| Community Partnerships More Important Than Ever |
Gracias.
Mèsi. Thank you.
It’s the simple
words I both heard and said over and over during my visits to Beebe’s four
COVID-19 testing sites in Georgetown during the end of April and first week of
May.
This tremendous
multi-day event could not have been accomplished without our many partners:
First State Community Action Agency, La Esperanza, La Red Health Center, Town
of Georgetown government and police department, Veterans Affairs medical center
in Georgetown, Nemours, Delaware National Guard, Westside Family Healthcare. Of
course, we could not have led this multi-agency coalition without the guidance,
support and partnership of the Governor’s Office and the Delaware Division of
Public Health, which were right beside us serving our community during each day
of testing.
This tremendous
partnership offered a centralized location in our county for COVID-19 testing,
allowing access to all and ensuring no language or transportation barrier would
prevent someone from getting the information they need to better protect
themselves and their families.
One thing I
continue to learn about this community—and I am continually grateful for—is the
robust relationship that Beebe Healthcare has with our state and community
partners. It’s a partnership that stretches back long before COVID-19 rocked
our everyday life. Our Population Health Team, through their extensive and
long-standing work serving Sussex County in many ways alongside many of the
partners I named above, has paved the way for the collaboration that was needed
to make testing events successful.
These
strengthened bonds will continue to help us all better serve our community as
we look ahead to our expected peak in the coming weeks, and the long road to
recovery after this virus has subsided.
We are all
working toward the same goal: Keeping our community safe and healthy now, and
when this pandemic passes, continuing to help everyone maintain their health
and wellness.
Safety is at the
core of everything we do at Beebe. When we collaborated with our state and
community partners to expand COVID-19 testing in Sussex County, it was done to
help prevent the spread of the virus and care for those who have been infected.
Safety is also
why we opened the COVID Positive Care Center. Patients with the virus or who
are suspected to have the virus can be safely treated and cared for – with the
goal of taking care of their medical needs and keeping them out of the
hospital. Beebe Medical Group also offers expanded telemedicine services to
conduct virtual visits with patients from the safety of their home, and
continues to operate a COVID-19 screening line for anyone to call if they have
questions or need nonemergency help related to the coronavirus.
That focus on
safety extends to the Margaret H. Rollins Lewes Campus, where the proper
protocols are in place to protect both team members and patients while we
continue to care for all patients, including those who are COVID-19 positive.
This relentless
focus on safety is why Beebe just received our second consecutive A Grade from
the Leapfrog Group, the independent national watchdog organization which is
committed to healthcare quality and safety. The Safety Grade is a letter grade
assigned to all general hospitals across the country and updated every six
months, assessing how well the hospital prevents medical errors and other harms
to patients.
We take a moment
to celebrate that accomplishment and then get back to work during this
pandemic. Our patients deserve nothing less than our best, and I am proud of my
team for their daily dedication to quality and safety.
--Adapted from “Community partnerships more important than
ever,” Cape
Gazette, by David A. Tam, MD, FACHE, president/CEO, Beebe Healthcare,
Lewes, Del.
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