DCH Receives Multiple National Patient Experience Awards at HealthCare Service Excellence Conference

Daviess Community Hospital (DCH) has been nationally recognized with multiple Breakthrough Awards for patient experience during the 25th Annual HealthCare Service Excellence Conference, held Nov. 10–12 in Galveston, Texas.

Administered by Custom Learning Systems, the Breakthrough Awards honor hospitals that demonstrate outstanding achievement and significant improvement in Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) patient experience categories. These awards place DCH among top-performing hospitals nationwide in several measures that matter deeply to patients and families.

Achievement Awards: Excellence in Patient Experience

DCH earned multiple Emerald and Ruby Achievement Breakthrough Awards, recognizing categories where patients rated the hospital higher than national performance levels. Awarded categories include:

• Rate Hospital (Emerald Award)
  • Reflects the percentage of patients who gave DCH the highest overall hospital rating, indicating trust, confidence, and satisfaction with their care.
• Communication About Medicines (Emerald Award)
  • Recognizes how well patients felt medications were explained — including purpose, timing, and side effects — helping them feel safe and informed.
• Communication with Doctors (Emerald Award)
  • Honors physicians who listen carefully, show respect, and explain care in a way patients understand.
• Communication with Nurses (Emerald Award)
  • Acknowledges nurses who demonstrate compassion, clarity, and attentive care at the bedside.
• Hospital Environment – Quiet (Ruby Award)
  • Reflects patients’ experiences of a calm and restful environment, especially during nighttime hours.
• Hospital Environment – Clean (Ruby Award)
  • Recognizes consistently clean patient rooms and hospital areas, reinforcing safety and comfort.
• Response of Hospital Staff (Ruby Award)
  • Honors staff responsiveness to call lights, concerns, and patient needs — a true measure of teamwork and attentiveness.

The Emerald and Ruby designations represent some of the highest honors in the Breakthrough Awards program, recognizing performance above national averages.

Improvement Awards: Demonstrated Year-Over-Year Growth

In addition to high performance, DCH was honored with Bronze and Silver Improvement Awards, reflecting strong upward movement in key patient experience categories.

• Communication About Medicines (Bronze Improvement Award)
  • Acknowledges significant improvement in how well medication explanations support patient safety and understanding.
• Hospital Environment – Clean (Silver Improvement Award)
  • Recognizes a substantial year-over-year increase in patient perception of cleanliness across DCH.

These awards highlight the hospital’s commitment to continuous improvement — not just meeting expectations, but steadily exceeding them.

A Culture of Excellence at DCH

“These awards are national validation of what our community experiences every day,” said Angie Steiner, Director of Service Excellence, Patient Satisfaction and the Daviess Community Hospital Foundation. “Patients feel heard, respected and cared for — and that is a testament to the dedication of every DCH employee.”

Steiner emphasized that these recognitions reflect a hospital-wide effort across clinical and non-clinical teams.

“We have embraced Service Excellence not as a program, but as a culture,” she said. “Our teams are committed to five-star care — from housekeeping, food services and registration to our nurses, physicians and technicians. These awards reflect the heart of who we are.”

DCH participates in the Service Excellence Initiative, a cultural transformation framework that strengthens communication, teamwork, leadership development and patient-centered service. The hospital’s ongoing efforts include internal Service Excellence Workshops, improvement teams, leadership rounding, DO IT problem-solving, and standards of behavior training.

Commitment to the Community

“These awards show that a community hospital can compete on a national stage,” said Steiner. “We are deeply proud to serve southwestern Indiana, and we are committed to being both the Provider of Choice and Employer of Choice for our region.”