Technology, Patient Satisfaction Distinguish Health-Care Providers
Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett opened June 1, 2004, and quickly drew a crowd.
The 100-bed hospital was Bartlett’s first full-service hospital, and parent company Tenet added one affiliated clinic and a second one in 2008.
Methodist North Hospital, with 260 beds, on New Covington Pike in north Memphis, is another big player in the local health-care system, drawing many of its patients and much of its workforce from the region.
Bartlett is growing fast, and a quick look at some numbers from Saint Francis shows it. From 2006 to 2007 alone, admissions and outpatient visits increased more than 10 percent. Together, inpatient and outpatient surgeries jumped 25 percent.
“This area was underserved in terms of emergency room care and primary care access,” says Kem Mullins, chief executive officer. “We have definitely made a dent.”
Expansion is likely on the horizon, but for now, Saint Francis is building on a foundation that includes high marks from patients. Among Tenet’s 56 facilities, Saint Francis is in an elite group of about five that received five-star ratings for patient experience. Its same-day surgery department ranked first.
Outside sources have taken note, too. J.D. Powers and Associates in 2007 and 2008 recognized the facility for providing an Outstanding Inpatient Experience.
Plans include further development of vascular and other surgical services. Saint Francis also has a Level 2B obstetric unit to accommodate premature deliveries and post-delivery complications.
Methodist North is distinguished as a hospital that’s received full accreditation from The Society of Chest Pain Centers and is the region’s only facility with an orthopedic unit dedicated to knee and hip replacement. It’s got a Robotic Surgery Center and advanced imaging technology that scans the entire body in 10 seconds, producing cardiac images in less than five heartbeats. Methodist North performs about 30 robotic surgeries each month, and the advanced imaging allows faster, less invasive diagnosis and treatment, says Chief Executive Officer William Kenley.
“It really is amazing technology,” he says.
Heart health is a big issue for the Memphis area, and Methodist North has seen the cardiac mortality rate among its patients drop to 3 percent, far below the national average, Kenley says.
It is the only hospital in the region that performs emergency angioplasty around-the-clock, with an average time “from door to balloon” of 70 minutes, he says. The industry goal, once at 120 minutes, is now 90 minutes.
The hospital is fully electronic, and doctors can use the system to write orders from home. Computerized electronic monitoring tracks patients’ lab results and issues temperature alerts for sepsis risk.
“We’ve seen dramatic impact in diagnosis and treatment,” Kenley says.
