Journal of Sacred Work

A Healing Hospital* plants a culture of Radical Loving Care which pervades every aspect of the organization. – Erie Chapman 

   The staff of the Baptist Healing Trust is pleased to announce the list of hospitals which have qualified as Healing Hospitals for 2006. These organizations have developed cultures of Radical Loving Care characterized by an exceptional focus on caring for caregivers who in turn do an extraordinary job caring for patients.   
   This year, we are also in the process of developing a list of health care systems which have made a meaningful commitment to establishing cultures of Radical Loving Care throughout their organization.
   Since we have not, of course, been able to visit every hospital in the country, our analysis is based on information we believe reliably represents the loving care practices at the selected organization. Congratulations to the leadership of these organizations as well as to each and every caregiver who carries the golden thread of healing…

America’s Healing Hospitals – 2006

1. Parrish Medical Center (above) – Titusville, Florida (2nd year in a row)
    This organizations refuses to rest on its laurels and continues to strive for improvement in every area. Under the enlightened leadership of CEO George Mikitarian, Parrish were quick to adopt the Trust’s Touch Card system, have made significant strides in improving quality care and practice in their already fine Emergency Department, and have hired loving leaders in their new Chief Nursing Officer and Chief Medical Officer. Just one example of why Parrish is number one is their development of a special Skylight "Patient Alerts" system. Working in conjunction with a vendor, Parrish customized the patient television system to allow patients to fill out instant surveys. An alarm goes off on pagers whenever a score falls below "Good." Who gets the alerts? The CEO himself! This enables an unparalleled level of rapid response to patient concerns. Patients are pleasantly startled at the speed with which their issues are addressed. This also allows trending data which enables leadership to track hot spots in the organization. Parrish developed this idea because they care so deeply about making their patient’s happy. The culture of loving care in this organization is the best we have seen and is a model for the country.

2. Mercy Gilbert Hospital (left) – (Catholic Health West) Gilbert, Arizona
    Like Parrish, Mercy Gilbert is blessed with exceptional leadership and a brilliantly designed new facility that rises out of the desert outside Phoenix like an oasis. But CEO Laurie Eberst didn’t just oversee the building of an innovative facility, she has done a dazzling job of growing a culture of Radical Loving Care among Mercy’s employees. We believe that Mercy Gilbert has become a bright and rising star in the constellation of hospitals that is Catholic Health West. If the rest of the CHW system chooses to use Mercy Gilbert as a model, this system could become one of the best patient-centered care organizations in the country.

3. St. Joseph Hospital, (St. Joseph Health System) Orange County, California
    Veteran CEO Larry Ainsworth is pulling out all the stops to create a culture of sacred encounters at this major hospital in Southern California. With the support of system CEO Deborah Proctor and system mission officer Nancy Lee, Larry has set a visionary course for his hospital that has moved them rapidly up the ranks of America’s finest Healing Hospitals. Larry is setting a personal example by working once on month out on the floors with is first line staff! Under the leadership of Chief Nursing Officer Katie Skelton, St. Joe’s has achieved magnet nursing status. But the thing that distinguishes this organization is the uniform strength of its leadership team, the quality of its medical staff, and a deep commitment to loving care in all aspects of the hospital’s work.

4. Johnson City Medical Center (MSHA) – Johnson City, Tennessee
    This 400+ bed medical center is a diamond living in the hills of eastern Tennessee. The flagship of the rapidly growing Mountain States Health Alliance, JCMC is a first rate hospital with a laser focus on loving care. Under the overall leadership of CEO Dennis Vonderfecht and Chief Nursing Executive Kathryn Wilhoit, MSHA has made patient-centered care its top priority. This has enabled Johnson City Medical center to garner recognition that includes:
   -Magnet Hospital Status
   -Solucient Top 100 Heart Hospital
   -National Get with the Guidelines Patient Challenge for Stroke recognition by the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association
   -Blue Cross Blue Shield Blue Distinction – Center for Cardiac Care Customers Consumer’s Choice Award by the
National Research Council for the region: Best Overall Quality, Best Doctors,
Best Nurses, Most Personalized Care and Having the Best Reputation.

   This kind of focus at other MSHA hospitals will position this system for further recognition as a Healing Hospital System.

5. Sparrow Hospital – Lansing, Michigan

    Although this large, teaching hospital for Michigan State University has not yet achieved all of its goals for patient satisfaction, CEO Dennis Swan has lead radical change in an organization which, years ago, was just another nice hospital. With the help of Brian Lee’s Custom Learning Systems, Sparrow is engaging a wide range of front line staff members in driving the kind of changes that can transform this hospital into a leader in radical loving care. As with all top Healing Hospitals, the main guidance is coming from the top through the leadership of Mr. Swan. Congratulations to this organization on the advances it has made.

6. Lourdes Hospital (Catholic Health Partners) – Paducah, Kentucky
    After a couple of years of financial challenges and CEO changes, new CEO Steve Grinnell is leading his hospital around the corner and into the top ranks of Healing Hospitals. The steady and committed guidance of Sister Marie Moore has kept this organization on mission through hard changes. Now, Lourdes has qualified as a Healing Hospital and has the chance to further strengthen its mission performance.

7. Wuesthoff Hospital –  Rockledge – Florida
    With heroic persistence, Senior Vice President Johnette Gindling has championed the cause of Radical Loving Care across the last two+ years. With the support of CEO Emil Miller, this organization has succeeded. The relatively new Chief Operating Officer at the Rockledge Campus has already made meaningful changes in the culture of caring at this Space Coast facility and we are pleased to recognize them as one of our top ten Healing Hospitals.

8. St. Mary’s Hospital (St. Joseph Health System) – Apple Valley, California
    In just over a year, CEO Jason Barker has re-focused the agenda of this mid-sized hospital to focus on Radical Loving Care and Sacred Encounters. He has made gradual, but exemplary progress and is moving to put in place the remaining elements that will position this hospital as a leader in the loving care movement.

9. Riverside Methodist Hospital (OhioHealth) – Columbus, Ohio

   One of the places where the culture of loving care was first planted in the early 1980s, this hospital seemed to slip backwards in the late 1990s. We are pleased to say that Riverside Methodist, a 1000-bed teaching facility, is now back in the top ranks of America’s Healing Hospitals. Under the system leadership of CEO David Blom and the hospital leadership of Bruce Hagen, Riverside’s star is shining again.

10. Griffin Hospital – Derby Connecticut
     Long recognized as one of the most employer-friendly hospitals in the country, Griffin is a beautiful example of the power of the Planetree model of care. Griffin doesn’t pay the highest wages in Connecticut, but it is among the highest in employee and patient satisfaction. The culture in this organization offers lessons for all Healing Hospitals. CEO Patrick Charmel is clearly leading one of the most employee-friendly organizations in America.

Honorable Mention:
St. Jude Hospital (St. Joseph Health System) for the leadership of Doreen Dann in establishing the My Story program, a concept which is moving to hospitals around the country and significantly improving patient-caregiver encounters.

St. Charles Hospital – Bend, Oregon – for their pioneering work in healing environments and in establishing a culture of Radical Loving Care

Congratulations to each of these organizations. Watch for our list of Healing Healthcare Systems later this year.

*Healing Hospital is a protected designation of the Baptist Healing Trust, Nashville, Tennessee and may not be used without the written consent of the President & CEO or his designee.