Journal of Health Care and Research

Journal of Health Care and Research [ISSN: 2582-8967]

Simon W. Rabkin^1iD*
1Professor of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Division of Cardiology, Vancouver, B.C., Canada

Corresponding Author: Simon W. Rabkin ^{ORCID iD}
Address: University of British Columbia, 9^th Floor 2775 Laurel St., Vancouver, B.C., Canada V5Z 1M9.
Received date: 09 April 2024; Accepted date: 22 April 2024; Published date: 29 April 2024

Citation: Rabkin SW. The Case to Discard Hospital Mission Statements and Replace It with A Statement of Goals. J Health Care and Research. 2024 Apr 29;5(1):18-21.

Copyright © 2024 Rabkin SW. This is an open-access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium provided the original work is properly cited.

Keywords: Mission Statements, Healthcare Organizations, Patient Care, Staff Engagement, Burnout

Abstract

Background: Hospitals and healthcare institutions spend a considerable amount of time and capital on constructing an appropriate mission statement for themselves.
Methods: A review of the purpose of mission statements and the statements made by different healthcare organizations was undertaken. For institutions in the USA, their mission statements were examined in the context of their national ratings.
Results: The mission statements of healthcare organizations are often too abstract, using similar phraseology about caring for patients. Concern for the community that the hospital serves is stated by both a hospital listed as one of the best US hospitals and an institution that was considered to be in the lowest tier in the same country. Similarly, the recognition of ‘research’ or ‘innovation and discovery’ was stated by respectively both a top institution in the USA and one in the bottom tier.
Conclusions: Healthcare institutions should replace their mission statements with clear and attainable statements of concrete goals, and indicate how successful the institution is at attaining those goals and improving the experience of its patients and staff.