Southern Maryland Hospital Center

Description

MISSION AND VALUES
Southern Maryland Hospital Center is a fullservice regional health care facility founded in 1977 to provide a complete range of inpatient outpatient and community services for the residents of Southern Maryland At SMHC highly skilled health professionals efficiently deliver respectful and compassionate care using the most advanced medical technology

Southern Maryland Hospital Center is a resource center seeking to prevent illness and promote health through education and screening Our goal is to assist the residents of Southern Maryland in achieving the highest possible level of physical and mental health and thereby improve the quality of life in our community

Southern Maryland Hospital Center continuously evaluates all services and seeks to improve the delivery of care Each SMHC employee medical staff member and volunteer is motivated by an uncompromising commitment to quality as measured by the satisfaction of our patients and their families

VISION
Southern Maryland Hospital Center is committed to the health education and overall well being of our community as demonstrated by the nearly 6 million in community benefits expended in 2005 alone SMHCs Community outreach activities include 800000 in health education and more than 140000 in training student nurses and technicians within our hospital Further our Mallwalkers program free transportation services and baby safety seat giveaways amount to over 350000 per annum Perhaps the most significant number comes through the nearly 2 million of unreimbursed physician support offered by SMHC that allows us to fulfill our mission as the regions only full service general hospital Our mobile Health Express Van which performs screenings each and every day costs our organization over 180000 per year to staff equip and operate

By developing programs for the community and participating in special events and health fairs SMHC consistently provides its neighbors with the healthcare resources to fight disease and promote prevention Community outreach at SMHC is continually growing Being active in the community does make a difference It can improve the quality of life help reach individuals that are in need of healthcare resources and increase awareness of health related issues

History

History
In the early 1970s Dr Francis P Chiaramonte a practicing board certified Urologist recognized the need for a full service hospital in Southern Maryland The population was growing rapidly and for many types of specialty care residents were traveling miles to the university hospitals of Baltimore and Washington Following countless hours of planning and development ground was broken for Southern Maryland Hospital Center SMHC and on November 28 1977 the hospital opened its doors

In the past 25 years services and equipment have rapidly expanded First a physicians office building was completed Subsequently the Outpatient Services Mammography Center MRI Bone Densitometry and Lithotripsy services were opened A second Professional Office Building was opened in 1992 housing outside services provided by the hospital

To serve Southern Marylands growing population a second patient bed tower was built in 1987 which allowed for the opening of a new Maternal Child Health Center in 1992 and a SubAcute Care Center in 1996

SMHC is now the regions most complete high tech health care facility a 358 bed acute care medical center with the capability to meet all of the health care needs of the population But while the equipment and technology are state of the art patient care remains rooted in our tradition