Salinas Valley Health Ranks 5th in Nation for Socially Responsible Hospitals

Media Contact: Karina Rusk
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Best in Class Based on Health Equity, Patient Outcomes and Value of Care

August 4, 2022 – Salinas Valley Health (Salinas Valley Health) has earned the distinction of placing in the top five hospitals nationwide for recognition on social responsibility as determined by health equity, patient outcomes and value of care. The ranking comes from the Lown Institute, an industry think tank using evidence-based metrics to evaluate health care providers in key areas.

“While we routinely receive high marks for exceptional patient outcomes, it’s nice to see our intentional focus on health equity and social responsibility earning this kind of national recognition,” says Pete Delgado, President/CEO of Salinas Valley Health. “Moving the needle on these important issues takes strategic planning, a team effort and time. It’s gratifying to see some of the benefits of those investments.”

The Lown Institute Hospitals Index for Social Responsibility measures more than 3,600 hospitals—with less than two percent earning top marks across the categories of health equity, patient outcomes and value of care. The index considers 53 metrics in the broader categories of inclusivity, pay equity, community benefit, avoiding overuse, cost efficiency, clinical outcomes, patient satisfaction and patient safety. In all, 66 U.S. Hospitals earned the distinction of “Most Socially Responsible” by receiving an overall “A” grade in health equity, patient outcomes and value of care.

“Citizens put their lives and billions of tax dollars in the hands of America’s hospitals,” said Vikas Saini, MD, president of the Lown Institute. “We believe communities should have high expectations and the most socially responsible institutions should be lifted up as models for the system.”

Salinas Valley Health places high value on investing in community health and reaching underserved populations. One such initiative is the Salinas Valley Health Salinas Valley Health Mobile Clinic, launched in January 2020 to address health inequities in Monterey County. From launch through July 2022, the Salinas Valley Health Salinas Valley Health Mobile Clinic team has conducted nearly 8,800 patient visits (8,794) in underserved communities and neighborhoods, done nearly 2,400 COVID-19 tests, administered more than 1,300 COVID-19 vaccines and performed more than 500 sports physicals for high school students. All services by the Salinas Valley Health Mobile Clinic are free to patients and provided regardless of immigration status.

The Lown Institute used publicly available data from Medicare claims, CMS hospital cost reports, IRS 990 forms, and other sources to compile its rankings. The report also noted that many hospitals achieved success while also operating during pandemic challenges and managing a high number of COVID positive patients. The COVID-19 burden metric however does not factor into the final hospital social responsibility ranking. The rankings and a full methodology is available on the Lown Hospitals Index website.