Lehigh Valley Health Network is a 2009 FORTUNE 100 'Best Company to Work For'

Health network makes the list for the third consecutive year; only hospital/health network in Pennsylvania ever recognized

Lehigh Valley, Pa. (Jan. 22, 2009) – Since Corrie Miller, R.N., started working in Lehigh Valley Health Network’s cardiac catheterization lab, she has enjoyed the satisfaction she receives from caring for patients, and the many other benefits associated with her role in the health network. She used her tuition reimbursement benefit to earn her bachelor’s degree, allowing her to provide an even higher level of patient care. She also chairs a committee made up of cardiac catheterization lab employees who work to ensure patients receive care in a lab that operates as efficiently as possible. “I believe in our health network, and I’m proud to work here,” Miller said.

Miller loves her job so much that she has referred three people to work for the health network since 2001. As a result, she’s received something more – bonuses for finding qualified people for difficult-to-fill positions. “I used the money to put the down payment on my new house,” she said.

Miller is not surprised Lehigh Valley Health Network is named among the nation’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” by FORTUNE magazine for the third consecutive year. Lehigh Valley Health Network is the only Pennsylvania-based employer recognized for 2009.

LVHN remains the first ever Pennsylvania health network/hospital recognized and the first ever Pennsylvania non-profit organization selected to the list since the national ranking began in 1998. Lehigh Valley Health Network is number 76 on the 2009 list, and one of only eight employers headquartered in Pennsylvania ever to make the list.

“This recognition is really a reflection on the quality of our staff,” said Elliot J. Sussman, M.D., Lehigh Valley Health Network’s president and CEO. “They create a work environment in which everyone strives for excellence and contributes to our mission to heal, comfort and care for our community.”

Mary Kay Grim, Lehigh Valley Health Network’s senior vice president for human resources, says the organization’s day-to-day culture helps it to excel in areas that FORTUNE considers important. This includes a comprehensive health care plan, shared success bonuses, a shared governance model to provide a say in decision making, and tuition reimbursement program and initiatives. “To be a great place to care, we need to be a great place to work,” Grim said. “These programs and initiatives are important components of our culture. A hospital is about people caring for people and our staff is the key to providing the quality care the members of our community deserve.”

“The 100 Best Companies to Work For” list, the 12th annual, is compiled by FORTUNE by the Great Places to Work Institute headquartered in San Francisco. The rankings are based on an evaluation of the policies and culture of each company, and the opinions of the company’s employees. The employee opinion score, which makes up two-thirds of the total score, comes from a 57-question survey sent to a minimum 400 randomly selected employees. The remaining one-third of the score is based on an evaluation of workplace culture including company and employee demographics, pay and benefits programs, hiring practices, training and recognition programs.

Among the items measured in the survey that contributed to Lehigh Valley Health Network’s selection to the “100 Best Companies to Work For” list are:

• Keeps employees informed about important issues and changes
• Gives people a lot of responsibility
• Gives people the resources and equipment to do their jobs
• Genuinely seeks and responds to suggestions and ideas
• Feel you make a difference here
• Work has a special meaning that this is not “just a job”
• Feel a sense of pride about what we accomplish
• Proud to tell others you work here
• Feel good about the ways the company/organization contributes to the community
• This is a friendly place to work

The ranked list of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” is available at www.fortune.com and www.greatplacetowork.com.

Lehigh Valley Health Network includes three hospital facilities - two in Allentown and one in Bethlehem, Pa.; eight health centers caring for communities in four counties; numerous primary and specialty care physician practices throughout the region; pharmacy, imaging and lab services; and preferred provider services through Valley Preferred. Specialty care includes trauma care at the region’s busiest, most-experienced trauma center treating adults and children, burn care at the regional Burn Center, kidney and pancreas transplants; perinatal/neonatal, cardiac, cancer, and neurology and complex neurosurgery capabilities including national certification as a Primary Stroke Center. Lehigh Valley Health Network has been recognized by US News & World Report for 13 consecutive years as one of America’s Best Hospitals, is a national Magnet hospital for excellence in nursing, and has been honored seven straight years among the top integrated health networks in the U.S. Additional information is available at www.lvh.org.

This page last updated 3/5/09 10:32 AM