FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 15, 2018
Contact: Lindsey Bertrand | Hill Country Memorial | Marketing | 830-990-8696
HCM earns safety and patient experience awards
Hill Country Memorial was recently recognized by Women’s Choice Award for excellence in patient safety and patient experience.
Women’s Choice Award identifies the best hospitals nationwide that are women-friendly and align with women’s health care needs and preferences. The 2018 awards reflect HCM’s clinical performance and women’s preferences when choosing health care providers for themselves and their families.
Hill Country Memorial was one of 522 hospitals in the nation to receive a Women’s Choice America’s Best Hospitals for Patient Safety Award, putting it in the top 16 percent of 3,179 U.S. hospitals.
“Our patients trust us to provide the best care safely and effectively,” said HCM Patient Safety Coordinator Jennifer Murray, MSN. “To do this, we use things like surgery checklists, communication boards in procedure areas, and rigorous infection control processes. Our team works every day to put safety first in all that we do.”
The patient safety award methodology evaluates 11 measures from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services including infections and complications, patient survey results, and primary research about women’s health care choices. To receive the award, hospitals must also use an “inpatient safe surgery checklist” to assess effective communication and safe practices before, during and after a surgery or procedure.
To be recognized with a Women’s Choice America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Patient Experience Award, HCM was evaluated on specific Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey results. The HCAHPS surveys are a nationwide, standardized survey of patients’ perspectives of hospital care given to a random sample of patients after discharge from a hospital.
Hospitals are evaluated on survey responses including:
- Effective communication with nurses and doctors
- Explanation about medications
- Responsiveness to requests
- Pain management
- Room cleanliness
- Patient recommendation rating
The 100 best scores in each of the four bed-size categories were examined. Hill Country Memorial was recognized in the category for hospitals with 100 beds or fewer.
“Our patients’ feedback through HCAHPS surveys is vital to our mission of providing remarkable care always,” said Holly Schmidt, HCM Director of Patient Experience. “Such feedback tells us what we need to improve and what is most important to the people we serve.”
“The recipients of these awards have led the country by implementing safe practices that have ultimately saved lives,” said Delia Passi, founder and CEO of the Women’s Choice Award. “This recognition is critical for women, making it easier for them to choose a hospital where they and their families are more likely to have a better experience and outcome.”
CUTLINE: As part of a “timeout,” nurse Jennifer Murray checks a communication board before a procedure begins. Such timeouts are a collaborative and standardized effort to ensure the appropriate steps are taken prior to a surgery or other procedure.