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A message from Deborah E. Stebbins

Chief Executive Officer, Alameda Hospital

Fall 2009

Alameda Hospital achieved an important milestone over the past year which has set this historic medical facility on a new course.

During fiscal year 2009 we finished nearly half-a-million dollars in the black, a significant improvement over previous years when the hospital suffered financial losses. And fiscal 2010 should be yet another year of positive cash flow.

Your community hospital has turned the corner, and that has important implications for you. Our improved financial situation has strengthened Alameda Hospital’s ability to deliver even better full-service medical care in the years to come. We’ve already been recognized by U.S. News & World Report and the American Heart Association for clinical excellence in cardiac care, and our emergency room consistently rates high in patient satisfaction. The average door-to-doctor time in our emergency room remains less than 30 minutes – the shortest in the East Bay.

Keep in mind that our dramatic financial turnaround has come during a time of tremendous financial stress and hardship in our country and local communities, which makes our feat all the more remarkable. This puts Alameda Hospital in select company when you consider that more than half of California’s hospitals operated in the red last year.

Even as we were busy shoring up our financial situation, the hospital recruited nine new primary care and specialty care physicians, and opened an offsite community clinic providing primary and specialty care.

Now we are planning for the future. We have completed a five-year strategic plan that incorporates input from community members, board members, management and physicians. The plan has six overarching themes:

• Financial strength
• People
• Quality and service
• Facilities and technology
• Physicians
• Growth

Clearly, we already restored financial strength to our $68 million operating budget, though we still have much work to do. We are committed to running larger financial surpluses in the years ahead so we can reinvest those proceeds to achieve the goals we have set forth.

People will be one of the key areas of reinvestment. Alameda Hospital is blessed with skilled physicians, dedicated nurses, talented managers and other personnel. But we are looking to expand staff, improve our retention rates and fortify management training programs.

The patient experience is crucial to us, and that’s why quality and service is one of the pillars of our five-year plan. That means streamlining the hospital check-in process for patients and staff, as well as improving our already excellent patient outcomes.

On the facilities and technology front, Alameda Hospital is being prepared for a state-mandated seismic retrofit to ensure the safety of our facility. In addition, a $1 million capital budget is being established to purchase advanced medical equipment and renovate portions of the facility.

The number of physicians working at Alameda Hospital will be expanded through targeted recruitment efforts and we will add new medical specialties, based on community needs.

Future growth of the hospital will entail increasing our market share, adding new access points and locations for medical care, and expanding our service area into the City of San Leandro, whose hospital is being closed. We are also looking for new partnership opportunities with other Bay Area medical facilities and hospital systems to expand our reach and resources.

These and other initiatives support our overall goal of being the primary resource of high-quality health care for the citizens of Alameda and surrounding communities.

Alameda Hospital has provided quality health care for more than a century. Given that longevity, we have one foot rooted firmly in the past, never forgetting the historic role we have played in the communities we serve. Another foot is planted in the present, committed to modern health-care facilities, equipment and practices that save lives and keep our communities healthy. But our eyes are trained on the future – on mighty challenges like health-care reform and the amazing technological innovations that are rapidly advancing the noble cause of medicine.

And we ask that you not forget that in 2002 you and other voters supported the formation of the City of Alameda Health Care District. That means that Alameda Hospital belongs to the community, that we are your hospital. That has made us all the more determined to be good stewards of the resources you have entrusted to us.

Since taking over as CEO less than two years ago, it has become abundantly clear to me that our success has been made possible by the dedication of our medical staff, employees, volunteers, and ongoing support – financial and otherwise – from the community.

On behalf of the board of directors and management team, I sincerely thank you for your ongoing support. I invite you to write me with your comments and questions (dstebbins@alamedahospital.org).

Alameda Hospital’s past is storied, its present is strong and its future is bright. We look forward to caring for you,  and your loved ones and the residents of Alameda.