War Memorial on the list of the 20 hospitals with the highest intensive care in the entire country

From a list of the 100 most densely populated hospitals in West Virginia, the National Rural Health Association selected two hospitals as among the 20 most densely populated hospitals in the country.

The War Memorial Hospital in Berkeley Springs and the Hampshire Memorial Hospital in Romney made the top 20 list, which was released in late May.

“The deciding factors for the top 20 CAHs are based on the results of the Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX and its eight performance indices: inpatient market share, outpatient market share, quality, outcomes, patient perspective, costs, fees and financials,” said representatives of the National Rural Health Association in announcing the award.

Valley Health Systems of Winchester, Virginia, operates both the War Memorial and the Hampshire Memorial.

The War Memorial Hospital is located at 1 Healthy Way in Berkeley Springs, off Fairview Drive.

The two regional rural hospitals share their place on the list with hospitals in Nebraska, South Dakota, Montana, Iowa, Utah, New York, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Arkansas, Kansas and Wyoming.

“Each year, the Chartis Center for Rural Health conducts a national assessment of the more than 1,300 CAHs in the country using its Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX™, which looks at publicly available data across eight indices, including quality, outcomes, patient satisfaction and cost,” Valley Health officials said in announcing their assessment.

“Chartis uses the results to create its list of the top 100 CAHs in the country, which this year included all four of Valley Health’s critical access hospitals (both Hampshire and War in West Virginia, and Shenandoah Memorial and Page Memorial hospitals in Virginia). The National Rural Health Association then uses this elite list to determine and recognize the top 20 CAHs in the country,” Valley Health officials said.

Heather Sigel, vice president of operations for War Memorial and Hampshire Memorial, said being ranked in the top 20 is a testament to the great work the hospital staff does.

“It’s a tremendous accomplishment,” Sigel said. “Frankly, we’re so successful because our employees are responsible for it. Many of our employees live in our communities. They have a stake in it. They want to provide the best care possible for their fellow people. For them, it’s a sense of pride and responsibility.”

War Memorial Hospital employs 170 staff and Hampshire employs 180. Of these staff, 90% are clinical staff in nursing, radiology, respiratory services, outpatient services, patient education, management and laboratory staff. A further 10% of staff are non-clinical and work in patient registration, housekeeping, nutritional services, facilities and engineering, security and administration.

Sigel said patient outcomes are closely linked to the quality of staff.

“We invest in our employees. And when you invest in your employees, you get a lot back,” said Sigel.

Patient quality outcomes measured by the hospital and external agencies include mortality rates, in-hospital falls, hospital-acquired infections, wound infections, and readmission rates.

Staff at both the War Memorial and Hampshire are committed to preventing falls and infections, taking proactive measures around cleanliness, supporting patients at risk of falls and arranging regular team meetings to discuss any hazards or incidents and to prevent future incidents.

Sigel said Valley Health is considered a “highly reliable” organization, meaning it regularly reviews performance metrics and takes actions to produce positive results.

“You make sure what you want happens,” Sigel said.

War Memorial and Hampshire’s top 20 ranking is a great source of pride for the two facilities and Valley Health, system officials said.

“This is a great cause for celebration for both of our hospitals and for our health care system,” Sigel said.

“It sets the bar pretty high and shows the public that they are receiving first-class care in our hospitals,” she said.

Sigel said that in addition to inpatient and outpatient services, specialty care and laboratory testing, War Memorial and Hampshire also have 24-hour emergency departments.

“We save lives every day. If we weren’t here, death rates would rise,” Sigel said.

Both hospitals also have long-term care units. War Memorial has 16 beds and Hampshire has 30.

Representatives from Sigel and Valley Health noted that the hospitals and their associated physician practices provide the full spectrum of primary and specialty care to each community. Patients can access these services through a referral from their primary care physician or directly on their own.

Sigel said being named a top 20 provider of critical content access was hard-won and an exciting announcement.

“We are so honored and so proud to be honored in this way,” she said.