Of the many lessons we've learned over the years, the most important one is that, no matter how high we set our goals, we can't lose sight of the basics.

And the most important basic is safety.

So, in this issue, you'll find two stories that demonstrate our commitment to keeping patients, families and staff safe. One explores our efforts to be prepared for mass casualty incidents and other emergencies. For those of us who might be tempted to shrug off fire drills or opt out of getting RAVE alerts on our cell phones, it's impressive (and hopefully motivating) to see how many people in our region, and in our organization, take the training and drills seriously.

Our second story offers a recap of the 13th annual Frederick C. Ryckman Surgical Stand Down. Our perioperative area has an outstanding safety record, and they are doing everything they can to keep it that way.