29 HCA Healthcare hospitals recognized for patient experience

Each year, HCA Healthcare recognizes our more than 309,000 colleagues for the commitment, compassion and care they show for our patients by observing Patient Experience Week. As the week comes to a close, we’re highlighting the facilities that received recognition for their patient care this year and sharing stories of how our caregivers continually go above and beyond to make the patient experience the best it can be.

Press Ganey Human Experience Awards

Press Ganey, a leader in Human Experience (HX) improvement, announced recipients of the Press Ganey Human Experience Awards in January 2023, recognizing healthcare organizations across the United States committed to excellence in experience for their patients, workforce and the communities they serve. Human Experience Award recipients included 29 HCA Healthcare hospitals.

Guardian of Excellence Award 

The Guardian of Excellence Award® honors organizations that perform in the top 5% of healthcare organizations for patient experience, employee engagement, physician engagement or clinical quality performance in one year. This year, the following 23 HCA Healthcare facilities were named Guardian of Excellence Award® recipients for patient experience: 

• Corpus Christi Medical Center Bayview (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Corpus Christi, Texas 
• Del Sol Medical Center (Outpatient Oncology) in El Paso, Texas 
• Doctors Hospital of Augusta (Outpatient Oncology) in Augusta, Georgia 
• Frankfort Regional Medical Center (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Frankfort, Kentucky 
• Grand Strand Medical Center (Outpatient Oncology) in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina 
• HCA Florida Lake City Hospital Cancer Center (Outpatient Oncology) in Lake City, Florida 
• HCA Florida Kendall Hospital (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Miami, Florida 
• HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Fort Pierce, Florida 
• HCA Florida Mercy Hospital (Outpatient Oncology) in Miami, Florida 
• HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Sarasota, Florida 
• HCA Florida University Hospital (Emergency Department) in Davie, Florida 
• HCA Houston Healthcare Southeast (NICU) in Pasadena, Texas 
• HCA Houston Healthcare West (Outpatient Oncology) in Houston, Texas 
• Heart Hospital of Austin (HCAHPS and Inpatient) in Austin, Texas 
• Highlands-Cashiers Hospital (Emergency Department) in Highlands, North Carolina 
• Methodist Hospital I Specialty and Transplant (Inpatient Rehabilitation) in San Antonio, Texas 
• Methodist ER Alamo Heights (Emergency Department) in San Antonio, Texas 
• Reston Hospital Center (NICU) in Reston, Virginia 
• Retreat Doctors’ Hospital (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Richmond, Virginia 
• Terre Haute Regional Hospital (Outpatient Oncology) in Terre Haute 
• Texas Orthopedic Hospital (HCAHPS and Inpatient) in Houston, Texas 
• TriStar Centennial Medical Center (CH CAHPS) in Nashville, Tennessee 
• TriStar StoneCrest Medical Center (Outpatient Oncology) in Smyrna, Tennessee 

Pinnacle of Excellence Award 

The Pinnacle of Excellence Award recognizes Press Ganey clients who have maintained consistently high levels of performance for three years, with the highest-performing organizations winning in each category. This year, six HCA Healthcare facilities were named Pinnacle of Excellence Award recipients: 

• College Park Endoscopy Center (Outpatient and Ambulatory Surgery CAHPS) in Overland Park, Kansas 
• Frankfort Regional Medical Center (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Frankfort, Kentucky 
• HCA Florida Largo Hospital (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Largo, Florida 
• HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital (Inpatient Behavioral Health) in Fort Pierce, Florida 
• St Lucie Surgery Center (Outpatient and Ambulatory Surgery CAHPS) in Port St. Lucie, Florida 
• TriStar Centennial Medical Center (CH CAHPS) in Nashville, Tennessee 

Learn more about the annual Press Gainey Human Experience Awards on their website.

Patient experience stories

To colleagues across HCA Healthcare, thank you for standing for accessible, high-quality healthcare delivered with compassion, integrity and kindness. Below, we share a few of our favorite stories that showcase our workforce’s commitment to providing healthcare that puts people first.

