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Calvert Health reports 5-star CMS rating, expansion plans and clinical partnerships in strategic-plan update
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Summary
Hospital leaders told commissioners they achieved a five-star Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services rating, opened new outpatient space, added clinicians and started clinical trials through a Duke collaboration as part of a midway strategic-plan update.
Calvert Health executives updated the Calvert County Board of Commissioners on Nov. 2 about progress through the health system’s five-year strategic plan, reporting a recent five-star rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, clinical expansions and new community services.
Jeremy Bradford, president and CEO of Calvert Health, said the hospital met a central goal by earning a five-star CMS rating this year — a ranking earned by about the top 10% of hospitals in the CMS evaluation. Bradford said Calvert Health was the only hospital in Southern Maryland to reach five stars in the most recent CMS list and that the achievement reflects clinical quality, patient safety and the efforts of the system’s roughly 1,200 staff members and volunteers.
Bradford and other presenters outlined several accomplishments and ongoing projects: national recognition by Forbes as one of the country’s top 100 hospitals, continued accreditation for bariatric and stroke programs, a ‘‘great places to work’’ certification, upgrades to MRI and laboratory services, expansion of primary-care suites in Prince Frederick, and the opening of a 15,000-square-foot women’s center. Kasia Sweeney, vice president of strategy and business development, said the medical group handles roughly 85,000 visits annually and the emergency department about 36,000 visits a year.
The hospital described clinical-service-line growth — cancer care, digestive disease and weight management, orthopedics and women’s health — and said a partnership with Duke allows Calvert Health to offer clinical trials locally (the presenters said two trials are open with 14 patients accrued to one trial so far). Bradford and Sweeney also discussed workforce investments, daily clinical huddles to track quality metrics, and nurse-residency and preceptorship programs intended to strengthen local nursing recruitment and retention.
Why it matters: Officials said the changes are intended to keep more advanced care in-county, reduce travel to regional centers and improve continuity of care. The hospital also emphasized access goals: recruiting five net new primary-care providers and expanding outpatient services in southern Calvert County.
Community and next steps: Presenters described planned work to renovate the family birth center, to add surgical robotics, to expand behavioral-health capacity in partnership with Shepherd Pratt, and to finalize design and early construction timelines for obstetrics upgrades. Leaders said they will continue monthly and annual reporting to the hospital board and work with county leaders on community health partnerships.
Ending: Commissioners praised the hospital’s community outreach and quality metrics and said they would continue to monitor progress; hospital leaders said they would return with further updates as renovations and recruiting proceed.
