Vermont's hospital leaders and Lieutenant Governor Phil Scott joined staff from several departments at Central Vermont Medical Center this morning to kick off Hospital Week - a week of celebrating the Vermonters who dedicate their lives to taking care of their neighbors, while highlighting the role of hospitals and health care reform in building healthier communities and a strong economy.
Lieutenant Governor Phil Scott stands with staff at Central Vermont Medical Center.
15,000 Vermonters work at the state's 14 community hospitals. For each job directly provided by a hospital nearly one additional job in Vermont is supported, said Bea Grause, president and CEO of the Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems. Every dollar in wages and other expenditures translates to $1.75 in economic output.
"Hospital Week is a great time to celebrate and recognize that improvements in health care are happening - health care reform is moving forward - thanks to the dedication of the Vermonters working at Vermont's hospitals," Grause continued, surrounded by two dozen of the many staff who make CVMC function. "This is an exciting time for our hospitals and the Vermonters who keep them running."
Lt. Governor Phil Scott said in addition to being an economic engine hospitals are working directly in their communities to help people get and stay healthy.
"Ultimately, the best way to lower health care costs is always going to be reducing demand for care by building healthier communities and keeping all of us out of the hospital as much as possible," Scott said. "That's why celebrating the work Vermont's hospitals do every day - and will be doing in the weeks and months ahead to move Vermont forward - is so very important. We have to have a strong system of community hospitals to achieve our health care goals and our economic goals."
Moving Health Care Reform Forward
Grause said the state's hospitals are working together with state regulators and policymakers to hold down costs, improve health outcomes and craft a system that guarantees everyone receives the care they need, when they need it and at a cost that's affordable.
"That means doing things like working to keep Vermonters out of the hospital in the first place," she said, citing Central Vermont Medical Center's ExpressCare clinic as an example of getting people the right care, at the right place, at the right time - so there is less need for more costly care in the future.
Grause also pointed to the work of nurses at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center who meet patients at home to teach them the skills they need to stay healthy and out of the hospital and examples of how hospitals are reducing rates of cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions, which account for about 80 percent of health care spending.
"Northwestern Medical Center, for example, is working with social service providers, businesses and municipalities to change this through an initiative called RISE VT: Embracing Healthy Lifestyles. The program helps Vermonters in in Franklin and Grand Isle County get healthier - and stay out of the hospital -- through improved diet and exercise," Grause continued. "Likewise, Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital is another great example of this effort. They're also working with social service providers to address causes of health care challenges in their community such as homelessness."
Grause said improving care and making it more affordable for everyone also means streamlining management systems and moving toward a system that compensates health care providers based on the quality of care provided, rather than the quantity.
"These are big changes - and there are more on the way. But Vermont's hospitals have shown a remarkable ability to adapt, innovate, and enthusiastically implement ways to achieve better care for their friends and neighbors," Grause said.
"Vermont's hospitals have a vision for the future: A health care system patient's love, providers want to work in and where everyone has access to care they can afford," she concluded. "We look forward to continuing this work as Vermont moves forward with health care reform and toward achieving our goals of affordable care for every Vermonter."