Awards & Recognitions 

National, state and community awards and recognitions are solid indicators of success. Sacred Heart Hospital also regularly celebrates significant milestones and accolades within the healthcare industry.

We are proud of the following awards and honors that recognize our achievements in patient safety, quality, service and in serving our community.

2009 Awards

• Video Production Award of Excellence: Sacred Heart Hospital was named as a winner in the 2009 Communications Review by the Wisconsin Healthcare Public Relations and Marketing Society (WHPRMS). Jennifer Block, Communications Supervisor, Sacred Heart Hospital, earned a WHPRMS “Award of Excellence” in recognition of her video production of “The Haesung Won Journey”, documenting the courageous road to recovery taken by a South Korean exchange student who received treatment at Sacred Heart Hospital’s Brain & Spine Institute. The Award of Excellence is the highest award in its category. Only 19 winners throughout the state received the award of excellence this year.
  
  
  

• In July, Sacred Heart Hospital was recognized for achievement in using evidence-based guidelines to provide the best possible care to patients through The American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines^SM program. Sacred Heart Hospital received the Get With The Guidelines Silver Performance Achievement Award. The awards are given for achievement in coronary artery disease, stroke and/or heart failure treatment. Those hospitals marking 85 percent compliance for 12 consecutive months are given the Silver Performance Achievement Award.
  
  Get With The Guidelines is a hospital-based quality-improvement program designed to ensure that hospitals consistently care for cardiac and stroke patients following the most up-to-date guidelines and recommendations.
  
  
  

• In July, Sacred Heart Hospital received the 2009 Governor’s Forward Award of Excellence, the highest achievement level possible under the Wisconsin Forward Award. Wisconsin Forward Award, the state’s premier organization for the promotion and recognition of high-performance management principals, recognized the hospital for many strengths and best practices, including:

  ·      A commitment to serve the sick, the aged, the poor, and the terminally ill with a  primary concern of each patient’s spiritual, physical, psychological, and social well being.  

  ·      A focus on meeting the needs and expectations of both current and future customers as well as anticipating the future needs of patients, evidenced by an increase in market share.

  ·      Role-model status in the areas of environmental protection, resource conservation, and waste reduction and has recently been recognized for its environmental leadership at the Global Conference on Environmentally Sustainable Health Care.

  
  
  
  

• In May, Sacred Heart Hospital was awarded a 2009 Environmental Leadership Award (ELA) at CleanMed, the sixth international conference on environmentally sustainable healthcare held in Chicago. The award was given by Practice Greenhealth for demonstrating the highest degree of commitment to environmental sustainability. The ELA award is the nation’s most prestigious recognition of innovation in environmentally responsible healthcare. As an ELA recipient, Sacred Heart Hospital has been inducted into Practice Greenhealth’s Environmental Leadership Circle ─ an honor that recognizes hospitals in the vanguard of environmental progress in healthcare for creating a healthy environment for patients, employees, physicians and their communities. [In 2008, Sacred Heart was one of just six hospitals in the nation to receive the ELA award.] 
  
  
• In April, the efforts of Sacred Heart Hospital’s Center for Critical Care were recognized at the 12^th bi-annual Doug Miller Symposium on Organ Donation and the Stars Among Us awards ceremony in Wisconsin Dells. The department received a Certificate of Excellence in recognition of exceptional work, resulting in a 100% conversion rate since January 2006. This means that every patient who was eligible to become an organ donor became one; providing the gift of life to patients and families across the nation.
  
  
• In January, the Chippewa Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross recognized Tari Kennedy, RN, APNP, BC, CCRN, CNRN, Sacred Heart’s Critical Care Clinical Nurse Specialist, as the 2009 Health Care Hero. Watch a video of Tari here.
  
  
• Sacred Heart Hospital has received the American Stroke Association’s “Get With The Guidelines” Silver Performance Achievement Award. The award recognizes the hospital’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of stroke care by ensuring that stroke patients receive treatment according to nationally accepted standards and recommendations. To receive the Silver Performance Achievement Award, Sacred Heart Hospital consistently complied for at least one year with the requirements in the “Get With The Guidelines” Stroke program. These include aggressive use of medications like tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol reducing drugs, and smoking cessation.

2008 Awards

• In its first application in 2008, Sacred Heart Hospital received the Mastery Level of the Wisconsin Forward Award for performance excellence and quality. This achievement recognizes an advanced organizational level that demonstrates skillful practice of performance management principles clearly linked to quality and performance.
  
