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Moses Cone Health System is more than the place many of us go for medical care.

Founded as a single institution in 1953, today it operates five hospitals in Greensboro and Rockingham County.

It’s where most local babies are born (more than 100,000 in the last two decades) and where most emergency treatment occurs.

It’s a regional leader in neuroscience, with 12 surgeons on a staff that treats more than 1,000 patients a year.

Most recently, it announced plans to open a new surgical center in High Point and, in a new twist, primary care offices in some area Walmarts.

With a workforce of approximately 8,000,  Cone also is the largest nongovernmental employer in Guilford County.

That makes it a major player not only in the physical health of this community, but its economic health as well.

And it wants to get better.

“When we talk about quality we look at triple-A,” said Cone’s president and CEO, Tim Rice. “That means clinical quality, service and cost.

“And our goal,” he said simply, “is to be in the top 10 in the nation.”

Cone already ranks in the top 25 percent of its peers, Rice recently told the News & Record. But he concedes some weaknesses. For example: “Where we’re really good on the service side is Women’s Hospital,” he said. “Not so good at Cone. We’re crowded. We’ve got some older facilities there that need working on.”

So Cone is investing more than $380 million in new facilities and resources. In addition to the new surgical center, its plans include an ongoing, $15 million expansion of the cancer center and a major technology upgrade that will manage patient records more efficiently. As for Cone Hospital, a new $200 million north tower will replace semiprivate patient rooms with private ones. “In this market we should not have semiprivate rooms,” Rice said.

But significant challenges remain, including the still-unsettled federal health care reform debate: “I think everybody is playing their role,” Rice said, “But if we don’t have broad-based insurance, insurance doesn’t work.” And if insurance doesn’t work, emergency rooms bear the burden. Cone totaled $146.1 million in unpaid medical bills and charity care in 2010, up from $96.8 million in 2007.

Then there’s the tattered state mental health system. “We still don’t have good solutions in our community,” Rice said of too many “revolving door” patients.

As for Cone’s bitter battle with Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina in 2007 over their contract, which comes up for renewal soon, Rice would only say: “I will do my very best for this not to be a public fight again.”

But the overall prognosis is more than hopeful. Cone is healthy and growing. It continues to be a willing partner and key advocate for a variety of local initiatives.

Cone supported the failed bid for a UNCG pharmacy school and a new physician assistant program at Elon University. It also will partner with the planned pharmacy school at High Point University.

That kind of strong, conscientious leadership bodes well for the entire region.