NE WS DE S K
Adventist Health White Memorial Wins Prestigious Presidential Award Compiled by Yara Enamorado and Connie Vandeman Jeffery
T
he call from the White House came in November. Wilber Ross, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, was on the line to tell John Raffoul, the hospital president, that Adventist Health White Memorial was a 2019 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award winner. Every year since 1987, the Baldrige Award has recognized a select few U.S. organizations and businesses that have shown an unceasing drive for innovative solutions to complex challenges, visionary leadership, and operational excellence. White Memorial was one of six recipients of the 2019 Baldrige Award. This is the highest level of national recognition for performance excellence that a U.S. organization can receive. Over nearly two decades, White Memorial has worked closely with its partners in the Hispanic-majority community to train more than 224 local residents in nursing. Of these, 100 percent received registered nurse licensing, 70 percent pursued advanced degrees, and 90 percent were still working at the hospital after three years. The result is a nursing staff that reflects the demographics of the community, providing culturally competent care in the primary language of its patients. Adventist Health White Memorial demonstrated continuous improvement practices for delivering healthcare services, exhibited efficient and effective operations,
54
PA C I F I C U N I O N R E CO R D E R
and revealed systematic methods for engaging and responding to patients and other stakeholders. In addition, White Memorial achieved exceptional results in patient safety, patient experience, workforce engagement, and financial performance. Following an intense, multi-day survey at the hospital, Baldrige Award examiners noted several outstanding achievements that led to their choice of White Memorial as one of the six award recipients for 2019. Four achievements caught the attention of the examiners: • Since 2014, not a single patient has returned to White Memorial’s Emergency Department for care following surgery at the hospital. • Since 2013, the hospital has been nearly perfect in the recommended timing for treatment of heart attack patients who need balloon angioplasty to open their blocked artery. • The hospital pioneered a highly
successful program to make its campus a safe zone from gang violence by employing a former gang member as a liaison between White Memorial and local gangs. • Despite the hospital’s location in an economically challenged, medically under-served community, it has an AA+ rating from Standard & Poor’s for its 396 days of cash-onhand—hundreds of days better than the hospital’s nearest competitors. This is exciting news for Adventist Health as this is the second Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in their hospital system. In 2017, Adventist Health Castle was the only organization in Hawaii's history to receive this honor. Adventist Health White Memorial is the first Baldrige Award recipient for any hospital in Los Angeles County. The 2019 Baldrige Awards will be presented at a ceremony on March 24, 2020, during the Baldrige Program’s 32nd annual Quest for Excellence® conference, which will be held in National Harbor, Maryland.
