By Suzannah Campbell / Administrator at St. Vincent’s Chilton

Two years, 730 days, 17,520 hours, 1.05 million minutes since St. Vincent’s Chilton, which is a part of Ascension, first opened its doors on Oct. 7, 2016. Since that historic day, we’ve been constantly enhancing and expanding our services to best meet the needs of you and your family.

It’s been an honor to serve as your hospital, and today I want to take a few moments to not only celebrate the accomplishments of the last two years, but also to acknowledge the journey and all the individuals who have played a critical role in bringing us here.

To the Chilton County Health Care Authority, it’s been our privilege to work alongside you to bring this hospital to life. Your leadership, guidance and partnership have been invaluable throughout this journey.

To each and every patient who has come through our doors over the last two years, thank you for allowing St. Vincent’s Chilton to serve you. Whether it’s utilizing the emergency department or the many physicians and services on this campus, you are the ones directly impacting the future of our hospital. It was your overwhelming support that ultimately made this hospital a reality, and it will be your support that helps make it sustainable in the future.

To the countless physicians, thank you for bringing your expertise and experience to Chilton and the surrounding area. Having access to your care is life-changing for many patients. To the St. Vincent’s Chilton associates, thank you for your commitment and dedication to our patients. You are truly the heart of this facility, bringing our mission and values to life each day as you care for our patients.

This wouldn’t be a true recognition of our anniversary if I didn’t call out some of the significant accomplishments over the last two years. Most recently, St. Vincent’s Chilton was one of only two hospitals in the state and 6 percent of hospitals in the nation to receive a 5-star ranking in patient satisfaction from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

This ranking came directly from patients surveyed in a variety of areas, including communication with nurses and doctors, care transition, hospital environment and likely to recommend. So, right here in Chilton County, you have access to nationally recognized care.

We’ve also experienced a significant expansion of services, including adding a transitional care unit, telestroke and telebehavioral health virtual technology, cataract surgery, transesophageal echocardiograms, cardiac monitoring services and expanded surgery offerings. This only builds on our existing 24-hour emergency department, diagnostic imaging, inpatient and outpatient surgical services, critical care, wellness services, lab, gastroenterology services, sleep disorder center and more than 20 physician specialties across our campus. We hold Joint Commission accreditation for our hospital, laboratory and transitional care program, as well as accreditation by the American College of Radiology for many of our diagnostic offerings.

As we look to the future of not only St. Vincent’s Chilton, but also health care across our nation, we face a time of unprecedented transformation. Despite the ever-evolving landscape, we remain committed to leading through the change to find the most innovative and person-centered models to care for you.

Whether it’s implementing new technology like online check-in for our Emergency Department or bringing additional specialties and services right to your community, our top priority is serving you when and where you need it most. I thank each and every one of you again for your ongoing support of this hospital, and end with a simple ask that you continue using its services to help pave the way for its future.