Caring for Southwest Georgia with Transparency & Compassion
Caring for Southwest Georgia with Transparency & Compassion
A Message from Our CEO
Recent reporting from ProPublica has raised questions about healthcare in our community. At Phoebe, we welcome accountability – because it’s how we grow stronger. We remain commited to transparency, compassion, and delivering exceptional care to every person we serve.
In March 2020, the Albany area was one of the world’s worst COVID-19 hotspots, and Phoebe was one of the first health systems in the country inundated with COVID patients. At the very beginning of our pandemic fight, our leaders made a conscious decision to be exceedingly transparent in an effort to emphasize how serious this deadly pandemic was. We also wanted to warn other hospitals and communities what was coming to them.
Our approach resulted in extensive media coverage. During that time, a reporter with ProPublica reached out with an intriguing story pitch. She claimed she wanted to provide an on-the-ground report of Albany’s battle with COVID, centered around the healthcare heroes at Phoebe.
We granted her team unprecedented access to our people and facilities with that goal in mind. Almost 6 years later, ProPublica has now published a story that is much different than what was promised.
The reporter believes the healthcare system in the United States is stacked against poor and minority communities, making it difficult for many people in those areas to access the care they need. Let us be clear: We believe that too. The American healthcare system is not a system we chose or helped create, but we are forced to navigate it in the best way we can. We invest in our community in ways that few, if any other health systems do, to ensure everyone has equitable access to quality care. Any way you spin it, not-for-profit hospitals like Phoebe are not the problem in our country’s broken system.
COVID was a horrible time for many hospitals, but facilities like ours were not the ones exploiting government programs and playing with patients’ lives for profit. We wish ProPublica had spent its time finding those stories instead of knocking on our door, where we kindly invited them in.
Just as we were almost six years ago, we are committed to transparency. If you’re interested in understanding the whole story, the resources below have more information.
The Phoebe Way
For more than a century, Phoebe has cared for the people of southwest Georgia. Through moments of prosperity and challenge, our mission has never wavered. Our 6,000+ team members are guided by The Phoebe Way — our pledge to make every life we touch better by putting Safety First, offering Superior Service and delivering Exceptional Care to everyone, every day. We are committed to learning from our past and building a better tomorrow.
Quality & Safety: Always Finding Ways to Improve
We measure every key clinical indicator against national standards and continually invest in programs that improve safety, efficiency and patient outcomes. Our goal is simple: deliver better care today than we did yesterday — and even better care tomorrow. Below are a few key indicators of the quality of care we provide at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital.
Mortality
Our mortality index of .9 means that fewer patients at Phoebe died compared with what was expected based on typical patient outcomes. Quite simply, that shows we are providing high-quality care and saving lives.
Mortality Index
%
Sepsis Bundle Compliance Rate
Sepsis Bundle Compliance
Sepsis is the body’s extreme response to an infection. It can develop quickly and is often deadly, so quick intervention is crucial. Sepsis bundles are the sets of standardized, evidence-based interventions that hospitals use to diagnose and treat sepsis. In fiscal year 2025, our sepsis bundle compliance rate of 85.75% put us in the top 10% of hospitals nationwide, and it is significantly higher than the Georgia (63%) and national (60%) averages.
ER Wait Times
Our “Left Without Treatment” rate is down to .6%, well below the national average of 2%. We have enhanced our protocols and procedures to ensure our emergency patients get treated as quickly as possible. We don’t want any patient to get frustrated with their wait and leave without getting the care they need.
%
Left Without Treatment Rate
Trauma Care
In 2025, we have had zero trauma diversions. That means our expert trauma team has been capable of caring for every trauma patient in our region, and our trauma surgeons are at the bedside of those patients within 15 minutes of their arrival 96% of the time, compared to the standard expectation of 80%.
“I thought, ‘am I going to be able to walk again?’ I just want to say a big thank you to Dr. Powell and his team, because they took very good care of me. That’s how I’m here walking now.”
Minutes Door-to-Needle Time
Stroke Care
When every second counts, we deliver. Our “door-to-needle” time for stroke patients is 47 minutes, significantly better than the standard of 60 minutes. When a patient arrives with a stroke caused by a blockage that cuts off blood flow to the brain, rapid treatment is critical. The sooner we administer clot-busting medication (tPA), the better the chances of minimizing brain damage and improving recovery. “Door-to-needle” time measures how quickly we start treatment after a stroke patient enters the ER.