  
• Sacred Heart Hospital earned the 2008 Bronze Telly Award for the hospital's 'Hope Campaign.' The television campaign focused on Sacred Heart Hospital’s mission of delivering hope. The television advertisements featured physicians and other medical professionals who deliver the message “there is hope here” every day. Founded in 1979, the Telly Awards is an award honoring outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions. The Telly Awards annually showcases the best work of the most respected advertising agencies, production companies, television stations, cable operators, and corporate video departments in the world. It is a widely known and highly respected national and international competition and receives over 14,000 entries annually from all 50 states and many foreign countries.
  
  
• The Wisconsin Hospital Association presented Faye L. Deich, RN, MS, CNAA, Chief Operating Officer at Sacred Heart, with its 2008 Distinguished Service Award. The annual state award honors senior healthcare executives for their exemplary commitment to WHA and distinguished leadership in meeting broad-based community health needs. Since coming to Sacred Heart in 1992 as the hospital’s Chief Nursing Officer, Faye’s patient satisfaction innovations helped inspire staff excellence that resulted in Sacred Heart’s scoring in the top 1% in the nation for inpatient satisfaction (an accomplishment sustained for nine consecutive quarters) and honored with the prestigious Press Ganey Summit Award.
  
  
  



• Website Award of Excellence: Sacred Heart Hospital was named as a winner in the 2008 Communications Review by the Wisconsin Healthcare Public Relations and Marketing Society (WHPRMS). The hospital’s redesigned website, www.sacredhearteauclaire.org, which launched July 2007, earned an “Award of Excellence” for website design and development – the highest award in its category. Ninety-one entries were submitted for judging, and only a select handful received the Award of Excellence. Our hospital’s website received 193 points out of a possible 200 points for usability and organization.
  
  
• Kathern Axelsen, RNC, Clinical Director, Nursing Specialty Services, was honored with the 2008 “Women of Distinction” award by the Girl Scouts of the Northwestern Great Lakes for exemplary achievements and community leadership and for being a role model for younger women and teen Girl Scouts.
  
  
• Sacred Heart Hospital was awarded the 2008 Quality Respiratory Care Recognition award, an honor given to the top 15% of hospitals in the nation. The award given by the American Association for Respiratory Care helps consumers identify facilities that use qualified respiratory therapists to provide respiratory care. Sacred Heart has received this award each year since its inception, and in 2008 was only one of only 19 hospitals in the state to receive the recognition.
  
  
• The 2008 Global Vision Community Partnership Award was presented by the Wisconsin Hospital Association Foundation to MATCh, a innovative community initiative led by Sacred Heart Hospital, The Marshfield Clinic and Luther Midelfort–Mayo Health System. MATCh (Mental Health Assistance for Teens and Children) is a service, through the Family Resource Center of Eau Claire County, that provides mental health information and assistance to improve the overall health of the community.
  
  
• American Heart Association Bronze Award. Sacred Heart Hospital was awarded the 2008 Bronze Initial Performance Award by the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association. The award recognizes performance for three consecutive months of 85% or higher adherence to all performance measures. The hospital’s award was presented in the “America’s Best Hospitals” (July 21, 2008) issue of US News & World Report.

• National Environmental Leadership Award. In May 2008, Sacred Heart Hospital received the Practice Greenhealth Environmental Leadership Award (ELA) for innovative programs that set industry standards for waste reduction and pollution prevention. Recipients of the Practice Greenhealth ELA are distinguished by their pioneering efforts to reduce the healthcare industry’s environmental impact. Sacred Heart Hospital was one of just six hospitals in the nation to receive this award for 2008, enabling the hospital to be inducted into Practice Greenhealth’s Environmental Leadership Circle ─ an honor that recognizes hospitals in the vanguard of environmental progress in healthcare. The award demonstrates that Sacred Heart Hospital is considered to be among the best in the country at creating a healthy environment for patients, employees, physicians and the community as a whole. Click here to learn more about this prestigious award and our hospital's role in protecting the environment.
  

• National Excellence in Healthcare “Five Star” Award was given to Sacred Heart Hospital. This award is a prestigious honor given for medical staff satisfaction by Professional Research Consultants, a healthcare market research company. Five Star and Four Star awards given in the following categories:

2007 Awards

• In 2007, a Silver ADDY Award was presented to Sacred Heart Hospital for the Hope Campaign – Father Klimek television spot. Sacred Heart Hospital also received the Gold ADDY Award for the Stroke Campaign. The ADDY® Awards is the advertising industry’s largest and most representative competition, attracting over 50,000 entries every year in local ADDY® competitions. The mission of the ADDY competition is to recognize and reward creative excellence in the art of advertising.
  
