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Nov 18, 2016 More on Quality and Safety

Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital earns 2016 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award

Memorial Hermann Sugar Land becomes the first Houston-area hospital, and the third in Texas, to win the award.

Jeff Lagasse, Editor

Photo by Memorial Hermann

Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital in Sugar Land, Texas has officially been named the newest recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation's highest presidential honor for performance excellence.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker made the announcement on Thursday, recognizing the hospital for its "outstanding commitment to sustainable excellence through innovation, improvement and visionary leadership."

Since the healthcare category was introduced in 1999, only 21 healthcare organizations nationwide have won the award. Memorial Hermann Sugar Land becomes the first Houston-area hospital, and the third in Texas, to be honored with it.

[Also: Memorial Hermann to purchase Memorial Hermann Northeast Hospital]

Nationally, more than 1,600 applications have been submitted since the program was established in 1987. To date, just 113 awards have been given in six sectors: education, healthcare, manufacturing, nonprofit, service and small business.

The 2016 Baldrige Award will be presented at an April 2017 ceremony during the Quest for excellence conference in Baltimore, Maryland.

Memorial Hermann Sugar Land is a 149 bed, full-service acute care facility serving Fort Bend County and the surrounding region. The hospital's team has received several other accolades for their performance, including the Texas Award for Performance Excellence in 2015. The hospital has also been named among the top 100 hospitals by Truven Health Analytics three times.

[Also: Time-lapse video shows how Memorial Hermann's $85 million hospital expansion unfolded]

This year, the hospital earned four out of five stars from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Star Ratings.

Past winners of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award include the Charleston Area Medical Center Health System in Charleston, West Virginia in 2015; Hill Country Memorial in Fredericksburg, Texas and St. David's HealthCare in Austin, Texas in 2014; and North Mississippi Health Services in Tupelo, Mississippi in 2013.

Twitter: @JELagasse

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