Cardiac Care
When someone has a potentially deadly heart attack called a STEMI, it’s critical to quickly open blocked arteries. In 100% of these cases, Phoebe’s STEMI team beats the national standard for the length of time from initial contact by EMS to when the procedure is performed. You can’t do better than that. Our fast, expert care – available 24/7 – saves lives.
%
Beats National Standard
“I can’t say enough about Phoebe. They’re good folks. They cared. They could have given up on me, but they didn’t. They have the knowledge and expertise and technology to handle someone who’s having a massive heart attack.”
Cancer Care
The Phoebe Cancer Center meets or exceeds all standards and quality metrics set forth by the Commission on Cancer Accreditation for Excellence and the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers. As the region’s largest and most advanced cancer treatment facility, we employ a multidisciplinary approach to care and a comprehensive nurse navigation program that result in more personalized care plans and better outcomes for our patients.
“Having the ability to get my treatment here in Albany was a bonus. I did not think twice about whether I needed to go to Jacksonville or if I needed to go to Atlanta. I had every confidence that the treatment I was getting here at Phoebe would as good as anywhere else.”
Neonatal Care
Risk-adjusted data from the Vermont Oxford Network shows outcomes for our NICU babies are better than what is expected for babies as critically ill as those we treat. The tiniest patients at Phoebe suffer fewer serious morbidities and deaths than is typical for NICU patients. We voluntarily participate in the Vermont Oxford Network, an international collaborative of NICUs dedicated to improving quality, safety and value of care for newborns.
“We’re very fortunate to have such a great NICU team. Had it not been for Phoebe, Rylee Kate might not have survived. We’re lucky in this area to have that level of care.”
Virtual Nursing Program
This innovative model allows nurses to remotely handle discharge planning and documentation, giving bedside nurses more time to focus on direct patient care. This innovative model allows nurses to remotely handle discharge planning and documentation, giving bedside nurses more time to focus on direct patient care. Our research shows shifting responsibilities to virtual nurses has provided bedside nurses with an average of more than three additional hours with each patient. Virtual nurses also complete post-discharge calls to patients, including a new program called Heartlink for patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). This program is having success in ensuring those patients are managing their illness properly and preventing hospital visits.
Critical Care
Phoebe has made significant investments to institute and maintain a high-intensity model in our critical care units. We have intensivists – specially trained critical care providers – on duty in our critical care units 24/7. They have no obligation other than to care for ICU patients. We also invest in a medical emergency team. This specialized rapid response team of critical care experts are available 24/7 to assess and manage seriously ill patients. They intervene when early signs of clinical deterioration are identified with the goal of preventing cardiac arrests, unplanned admissions to a critical care unit and deaths. They also respond to any patient who codes, providing immediate and expert care that gives the patient the best chance of survival and recovery.
Preventing Patient Falls
Falls are the most common adverse patient safety event reported in hospitals nationwide. Through the use of remote patient monitoring and other safety protocols, this fiscal year, we have had zero Inpatient Falls with Hip Fracture – an important patient safety indicator we must track and report. That puts us in the top 5% of hospitals in the country.
High Reliability Organization
Since before COVID, Phoebe has been on a journey to become a High Reliability Organization (HRO). HROs operate in complex, high-risk environments – such as healthcare, aviation and nuclear power – that build cultures and sustain processes to prevent errors and avoid failures. As part of this commitment, every employee goes through Safety First and Superior Service training, and we continually reinforce the skills taught in those training sessions as we standardize processes and strengthen our culture of safety.
Awards & Recognitions
Phoebe hospitals are fully accredited by DNV. We have also earned numerous other significant recognitions and certifications that highlight specific expertise and quality care.
One of America’s Best Employers
Forbes named Phoebe one of America’s Best Mid-Sized Employers. Fewer than 500 employers made the list. Phoebe is the third highest-ranked Georgia-based organization on the list and the only Georgia healthcare provider.
Georgia Trend Top Hospital
Georgia Trend ranked Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital #2 among Georgia’s Top Large Hospitals in its 2025 “Healthcare High Performers” report. The influential magazine based its ratings on four equally-weighted domains: Clinical Outcomes, Person & Community Engagement, Safety, and Efficiency & Cost Reduction. The recognition emphasizes Phoebe’s dedication to delivering exceptional care, improving patient outcomes and fostering community trust.
