MIDLAND–Michigan Performance Excellence (MIPEx) has awarded MidMichigan Health the 2021 Michigan Performance Excellence Award, the state’s highest honor for organizations that have demonstrated outstanding performance, leadership, and operational excellence. As a Michigan Performance Excellence Award recipient, MidMichigan Health is now eligible to apply to the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Program.
“Receiving this top tier award by the Michigan Baldrige-based examiners is an outstanding milestone on our Journey to Excellence,” said Diane Postler-Slattery, Ph.D., FACHE, president and CEO, MidMichigan Health. “This award not only demonstrates our operational excellence, but it represents our focus on systematic, well deployed approaches to processes and results that are designed to best serve our patients and communities.”
The MIPEx award program is modeled after the national Baldrige Performance Excellence program. Both programs have a robust framework for improving the operations and performance of organizations of all kinds. To be considered for the award, MidMichigan Health completed a rigorous evaluation process that included a three-day site visit by MIPEx examiners to demonstrate continuous quality improvements in every area of the health system.
“The process to receive this award was nothing short of amazing as employees from across the system worked tirelessly to carefully examine and incorporate the Baldrige Framework into our workflows,” said Kay Wagner, D.H.A., M.S.N., R.N., vice president of quality and patient safety, MidMichigan Health. “The March site visit alone was extensive, but truly exciting. In fact, it included six examiners, 39 simultaneous work sessions, 233 plus employees participating in virtual sessions, over 15 areas were visited on walking rounds, and 260 plus documents were shared with the exam team. The time together afforded the examiners an opportunity to experience first-hand the culture of MidMichigan Health where our core competencies of a Culture of Safety, Collaboration with Others, and our Investment in People were palpable.”
Using the Baldrige Framework, MidMichigan improved many areas, including identifying its core competencies; strengthening its approach, deployment, learning and integration of processes; integrating a holistic assessment of the health system’s overall performance and results, as well as reviewing overall opportunities for improvement.
“MidMichigan Health exemplifies an organization striving for excellence” said Geri Markley, executive director of MIPEx. “MidMichigan demonstrates daily that it values people: patients, the workforce, and communities, even while responding to the unprecedented events of last year. MIPEx is excited to name the organization a top recipient in 2021.”
About MIPEx: Michigan Performance Excellence exists to enhance the quality of life in Michigan by helping organizations improve their performance using the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence. MIPEx is a non-profit 501c3 organization formed in 1993 as the Michigan Quality Council. MIPEx uses the national Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence as its framework. MIPEx provides services by relying upon the support of many volunteers from businesses, education and health care institutions, and non-profit and government agencies. Volunteers receive training that enables them to provide these services and improve their own organizations. www.miperformanceexcellence.org