Saint Michael’s Medical Center was named New Jersey’s most socially responsible hospital by the Lown Institue Hospitals Index for Social Responsibility.
The Index is the first ranking to measure social responsibility of more than 3,600 U.S. hospitals nationwide and applies never-before-used metrics such as racial inclusivity, avoidance of overuse, and community benefit.
Saint Michael’s ranked 28th in the Lown’s national ranking of most socially responsible hospitals and it was one of one of only 66 hospitals in the nation and one of only two in New Jersey to earn straight As in outcomes, value, and equity on the index.
“America needs socially responsible hospitals,” said Vikas Saini, MD, president of the Lown Institute. “That’s why it’s so important to lift up these high-performing hospitals as examples for others to follow.”
This is the second year that Saint Michael’s has appeared on the Lown Index, which was launched in 2020 by the Lown Institute, a Massachussetts-based non-profit that conducts research and convenes experts in an effort to spark debate about public health policy.
“Being recognized as New Jersey’s most socially responsible hospital by the Lown Institute is confirmation that we are continuing the mission that started in 1867, when Saint Michael’s was founded by the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor,” said Saint Michael’s CEO Alan Sickles, MD. “Our mission is to provide the highest quality and safest healthcare to all the people in our community, especially those impacted by structural racism and poverty.”
The Lown Index is the first hospital ranking to take into account how well hospitals serve people of lower income or education levels, and people of color. It is also the first index to take into account how much hospitals spend on charity care and other community health programs, as well as the proportion of low-income patients they serve. The index also is the first to evaluate hospitals based on their delivery of 12 commonly overused services, including unnecessary hysterectomy, coronary stenting, head imaging for fainting, and more.
The Lown Hospitals Index for Social Responsibility utilizes more than 50 metrics to assess how well hospitals succeed at being care providers, employers, and community partners. Data sources include Medicare claims, CMS patient safety data and hospital cost reports, and IRS 990 forms, among others.
Saint Michael’s continues to receive national recognition for the care it provides to the community. It recently earned its third A in a row for patient safety from the Leapfrog Group. Saint Michael’s has also received and Patient Safety Excellence Award from Healthgrades for each of the last five years, placing it in the top 5% of all hospitals in the nation.
Learn more about the Lown Hospital Index for Social Responsibility by visiting www.LownHospitalsIndex.org.