Press Release

Three Hospitals Honored for Commitment to Quality

American Hospital Association-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize Recognizes Hospital Leadership and Innovation in Quality Improvement and Safety

SAN DIEGO (July 14, 2016) – The American Hospital Association (AHA) today announced that Memorial Medical Center, based in Springfield, Ill., has been named as the 2016 recipient of the American Hospital Association-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize^®. In addition, two other U.S. hospitals — Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Hospital in Houston and Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge, La. — will also be recognized for their leadership and innovation in quality improvement and safety.

Memorial Medical Center, an acute community-based hospital serving central Illinois, was selected by a multi-disciplinary committee of health care quality and patient safety experts based on its exemplary achievements in quality, safety and patient-centered care.

Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Hospital in Houston will be honored as a finalist. Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge, La., is slated to receive the Citation of Merit.

The American Hospital Association-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize is presented annually to honor leadership and innovation in quality improvement and safety. The prize is supported by a grant from the McKesson Corporation. This year’s recipients will be recognized on July 17 at the Health Forum-AHA Leadership Summit in San Diego.

Criteria for the 2016 award include the demonstration of an organizational commitment to and progress in achieving quality, safety and effective, efficient, timely and patient-centered care. The award honors hospitals that are making progress in quality improvement and offer models that can be replicated by others in the hospital field.

“These hospitals have made remarkable strides in the quality of their patient care and they did so because they were committed to excellence,” said Rick Pollack, the AHA’s president and CEO. “The entire hospital field can learn from the lessons demonstrated by the hard work of these hospitals, their boards and employees.”

“McKesson is proud to support America’s outstanding hospitals through the Quest for Quality award,” said John Hammergren, chairman and CEO, McKesson Corporation. “These award-winning hospitals’ achievements will extend far beyond their own health systems. Thanks to their leadership and innovation, other healthcare organizations can replicate these care and quality processes, improving patient safety and outcomes everywhere.”

Prize Winner: Memorial Medical Center – Springfield, Ill.

Memorial Medical Center’s board, leadership and employees are engaged and committed to promoting and documenting high-quality, patient-centered care. Their commitment sets the standard for this year’s awards. Memorial’s state-of-the-art simulation center within the Memorial Center for Learning and Innovation, designed to improve how clinicians are trained to deliver safer, higher quality patient care, is particularly impressive. It also serves as a shared resource for other providers in the area as well as a clinical training ground for the health professions educational programs in the region. The use of this simulation center ultimately helps the area’s clinicians collaborate more effectively in the delivery of care.

Finalist: Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Hospital – Houston

Memorial Hermann Greater Heights Hospital has built a pervasive culture of safety that is embraced by an engaged team of leaders and fully supported by committed front-line staff. Their dedication to the hospital and its quality mission makes this an organization to be proud of as it embraces quality improvement and the safety of its patients, their families and the community it serves.

Citation of Merit: Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center – Baton Rouge, La.

In a state and local community forever changed following Hurricane Katrina, Our Lady of the Lake made it a priority to help heal its community through the provision of physical and behavioral health services in clinics, churches and schools. They also embraced the challenge of providing educational programs for residents, interns and other health care providers after the hurricane destroyed the clinical sites in which those trainees were being educated. The hospital is an excellent example of how to remain true to the core mission of delivering high quality, safe care while rapidly expanding services to meet the evolving needs of its community.

About the American Hospital Association (AHA)

The AHA is a not-for-profit association of health care provider organizations and individuals that are committed to the improvement of health in their communities. The AHA is the national advocate for its members, which include nearly 5,000 hospitals, health care systems, networks and other providers of care. Founded in 1898, the AHA provides education for health care leaders and is a source of information on health care issues and trends. For more information, visit www.aha.org.

About McKesson Corporation

McKesson Corporation, currently ranked 5th on the FORTUNE 500, is a healthcare services and information technology company dedicated to making the business of healthcare run better. McKesson partners with payers, hospitals, physician offices, pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies, and others across the spectrum of care to build healthier organizations that deliver better care to patients in every setting. McKesson helps its customers improve their financial, operational, and clinical performance with solutions that include pharmaceutical and medical-surgical supply management, healthcare information technology, and business and clinical services. For more information, visit www.mckesson.com.management, health care information technology, and business and clinical services. For more information, visit http://www.mckesson.com.

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About the AHA

The AHA is a not-for-profit association of health care provider organizations and individuals that are committed to the health improvement of their communities. The AHA is the national advocate for its members, which include nearly 5,000 hospitals, health care systems, networks, other providers of care and 43,000 individual members. Founded in 1898, the AHA provides education for health care leaders and is a source of information on health care issues and trends. For more information, visit the AHA website at www.aha.org.