Couple says “I do” with the help from nursing staff

Less than a month before Preston Cobb planned to wed his fiancé Tanesha in their dream ceremony, a severe chemical spill accident threatened to derail their special day. Preston was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) at HCA Healthcare affiliate Joseph M. Still (JMS) Burn Center at Doctors Hospital of Augusta in Georgia. With life-threatening burns on 32 percent of his body, Preston had to be on a ventilator and ultimately required more than 15 surgeries.

Despite the setback, the couple was determined to still wed on their original wedding date – July 22, 2023. “There’s nothing that would stop me from marrying him,” Tanesha said. “Nothing. I knew that this day would come. I didn’t think it would be like this.”

When JMS Burn Center nurse Mary Cook learned of the couple’s pending nuptials, she was inspired by their dedication and commitment to each other. She set out to give the couple a wedding they’d cherish forever. Working with care teams across the hospital, Mary ensured all the details were taken care of – including a DJ, decorations, flowers, a wedding cake and a photographer.

On the couple’s original wedding date, Preston and Tanesha beamed with happiness as they were wed in the hospital’s chapel surrounded by friends, family, and Preston’s nursing staff.

Caregivers hold a graduation for 8-month-old patient following a successful surgery

HCA Healthcare patient Wyatt Zeruth is all smiles despite being in and out of the hospital since he was born in August of 2023. Wyatt was born with a bilateral cleft lip, a birth defect that affects thousands of babies born each year in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Sarah, Wyatt’s mother, learned about his birth defect during an anatomy scan when she was 20 weeks pregnant and excited to see her baby’s development. She recalls a flurry of emotions from shock and even sadness when she learned of his diagnosis. Sarah was then referred to Dr. Sanjay Patwardhan at HCA Healthcare affiliate Summerville Maternal Fetal Medicine. Things shifted for Sarah when she first laid eyes on her son after his birth. She remembers the first words out of her mouth, “My beautiful, perfect boy.”

At 13 days old, Wyatt had his first appointment with Dr. Michelle Ruse, a maxillofacial prosthodontist at Trident Medical Center’s Head and Neck Specialists. The two developed a special bond during phase one of his care while Dr. Ruse helped Wyatt prepare for his procedures. Dr. Ruse used a technique called nasoalveolar molding (NAM) to non-surgically reshape Wyatt’s gums, lips, and nostrils with a plastic plate. This helps make the cleft less severe and often decreases the number of required surgeries.

After successfully completing his first surgery in phase two of his treatment to repair the right side of his lip, Wyatt’s care team was eager to celebrate his success and bravery. They decided to throw Wyatt a graduation, complete with a cap and gown

8-month-old Wyatt recently underwent his second surgery to repair the left side of his lip and has another surgery scheduled for this fall. “We are forever grateful to her[Dr. Ruse] and her team,” Sarah shared.

Wyatt’s care team will continue to cheer Wyatt on as they pass each milestone in his care journey.

Patients celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary with help from hospital staff

On the morning of his 60th wedding anniversary, Bob Price worried that he would be unable to celebrate the milestone with his beloved wife. Both Bob and his wife Mary were patients in different units at HCA Healthcare’s Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence, Missouri.

Lauren Kupersmith, director of food and nutrition services at the hospital was delivering Bob’s breakfast when she learned of this special day.

“Bob shared with me how he first met his wife, what she was wearing, how amazing it was to raise seven kids together and how he wished he could see her today, on their anniversary,” Lauren said. “Bob’s story was so heartfelt, it brought tears to my eyes, when I left his room, I knew I needed to do whatever it took to make sure they saw each other on their anniversary.”

Lauren worked quickly, pulling in the couple’s case managers, nursing teams and the nutrition staff, to not only arrange a visit, but to provide a special lunch for the couple.

The menu included sirloin steak, potatoes au gratin, herb-roasted green beans and bread pudding for dessert.

