2011 Malcolm Baldrige Recipient

Henry Ford Health has been named a 2011 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipient, one of the most prestigious national awards for performance excellence. Henry Ford was one of only four 2011 recipients and the only organization in Michigan. The award was presented by Secretary of Commerce John Bryson on April 15 during a ceremony in Washington DC.

Named after the 26th Secretary of Commerce, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award was established in 1987 by Congress to promote quality awareness, to recognize quality and business achievements of U.S. organizations, and to publicize these organizations' successful performance strategies.

Now America's highest honor for innovation and performance excellence, the Baldrige Award is presented annually to U.S. organizations by the office of the President of the United States. Awards are given to companies in manufacturing, service, small business, education, health care, and nonprofit sectors. In conjunction with the private sector, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) manages the award and the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program.

In a profile of Henry Ford, the Malcolm Baldrige examiners wrote:

• Henry Ford Health's leaders model and support entrepreneurism throughout the health care delivery system, research operations, and the Health Alliance Plan. Innovative strategies and solutions have been developed and implemented for the past decade, helping reduce unintended patient harm and establishing a "zero-defect, no-excuses" approach to health care outcomes.
• Among the best-in-class innovations at Henry Ford Health: the Perfect Depression Program, which uses an evidenced-based, integrated approach to address chronic depression; Home Health Services, Pharmacy Advantage, and OptimEyes (optometry care) - all services with a retail presence to increase brand recognition and access to new customers; and the West Bloomfield "hospital model," in which a new hospital was built from scratch with the active involvement of the community (resulting in a facility with features such as a Culinary Wellness Program and an innovative building design with a "Main Street" feel).

To apply for the award, organizations must submit details showing their achievements and improvements in seven key areas: leadership; strategic planning; customer focus; measurement; analysis and knowledge management; workforce focus; operations focus; results

Baldrige examiners visited Henry Ford in October, spending four days at three dozen medical sites throughout the system, interviewing leaders and more than 1,200 employees.

In June, the Baldrige announced that there were a total of 40 applications within the health care industry this year and an additional 29 from other industries. In September, the panel of judges selected six health care applicants to receive site visits, as well as five organizations from outside of health care.

In 2011, Henry Ford Health became a proud recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award - the nation's highest honor for performance excellence.

In the following video, CEO Nancy Schlichting discusses the journey to this honor and the significance of what was achieved.

Learn more about the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program.

For more information please contact:

Debbie Gordon
(855) 522-5374
baldrigejourney@HFHS.org