The Greatest Gift is Love | A Message from CEO Dave Ressler

This simple lyric from one of my favorite holiday songs by Andrea Bocelli captures for me the essence of what the holidays are all about. In today’s divided world, I am craving the warmth of the holiday season to bring a sense of shared comfort and joy.

At Aspen Valley Hospital, I know one thing for sure and that is, when people walk through our doors and need us, we will meet them with compassion and competence. When the world outside our walls and beyond our community is full of tumult and chaos, I can walk through our halls and have my faith in humanity restored. Or, as I have done lately, I can be a vulnerable patient entrusting myself and my life to the physicians and staff. In these moments, I experience their compassion and capabilities in a very intimate way as thousands of patients do every year at our hospital and in our clinics.

The spirit of the season is further buoyed by the knowledge that our patients consistently experience uncommon care and compassion throughout all our services. AVH is the proud recipient of numerous awards and recognition for our patient experience, including recently earning the coveted 5-star status for Inpatient Experience from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and earning the Performance Leadership Award for Patient Perspective from The Chartis Center for Rural Health. This prestigious recognition, based on the comprehensive Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX, places us in the 75th percentile or above for patient satisfaction among rural hospitals nationwide. The INDEX provides an objective assessment of rural hospital performance across 8 key pillars. Being recognized specifically for Patient Perspective honors what matters most to us—the experience and satisfaction of those we serve.

This season, we remind ourselves that our greatest gift to our community is the compassion and professionalism our patients can expect to receive. And through our partnerships with the Valley Health Alliance and Mountain Family Health Centers, we will continue to help uninsured members of our community find coverage so they can access the healthcare they need. That is how Aspen Valley Hospital celebrates the holiday season through our never ceasing pursuit of our community’s health and wellbeing.

In this issue of our newsletter, you can learn more about our awards and how to enroll for coverage through Connect for Health Colorado during open enrollment. We have more love to share with the winter issue of our Healthy Journey magazine, and many other helpful tips to get the most out of the holidays and the festive winter season.

Wishing you joy, peace and love,

Dave