 Letter
from the Chief Executive Officer and the Chair of the Board
Listening. In health care, listening is one of the most important skills
we have. We listen to our patients, the communities we serve, the businesses
that help make our communities financially healthy, our caregivers all
those who have a stake in health care. That means everyone.
Over the past year, Aurora Health Care has been listening intently. We've
heard from many of those we serve their thoughts, their concerns and their
ideas. As we move forward, we're incorporating those ideas into the way we
work every day. We use our values as a framework to apply these ideas. Our
3 values represent what we believe about delivering care:
We believe every patient deserves the best care
As we hold ourselves to the highest standards in the measurement of quality
and safety, we continue to be a nationally recognized leader in delivering
the best care. Our patients should expect no less. The magic of healing
happens when we combine high quality care with a personalized,
patient-centered approach.
We believe in responsibly managing resources
Our communities trust us with their financial support as well as their
health. As stewards of precious health care dollars, we are striving every
day to find new ways to reduce the cost of health care, and we're having
remarkable success. As more and more of the care we provide is delivered
outside a hospital setting, Aurora has achieved true value for our
communities that unique combination of quality, service and affordability.
We believe in accountability, teamwork and respect
This value is applied internally at Aurora Health Care, and externally in
our communities. This is what listening and responding is all about.
In this annual report, we share several stories about what we've learned
while listening to those we serve, and how we have applied what we've
learned.
Simplified care
Our patients are busier than ever before. They tell us they want health
care to be simple, and Aurora's integrated system makes this possible.
Offering a full continuum of care, Aurora professionals include physicians,
nurses, behavioral health therapists, pharmacists, social workers and other
experts, all working together to achieve the best outcomes for our patients.
The goal is to coordinate care across a broad spectrum of services and
patient needs.
Ken Mills of Sheboygan
experienced this while undergoing cancer treatment. Aurora's integrated
care made the entire experience seamless, Ken says.
Rapid adoption
Our patients tell us they want to be able to benefit from leading-edge
technologies and treatment options. Aurora long has been an innovator, quick
to adopt new technologies and state-of-the-art treatments. Consider the
CyberKnife, a groundbreaking treatment that targets tumors with intense
cancer-killing radiation. Aurora St. Luke's Medical Center, with the help of
generous gifts from
John and Judy Gardetto of Muskego and the Vince Lombardi
Charitable Funds, was the 1st Wisconsin hospital to offer this life-saving
treatment.
Care designed around you
Patients tell us how important it is that they have easy access to health
care services when they need them. For many people, that means being able to
get care outside work hours at conveniently located sites. Aurora was the
1st not-for-profit health system in the country to introduce retail
clinics. Aurora QuickCare, offering care in malls, grocery stores and other
public places, provides basic services at affordable prices without an
appointment. Mike and Anne Aletto of Kenosha describe how QuickCare makes
their lives easier.
At our traditional clinics, we have sought to
accommodate busy families by extending our hours, offering appointments
early in the morning, in the evening and on weekends.
Jeanine Lepien of
Waukesha County says one bonus is that she can keep her family healthy and
not miss work to do it.
We will continue to be careful and thoughtful listeners and to lead the
way toward a healthier future for our patients and the communities we serve.
Nick Turkal, MD
Chief Executive Officer
Bev Greenberg
Chair, Aurora Board of Directors
 View
our 2006 Annual Report
If you do not have the Adobe Acrobat Reader software you can easily download
it
here for free.
|
