SSM Health Waupun Memorial Hospital is being recognized as a top performer in the 2025 Bernard A. Birnbaum, MD, Quality Leadership Ranking by Vizient, Inc. The hospital was recognized for demonstrating excellence in delivering high-quality care based on the Vizient Quality and Accountability Study, conducted annually since 2005.
“This recognition reflects our unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional, patient-centered care,” according to DeAnn Thurmer, SSM Health Ripon Community Hospital/Waupun Memorial Hospital president. “From daily multidisciplinary rounds that remove barriers to healing, to age-friendly practices and community partnerships like car seat safety, every initiative is rooted in what matters most to our patients and families.”
The honor reflects the critical care access hospital’s ongoing efforts to find new and innovative ways to offer the Waupun area community with the best possible care. “Our focus on maternal health, substance use screening, and social determinants of health ensures that care is not only clinically excellent but also compassionate and inclusive,” says Nicole Gill, SSM Health Ripon Community Hospital/Waupun Memorial Hospital vice president/clinic administrator. “Being named a Vizient Quality Leadership Top Performer affirms the dedication of our teams to safety, collaboration, and continuous improvement.”
This year, 1,220 participating hospitals were segmented into seven cohorts for the Vizient Quality and Accountability Study. The study measures performance on the quality of patient care in six domains: safety, mortality, effectiveness, efficiency, patient centeredness and variation in care.
The study factors in measures from the Vizient Clinical Data Base and includes performance data from the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey and the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network.
The Vizient Quality and Accountability Study helps participating hospitals and health systems understand their performance against their peers and identifies structures and processes associated with high performance in quality and safety across a broad spectrum of patient care activity. The recognition period is for work spanning July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025.
“We extend our sincere congratulations to this year’s top-performing hospitals recognized in the Vizient Quality and Accountability Study,” according to David Levine, chief medical officer, Vizient. “These organizations have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to delivering safe, effective, and patient-centered care. Their performance reflects the highest standards in clinical quality and operational excellence, and we are proud to honor their achievements.”
Vizient, Inc., the nation’s largest provider-driven healthcare performance improvement company, provides solutions and services to more than two-thirds of the nation’s acute care providers and more than one-third of ambulatory providers.
SSM Health Waupun Memorial Hospital team members recently celebrated being recognized as a top performer in the 2025 Bernard A. Birnbaum, MD, Quality Leadership Ranking by Vizient, Inc. Leaders were present to congratulate the team including (left to right) Nicole Gill, Alex Gago, Jessica Zimmerman, Sue Anderson, DeAnn Thurmer, and Dawit Tesfasilassie.