Healthcare IT News' Best Hospital IT Departments 2016: Meet the winners
Healthcare IT News revealed the 20 winners of our 2016 Best Hospital IT Department Awards.
To be considered as a qualifying Best Hospital IT Department, at least 50 percent of a team's staffers had to take our survey. All told, more than 4,300 hospital IT employees completed the poll.
Nominations opened May 24, 2016 and 97 different IT departments nationwide made their case.
On July 21, each of the nominees was emailed a link to a secure online employee satisfaction survey, and instructed to distribute it among all department staff: management, supervisors, full-time and contract employees.
Collection of survey data ended on August 26. Of the nominated hospitals, 44 met the 50 percent participation threshold.
Of these finalists, 10 qualified for the "Super" category (200-plus IT employees), 8 for the "Large" category (76 to 199 employees), 10 for the "Medium" category (26-75 employees) and 16 for the "Small" category (25 or fewer employees).
Healthcare IT News Best Hospital IT Departments 2016:
⇒ Meet the winners
⇒ CIOs reveal what makes an IT shop great
⇒Interactive map: Best Hospital IT Departments
⇒ Gallery: The people behind winning IT shops
For the first time, researchers at HIMSS Analytics crunched the numbers with us to determine this year's winners.
"Using multivariate analysis, the results were analyzed and weighted according to the relative importance measure for each qualifying question response, from which we were able to calculate a composite score for each qualifying organization," said Brendan Fitzgerald, director of research at HIMSS Analytics, in explaining the ranking criteria. "We took it a step further and analyzed the relative importance of each individual indicator for the detailed questions to come up with a detailed score summary.”
With help from supplemental information derived from HIMSS Analytics' Logic database and other data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services, we'll be rolling out a series of articles, charts and infographics on HealthcareITNews.com throughout the month of November to explore the effects of a variety of factors on workplace morale.
Learn more about the winning IT departments below.
The winning hospitals:
Small Hospitals
Thibodaux Regional Medical Center, Louisana
#1 Small Hospital
Overall Score: 77.37%
IT Staff: 15
Winner's Profile: Thibodaux focuses on the value to be unlocked in electronic records
Comments from staff:
"A strong family culture means we are committed to helping each other to reach the best possible outcome."
"Our department is patient centered. We strive to make this hospital the best place for patients by being innovative and supporting the clinical ares as much as possible."
Mahaska Health Partnership, Iowa
#2 Small Hospital
Overall Score: 75.82%
IT Staff: 6
Winner's Profile: Mahaska Health Partnership embraces innovation by necessity
Comments from staff:
"We are very team focused and work very well together. I can count on every one of my other team members."
"Our IT dept morale consistently stays very high even under strenuous circumstances due to how we interact with each other, and how we are respected and recognized throughout the organization for our ongoing efforts."
Henry County Medical Center, Tennessee
#3 Small Hospital
Overall Score: 71.64%
IT Staff: 10
Winner's Profile: Henry County Medical Center: Small shop nails big IT projects
Comments from staff:
"Our Administration sufficiently funds the IT department so that we can constantly bring new technology to our hospital."
"Great attitudes among co-workers makes it easy to approach (them) when you have questions or need assistance."
Torrance Memorial Health System, California
#4 Small Hospital
Overall Score: 70.93%
IT Staff: 8
Winner's Profile: Collaboration between physicians and HIT creates a winning climate at Torrance Memorial
Comments from staff:
"Friendly and realistic expectations. Respect."
"Inclusion on everything. We have a say in most decisions made.."
Burgess Health Center, Iowa
#5 Small Hospital
Overall Score: 66.87 %
IT Staff: 3
Winner's Profile: Hyper-convergence keeps the small Burgess Health Center team in front of change
Comments from staff:
"The IT department provides excellent customer service to the organization. We are able to implement new solutions to help improve workflow, adoption, security and availability. "
"We provide cutting edge VDI environment to our users."
Medium Hospitals
Tuality Healthcare, Oregon
#1 Medium Hospital
Overall Score: 72.69%
IT Staff: 29
Winner's Profile: Tuality Healthcare's IT staff is giving clinicians more intelligence with predictive applications
Comments from staff:
"We as technicians have the freedom to make our own decisions without management stepping in and micro managing everything we do."
"The IT department values individual and team growth. There is a clear directive that aids in making tough decision choices."
Silver Cross Hospital, Illinois
#2 Medium Hospital
Overall Score: 65.84%
IT Staff: 50
Winner's Profile: Innovation in healthcare consumerism helps Silver Cross build a winning team
Comments from staff:
"Giving me the trust and autonomy to be responsible for the areas of my responsibility. Allowing my work to speak for itself."
"Encourages cross training and advancement. We also have monthly group team building activities, such as picnics, cook offs, etc."
