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KVH Hospice Team Recognized Nationally for Caregiver Experience

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It all started with an email.

Earlier this summer, Jacqui Morse, Director of Home Health & Hospice at Kittitas Valley Healthcare (KVH), opened her inbox to find a message that made her heart skip a beat: KVH Hospice had been awarded the 2024 SHPBest™ “Superior Performer” Caregiver Experience Award.

This honor, given by Strategic Healthcare Programs (SHP), recognizes hospice programs that rank among the top 20% nationwide for caregiver and family experience. The award is based on feedback from the CAHPS Hospice Survey, one of the largest benchmarks in the country, which measures how well hospice providers care for patients and support their loved ones during some of life’s most tender and challenging moments.

For the KVH Hospice team, this recognition is more than just a statistic, it’s a reflection of the heart behind their work.

Jay McDonald, RN, Home Health & Hospice summed it up beautifully:

“It is nice to know our services are appreciated.”

The entire team shares that sentiment. The award has brought a wave of joy and validation, reminding each caregiver that the late nights, the gentle conversations, and the countless acts of compassion are noticed and deeply valued.

Jacqui shared that when she told the team the news, “there was this wonderful mix of surprise and pride. Everyone was smiling. At the same time, they didn’t fully grasp the magnitude of this great accomplishment. It’s moments like these that remind us why we do what we do.”

The SHPBest award shines a light on what families in our community already know — that KVH Hospice staff walk alongside patients and loved ones with grace, respect, and unwavering support.

This recognition has energized the team for the future, as they continue to carry forward KVH’s promise to be “Your Home for Health” at every stage of life.

Kittitas Valley Healthcare awarded for efforts to improve rural stroke care

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  

Kittitas Valley Healthcare awarded for efforts to improve rural stroke care

The American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® – Stroke Rural Recognition Gold award recognizes efforts to address the unique health needs of rural communities

ELLENSBURG, WA, July 29, 2025 — People who live in rural communities live an average of three years fewer than urban counterparts and have a 40% higher likelihood of developing heart disease and face a 30% increased risk for stroke mortality — a gap that has grown over the past two decades. , Kittitas Valley Healthcare is committed to changing that.

For efforts to optimize stroke care and eliminate rural health care outcome disparities, Kittitas Valley Healthcare  has received the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® – Stroke Rural Recognition Gold award.

The American Heart Association, the world’s leading nonprofit organization focused on heart and brain health for all, recognizes the importance of health care services provided to people living in rural areas by rural hospitals that play a vital role in initiation of timely evidence-based care. For that reason, all rural hospitals participating in Get With The Guidelines- Stroke are eligible to receive award recognition based on a unique methodology focused on early acute stroke performance metrics.

“We are proud that our team at Kittitas Valley Healthcare is being recognized for the important work we do every day to improve the lives of people in Kittitas County who are affected by stroke, giving them the best possible chance of recovery and survival,” said Deb Callins, KVH Chief Nursing Officer. “As a hospital in a rural community, we deal with unique challenges, such as extended interfacility transportation times, and limited staffing resources. We’ve made it a goal to make sure those hurdles do not affect the standard of care our stoke patients receive.

“Rural communities deserve high quality stroke care. I’m proud of our team for their commitment to stroke care excellence and this achievement. “The award recognizes hospitals for their efforts toward acute stroke care excellence demonstrated by composite score compliance to guideline-directed care for intravenous thrombolytic therapy, timely hospital inter-facility transfer, dysphagia screening, symptom timeline and deficit assessment documentation, emergency medical services communication, brain imaging and stroke expert consultation.

“Patients and health care professionals in Kittitas County face unique health care challenges and opportunities,” said Karen E. Joynt Maddox, M.D., MPH, co-author on the American Heart Association’s presidential advisory on rural health. Kittitas Valley Healthcare has furthered this important work to improve care for all Americans, regardless of where they live.”

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About Kittitas Valley Healthcare: 

Kittitas Valley Healthcare (KVH) proudly serves Kittitas County and surrounding rural communities as the region’s only healthcare system. Governed by a locally elected Board of Commissioners, KVH operates 25 acute care, critical care, and birthing beds, providing 24/7 emergency services and a full range of inpatient and outpatient care. Through multiple clinics and specialty services, KVH offers family medicine, pediatrics, women’s health, behavioral health, cardiology, dermatology, ENT, orthopedics, neurology, general and vascular surgery, and urgent care. Additional services include home health, hospice, wound care, workplace health, and rehabilitation therapy. Committed to keeping high-quality care local, KVH strives to improve access and enhance the health and well-being of the communities it serves.

