Portland Medical Center Ranks High in Patient and Employee Satisfaction

PORTLAND, Tenn. (July 7, 2008) – Portland Medical Center (PMC) has a new pair of accolades for its brag book, as the hospital received outstanding results from two separate surveys just days apart.

One survey administered by nationally recognized consumer confidence organization Gallup studied patient satisfaction ratings for those who have recently been treated at PMC. Gallup administers this assessment by calling all recent patients and asking them to rank the care they received on several different levels. As a part of HCA, the nation’s leading healthcare provider, Portland Medical Center rated first in the company for patient satisfaction during the fourth quarter of 2007. For the first quarter of 2008, PMC continued this trend, ranking second of 171 hospitals.

“Only .004 percent separated us from the hospital that ranked number one for the first quarter,” said Eddie Smith, PMC Administrator. “Once again, we are pleased with the outcome and excited that our patients recognize that the care Portland Medical Center provides is first-rate. Obviously, our goal is to continue to maintain these top rankings when we are surveyed in the future.”

Just days after celebrating the patient satisfaction rating, Portland Medical Center had another reason to celebrate, when results for the hospital’s Employee Satisfaction Survey were announced.

Again, parent company HCA uses an independent survey company to examine employee satisfaction at all its locations. Five key areas are surveyed in each hospital: Leadership, Voice, Staffing, Compensation and Recognition/Culture.

“The goal of conducting this survey is to listen to employees,” Smith explained. “We want to give all employees a voice in the workplace, and we want to listen to – and act on – these views.”

Ninety-four percent of PMC employees responded to the survey, well over HCA’s national 80 percent average response rate. This gave PMC a second-place ranking in Most Improved Hospitals, based on the percentage change from last year’s survey. Additionally, PMC ranked first in employee satisfaction at all HCA facilities, based on the percentage of favorable responses.

“I am just thrilled and very proud to be a part of this,” Smith said. “We know our hospital is a good place to work, but it is great to have these survey results to show the world just how great it is to work at Portland Medical Center.”

Smith said the Portland hospital plans to evaluate employee feedback and follow up on issues immediately by tracking improvements, involving employees in the design and implementation of action plans and communicating with employees on the actions that are taken because of the survey results.

HCA is the nation’s leading provider of healthcare services, composed of 171 hospitals and 113 outpatient centers in 20 states. HCA and its affiliates employ more than 180,000 people. In middle Tennessee and southcentral Kentucky, HCA hospitals are part of the TriStar Health System.

Located at 105 Redbud Drive, Portland Medical Center, part of the TriStar Family of Hospitals, is a 38-bed medical center that offers a full array of acute care services including emergency care, inpatient services and outpatient diagnostic services. Portland Medical Center has been providing sophisticated medical and surgical care to the community for over 90 years. Today, the medical center is fully accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. For more information on Portland Medical Center or for a free physician referral, call TriStar MedLine at (615) 342-1919 or 800-242-5662

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