By Conor O’Brien
Change is always interesting. There are many different kinds of change and many different perspectives on what result that change will leave. Ideally, change brings with it something improved, repaired, or redirected. Through a different lens it can bring turmoil. For the past several years, WhidbeyHealth has been in financial and medical staff turmoil. Important for our future, those struggles are now in the rear view. Through the challenges though, one thing has remained constant – the quality of care.
The last few years have been fraught with fear, uncertainty and isolation. What we don’t speak enough about are the hundreds of compassionate, empathetic and dedicated individuals who have been committed to providing our island community with nothing but the best health care possible.
Our quality has never wavered.
Did you know WhidbeyHealth is an accredited Critical Access hospital? Did you know that our HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) scores are higher than Washington state average… higher than the national average? Did you know we have nationally accredited cancer care and oncology services? Did you know we have nationally accredited laboratory care? Did you know we have not had a reportable surgical site infection in over a year, or any device associated infections in nearly three years? Did you know WhidbeyHealth provides training and operational best practices to other regional hospitals on effective antimicrobial practices? We are neighbors helping neighbors and following through on the tenants this hospital was founded upon.
The community asked; WhidbeyHealth delivered. The quality care we provide was confirmed with our inaugural NIAHO (National Integrated Accreditation for Healthcare Organizations) accreditation survey. We selected DNV to be our accrediting body, knowing they audit the whole continuum of care. Aside from validating Medicare requirements, we’re leveraging best practices from CMS, Brain Attack Coalition, American Heart Association, International Organization of Standardization, and the World Health Organization to bring Whidbey Island the best care possible.
The HCAHPS are the nationally standardized, publicly reported survey of a patient’s perspective of the care they received. Did you know that our patients rate the quality of care they received from WhidbeyHealth higher than the state’s average? Higher than the national average? With an overall patient score of 4 of 5 stars, we’re bringing exceptional care to our island.
WhidbeyHealth was rated in the top 10 health care institutions in Washington for nursing care and communication in 2021 (HCAHPS). That places us above most of our neighbors along the I-5 corridor, and alongside the likes of UW Medical Center and Virginia Mason Medical Center.
A small, rural hospital, on an island in the Puget Sound, doesn’t sound like a recipe for great health care. Despite that, our care is world class. We are here for you, our community, standing by to provide the highest quality care.
Conor O’Brien is the marketing and community relations manager at WhidbeyHealth.
