Mount Auburn Hospital

Mount Auburn Hospital opened its doors in 1886 becoming the first hospital in Cambridge. Today, Mount Auburn Hospital provides top notch healthcare to 10 other communities including Cambridge, and is considered one of the best community teaching healthcare systems in the Boston area. Mount Auburn Hospital' s mission is delivering clinically excellent health care with compassion and respect for the dignity of patients and their families. To uphold that mission, Mount Auburn Hospital employs over 2,800 highly skilled part and full time staff, including 850 physicians. These dedicated individuals all share the same goals and have a common interest at making the patient feel comfortable and supported in their stay. Mount Auburn Hospital has established a mutually beneficial partnership with the Harvard Medical School, one of the world's preeminent institutions in medical education and research. The research carried out by the faculty at Harvard Medical School is at the forefront of basic biomedical science and clinical research. In the school's distinguished 224 year history, 15 faculty members have been recognized for their work with the Nobel Prize. For its medical students, Harvard has initiated the New Pathway curriculum, a problem-solving, case method approach to learning. Mount Auburn Hospital is one of the many healthcare institutions that facilitate students the opportunity to come in contact with patient cases early in their studies. While other hospitals in Massachusetts are struggling to stay open, Mount Auburn Hospital is preparing for a new era of medicine that crosses life sciences and technology to provide the healthcare of the future. The person in charge of this exciting time at Mount Auburn Hospital is Jeanette Clough, president and CEO. This year Clough is celebrating her 10th anniversary at the hospital with the dedication of the hospitals new $80 million expansion project. The six-floor, 274,000 s/f Frank Stanton Building, a state-of-the-art teaching and healthcare facility will be dedicated on November 10-15th. The state-of-the-art Stanton Building will have 2 operating rooms, a 20 bed critical care unit, 40 more single patient rooms, and a 250 car garage. Frank Stanton was the former president of CBS and often called the greatest television broadcast executive of all time. In October 2007, Mount Auburn Hospital received a $6.5 million donation from the Ruth and Frank Stanton Fund, the largest contribution in the hospital's 122 year history. Before Stanton died in December of 2006, at the age of 98, he had directed that a generous gift be made to Mount Auburn Hospital out of deep appreciation for the high quality of care he received at the hospital over many years. Mount Auburn Hospital is no stranger for being recognized for its extraordinary care. The Carl Barron Center for Men's Health was established by Carl Barron, a longtime Cambridge businessman and originator of furniture leasing industry. Barron, who was successfully treated for prostate cancer at Mount Auburn Hospital 16 years ago, knows firsthand the benefits of early prostate cancer screening and treatment. He and his physician, Dr. George Reservitz, chief of the division of urology at Mount Auburn Hospital for over 20 years, had forged a lasting doctor-patient relationship from Barrons stay at the hospital. Dr. Reservitz had wanted to open a men's health clinic in the Boston area for a long time. Barron was so impressed with the hospital and staff that in 2003 he teamed with Dr. Reservitz and Clough to create the center. A year later The Barron Center for Men's health was launched. The Barron Center offers free prostate cancer checkups and screenings to men in the greater Boston area. Their goal is to show the importance of early screenings for prostate cancer. To maintain such a high standard of excellence in providing care, a hospital must operate like a business to account for its many expenses. The individual in charge of the business end must be able to put a strong emphasis on revenue while keeping expenses in check. They also need to be able to keep the patients care as the number one priority. At Mount Auburn Hospital, that person is Clough. Clough, a former nurse turned CEO is one of the most respected community leaders not only in Cambridge but also New England. She, is another fine example of the fantastic leadership you will find in the Cambridge community. She was recently elected to the American Hospital Association's board of trustees. When she began as Mount Auburn Hospital's CEO 10 years ago, she set a goal for the hospital to financially break even in two years and show a profit in three. Just as she did at Deaconess Waltham, her first CEO experience, Clough and her staff achieved that goal. Under Clough's direction the operating surplus at Mount Auburn Hospital has tripled to $16.4 million and between 2001 and 2007, patient service revenue has grown 62% to $241 million. When asked, What Makes Cambridge Tick, Clough answered, "A strong city government combined with public protection, schools and healthcare system with a supportive business community, create a strong and efficient city. It is so important to have all those components working together, and that is what is going on in Cambridge today." She also added, " I love and respect the people that work here in the city of Cambridge. They all have interests that support each other. You can't buy or fake that culture."