Ashley Regional Medical Center Named to the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals® List
April 28, 2021
Annual list recognizes excellence in clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, patient experience, and financial health
Annual ranking introduces first measure of hospitals’ contributions to community health with a focus on equity
Vernal, Utah – April 28, 2021 – Ashley Regional Medical Center has been named to the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals® list. This is the second time Ashley Regional has been recognized with this honor as one of the top-performing small community hospitals in the U.S. The annual list was published April 27th by Fortune.
IBM Watson Health has identified the top hospitals from a rigorous evaluation of 2,675 short-term, acute care, non-federal hospitals in the U.S. The annual list recognizes excellence in clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, patient experience, and financial health. IBM Watson Health established the list to help identify best practices that may help other healthcare organizations achieve consistent, balanced, and sustainable high performance.
This year’s ranking of top hospitals also introduces a measure of hospitals’ contributions to community health with a focus on equity developed by a team of experts at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Equity and the Bloomberg American Health Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. For the ranking, hospitals were surveyed across three components: 1) assessing hospital contributions to community health as a provider of critical services for community health and preventive care; 2) identifying ways that hospitals contribute to community health as a community partner teaming up with local organizations to implement critical programs; and 3) focusing on ways that hospitals promote community health through their practices as anchor institutions supporting local economic and social progress. Hospitals received credit for meeting a certain number of best practice standards in each component as part of the survey scoring and the new measure led to a change in ranking for more than one-third of the 100 hospitals.
“Patient care, safety and the overall well-being of our community are top priorities for Ashley Regional,” stated Greg Gardiner, chief clinical officer at Ashley Regional Medical Center. “We strive to provide top-tier patient care, consistently assess services that would be beneficial within the community and have an incredibly skilled and compassionate team. It’s important work and it’s an honor to help our neighbors, friends, family and communities.”
Ashley Regional Medical Center is celebrating its 80th anniversary serving the Uintah Basin this year. Since opening, the hospital has had many transitions. The most recent updates include renovations that enhanced the Emergency Department, Intensive Care, and the addition of the Women’s Center and Infusion/Chemotherapy. Ashley Regional is able to care for patients from NICU babies to end-of-life care.
“I am proud to be a part of the team that provides excellent care to our community,” said Wes Taylor, chief executive officer at Ashley Regional Medical Center. “I am also proud that without hesitation, I have and will continue to choose Ashley Regional for my healthcare needs.”
This recognition demonstrates Ashley Regional Medical Center’s ongoing commitment to prioritize patient-centered care. According to IBM Watson Health, as compared to similar hospitals, the hospitals included on the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list had better results on key clinical and operational performance indicators. These include survival rates, patient complications, healthcare associated infections, 30-day mortality and 30-day hospital-wide readmission rates, length of stay, throughput in emergency departments, inpatient expenses, profitability and ratings from patients.
“We are proud of all of the hospitals, health systems and their dedicated clinicians and staff included among the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals,” said Irene Dankwa-Mullan, MD, MPH, Chief Health Equity Officer and Deputy Chief Health officer at IBM Watson Health. “From small community hospitals to major teaching hospitals, organizations on this list demonstrate a relentless commitment to high value, patient-centered care and innovation. They also recognize the importance of contributing to the health of their communities and we applaud them for their programs that help provide equitable quality care and address health disparities.”
For more information, visit http://www.100tophospitals.com/.
About Ashley Regional Medical Center
Through its 39-bed, Joint Commission-accredited acute care facility and physician practices, Ashley Regional Medical Center provides inpatient and outpatient services to the populations of Uintah, Duchesne and Daggett counties in Utah and Rio Blanco County in Colorado. It is a designated Level IV trauma center, an Accredited Chest Pain Center and has been designated as a Stroke Receiving Facility by the Utah State Department of Health. The hospital's campus also includes a 45,000-square-foot, three-story Women's Center and an Infusion Center. Ashley Regional has been recognized by Health Insight, Leapfrog Group and other sources for excellence in quality indicators and measures.
About the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals® List
The Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list is determined using independent and objective research to analyze hospital performance. Organizations do not apply or pay for this honor or pay to promote their award. Award-winning hospitals and health systems serve as a model of excellence for the industry.
About IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals® Program
The IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals Program’s annual studies result in the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list, Fortune/IBM Watson Health 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals list and IBM Watson Health 15 Top Health Systems list. Organizations do not apply or pay for this honor or pay to promote their award. Award-winning hospitals and health systems serve as a model of excellence for the industry. Visit http://www.100tophospitals.com/ for more information.
About IBM Watson Health
IBM Watson Health is a data, analytics, and technology partner for the health industry. Supported by the innovation of IBM and intelligence of Watson, we are committed to helping build smarter health ecosystems. Through the combination of our deep industry expertise in health, data and analytics, actionable insights, and reputation for security and trust, Watson Health is working together with its clients and partners to help them achieve simpler processes, better care insights, faster breakthroughs, and improved experiences for people around the world. Learn more at ibm.com/watson/health.
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