Best of Georgia
For the second year in a row, Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital was named a Best of Georgia winner by Georgia Business Journal. We are proud to be one four statewide winners in the hospital category.
Trauma Center
Phoebe is the only state-designated Level II Trauma Center in Georgia south of Columbus. We invest millions of dollars each year to ensure trauma specialists are available 24/7, and we treated more than 1000 trauma patients in fiscal year 2025. We are currently pursuing trauma certification from the American College of Surgeons.
Emergency Cardiac Care
Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital was the first hospital south of Macon to be designated by the Georgia Department of Public Health as a Level 1 Emergency Cardiac Care Center, meaning we provide the most comprehensive emergency cardiac care services available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Stroke Care
Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital is certified by DNV as a Primary Stroke Center, affirming the hospital’s readiness to handle a full-range of stroke-related emergencies.
Cancer Care
The Phoebe Cancer Center has attained numerous accreditations, recognitions and awards. The accreditation through the Commission on Cancer and being the first cancer center in Georgia south of Atlanta to earn accreditation from the American Society for Radiation Oncology Accreditation Program for Excellence are two of the most prestigious.
Neonatal Care
As one of six state-designated regional perinatal centers, Phoebe cares for premature babies born in 22 south Georgia counties. We are a Level III Neonatal Center. Only two hospitals in Georgia, both children’s hospitals, have a higher Neonatal Center designation.
Community Impact
Phoebe’s mission reaches far beyond the walls of our hospitals. Every program, partnership and investment is designed to strengthen southwest Georgia – improving health, supporting families and creating secure jobs. From preventive care to workforce development, our commitment is simple: to make every life – and every community – we touch better.
“Phoebe is more than just our local healthcare provider – it’s the economic heartbeat of southwest Georgia. Clinically, Phoebe is indispensable, providing services that many rural residents would have to travel hours to reach otherwise. Beyond its economic and clinical roles, Phoebe upholds a profound community mission – serving all individuals, regardless of their ability to pay, and investing deeply in education and workforce development. Phoebe doesn’t just heal our people – it helps build our economy, our future, and the very resilience of southwest Georgia.”
By the Numbers
These numbers represent just a few of the many ways that Phoebe impacts our community.
- $77M charity care (updated for fiscal year 2025)
- 6.61% of operating expenses dedicated to charity care – Ranked 2nd nationally among similar-sized health systems by Modern Healthcare
- $2.34 billion annual economic impact – fueling growth and stability across the region
- 14,110 jobs created
- 500,000+ patients served annually
- 100,000+ ER visits
- 1,000+ trauma patients
Community Report
The Phoebe Community Report highlights investments we make in our community. We are currently compiling our 2025 report. The 2024 Phoebe Community Report is available here.
Charity Care
Phoebe was recognized by Modern Healthcare as one of the nation’s top health systems for the amount of charity care we provide. Last year, Phoebe has provided a total of $77 million in care for patients who are unable to pay for their care.
“In my 30 years as a practicing electrophysiologist, working for seven different hospital systems, I have always been aware of pressure to limit expenditures on patients without insurance coverage. At Phoebe, for the first time in my career, I have the freedom to treat all patients without limitation. Since relocating to southwest Georgia, it has been a joy to provide my skills to a population in great need without any concerns for their ability to pay. Despite a long history of practicing medicine, the past four years have been the first time in my life that I have been fully supported in my goals to provide care to all patients, and it is an honor to work alongside such a forthright healthcare system as Phoebe.”
Financial Assistance & Flexible Payment Options
Phoebe offers multiple options to help patients manage the cost of care — including short- and long-term payment plans, financial counseling and support for uninsured or underinsured patients. Our financial counselors work directly with patients to identify the most appropriate assistance or payment option. Phoebe also processes insurance claims on behalf of patients and provides guidance on copays, deductibles and prior authorizations.
Innovations & Partnerships
Through our innovative education partnerships, Phoebe has become a national leader in healthcare workforce development. The Phoebe Living & Learning Community is a $50 million dollar investment that provided a new home for the Albany Technical College (ATC) nursing program on Phoebe’s main campus. It addresses the nursing shortage by expanding ATC’s health professions programs to graduate more students, creating an expanded pipeline of health workers for southwest Georgia.
