Mission Statements from Health Care Systems

The OHSU Knight Cancer Institute Mission statement

At the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, we see a world without cancer. As pioneers in personalized cancer medicine, we continue to change the way the world understands and fights this disease. We will:

•           Provide individually tailored, compassionate care for every patient, from                                                                                                          diagnosis through survivorship.

•           Discover new ways to prevent cancer.

•           Develop new personalized cancer therapies.

We will end cancer as we know it.

Virginia Mason medical center

Our mission is to improve the health and well being of the patients we serve – Healing illness is our first priority and is what gives our people the energy for our vision. We are also committed to providing a broad range of services that improve one’s sense of well being and which prevent illness.

University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

The mission of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is to eliminate cancer in Texas, the nation, and the world through outstanding programs that integrate patient care, research and prevention, and through education for undergraduate and graduate students, trainees, professionals, employees and the public.

Mount Sinai Hospital New york city

The mission of the Mount Sinai Health System is to provide compassionate patient care with seamless coordination and to advance medicine through unrivaled education, research, and outreach in the many diverse communities we serve.

A mission statement outlines the statement of purpose for an organization. It includes such information as the customers that the organization serves, the principal services they offer, the geographical location and the company philosophy. While the mission statements for each of the four organizations have stark differences, they also exhibit some general similarities as a testament to the fact they are all healthcare providers. One similarity they have is they tend to the sick and offer medical care. Another is that a majority of them are actively involved in medical research, whether on a general level or at a more specialized level. A fundamental difference, on the other hand, lies in the fact that while some are general healthcare providers, some are more dedicated, offering specialized care for the treatment of particular conditions.

The mission statement of for he OHSU Knight Cancer Center is very comprehensive, giving detailed information on the kind of patients it chiefly caters to, as well as the services they offer at their facility. The statement also gives a clear indication that the hospice is very involved in cancer-based research, stating one of the hospital’s key goals is to see an end to the disease. The mission statement for the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is no different. It outlines their dedication to cancer research, the geographical area they serve, their commitment to giving cancer education and training to healthcare providers as well as their philosophy of doing good to the community. Similarly, the Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City makes apparent their commitment to general healthcare and their long-standing interest in medical research. While their mission statement does not explicitly indicate their location, we can infer that they serve quite a number of different communities.  On the other hand, the Virginia Mason Medical Center professes a commitment to healing and provision of primary health care. While their mission statement overlooks the finer details about their target demographic or company philosophy, they manage to demonstrate their commitment to providing the community around them with healthcare.

In general, I would have no qualms about taking a loved one to either one of these four hospitals. It is worth noting, however, that the lack of pertinent information in the mission statement of Virginia Mason Medical center may give one pause for thought. Their statement could definitely benefit from the addition of the missing information. In all, it has been demonstrated that mission statements give a good pointer as to the purpose, direction and philosophy of an organization.