  
• Sacred Heart Hospital earned the 2007 Gold Award for Best Branding campaign for a Medium Hospital from HealthLeaders Media Marketing Awards. The campaign focused on Sacred Heart Hospital’s mission of delivering hope. The print, outdoor, radio and television advertisements featured physicians and other medical professionals who deliver the message “there is hope here” every day. Healthcare Advertising Review is a premiere healthcare advertising and marketing trends publication. Each issue provides in-depth studies of successful marketing and effective creative materials used to market hospitals, hospital systems, clinics and other healthcare facilities.
  
  
• Wisconsin’s continued commitment to organ donation is gaining national attention, and the work of physicians and staff at Sacred Heart Hospital plays a large role in that reputation. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Service Organ Transplantation Breakthrough Collaborative recognized Sacred Heart in 2007 with a Medal of Honor for the hospital's work in achieving a 75 percent organ donation rate, meaning three-fourths of the people who were eligible to be an organ donor became one. The national average is 60 percent. Click here to read the full news release.
  
  
• By demonstrating compliance with The Joint Commission's national standards for healthcare quality and safety, Sacred Heart Hospital earned accreditation from The Joint Commission. The Joint Commission's on-site survey of Sacred Heart Hospital occurred in June 2007. To earn and maintain accreditation from The Joint Commission, an organization must undergo an on-site survey by a Joint Commission survey team at least every three years. Click here to read the full news release.
  
  
• Sacred Heart Hospital is certified as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission. This certification shows the hospital’s commitment to meeting rigorous performance standards in stroke care and it’s ability to care for critical patients. The hospital offers comprehensive treatment for stroke patients and offers western Wisconsin’s only use of the life-saving MERCI Retrieval System. In emergency stroke cases, this technology provides hope when the window of opportunity for conventional drug therapy has closed.
  
  
• 2007 Gold Telly Award for the hospital's ‘Heart of the Matter’ video. The video focused on one man’s courageous recovery from a stroke, thanks to the love and faith of his family, and the dedication of Sacred Heart Hospital’s medical and rehabilitation staff. Founded in 1979, the Telly Awards is an award honoring outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions. The Telly Awards annually showcases the best work of the most respected advertising agencies, production companies, television stations, cable operators, and corporate video departments in the world. It is a widely known and highly respected national and international competition and receives over 14,000 entries annually from all 50 states and many foreign countries.
  
  
  



• Video Production Award of Excellence: Sacred Heart Hospital was named as a winner in the 2007 Communications Review by the Wisconsin Healthcare Public Relations and Marketing Society (WHPRMS) in the “Video Production” category for a video the hospital’s Communications department produced. The inspiring video features one man’s courageous recovery from a stroke, thanks to the love and faith of his family, and the dedication of Sacred Heart Hospital’s medical and rehabilitation staff.
  
  
• Proactive Media Relations Award of Merit: Sacred Heart Hospital earned an Award of Merit in the 2007 Communications Review by the Wisconsin Healthcare Public Relations and Marketing Society (WHPRMS) in the “Proactive Media Relations” category for a story pitch about a stroke patient who made great strides thanks to the support from the hospital’s rehabilitation team and the help of a new Bioness® hand-stimulation technology.

• The Center for Cancer Treatment & Prevention at Sacred Heart Hospital received renewed accreditation with commendation from the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer. Sacred Heart Hospital’s program is the only cancer treatment program in western Wisconsin accredited by this group.
  
  
• Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce Community Development Award recognizing efforts in economic well being, sense of the community, workforce issues, cultural enhancements and Chamber involvement.
  
   
• National Excellence in Healthcare “Five Star” Awards were given, a prestigious honor given for medical staff satisfaction by Professional Research Consultants, a healthcare market research company. Five Star and Four Star awards given in the following categories:

* * * * *  Radiology Services

* * * * *  Patient Safety

* * * * *  Pathology Services

* * * * *  Laboratory Services

* * * *    Medical Records & Information

* * * *    Anesthesia Services

* * * *    As a Place to Practice Medicine 

2006 Awards 

• Summit Award - Press Ganey Associates’ highest award given for three consecutive years of sustained patient satisfaction in the 95th percentile or above. More than 1,000 hospitals were surveyed for patient satisfaction and only 14 (including Sacred Heart Hospital) were given the Summit Award. Sacred Heart Hospital ranked at the top of this elite group with average inpatient satisfaction in the top 1% (placing us in an exclusive class with only five other hospitals in the nation).
  
  
  

  

• Proactive Media Relations Award of Excellence: Sacred Heart Hospital was named as a winner in the 2006 Communications Review by the Wisconsin Healthcare Public Relations and Marketing Society (WHPRMS) in the “Proactive Media Relations” category for a story pitch that our hospital’s Communications department made about a new procedure Sacred Heart Hospital's Brain & Spine Institute was offering to treat a specific type of aneurysm.
  