“I was living in a homeless shelter and trying to get by and look at me now – graduating, with my own place, while going to school to be a nurse. I guess my dreams are really coming to reality.”
Phoebe has partnerships with nursing schools throughout south Georgia and beyond, and we worked with 4C Academy, Albany State University, Albany Technical College, the Georgia Department of Education, the University System of Georgia and the Technical College System of Georgia to create the Phoebe Health Science Pathway to attract more students to careers in healthcare and help them complete their education quicker so they can enter the workforce earlier.
“Albany Technical College’s partnership with Phoebe is built on a simple promise: turn local talent into local healthcare providers. With state-of-the-art classrooms, simulation labs, and on-site housing through the Living & Learning Community, our students train where care is delivered and step into meaningful careers that serve this region.”
The Phoebe Simulation & Innovation Center
The Phoebe Simulation & Innovation Center is one of the finest simulation and training centers on a hospital campus in the country. It has enhanced patient safety by providing new training opportunities for our staff, and it serves students from throughout the region. Recently, we launched the Phoebe Simulation & Innovation Mobile Unit which will inspire and engage young people to pursue careers in healthcare through hands-on training with an AI-powered simulation mannequin and a virtual reality game created specifically for Phoebe through a partnership with the Savannah College of Art & Design.
Habitat for Humanity
As part of our effort to revitalize the neighborhood around our main campus in Albany, we donated five properties to Habitat for Humanity. Phoebe employees volunteered alongside the homeowners, and we fully funded the construction of one of the homes.
“We couldn’t ask for a better partner than Phoebe. Their generosity and commitment to this community are helping transform the lives of families and make Albany a better place to live.”
Samaritan Clinic
For more than 15 years, Phoebe has provided a rent-free location for the Samaritan Clinic, which provides needed health services for people in the community who don’t have health insurance. We also provide free lab services and recently donated $50,000 to help fund construction of a new location.
Community Gardens
In conjunction with Flint River Fresh, Healthy Sumter and The Village Community Garden, Phoebe supports nine community gardens throughout the region, and we recently donated $40,000 to area food banks to ensure southwest Georgians impacted by delayed federal food assistance payments did not go hungry.
Volunteer Ramp Crew
The Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) is a joint effort between Phoebe and the SOWEGA Council on Aging. Phoebe funds the RSVP Ramp Builders who have constructed more than 1,700 ramps at the homes of people with disabilities, providing ramp recipients with mobility to help them live happier, healthier and more fulfilling lives.
Phoebe Serves
Through our “Phoebe Serves” community initiative, we pay employees for four hours of approved volunteer work each year, and we expect our employees to give more than 2,300 hours of volunteer service to Phoebe-supported community projects this year.
Additional Community Partners
We provide facilities, as well as financial and in-kind support, to numerous nonprofit and social service agencies such as the Lily Pad SANE Center and Boys & Girls Clubs. Phoebe has a long history of investments to make our community healthier and safer. We’ve built public walking trails in each of our hospitals’ communities. We donated property where the SOWEGA Council on Aging built their center that serves tens of thousands of seniors from 14 counties. We donated thousands of dollars worth of COVID supplies to protect first responders and employees of community organizations. These are just a few examples of investments we have made simply because it was the right thing to do.
Access for All
Everyone – regardless of their values, beliefs, background and behaviors – deserves easy access to culturally competent healthcare that meets their individual needs. At Phoebe, we are committed to ensuring everyone has an equitable opportunity to reach and maintain an optimal level of individual health and wellness, regardless of any social drivers of health. We invest every day in initiatives and programs to realize that goal.
As part of our commitment to health equity, every three years, Phoebe conducts a comprehensive CHNA to identify regional health needs and build targeted programs that improve long-term outcomes. Our 2025 survey is complete and we are currently finalizing our implementation strategy which we will share soon.
Initiatives & Programs
Morehouse School of Medicine
Phoebe and Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) have partnered to expand the pipeline of physicians, promote wellness and transform healthcare in southwest Georgia. This historic and ambitious collaboration will improve access to care and advance health equity for the people of our region through multiple education, research and community benefit initiatives. It will establish a regional MSM campus, new residency programs and additional clinical training for MSM students at Phoebe.
