Providence St. Joseph Medical Center receives two major awards
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Marion Cooper, center, receives the Caregiver of the Year award from the Montana Hospital Association during the annual Montana Healthcare Conference and Trade Show in Billings.
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News from Providence St. Joseph Medical Center
BILLINGS — The Montana Hospital Association recently awarded Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Polson with two major awards at the annual Montana Healthcare Conference and Trade Show in Billings.
St. Joseph Medical Center received the Leadership in Quality and Patient Safety award, and the Caregiver of the Year award, was given to Marion Cooper, director of Providence St. Joseph Assisted Living.
St. Joseph Medical Center was recognized as the top hospital in the state in quality and patient safety for their multidisciplinary infection prevention plan, which resulted in five years and five months without a case of hospital-onset C. difficile infection. C. difficile is the single most common pathogen responsible for healthcare-associated infections in the United States.
Providence St. Joseph Medical Center Chief Operating Officer Devin Huntley stated, “It’s a little-known fact that St. Joe’s has some of the best quality scores not only in the state, but in several categories within the Northwest Region. It was quite an honor to be recognized as the top hospital in the entire state as the leader in both quality and in patient safety. The great thing about the recognition is that it doesn’t just belong to our nurses and physicians. This award reflects amazing dedication and teamwork by every caregiver in this facility, whether it be housekeeping doing such a great job cleaning and keeping infection rates low to our facilities crew keeping our HVAC systems running in peak condition to our kitchen staff serving delicious and diet-appropriate meals. I just couldn’t be prouder of every single one of our caregivers.”
Marion Cooper was named Caregiver of the Year. His preemptive actions at the assisted living center resulted in not only zero COVID-19 deaths but zero COVID-19 infections within the facility for 18 months.
Huntley added, “Out of the thousands of caregivers in Montana, each year the Hospital Association recognizes one caregiver for exceptional service. This year St. Joseph caregiver Marion Cooper was bestowed this award. This is a remarkable feat as we all watched extended care facilities across the nation as they were literally ravaged by the covid virus. I can’t begin to tell you how meaningful this award was to Marion personally, but also to the residents and their families that have undoubtedly lived much of the last year and a half in utter fear. Marion and his team kept their residents entertained, happy and safe; exactly what our most vulnerable and precious treasured residents deserve.”
