Improving Teamwork, Staffing Adequacy, and Transparency to Reach High Reliability

Samaritan Medical Center is a 294-bed not-for-profit hospital in Northern New York, providing a full range of advanced inpatient, surgical and outpatient procedures for the entire Northern New York area. In addition, there is a 42-bed emergency department that sees over 50,000 patients per year. Samaritan Medical Center is also unique in that it serves the medical needs of both the civilian and military communities. Fort Drum is a large military base with close to 40,000 active duty military and dependents. Fort Drum does not have a hospital on base, allowing Samaritan Medical Center the privilege of providing much of their medical needs.1