“Morehouse School of Medicine is committed to increasing and diversifying the healthcare workforce, especially in historically underserved rural and urban communities throughout Georgia, the nation and the world. That includes creating opportunities for young physicians to receive exceptional training in communities where they can have the most meaningful impact. This unique partnership with Phoebe is an innovative way for MSM to embed our learners and invest our resources in ways that will further our shared goals to benefit the people of southwest Georgia for generations.”
Project Elevation
Project Elevation is Phoebe’s partnership with Morehouse School of Medicine, area churches and other organizations to increase prostate cancer screenings, particularly among Black men who are more likely to develop prostate cancer and die from it. We work with churches to train “champions” who encourage their friends and neighbors to get free screenings which Phoebe provides at education events at participating churches.
Intensive Outpatient Care Program (IOCP)
Patients with diabetes, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and hypertension often have trouble managing their illness, resulting in frequent trips to the ER and hospitalizations. The staff at the Phoebe IOCP clinic only cares for patients with those chronic conditions, developing close personal relationships with them and ensuring they have the support and resources to manage their conditions effectively to stay healthy and avoid hospital visits.
“The IOCP clinic has been great for my family. It has been a blessing in my life. We wouldn’t be where we are today if it wasn’t for the IOCP clinic.”
Sickle Cell Clinic
Our clinic is specifically designed to help sickle cell patients avoid hospitalizations and get the care they need quickly. When they’re having a sickle cell crisis, they can report directly to our Sickle Cell Outpatient Treatment area, so they don’t have to wait in the ER.
Nurse-Family Partnership
Phoebe is home to one of only two Nurse-Family Partnership programs in Georgia. Our goal is to help improve the lives of families, especially those who may be at high risk for health disparities. Specially trained Phoebe nurses spend two years — before and after a baby’s delivery — working closely with families to ensure they have the support, education and healthcare they need. We’re expanding capacity from 75 to 150 moms at a time.
“My Nurse-Family Partnership nurse is amazing. She’s the best. I feel like she’s one of those angels on earth that you run into. They’re placed in your life for a reason. She’s definitely a blessing.”
Mobile Wellness Clinics
Phoebe purchased two 36-foot custom-built wellness clinics that are dedicated to improving the health of our region’s vulnerable residents in medically-underserved communities throughout southwest Georgia. The clinics offer in-person primary care and virtual specialty care; education on illness prevention, nutrition, disease management; and improved access to care during emergencies.
Network of Trust
For more than 30 years, Phoebe’s Network of Trust has worked with community partners to improve the health of our region’s youth. Phoebe provides nurses to the Dougherty County School System at no expense to taxpayers. Network of Trust nurses are involved in dozens of programs, including teaching teen parenting classes, SafeSitter courses and a curriculum focused on sexual development and abstinence. They also conduct annual CPR and AED training for school coaches, faculty and staff. One of those coaches used his training to help save a student’s life.
“I feel grateful. I’m glad they were able to help me. I’m thankful for everybody who was able to give me the support and love and were able to help me to fight and to keep on living.”
Medication Management Clinic
The Phoebe Medication Management Clinic helps patients get the medications they need, promoting better patient outcomes and providing optimal medical care. Our pharmacists make sure patients take the right medicine and avoid any unsafe combinations of drugs. They also search for the most affordable options and connect patients to resources to help them afford costly prescriptions.
Albany Area Primary Health Care (AAPHC)
Phoebe works closely with AAPHC, our area’s largest Federally Qualified Health Center, to ensure uninsured and low-income residents have access to quality healthcare. We provide property and financial support for AAPHC’s Women’s Health Services, and we collaborate on multiple projects, including a partnership shown in research publications to be a model for the effectiveness of navigation to overcome barriers to cancer care.
“The area we serve is very rural, has a large minority population and is one of the poorest in the country. Nationally, community health centers struggle to overcome access barriers to hospital and specialty care for poor and uninsured patients from rural areas with transportation issues. With the help of Phoebe, Albany Area Primary Care (AAPHC) achieves cancer screening rates that are consistently 20% above those reported by the other community health centers in Georgia. Although cancer care can be quite expensive, Phoebe has accepted and cared for all AAPHC patients referred to them regardless of insurance status. In addition, Phoebe has made a significant investment in the most modern cancer treatment equipment and has recruited an outstanding team of cancer specialists, so few patients need to leave our area to get world-class treatment.”
Horizons Community Solutions
Together, Phoebe and Horizons provide cancer screenings – including colonoscopies, mammograms and lung screenings – at no cost to uninsured or underinsured patients. Health navigators help patients overcome barriers and receive follow-up care when needed, often at no cost to the patients.
