Modern Healthcare congratulates the winners and honorable mentions of the 19th annual Spirit of Excellence Awards, co-sponsored by Sodexo Health Care Services.This year's five winners and five honorable mention honorees are profiled on the following pages. Each of the five winners will receive a cash prize of $5,000, and each of the five honorable mentions will receive a $1,500 cash prize.
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With a teen pregnancy rate in or near the top 10 of any community in the state, Lowell, Mass., is seeing immediate benefits from Lowell General Hospital's decision to bring teen-oriented pregnancy prevention, parent education and childbirth classes into Lowell High School.
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Teens in Chelsea, Mich., have reduced recent alcohol and marijuana use by 40% to 50% and indicate a 13% to 32% increase in peer disapproval of such activities since Chelsea Community Hospital began working with the Chelsea School District four years ago to implement the SRSLY (text speak for “seriously”) substance-abuse prevention program.
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To prevent medical errors from affecting patients—and minimizing the harm caused when they do—Helen DeVos Children's Hospital has introduced “high reliability units” in several higher-risk patient-care areas based on evidence-based practices.
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Andalusia (Ala.) Regional Hospital reduced confirmed healthcare-associated infections by 75%—from 1.46% of admissions to 0.37%—from 2010 to 2011 after initiating a pilot program to monitor and improve hand hygiene in December 2010.
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A combination of centralized scheduling, customized nursing grids, a well-trained float pool and the creation of a 13-bed “flex” unit that opens or closes based on volume has enabled University of Utah Health Care to reduce labor costs by $2.4 million while boosting patient satisfaction and quality outcomes during the past 1½ years.
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The 353-bed Heartland Regional Medical Center in St. Joseph, Mo., has spent the past year paying homage to its state's motto with the Show You! project, aimed at improving poor community perception and patient-satisfaction scores in its emergency room.
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Located down the road from the Army's Fort Knox and not much farther from Fort Campbell, the Lincoln Trail Behavioral Health System, based in Radcliff, Ky., has always worked closely with military service members and their families.
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People with physical disabilities who become largely homebound in central Indiana are able to receive high-quality, cost-effective medical care thanks in part to INHouse Primary Care's house-call program, launched in June 2007.
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Hispanic associates—and customers—of WellPoint have received renewed focus during the past three years with the establishment of the SOMOS associate resource group, which aims to provide a view of healthcare through the eyes of Hispanic members.
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Patients at Capital Region Medical Center in Jefferson City, Mo., have been reporting much warmer experiences in hospital waiting rooms during the past seven years since the advent of the Serving Up Smiles Customer Comfort Team.
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