Caregivers become family for NICU patient and parents

Spending baby Shiloh’s first birthday in a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is not how his parents expected to celebrate when they learned they would be adding a boy to their family. However, after being born prematurely at 29 weeks with a chronic lung injury and a hole in his heart, Shiloh needed around-the-clock specialized care.

Due to Shiloh’s diagnosis, he was transferred to HCA Florida University Hospital in Davie, Florida, where he could have surgery to repair his congenital heart defect, patent ductus areriosus (PDA), which caused a hole in his heart. Before reaching a year old, Shiloh needed heart surgery, a tracheotomy and a gastrotomy tube procedure so he could receive the nutrition he needed.

Shiloh’s family found themselves on a scary and unexpected journey with one young son at home and another in the hospital over two hours from their home. Shiloh’s care team stepped up to reassure and comfort them throughout his medical care journey. Because of this, his family quickly formed a lifelong bond with Amanda Rich, his nurse. “I remember the first day I met Amanda,” shared Lomieka Messam, Shiloh’s mother. “I knew I was going to like her because of her calm, humble and gentle spirit.”

To celebrate Shiloh’s first birthday, Amanda and the rest of his care team worked with his family to plan and decorate for the party, equipped with everything from balloons to a cake. To make the day extra special, Dr. Thomas Campo – the cardiopulmonary director at HCA Florida University Hospital – obtained an Elmo costume so Shiloh could have a surprise birthday visit from his favorite TV character. The birthday boy was all smiles as his family and the care team celebrated together.

“It was inspiring to see how a close-knit team of NICU nurses, neonatologists and respiratory therapists worked so well together to afford Shiloh and his family the best outcome, considering how it all began,” Dr. Campo shared. “We are blessed and honored to have been able to make such a difference in not only his life, but the lives of everyone who loves and cherishes him.”

After Shiloh was discharged from the hospital, Lomieka felt compelled to share gratitude with the HCA Healthcare nurse for all that she did for her family. Below, we share an excerpt from Lomieka’s letter to Amanda:

Patient delighted with surprise barbershop quartet performance

HCA Healthcare patient and Delaware native Mike Frances was excited to spend a week exploring Nashville, Tennessee during the holiday season with his wife. They had a full itinerary with tours across the city, which included seeing the Grand Ole Opry, the Ryman Auditorium and most anticipated – the Barbershop Harmony Society Headquarters. This was at the top of Mike’s to-do list as he had been a chapter member and active barbershop singer since he was 16 years old.

However, a medical emergency derailed the couple’s entire trip and Mike was admitted to HCA Healthcare’s TriStar Summit Medical Center in Hermitage, Tennessee. When hospital colleagues learned about Mike’s initial itinerary for his trip, they extended a bit of southern hospitality and made a few phone calls to organize a surprise.

On Mike’s last day at the hospital, he received a visit from the Nashville Music Medics. The group is a community outreach program that provides comfort, joy and music to patients in the hospital in and around Nashville. Working with Mike’s care team, the Nashville Music Medics were able to pull together a quartet so that Mike and his family wouldn’t have to return to Delaware without hearing live music. With joy apparent across Mike’s face during the performance, the barbershop quartet invited him to sing along. The performance made Mike excited to return to Nashville one day to see what more Music City has to offer.

Nurses help patient witness a once-in-a-lifetime event

On the afternoon of April 8, much of the United States paused to head outside and witness the solar eclipse. However, inside HCA Healthcare’s Lee’s Summit Medical Center, there was a patient waiting for a nuclear medicine outpatient procedure. While watching news coverage of the event on the television, the patient told her nurses, Cammie and Keisha, that it would likely be her last chance to see the phenomenon and how she was disappointed to miss it.

The two nurses, who have been caring for patients at the Lee’s Summit, Missouri hospital for more than 50 combined years, didn’t think twice about making their patient’s wish come true. In no time, they took her outside in a wheelchair, sharing their eclipse glasses and searching the sky together.

Cammie and Keisha said their only goal was to make the patient happy, turning the wait for what would have been a routine procedure into a memorable patient experience.