Chester River Health System's (CRHS) strategic planning process began in October 2009 and the strategic plan was recently approved by the CRHS Board on May 12. Over 1,100 individuals participated in the development of this plan, including employees of the CRHS. A community attitude study was conducted, which gathered information from residents in Kent County, Northern Queen Anne's County and Southern Cecil County. The plan used data from many sources including morbidity and mortality data from the state, population and demographics, patient origin, competitor analysis, and a site and facility analysis.

The new mission statement approved by the Board states

�Chester River Health System, a member of the University of Maryland Medical System, is an integrated rural delivery system dedicated to providing excellent and caring healthcare services and facilities to the people of the Upper Eastern Shore.�

The new vision statement states

�Exceptional healthcare services in a caring environment.�

Some of the goals approved with an aggressive implementation schedule of 15 months are as follows:

• Implement a medical staff development plan.
• Implement a service portfolio at Chester River Hospital Center to meet the healthcare needs of the changing community.
• Enhance the customer focus of the organization with superior clinical performance and service excellence.
• Identify and implement programs to improve the satisfaction of patients using a variety of services available through the organization, which includes Chester River Hospital Center, Chester River Manor and Chester River Home Care & Hospice.
• Continue to work on improving operating efficiencies of services at all CRHS facilities.
• Evaluate and modify the organization's identity to position it as a community resource.

We will now begin to work on developing tactical plans to ensure the implementation of the above goals in the next 15 months.