Northwestern Memorial Hospital

Description

Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Northwestern Memorial Hospital is one of the countrys premier academic medical center hospitals and a major referral center for the Midwest and beyond Northwestern Memorial provides a total of 854 licensed beds in the Feinberg Pavilion Prentice Womens Hospital and the Stone Institute of Psychiatry It is the primary teaching hospital for Northwestern Universitys Feinberg School of Medicine and virtually every medical specialty is represented by the medical staff of 1603 affiliated physicians who also carry appointments with the Feinberg School Northwestern Memorial staffs 7144 employees

In fiscal year 200911 of Northwestern Memorials medical specialties were ranked among the nations best by US News amp World Report magazine with six specialties ranked the highest in Illinois Also in fiscal year 2009 the hospital earned a place on Hospitals amp Health Networks magazines list of Americas quot100 Most Wiredquot hospitals and health systems for stateoftheart technology supporting patient care Northwestern Memorial has also been named for the past 10 years on Working Mother magazines list of quot100 Best Companies for Working Mothersquot and For 14 years running Chicago consumers have named Northwestern Memorial their quotmost preferredquot hospital according to a survey conducted by the National Research Corporation NRC Also in that survey for the fourth consecutive year the hospital was the sole winner of the Consumer Choice award for having the best doctors best nurses best overall quality and best image and reputation Northwestern Memorial has earned Magnet recognition the gold standard for nursing excellence and was included in 2009 on The Leapfrog Groups Top Hospitals list for quality and safety of care practices Northwestern Memorial is the corporate parent of Northwestern Memorial Physicians Group Northwestern Memorial Insurance Company and Northwestern HealthCare Corporation

Mission amp Core Values
Patients come first in all we do
Whether were involved directly in patient care or not every employee of Northwestern Memorial Hospital knows that he or she can impact the quality of the patient experience and the level of excellence we collectively achieve This knowledge expressed in our shared commitment to a single patientfocused mission unites us

Our Mission
Northwestern Memorial Hospital is an academic medical center where the patient comes first We are an organization of caregivers who aspire to consistently high standards of quality costeffectiveness and patient satisfaction We seek to improve the health of the communities we serve by delivering a broad range of services with sensitivity to the individual needs of our patients and their families We are bonded in an essential academic and service relationship with the Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University The quality of our services is enhanced through their integration with education and research in an environment that encourages excellence of practice critical inquiry and learning

Our Vision
Our vision is to be the hospital of choice in our region recognized as having the most satisfied patients the best possible clinical quality and outcomes and the best physicians and employees

An important part of our vision is to be with the Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University a nationally acclaimed academic medical center

A strong and shared sense of what is important
We are a diverse group of people from different backgrounds joined together by a shared set of values At Northwestern Memorial Hospital our values give us clarity guiding every decision we make as an institution and as individuals from the most farreaching longterm strategy to the smallest daily task

Our Core Values
All members of the Northwestern Memorial family believe in and practice these core values

Patients First
We put the patient first in all we do No matter where in the hospital we work we remember always that caring for the individual patient and his or her family is at the heart of our mission and our philosophy

Integrity
We adhere to an uncompromising code of ethics that emphasizes complete honesty transparency and sincerity Through our words and actions we earn the complete trust of our patients and their families our community and our coworkers We seek to do the right thing always and everywhere in our daytoday work and lives

Excellence
We continuously strive for excellence We never stop learning and working to improve our skills programs and services

Teamwork
We can only achieve our mission and goals by working together Through the collective and coordinated efforts of our staff we apply our diverse talents backgrounds ideas and experiences to create solutions and benefit patients We value team success over individual success

History

History
Northwestern Memorial Hospital was created September 1 1972 by the consolidation of two of Chicagos oldest established hospitals Passavant Memorial founded 1865 and Wesley Memorial founded 1888 Bringing together these respected institutions created what was then the Midwests largest private nonprofit hospital For the past three and a half decades Northwestern Memorial has continued to meet the everchanging healthcare needs of the Chicago area expanding facilities adding clinical programs and providing service to the community Our association with Northwestern University dates back more than a century and as the primary teaching affiliate for the Feinberg School of Medicine Northwestern Memorial is recognized as a leading hospital in advancing patient care education and research

