1. St. Mary’s General Hospital Orientation
Welcome
Welcome to St. Mary’s General Hospital. We hope that you will find being part of a dynamic, innovative and caring organization a rewarding experience. We are excited to have you join our amazing team!
St. Mary’s General Hospital Orientation

2. Objectives Welcome you to the SMGH team
Provide an overview of our Vision, Operational Goals and how we plan to achieve them
Provide required training to safely start your first day on the job
Provide answers to frequently asked questions about starting your job
The objectives of this online orientation training module is to provide with an overview of St. Mary’s Hospital, our vision, operational Goals and how we plan to achieve them. This module will also provide you with the required training to safely start your first day on the job as well as provide you with answers to any questions you may have before you begin your new career with us.

3. About St. Mary’s
St. Mary’s is a top performing Hospital that is nationally recognized for providing innovative, best practice adult acute care.
Nearly 2,000 staff, physicians and volunteers provide patient-centered care to hundreds of thousands of patients every year in five core areas of clinical focus:
Regional Cardiac Care
Respiratory Care
Outpatient Surgery
General Medicine
Emergency Care
Located in the heart of Kitchener, St. Mary’s is the second largest acute care hospital in the St. Joseph’s Health system and is the Regions Cardiac Care Centre.
We are proud to say that St. Mary’s is a top performing Hospital that is nationally recognized for providing innovative, best practice adult acute care.
Nearly 2000 staff, physicians and volunteers provide patient-centered care to hundreds of thousands of patients every year in our five core areas of clinical focus:
Regional Cardiac Care
Respiratory care
Outpatient Surgery
General Medicine
Emergency Care

4. Our Team
St. Mary’s General Hospital offers a friendly, dynamic culture, which fosters teamwork and continuous improvement. Patients and families are at the heart of all we do and our success is due to our exceptional team.  
“I'm so proud to say I work here! I'm so proud of everyone in this building who makes a difference in the lives of the people we serve each day. Most of all, I'm SO proud of my team on 500 for being the amazing individuals they are. I love working at St. Mary's!!” Stephanie Ellen
Known provincially and nationally as leaders in innovation, patient safety, and patient satisfaction, St. Mary’s General Hospital offers a friendly, dynamic culture, which fosters teamwork and continuous improvement. Patients and families are at the heart of all we do and our success is due to our exceptional team. Our staff, physicians and volunteers all work together to provide excellent, compassionate care to hundreds of thousands of patients and families every year in our core areas of clinical focus.
“I like building the relationships and giving back to the community. I think it’s vital to learn and grow and give back to those in need.” – Blair Nearing, Volunteer

5. St. Mary’s - a special place
We are committed to displaying our values of excellence, innovation and compassion in all we do.
There is an organizational spirit of encouragement, participation, responsibility, continued learning and mutual respect.
The staff, physicians and volunteers at St. Mary’s are committed to maintaining a culture of respect and compassion not only to our patients and visitors but also to each other. The community we serve and those who work at St. Mary’s will tell you that there is something unique about St. Mary’s and we know it is our staff, physicians and volunteers who strive to make St. Mary’s a special place. We are committed to displaying our values of excellence, innovation and compassion in all we do during every interaction with every person every day . We are excited to have you join us in promoting an organizational spirit of encouragement, participation, responsibility , continued learning and mutual respect. The video link provided is just one example of how our staff go above and beyond to continue our legacy of compassion and respect.

6. Our Vision
To be the safest and most effective hospital in Canada, characterized by innovation, compassion and respect.
St. Mary’s Vision is to be the safest and most effective hospital in Canada, characterized by innovation, compassion and respect.  St. Mary’s consistently performs better than provincial and national averages for many health indicators and our patient satisfaction scores are amongst the best in Ontario. Recognition as one of the country’s top performers in clinical outcomes and safety is thanks to the commitment to excellence, quality and safety by our great staff, physicians, volunteers and Board of Trustees. As a new staff person coming to St. Mary’s we hope that you will join us with that commitment.
We ensure that our patients and their families are at the centre of everything we do, every encounter, every day. 
St. Mary’s true North goals of Quality and Safety of Zero Harm, Patient and Family Centred Care of Zero Wait, Our People of 100% engagement and Financial Stewardship of Zero Waste are the focus of our Operational Targets each year.

7. At St Mary’s we are committed to providing patient and family centered care. What this means in the broadest terms is that the patient’s preferences and values are at the core of everything we do, everyday. To understand the patient and family perspective, we have begun to implement a patient and family engagement strategy, where we invite patients and their families to be involved in decisions around their care, give us feedback on how we did, and even collaborate with us in co-designing the services we provide to our community.
When we engage patients and families, we do this with their whole experience in mind. The Picker Institute developed 8 principles of patient centered care that we use to ensure we are focusing on the whole experience:
Respect for Patient Preferences
Coordination and Integration of care
Information and education
Physical comfort
Emotional support
Involvement of family and friends
Continuity and transition
Access to Care
So, what can you do, in your every day to support patient and family engagement? If you are providing care, you can use the principles listed above directly at the bedside. You can offer patients and families with an opportunity to complete a survey, or share their ideas for how to make St. Mary’s a better place.
But, regardless of where you work, you likely interact with patients and families. You can be patient and family centered by making eye contact, bringing a smile to someone’s day, offering assistance. Put yourself in their shoes and ask yourself: what would make my day better?
If you have any questions or want to get involved in patient engagement work, contact Gillian Flynn in the Patient Experience Office.

8. What is LEAN?
At St. Mary’s we’ve adopted a proven system from the auto sector called Lean. Lean provides staff with a set of tools to identify and solve problems and sustain those improvements.
Our vision is to be the safest and most effective hospital in Canada, characterized by innovation, compassion and respect. Lean assists our staff with achieving this vision.
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9. Our Lean Vision
St. Mary’s will develop a culture of problem solvers; who will follow a structured approach to solve problems from the customer’s perspective.
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10. Make Improvements as a Team