Northwest Health Receives Arkansas Governor’s Quality Award
9/30/2019
Northwest Health was one of just twenty organizations from throughout the state to be presented an Arkansas Governor’s Quality Award by Governor Asa Hutchinson during the 25th Annual Awards Celebration for the Governor’s Quality Award Program held on September 12 in Little Rock. More than 300 business and civic leaders from throughout Arkansas attended the celebration where Governor Asa Hutchinson presented the awards.
The awards process includes four levels with the highest-level Governor’s Award for Performance, followed by the Achievement, Commitment and Challenge Award levels. Twelve organizations received the Challenge level and seven organizations, including Northwest Health, received the Commitment level awards.
Organizations self-assess and carefully review the award-level requirements before deciding at which level to apply. In addition to the award recognition, the greatest value for program participants is the in-depth evaluation and written feedback report citing strengths and areas for improvement.
The goal of the program is to encourage Arkansas organizations to engage in continuous quality improvement, which leads to performance excellence. Created as a not-for-profit organization, the program is dedicated to assist in building a strong infrastructure for Arkansas businesses. The awards process aligns with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality award and used the Baldrige Excellence Framework.
The Governor’s Quality Award program is coordinated by the Arkansas Institute for Performance Excellence, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce.
“On behalf of the patients we serve, I want to recognize and thank every employee, medical staff member, and volunteer who are focused on providing exceptional care at all times,” said Shanda Guenther, RN, Chief Quality Officer for Northwest Health. “This recognition is due to our staff’s passionate commitment to providing the highest level of care, with a continuous focus on quality improvement.”
Northwest Health is the largest health system in Northwest Arkansas with five hospitals: Northwest Medical Center – Bentonville, Northwest Medical Center – Springdale, Northwest Medical Center – Willow Creek Women’s Hospital, Siloam Springs Regional Hospital and Northwest Health Physicians’ Specialty Hospital.
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