Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare of Memphis, Tenn., has been named a 2008 Achievement Award winner in the annual Excellence in Tennessee recognition program administered by the nonprofit Tennessee Center for Performance Excellence (TNCPE). The award will be presented at the 16^th annual Excellence in Tennessee Awards Banquet on February 18, 2009, at the Franklin Marriott Cool Springs in Franklin, Tenn.

Through an annual evaluation and assessment process, TNCPE recognizes organizations that have achieved the highest standards of excellence in their operations and results. The program uses the Criteria for Performance Excellence established by the Baldrige National Quality Program as the evaluation tool.

Awards are presented in four categories: Interest Recognition (the beginning level), Commitment, Achievement, and the highest level – the Excellence Award. 

“Organizations that focus their resources on improving systems and results are often successful ones,” said Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen. “The companies that receive these awards acknowledge this, and have proven their commitment by making their business – and in turn, our state – economically stronger.”

Recipients of Achievement Awards have demonstrated significant progress in building systematic processes using performance improvement principles. Results for some key processes show improvement that is directly attributable to a systematic improvement approach, a robust management system and performance management principles. These organizations have many practices from which other organizations can learn and grow.

“This award is a validation of Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare Associates and physicians’ continuous efforts to improve quality across our system,” said Gary Shorb, president and CEO. “My thanks go out to all those who work hard each day to make our health system the best it can be for our patients and their families.”

 “I congratulate Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare on this award, which represents countless hours of hard work by this organization,” said Bredesen.

In addition to Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, two other organizations will be honored with the Achievement Award, four have earned the Commitment Award and seven are Interest Recognition recipients.

This year, Caris Healthcare, headquartered in Knoxville, Tenn., will receive the Excellence Award, TNCPE’s highest honor. 

But achieving any level of recognition is significant. “The businesses, schools, hospitals and nonprofits that use the Criteria for Performance Excellence are setting themselves up for success, period,” said TNCPE President Katie Rawls. “With the TNCPE program as their guide, these winners are developing the infrastructure they need to weather any storm. I am delighted with what they’ve accomplished, and I encourage them to keep going.”

There is no limit to the number of TNCPE Awards presented annually. To date, only 19 regional organizations have attained TNCPE’s “world class” Excellence designation. Of those, four – Eastman Chemical Company, Federal Express, Pal’s Sudden Service and Caterpillar Financial Services Inc. – have also achieved the Baldrige National Quality Award.

Since TNCPE was created in 1993, about 1,080 organizations have progressed through one or more levels of achievement. A Board of Examiners made up of approximately 200 experts in business, education, health care and government assessed this year’s applicants in seven categories: leadership; strategic planning; customer and market focus; measurement, analysis and knowledge management; workforce focus; process management; and results.

The Tennessee program, which is itself a national and international role model, is available to all businesses, educational institutions, health care organizations, government agencies and other nonprofit entities. Melanie Hendricks, Vice President, Global Quality of Cummins Filtration serves as chair of the 2008 Board of Directors.

Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare is a faith-based health care system that in partnership with its physicians, is committed to delivering outstanding care to each patient that it serves.