“Our new mission, vision and core values are more
than mere phrases; they unite us around a redefined
common purpose – inspiring all employees to continue
to raise the bar for themselves, our patients and our
community,” said Jeremy Bradford, CalvertHealth
President and CEO.
“Every organization is guided by their
mission, but it’s the vision that sets
the course for our future,” Bradford
stated. “In order to realize our vision
of becoming the trusted healthcare
leader, we must grow and evolve as
an organization. It’s going to take
hard work to earn that trust, but this
team has the talent, the heart and
the fortitude to achieve our goals of
excellence.” He went on to add, “You
won’t find a more dedicated team than
you have right here at CalvertHealth.”
Bradford described the strategic
planning process as inclusive and
transparent. “Every employee, board
member, foundation board member,
key stakeholder, physician and
provider were asked to participate in
the planning process with everyone’s
input taken into account.” In addition,
Bradford said more than 500
interviews and focus groups were
conducted with community members
and health system leadership.
Bradford says future plans for the
health system include a laser focus on
quality and safety as well as plans for
expanded primary and specialty care
services for Women’s Health, Cancer
Care, Digestive Diseases/Weight
Management and Orthopedics/Sports
Medicine.
CalvertHealth conducts a
needs assessment every three
years to identify the most pressing
health needs in the community.
These findings help ensure the
organization’s resources are being
directed toward opportunities where
the most impact can be realized.
“Everything we do is measured
against our priorities – how many
physicians are needed, what partners
can help us achieve our goals,
and where we will make capital
investments,” said Bradford. “All
these decisions are weighed carefully
against our plans.”
According to the 2023
Community Health Needs
Assessment the following topped
the list of health concerns for the
area: cancer care; mental health and
substance abuse; diabetes, nutrition
and weight management.
Cancer has been and continues
to be one of the most prevalent
healthcare needs in our community,
and one which CalvertHealth
continues to make a priority. Most recently CalvertHealth affiliated with
Duke Health, one of the nation’s top ranked
cancer programs, to expand
its expertise in this area and in 2024
will begin to offer clinical trials to our
patients and conduct research. “That is
no small feat,” Bradford stated.
“Our core values of quality, compassion,
teamwork and integrity have long been
a part of our organization, but I am
proud that we have added diversity as
our newest core value,” said Bradford.
CalvertHealth’s Diversity, Equity and
Inclusion Committee has become
active setting a new charter, surveying
employees and setting goals for the
future.
“Our goal is to ensure that we
are diverse in our thinking and our
services are focused on under-served
communities. We need to ensure we
are inclusive of anyone and everyone -
including persons of color; individuals
from various cultural, religious or
ethnic backgrounds; the LGBTQ+
community; individuals with disabilities;
older adults; and anyone and everyone
who comes to us for care.” Bradford
added, “In the end, we recognize our
differences make us stronger.”
Bradford said the one constant
about health care is that it is
always changing – and requires a
transformative approach to drive
innovation. “I say transformative
because that means we are impacting
the lives of those we serve in an
important way.”