for more local health education classes were received from the public. Long waiting lists were addressed by adding more classes, but lack of space is becoming a limiting factor.

Quantitative indicators:

2008 Public Meeting
The 2008 public meeting to solicit feedback on the Hospital Report Card was held in the EMS Training Room at Grace Cottage Hospital on September 23, 2008. The meeting was announced in four (4) local newspapers – Brattleboro Reformer, Original Vermont Observer, Deerfield Valley News, Message of the Week, as well as the hospital’s website. No members of the public attended the meeting.

Members of the public can obtain copies of the following information by contacting
Grace Cottage Foundation,
PO Box 1, Townshend VT 05353
802-365-9109
info@gracecottage.org

1. Strategic Plan 2. One (1) & four (4) Year Capital Expenditure Plan 3. Depreciation Schedule 4. Annual Report

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