For fourth consecutive year Veterans Memorial Hospital honored by Press Ganey for excellence

Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon is proud to announce it has been named a 2013 Guardian of Excellence Award winner by Press Ganey Associates, Inc. The Guardian of Excellence Award recognizes top-performing facilities that consistently achieved the 95th percentile of performance in Emergency Services.
This is the fourth year in a row the hospital has been recognized for its high emergency services satisfaction scores. This year the hospital was recognized with a Guardian of Excellence Award for their Inpatient Services as well.
The Press Ganey Guardian of Excellence Award is a health care industry symbol of achievement. Fewer than five percent of all Press Ganey clients reach this threshold and consistently maintain it for the one-year reporting period.
Press Ganey partners with more than 10,000 health care facilities, including more than half of all U.S. hospitals, to measure and improve the patient experience.
“We are proud to partner with Veterans Memorial Hospital,” said Patrick T. Ryan, CEO of Press Ganey. “Achieving this level of excellence reflects the organization’s commitment to delivering outstanding service and quality. Veterans Memorial Hospital’s efforts benefit patients in Allamakee and northern Clayton County communities and will lead to improved patient experiences.”

LOCAL PRIDE
According to Mike Myers, Veterans Memorial Hospital CEO, the award represents an important recognition from the industry’s leader in measuring, understanding and improving the patient experience, Press Ganey. “Veterans Memorial Hospital is very honored to receive this Guardian of Excellence Award. This makes the fourth year we have been recognized by Press Ganey,” stated Myers. “It is a validation from the people we serve that we are continuing to achieve our goal of friendly, personalized care right here at home. The people who are a part of this excellent team do not do this for the recognition, but they all do an outstanding job of making each visit to our facility a ‘Wow’ experience.”
In 2007, VMH began measuring the emergency room (ER) patient experience using Press Ganey. When initial results showed VMH in the 96th percentile overall, the challenge of sustaining excellent scores was realized.  Consistent, effective and caring communication with patients and their families has been one of the main objectives followed by the hospital staff over the last four years, with a focus on building loyalty among patients.
Veterans Memorial Hospital not only measures patient satisfaction in the emergency room and inpatient area, but all maternity services patients and home health patients are surveyed through Press Ganey as well. The hospital keeps the results and goals of all patient survey results at the forefront of the hospital’s culture. Press Ganey results and comments are compiled monthly and shared with physicians and all staff through a “no secrets” approach.
“What makes this facility so deserving of this recognition is not the equipment or technology available, but the caring and compassion that everyone demonstrates to those who walk through our doors,” adds Myers.  “We challenge ourselves to learn from each encounter, and do even better the next time. As it has been said here so many times, you can go anywhere to get treated, but you come to Veterans Memorial Hospital to be cared for.”