In 2006, we invested $805 million in plant, property and equipment to help improve community access to quality care. Our organization has a multi-billion-dollar plan to improve, replace or build dozens of community-based outpatient care centers and hospitals over the next 10 years.
Improved Access to Care
Thomas Atkins, M.D.
Advanced Technologies
Sutter Health's electronic health record (EHR) investment has grown to about $450 million as our network has expanded the scope of our initiative to include improved workflows, additional administrative features and greater clinical functionality.
Our EHR system is just one example of the broad range of patient safety initiatives Sutter Health is deploying to further improve clinical outcomes and enhance patient safety while reducing costs.
"As leaders in the health care industry, we believe that quality should permeate everything we do and that the way we deliver care should be consistently great. This includes how we implement information technology across our system."
Jon Manis
Chief Information Officer, Sutter Health
People
Sutter Health offers our employees a broad range of generous benefits - from expanded education and training programs to improved salaries and benefits, and our multi-million-dollar investment in patient safety technologies. Our network also has invested more than $500 million in the past five plan years to the Sutter Health Retirement Plan, bringing our employees' retirement fund assets to over $1.2 billion. Sutter's pension plan is fully funded.
"Pension plan funding is an important gauge of an organization's commitment to its workforce. We've made it a top priority to take care of employees around our network and to be the employer of choice for all health care workers in Northern California."
Robert Reed
Chief Financial Officer, Sutter Health
Community Benefit
In 2006, Sutter Health's total investment in providing care and services for the poor and underserved and in benefits for the broader community was $483 million.
"We are proud to partner with a community leader like Sutter Health that is committed to making a difference in the health and well-being of vulnerable families throughout Northern California. Through our program, five Sutter affiliates in the greater San Francisco Bay Area donated outpatient surgical care to 168 people in need in 2006."
Benjamin Aune
President and CEO, Operation Access
Charity Care
As a result of an expanded charity care policy implemented throughout our system in early 2004, our charity care contribution increased by more than 24 percent from $59 million in 2005 to a record $73 million in 2006.