Health Screenings
Each year, Phoebe hosts and participates in multiple community health fairs that target at-risk and vulnerable individuals. We share education on wellness and offer free screenings and vaccinations. At our health fairs and through our partnerships with other organizations, we provided more than 3,000 free health screenings last year and plan to increase that amount by at least 10% this year.
Health Equity Advancement Liaisons
In 2025, Phoebe launched our Health Equity Advancement Liaisons (HEALs) initiative. This 8-month training program prepares clinical and non-clinical frontline leaders to better understand their role in advancing health equity through courses that address issues including unconscious bias in healthcare, cultural competency in patient care, and creating an inclusive workplace culture.
Financial Assistance Policy
Phoebe has a generous Financial Assistance Policy that we vigorously promote with our patients. People should not have to go into debt simply for seeking medical care they need, and Phoebe is committed to working with patients to help them take advantage of all the financial assistance for which they qualify. Phoebe does not garnish wages or place liens on people who make an effort to pay their bills or truly cannot afford to pay them. In the last 20 years, Phoebe has not enforced a judgement lien on any patient’s property.
Under Phoebe’s Financial Assistance Policy Qualifications:
- Patients with income less than 200% of federal poverty guidelines qualify for free care.
- A single person making less than $30,120 would qualify for free care.
- A family of four making less than $62,400 would qualify for free care.
- Patients with income less than 400% of federal poverty guidelines qualify for discounts.
- A single person making less than $60,240 would qualify for discounts.
- A family of four making less than $124,800 would qualify for discounts.
Transparency & Accountability
Transparency builds trust — and trust builds better care. Accountability is fundamental to the way Phoebe operates — not because it’s required, but because it’s right. As shown during our COVID fight, when we were probably the most transparent health system in the country, we openly share information with our community.
When questions arise about individual cases, we respect privacy — and we learn from every experience. Federal privacy laws prevent us from discussing any patient’s care in detail, but every human being we serve leaves an impact on our teams. We grieve with families who experience loss and continually use those moments to strengthen our systems, training and communication. That commitment to learning and compassion is the heart of The Phoebe Way.
Independent Oversight
Phoebe is governed by volunteer Boards of Directors made up entirely of community leaders who live right here in southwest Georgia. We depend on and appreciate their wise counsel, guidance and expertise.
“Our board ensures the leaders and staff at Phoebe remain committed to the organization’s vision, ‘to make every life we touch, better.’ Our community is better because Phoebe is here investing in services, technology and experts to provide a level of specialized healthcare that simply isn’t available in most communities like ours. Those investments benefit everyone in our region, and it is my honor to play a role in moving Phoebe forward.”
Hospital Authority
Through a long-term lease with the Hospital Authority of Albany-Dougherty County, Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital handles day-to-day operations of the hospital. The Hospital Authority maintains ownership, oversight responsibility and fiduciary supervision of the assets of the hospital. In 2021, the Hospital Authority employed an independent consulting firm to conduct an evaluation of the lease between Phoebe and the Hospital Authority. The evaluation was overwhelmingly complimentary of Phoebe’s performance and service to the community. In fact, in his presentation of the lease analysis report to the Hospital Authority, the lead consultant said, “The Albany Community is blessed with an organization that is performing very well from a clinical perspective, operation and financial perspective, and a breadth perspective. You’re dealing with an organization that recognizes the importance of improvement and its relationship with the community.”
“As a longtime businessman in Albany, I understand how important quality healthcare is to the success of our community and how fortunate we are to have Phoebe. My family and I have received excellent care at Phoebe, and I know many of my friends and neighbors have as well. On the Hospital Authority, we’re not shy about asking tough questions of Phoebe, but in the end, our community needs to work together to help our hospital succeed.”
Community Feedback
As part of our commitment to community, Phoebe is holding Community Listening Sessions across our service area. During these sessions, Phoebe leaders share information with the public, respond to ideas and concerns, and solicit feedback on ways we can improve. We also meet regularly with various patient and family advisory councils who provide meaningful input and guidance to help Phoebe serve our community better.
Financial Stewardship
As a not-for-profit health system, our audited financial statements and Form 990 filings are available for public review each year. Unlike many safety net hospitals throughout the country, Phoebe receives no local tax subsidies, and we maintain full financial transparency through independent audits and annual reporting.