Carroll Hospital, Maryland
#3 Medium Hospital
Overall Score: 64.24%
IT Staff: 31
Winner's Profile: A progressive approach health helps Carroll Hospital hit another home run
Comments from staff:
"Dialogue is open and receptive. People are friendly and support each other."
"Keeps on top of security advancements to balance convenience with safety."
Kennedy Health System, New Jersey
#4 Medium Hospital
Overall Score: 62.63%
IT Staff: 68
Winner's Profile: The excitement of tapping into analytics energizes the climate at Kennedy Health System
Comments from staff:
"IT department ensures they hire highly qualified personnel who are also approachable and friendly."
"Our AVP empowers us to achieve our strategic objectives."
Stamford Health, Connecticut
#5 Medium Hospital
Overall Score: 58.97%
IT Staff: 50
Winner's Profile: Stronger relationships help Stamford Health achieve ambitious goals
Comments from staff:
"IT department ensures they hire highly qualified personnel who are also approachable and friendly."
"Our AVP empowers us to achieve our strategic objectives."
Large Hospitals
Phoenix Children's Hospital, Arizona
#1 Large Hospital
Overall Score: 71.98%
IT Staff: 107
Winner's Profile: Phoenix Children's IT team brings lean approach to all aspects of the hospital
Comments from staff:
"We have strong partnerships with the clinicians so that we can be innovative with technology that supports them in providing awesome care to our patients."
"We work hard but we play hard too. Lots of laughs. We are encouraged to use are creative sides and share ideas to make systems better."
Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, Georgia
#2 Large Hospital
Overall Score: 69.88%
IT Staff: 80
Winner's Profile: Analytics is top of mind as Phoebe Putney Memorial sets a goal of Stage 7 status
Comments from staff:
"My IT department gives me the freedom to do my job the way I see fit. There is tremendous flexibility and encouragement from management."
"It values us as individuals. Employee satisfaction is the number 1 priority."
Inspira Health Network, New Jersey
#3 Large Hospital
Overall Score: 64.15%
IT Staff: 65
Winner's Profile: Giving patients more control builds morale inside Inspira's HIT department
Comments from staff:
"Cooperation between units is encouraged and used extremely effectively to meet a goal."
"It is a cohesive team that works together through all of the challenges that we have on a daily basis."
St. Elizabeth Healthcare, Kentucky
#4 Large Hospital
Overall Score: 64.14%
IT Staff: 129
Winner's Profile: Engaging patients with mobile technologies is leading St. Elizabeth Healthcare to new ways of doing business
Comments from staff:
"Provides a challenging set of projects for me to work on, as well as supports my efforts."
"The teamwork and commitment from associates within the department is second to none. You can count on anyone to assist or help if it is needed."
Roper St. Francis, South Carolina
#5 Large Hospital
Overall Score: 61.26%
IT Staff: 75
Winner's Profile: As it goes live with a new EMR, Roper St. Francis Healthcare is already looking beyond
Comments from staff:
"The organization put a high level of importance on making sure the IT department stays current with technology."
"They believe in teamwork and helping each other out."
Super Hospitals
Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, Tennessee
#1 Super Hospital
Overall Score: 64.36%
IT Staff: 159
Winner's Profile: Le Bonheur achieves excellence by innovating with patient data exchange
Comments from staff:
"It's a wonderful place to work. They truly invest in their employees."
"I am trusted to do my work and my skillset is appreciated."
Ochsner Health System, Louisiana
#2 Super Hospital
Overall Score: 62.25%
IT Staff: 249
Winner's Profile: Ochsner's big appeal: putting patients are at the center of innovation makes IT work rewarding
Comments from staff:
"I feel constantly engaged at work, yet the work/life balance is very good."
"We collaborate with our user community on most projects to make sure that we meeting their needs."
Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford, California
#3 Super Hospital
Overall Score: 60.57%
IT Staff: 210
Winner's Profile: Lucile Packard and Stanford Children's delights IT staff with analytics work to advance precision medicine and patient care
Comments from staff:
"I feel constantly engaged at work, yet the work/life balance is very good."
"We collaborate with our user community on most projects to make sure that we meeting their needs."
Hackensack Meridian Health, New Jersey
#4 Super Hospital
Overall Score: 60.13%
IT Staff: 304
Winner's Profile: Hackensack Meridian engages patients before they arrive and stays with them through their entire journey
Comments from staff:
"The culture of IT as a clinical aid at Meridian is well-documented. Everyone works toward the shared goal of making our hospitals and physician practices as safe and efficient as possible."
"I am allowed to be self motivated and provide flexible hours and the abiltity to be a lifelong learner."
Mission Health System, North Carolina
#5 Super Hospital
Overall Score: 59.88%
IT Staff: 181
Winner's Profile: Mission Health embraces innovation with Xbox virtual sitters and predictive clinical intelligence
Comments from staff:
"Everyone goes the extra mile to do their job."
"The work place and life balance is exceptional."
Twitter: @MikeMiliardHITN
Email the writer: mike.miliard@himssmedia.com