2019 Award Recipient

Baldrige Performance Excellence Program • National Institute of Standards and Technology • Department of Commerce 

Highlights

• AHWM has had zero emergency department returns 

after outpatient surgery since 2014, which places it in 

the national top decile in 2018.

• AHWM has sustained near or perfect performance since 

2013—matching the best performance of the American 

College of Cardiology—for the delivery of evidence-based 

care (door-to-balloon times of less than 90 minutes) 

for heart-attack patients.

• Challenged by high crime rates in the surrounding area, 

AHWM employs a former gang member as a liaison to 

create a gang neutral zone. Other hospitals are replicating 

this unique approach to manage violence.

• AHWM has received a Standard & Poor’s AA+ rating for 

its days-cash-on-hand, with a current performance of 

396 days, which is hundreds of days better than its 

nearest competitors.

 

Adventist Health White Memorial

Adventist Health White Memorial (AHWM) is a private, faith-based, 

nonprofit, teaching hospital that provides a full range of inpatient, 

ambulatory (outpatient), emergency, and diagnostic services. 

AHWM, which is deeply committed to its community, is the only 

“safety-net” hospital serving more than 2 million people in a 

densely populated area where most residents live below the Federal 

poverty level.

Health Care Outcomes

• AHWM has had zero emergency department returns after 

outpatient surgery since 2014, which places it in the national top 

decile in 2018.

• Complication rates—including for all causes, general medical, 

surgical, and orthopedic—have been better than the national top 

decile from the second quarter in 2015 to 2019. In addition, 

all-causes complication rates are better than a national peer cohort 

in 2018. Surgical complications have improved from about 17% 

in 2015 to 13% in 2018, and orthopedic complications have 

improved from about 16% in 2015 to about 6% in 2018.

• For use of antenatal steroids, an evidence-based practice that 

reduces complications in newborns, AHWM has been at 100% 

since 2014, equal to the national top decile and 15% better than 

a state collaborative.

• AHWM has sustained near or perfect performance since 2013

—matching the best performance of the American College of 

Cardiology—for the delivery of evidence-based care (door-toballoon times [from the time symptoms start, to the time the 

patient has engaged medical care] of less than 90 minutes) for 

heart-attack patients.

• AHWM has achieved significant improvement in Clostridium 

difficile (C. diff) infections, from about 65 in 2015 to less than 20 

in 2018, near the national top quartile.

Citizenship with Results

• AAHWM’s Health Careers Pathway Partnerships with local high 

schools and colleges provide mentorship opportunities. Almost 

half the nursing scholarships that AHWM has awarded since 2018 

went to residents in its impoverished service area.

• AHWM is challenge by high crime rates in the surrounding 

area, with 35 gangs in close proximity to the hospital and one gang 

covering three quarters of the hospital’s surrounding area. To help 

improve safety and security, AHWM employs a former gang 

member who serves as a 24/7 liaison to create a gang neutral zone. 
2019 Award Recipient

Adventist Health White Memorial 

• Over nearly two decades, AHWM has worked closely with its

 partners in the Hispanic-majority community to train more than 

 224 local residents in nursing. Of these, 100% received registered 

 nurse licensing, 70% pursued advanced degrees, and 90% stayed 

 at AHWM after three years.

• From 2014 through 2018, AHWM raised more than $27 million 

 through its charitable foundation and nearly $1 million dollars 

 through its annual employee giving campaign to support

 community health programs.

Patient and Other Customer Process with Results

• Since 2014, Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers 

 and Systems (HCAHPS) results for “would recommend” have 

 improved almost 10%, with a level in 2018 better than the National 

 Research Council (NRC) top quartile, competing hospitals, and

 a peer cohort.

• AHWM’s net promoter score results of about 50 in 2018 for the NRC

 consumer awareness survey show a significant increase from 2015,

 with levels in 2018 almost 25% higher than competing hospitals.

• HCAHPS survey rankings for timeliness/responsiveness and

 communication with nurses outperform the NRC top-quartile

 rankings by 5% and 9%, respectively.

Senior Leadership

• AHWM pursues its mission of “living God’s love by inspiring

 health, wholeness, and hope” through its senior leaders who create 

 an environment of servant leadership. Senior leaders role model the 

 mission-driven partnership with the East Los Angeles community by 

 caring for the underserved through their personal actions.

• Guiding Principles include senior leaders and employees taking 

 responsibility to ensure the safety of patients, coworkers, and others; 

 reaching for the highest standards of work and being honest in all 

 things; using all resources responsibly and efficiently; and treating 

 others like family.

Financial Results

• Despite an impoverished service area and dependency on

 government reimbursement, AHWM has received a Standard

 & Poor’s AA+ rating for its days-cash-on-hand, with a current

 performance of 396 days, which is hundreds of days better than its 

 nearest competitors.

• Since 2013, AHWM has sustained a dominant leadership position 

 in its primary market area, with an overall market share of 10% 

 (its closest competitor has approximately 4.9%). This sustained 

 leadership performance is supported by AHWM’s cardiovascular 

 services market share that has exceeded competitors by almost 2% 

 since 2014 and its women’s services market share that has exceeded 

 competitors by three to four times.

People Process with Results

• Workers’ compensation costs have decreased each year since 

2015, with marked improvement from more than $1,250,000 in 

2015 to about $175,000 in 2018.

• AHWM’s medical resident retention rate has increased consistently 

at levels better than competing, regional hospitals since 2014, from 

6% in 2014 to 41% in 2019.

• Volunteer satisfaction for positive experience and the proper 

amount of training is at 100% from 2013 through 2018; volunteers 

account for about 15% of AHWM’s workforce.

Process Efficiency/Effectiveness with Results

• Use of barcode medication administration to match patients with 

their prescribed medications has improved from less than 60% in 

2015 to almost 100% in 2018.

• AHWM established a cleft palate clinic in 2016 to meet community 

needs. Since inception, the clinic has achieved 100% compliance 

with required documentation and medication reconciliation. 

• AHWM has reduced its emergency department length of stay 

from more than 250 minutes in 2015 to about 150 minutes in 2018, 

a level very close to the national top-quartile.

Strategic Planning

• A fully integrated strategy development process includes detailed 

market analysis, input from the community, health care experts, current 

organizational performance, and an aligned communication system. 

• AHWM’s Strategy Day brings together individuals key to developing 

strategic challenges and advantages from across the health system, 

as well as key partners, suppliers, community members, and health 

care experts.

For more information:

Adventist Health White Memorial

1720 E Cesar East Chavez Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90033

www.adventisthealth.org/white-memorial

Baldrige Performance Excellence Program

The Baldrige Program educates organizations of all sizes and 

from all sectors in organizational performance management and 

improvement. We also administer the Malcolm Baldrige National

Quality Award. Our key services are to identify and recognize 

role-model organizations, share best management practices, 

and help organizations achieve best-in-class performance levels.

We are the only public-private partnership and Presidential award 

program dedicated to improving U.S. organizations. 

For more information on the Baldrige Program: 

www.nist.gov/baldrige | 301-975-2036 | baldrige@nist.gov

Baldrige Performance Excellence Program • National Institute of Standards and Technology • Department of Commerce