Northwestern Memorials predecessor hospitals had their roots in Chicagos Lutheran and Methodist Episcopal deaconess movement spiritual communities of women organized during the 19th century to provide for the sick and needy The formative years of our hospitals were marked by the struggles of these unpaid secular groups in caring for patients raising funds managing real estate and meeting the growing professional expectations of physicians Yet both Passavant and Wesley would evolve from small charitable institutions to larger better staffed hospitals that kept pace with modern medicine and the needs of the rapidlygrowing city By the turn of the century hospitals were being transformed from refitted homes to increasingly modern facilities where not only could health be restored but disease and injury scientifically diagnosed studied and treated

As hospital management transitioned from religious orders to active boards of lay trustees the growing influence of medical school faculty auxiliary groups and donors also helped determine Wesley and Passavants organization mission and future goals Although not formally affiliated with a medical school Passavants staff included faculty from Northwestern and Rush and operative clinics conducted by surgeon Christian Fenger MD brought future surgical giants to the hospital for invaluable postgraduate experience The formation of Passavants Womans Aid Society 1897 and the Passavant Hospital Auxiliary 1904 were also critically important to the hospitals future Wesley Hospital and Northwestern University shared a common Methodist heritage with the hospital and medical school becoming affiliated in 1890 and occupying several buildings on South Dearborn between 24th and 25th Streets

In 1914 philanthropist James Deering made a 1million gift to Wesley Memorial to support free care and solidify the hospitals relationship with Northwestern Universitys medical school Wesley agreed to join Northwestern University on its new North Side campus in 1924 but funding for construction of a new building was delayed until the 1930s In the interim Northwestern University offered Passavant Memorial an affiliation and site for a new hospital which opened in 1929 Wesley Memorials new facility was completed in 1941 and over the next thirty years the two institutions located across the street from each other in the Streeterville community served as the primary teaching hospitals for Northwestern University Medical School Over time the hospitals began collaborating on a number of clinical services and teaching programs setting in motion plans for a longcontemplated merger The process accelerated with the 1966 establishment of the McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University focused on joint purchasing shared facilities graduate medical education and development of a group practices furthering joint planning efforts towards a unified medical center

Passavant and Wesley responded by merging nursing schools exchanging staff privileges and combining clinical areas culminating in the consolidation of the two hospitals on September 1 1972 Other important additions included mergers with Prentice Womens Hospital and Maternity Center and the Stone Institute of Psychiatry 1975 and the opening of the Olson Critical Care Pavilion 1979 By the mid1980s our original inpatient facilities could no longer support technological advances and were prohibitively expensive to maintain Extensive planning began for one of the nations largest healthcare construction projects designing a stateoftheart facility to replace Passavant Wesley and more than 20 scattered outpatient sites In 1994 construction began on a new 2million square foot facility on the block bordered by Fairbanks Court St Clair Huron and Erie Streets On May 1 1999 the 17story Feinberg Pavilion and 22story Galter Pavilion opened A model facility for healthcare providers hundreds of local national and international tour groups visit Northwestern Memorial Hospital each year

Northwestern Memorial Hospitals reputation as one of the nations leading academic medical centers continues as we develop additional worldclass facilities and expanded clinical programs with our academic partner Northwestern Universitys Feinberg School of Medicine The former Passavant and Wesley sites were redeveloped as part of a comprehensive campus master plan in conjunction with Northwestern University The Robert H Lurie Medical Research Center has expanded biomedical research at the Feinberg School of Medicine and Prentice Womens Hospital opened in late 2007 is a stateoftheart facility supporting patientfocused care in an environment of comfort privacy and comprehensive care for patients families and visitors

Building on a history of compassionate care and clinical excellence Northwestern Memorial is forging a stronger partnership with its campus partners to become one of the nations great academic medical centers