Feb 04

February 2022 Newsletter

When we refer collectively to GI of the Rockies, we are typically referring to the professional medical organization as a whole—GI of the Rockies, ECOR, NGEC and DWEC. We do this because we operate a team under the same Mission, Vision, and Values. Collectively, we have an obligation to support the mission to advance digestive health and quality of life for all those in the communities we serve.

It’s important to realize that all medical practices and all licensed health care providers are held to a minimal professional standard as defined by licensure boards and medical societies. To be professional and hold licensure you have a contract with the community. That contract grants a level of privilege to direct and make decisions for customers/patients who trust in you to work in their best interest. For healthcare consumers, clinical decision making/clinical quality is often assumed. What healthcare customers want is kindness, punctuality, easy access, and friendly staff.

World-class organizations hold themselves to an even higher standard. This is the case with GI of the Rockies. Beyond our commitment to best-in-class GI care, we are committed to growth, service excellence, and to being better partners to payors and health systems.

As we continue to adapt to our 3rd year of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have at times struggled to meet our high standards because of labor shortages, changing infection control policies, and pandemic era regulatory requirements. In good faith we have worked hard to keep our patient and workforce safe while building a culture to attract and retain talent. As we see COVID-19 cases recede, we expect to see the labor market improve and you can expect that GI of the Rockies will again ramp our operations to meet the demand of our patients and referral sources. You will again see us manage our wait-times and exceed our customer experience expectations as we did prior to the Delta & Omicron surge. State and National trends suggest we are turning that corner now.

On a different note, I am very excited to welcome Carol Ahrens to our team. Carol will serve as our new Director of Endoscopy and will start on February 21st. Carol continues to build her wonderful career in health care operations having served in leadership positions with HCA Physician Services Group, Denver Vail Orthopedics, US Oral Surgery Management, and now with us. Please join me in welcoming her to our team!

Sincerely,

Jason Richardson

Chief Executive Officer

Gastroenterology of the Rockies