  
• Spirit of Eau Claire Award - The highest honor given by the United Way of Greater Eau Claire, recognizing excellence in corporate and employee contributions, community education about health and human service needs and promoting voluntarism. 
  
  
• Paragon Award - given by the Eau Claire Area Economic Development Corporation to recognize the Hospital’s significant impact on the local economy through job creation and substantial investments in facility improvements and capital equipment. 
  
  
• American Association of Respiratory Care Quality Respiratory Care Recognition, an award received for the fourth year in a row (only 20% of U.S. hospitals receive this recognition).
  
  
• Sacred Heart Hospital’s Renal Dialysis Center was honored in June 2006 in the top ten facilities for Arterial Venous Fistula (AVF) Best Practices in the Midwest (the Midwestern Fistula First Renal Network includes North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan).
  
  
• Board of Directors member Terry Sheridan, Ph.D., was honored by the Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA) in 2006 with Trustee of the Year, an award given to recognize exemplary commitment to hospital and community.
  
  
• National Excellence in Healthcare “Five Star” Awards were given, a prestigious honor given for medical staff satisfaction by Professional Research Consultants, a healthcare market research company. Five Star and Four Star awards given in the following categories:

* * * * *   Laboratory Services

* * * * *   Medical Records & Information

* * * * *   Pathology Services

* * * *      Anesthesia Services

* * * *      Radiology Services 

• Monsignor Edmund Klimek received the Annecy Award, the highest alumni honor of St. Francis Seminary in Milwaukee. The award marked 39 years of Monsignor Klimek’s pastoral care ministry at Sacred Heart Hospital.
  
  
  

  

• Wisconsin Healthcare Public Relations & Marketing Society Award of Excellence for Media Relations to Sacred Heart Hospital’s Communications Department.

2005 Awards 

• The Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services designated Sacred Heart Hospital a Level III Trauma Center. 
  
  
• The Arc of Eau Claire gave its Employer of the Year award to Sacred Heart Hospital for advocating the rights and opportunities of citizens with cognitive disabilities and for providing a positive work experience for a high school student by providing a supportive, nurturing and challenging work environment. 
  
  
• “Five Star” Awards were given for Medical Staff Satisfaction by Professional Research Consultants.  
  
  
• Sacred Heart Hospital’s senior chaplain, Father Edmund Klimek received the Red Cross Healthcare Hero Award.  The award marked 38 years of ministry at the hospital. 
  
  
• Greg Spindler, Supervisor of Respiratory Care, was named Therapist of the Year by the Wisconsin Society of Respiratory Care. 
  
  
• Fire Starter Award was given by the Studer Group, an international healthcare research and consulting group, for dramatic and sustained results in patient, physician and employee satisfaction. It recognized innovations and best practices to make patient service a high priority. 
  
  
• Cleverly & Associates’ 5-Star Community Value Index Award recognized the Hospital’s “significant value to its community because of its financial viability, reinvestment back into its facility, maintenance of a low cost structure and commitment to reasonable healthcare charges.” 
  
  
• Sacred Heart Hospital’s senior chaplain, Father Edmund Klimek, received the papal honor of Monsignor. The award marked 38 years of ministry at the hospital. 
  
  
• Transfusion Services (Blood Bank) received the Overstock Hospital of the Year Award by the American Red Cross. 
  
  
• The American Association of Respiratory Care gave its Quality Respiratory Care Recognition award to Sacred Heart Hospital for the third year in a row (only 20% of U.S. hospitals receive this recognition). 

2004 Awards 

• Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations survey found the staff “outstanding” and there were no follow up requirements. Joint Commission surveyors noted that Palliative Care was “the most organized and fluent program in the nation.”
  
   
• “Top Performer” and “Five Star” Awards for Medical Staff Satisfaction were given to the hospital by Professional Research Consultants.
  
  
• The Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons granted program approval to the Center for Cancer Treatment and Prevention at Sacred Heart Hospital. 
  
  
• Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) gave the L.E. Phillips Rehabilitation Center at Sacred Heart Hospital a three-year CARF accreditation. The facility is the region's only CARF-accredited and Medicare-approved program with onsite certified rehab physicians and staff. Development of a CARF-approved program requires highly trained and specialized staff as well as an advanced level of quality. 
  
  
• Administrator Steve Ronstrom is named President of the Wisconsin Hospital Association West Central Region. 
  
  
• Transfusion Services (Blood Bank) given FDA approval. 
  
  
• Maternity Department was awarded a Johnson’s Childbirth Nursing Awards Certificate of Recognition to recognize excellent patient care. 
  
  
• The American Association of Respiratory Care gave its Quality Respiratory Care Recognition to Sacred Heart Hospital, an award received for the second year in a row (only 20% of U.S. hospitals receive this recognition).