Advancing Safe Care Award - MHA | Michigan Health & Hospital Association

Recognizing Excellence in Safety

The Advancing Safe Care Award recognizes MHA-member hospitals and healthcare teams that demonstrate a strong commitment to preventing workplace violence and fostering a culture of safety for healthcare workers, patients and visitors. The award celebrates innovative strategies, collaborative initiatives and continuous improvement efforts that enhance workplace safety, reduce the risk of violence and create safer care environments across Michigan.

Judging Criteria

Judging is based on four criteria. Nominations that include strong evidence of effort in each of these criteria will be the most successful. The criteria include:

Improved Safety Outcomes Among High-Risk Populations (25 points)

The data demonstrates that certain employee groups, roles, locations or situations face a higher risk of workplace violence.

Demonstrate how data was used to identify high-risk areas, roles or populations (e.g., frontline staff, night shifts, customer-facing teams).
Show how targeted interventions were implemented to reduce risk and improve safety outcomes.
Provide evidence of measurable improvements (e.g., reduction in incidents, near-miss reporting, response times or staff perception of safety).

Culture of Continuous Learning & Violence Prevention (25 points)

Preventing workplace violence requires continuous learning, system-wide improvement and shared accountability.

Show how the organization has strengthened its approach to violence prevention through ongoing learning and improvement practices.
Demonstrate how training, simulations or incident reviews have evolved to improve preparedness and response.
Highlight how feedback loops — from frontline staff to leadership — inform and improve safety strategies over time.

Transparency & Communication Around Safety (25 points)

Transparency is critical to building trust and ensuring proactive prevention of workplace violence.

Demonstrate how safety information, incidents and prevention strategies are openly communicated within the organization (e.g., safety huddles, dashboards, alerts, newsletters).
Show how communication supports awareness of risks, reporting expectations and shared accountability.
Provide examples of communication and partnership with external stakeholders (e.g., security, law enforcement, community partners) when appropriate.

Advancing Psychological & Physical Safety Culture (25 points)

A strong safety culture ensures employees feel both physically protected and psychologically safe to speak up.

Provide evidence of efforts to create an environment where staff feel safe reporting concerns, threats or incidents without fear of retaliation.
Demonstrate leadership commitment to violence prevention through policies, visibility and reinforcement of safe behaviors.
Highlight initiatives that support both physical protections (e.g., security measures, protocols) and psychological safety (e.g., support after incidents, debriefs, employee resources).

TOTAL = 100 points

Award Winners

2025

Corewell Health

Corewell Health’s behavioral health department launched the Suicide Care & Prevention Team to reduce patient deaths by suicide through increased screening, risk assessment and connectivity with appropriate interventions and services.

2024

Ascension St. John Hospital

Ascension St. John Hospital implemented a sickle cell comprehensive care bundle to improve patient outcomes and the quality of life of individuals experiencing sickle cell disease.

2023

Henry Ford Kingswood Hospital, Ferndale

Henry Ford Kingswood Hospital created and maintained an inpatient psychiatric unit for patients who tested positive for COVID-19 that provided equitable inpatient psychiatric care in comparison to those patients who tested negative for COVID-19.

2022

Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services, Grand Rapids

The 2022 winning team created a special care unit in 2020 for behavioral health patients who tested positive for COVID-19 and a residential unit for COVID-19-positive patients in the adult foster care system.

2021

Bronson Healthcare, Kalamazoo

The 2021 winning team is a dedicated group of individuals who created and support Bronson’s Community Partnered Vaccine Clinics and Health Equity project.

2020

Spectrum Health Pennock

The 2020 winning team includes Spectrum Health Pennock’s surgical team – anesthesiologists, surgeons, registered nurses, and support staff – who worked diligently to eliminate surgical-site infections by instituting surgical policies, improving patient education and cultivating a “speak up for safety” culture.

2019

Spectrum Health sepsis team
The 2019 winning team is the Grand Rapids-based Spectrum Health sepsis team, which includes Steve Fitch, MD; Nick Kuhl, MD; Kristen Buck, MSN; and Sarah Fisher, MS. The team’s efforts to decrease adult severe sepsis/septic shock mortality by building on the foundation that sepsis involves the full continuum of care.

2018

Bronson Children’s Hospital
The 2018 winning team includes Peg J. Malnight, MSN, RN, outcomes coordinator; Andrea M. Scheurer, MD, neonatologist; Jamie McCune, RN; and Shannon McLogan, PharmD, clinical pharmacist. Bronson’s leadership team, information technology staff and entire NICU staff also played a key role in making the program a success.

Additional Information

How to Apply

Nominations will be accepted electronically. Supplemental materials, such as charts, data, etc., can be sent to Erica Leyko at the MHA but will be limited to two documents.

Submission Deadline

Aug. 26, 2026

Eligibility

All healthcare teams within MHA-member hospitals who are in good standing are eligible for this award, including direct care, administrative and support staff. Nominated teams do not need to directly provide patient care to be considered.

Team Members

There is no limit to the number of team members included in a nomination.

For more information, contact the MHA.