Taxes Paid
With annual payments totaling around $1 million, Phoebe is the third largest payer of property taxes in Dougherty County, behind only two giant utility companies. In addition to taxes paid on property that is not currently being used to support the delivery of healthcare, Phoebe contributes to the region’s economic strength through annual voluntary payments-in-lieu-of-taxes (V-PILOT) on tax-exempt property that was subject to property taxes before Phoebe’s ownership. These payments support essential services and community development and reduce the tax burden on citizens who own property. Phoebe receives no direct support from local taxpayers, while many other community hospitals throughout the country do.
Patient Stories
The overwhelming majority of patients enjoy positive experiences at Phoebe that result in excellent clinical outcomes, rooted in exceptional care and superior service. Healthcare is about people. The trust of the people we have the privilege of serving is what drives us to keep building on better every day. Meet a few of the many patients who are grateful for the care they received at Phoebe.
The Phoebe Family
Numbers tell part of the story, but the real measure of Phoebe’s impact lives in the hearts and voices of the dedicated healthcare professionals who serve our community and live up to our vision, “to make every life we touch, better.”
Research shows a diverse healthcare workforce leads to improved patient outcomes, enhanced access to care for underserved populations and better overall health equity. The makeup of the Phoebe Family – from our executive leaders to our clinical providers to our frontline workers – reflects the diversity of our community.
Investing in Our Workforce
We work hard to recruit and retain high-quality professionals throughout our health system, and Phoebe was recently named by Forbes as one of America’s Best Midsize Employers. Phoebe offers an incredibly generous package of employee benefits that includes:
- Health Insurance – Phoebe pays 87% of the cost of health insurance premiums for employees, compared to national benchmarks below 80%. Over the last three years, medical costs for group health plans like ours have increased 8% each year, while Phoebe’s increases have been half that.
- Health Savings & Flexible Spending Accounts – These help our employees plan for regular healthcare and afford unexpected health expenses.
- Wellness Programs – These programs Include smoking cessation and chronic illness management.
- Employee Pharmacy – Phoebe paid $6.6M for prescription coverage for employees and provides medication at cost.
- Employee Clinic – Convenient and affordable onsite healthcare is available to employees.
- 403b Match — $7.1 million in fiscal year 2025 and $32 million over the last five years.
- Childcare – We serve about 150 children of Phoebe employees with free child care and development services at Family Tree. Phoebe subsidized $921,617.75 over the last year.
- Wellness Center – Free memberships at Healthworks used by Phoebe Family members equal about $2.5M annually. Healthworks operations cost Phoebe about $440,000.
- Bonuses – For frontline employees (excluding executives, managers, physicians, etc.) we spent almost $7.8 million in bonuses over the last five years, plus an additional $4.7 million hero bonus during COVID.
- Raises & Market Adjustments – Not including this fiscal year, we have spent $55.25 million in raises and market adjustments over the last five years. We are also wrapping up a market analysis on every position in our health system to ensure employees are paid at or above market rate. It should also be noted that – at a time when many health systems furloughed or laid off workers – no Phoebe employee missed a single paycheck during COVID, and Phoebe continued to provide raises and bonuses throughout the pandemic.
- Financial Counseling – Free financial management services are available.
- Minimum Wage – While the federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, Phoebe pays a minimum of $15 per hour.
Looking Ahead
The story of Phoebe is still being written – by and with the people of Albany and southwest Georgia. Today, our focus is on the future – expanding access to care, training the next generation of healthcare professionals and investing in technologies that make care smarter and safer. We know challenges will continue to come our way. But every step we take is guided by the same belief that’s defined us for more than a century: when we work together, we build something better – for everyone.
Our Priorities
- Expanding Access to Care: Bringing advanced services closer to home through new clinics and partnerships that reach every corner of the region
- Investing in Innovation and Safety: Putting safety first every day, building on our leading role in education and training, and upgrading facilities and technology to enhance quality and patient experience
- Developing Our Workforce: Partnering with Morehouse School of Medicine as well as schools and universities throughout the region to retain top healthcare talent in southwest Georgia
- Strengthening Community Well-Being: Advancing preventive health, maternal care and chronic-disease programs that improve lives before hospital care is ever needed
Together, we can keep building a stronger, healthier future for the communities we call home. That’s what Building on Better truly means.
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