About Get With The Guidelines®

Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with the latest research-based guidelines. Developed with the goal of saving lives and hastening recovery, Get With The Guidelines has touched the lives of more than 14 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit heart.org.

[1] American Heart Association. American Heart Association issues call to action for addressing inequities in rural health. February 10, 2020. https://newsroom.heart.org/news/american-heart-association-issues-call-to-action-for-addressing-inequities-in-rural-health; American Heart Association. Public Health AmeriCorps to address health inequity in rural communities. April 6, 2022. https://newsroom.heart.org/news/public-health-americorps-to-address-health-inequity-in-rural-communities.

[2] Harrington R, et al. Call to Action: Rural Health: A Presidential Advisory From the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association. Circulation. 2020;141:e615–e644.

WRITE Excellence in Teaching Award

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Congratulations Dr. Merrill-Steskal for being awarded the WRITE Excellence in Teaching Award for the Eastern/Central Washington region.

“This award aims to recognize and honor preceptors with a track record of excellence in teaching medical students as well as those that serve as a leader in their community. Nominations were collected from WRITE students across WWAMI. A selection committee then reviewed all nominations based on five criteria: commitment to student success, effective teaching methods, positive impact in the community, excellence as a role model for students, and commitment to continuous improvement. You have clearly demonstrated the qualities we look for in outstanding preceptors and recipients of this award.” – University of Washington School of Medicine

Get With The Guidelines® Award

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Kittitas Valley Healthcare has been nationally recognized for its commitment to providing high-quality stroke care

The American Heart Association presents the Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Award for proven dedication to ensuring all stroke patients have access to best practices and life-saving care

Kittitas Valley Healthcare has received the American Heart Association’s 2022 Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Award for its commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines, ultimately leading to more lives saved and reduced disability.

Stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood and oxygen it needs, so brain cells die. Early stroke detection and treatment are key to improving survival, minimizing disability and accelerating recovery times.

Get With The Guidelines puts the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest research- and evidence-based guidelines. Get With The Guidelines – Stroke is an in-hospital program for improving stroke care by promoting consistent adherence to these guidelines, which can minimize the long-term effects of a stroke and even prevent death.

The Mission: Lifeline and Get With The Guidelines programs make it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis, which helps us ensure more people in central Washington experience longer, healthier lives.

About Get With The Guidelines

Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with the latest research-based guidelines. Developed with the goal of saving lives and hastening recovery, Get With The Guidelines has touched the lives of more than 12 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit heart.org.

KVH awarded for practice transformation activities in Kittitas County

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Kittitas Valley Healthcare (KVH) came home from the Provider Recognition Awards with four awards from the Greater Columbia Accountable Community of Health on Wednesday evening, October 30.

KVH Hospital, KVH Family Medicine – Cle Elum and KVH Family Medicine – Ellensburg were each presented with the “Fighting for Change/War Room” Award by Jenna Shelton, GCACH’s Practice Transformation Navigator. This award recognizes the collaborative work being done by KVH and the other safety net organizations in our community towards practice transformation and the implementation of a Patient-Centered Medical Home. KVH also received the “Kittitas Beginner Opioid Resource Network (ORN) Award for work being done to reduce opioid abuse throughout the county.

“KVH has a team that brings nothing but excellence and dedication,” stated Jenner Shelton. “They have committed a space labeled as their ‘War Room’ where all of the practice transformation ideas and workflows have been built. They are a highly committed group.”

The GCACH’s mission is to advance the health of our population. The GCACH region includes nine counties and over 710,000 lives. Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) is the strategic foundation for Greater Columbia’s work and puts the patient in the center of care. The result is better patient care, improved population health and lower healthcare costs. The PCMH acts as an “umbrella” that incorporates the majority of the work from the four project areas below:

  • Bi-Directional Integration of Physical & Behavioral Health – The focus is to address physical and behavioral health needs through an integrated network.
  • Addressing the Opioid Public Health Crisis – The focus is to reduce opioid related morbidity and mortality through prevention, treatment and recovery supports.
  • Chronic Disease Prevention & Control – The focus is implementation of the Chronic Care Model, a cornerstone of PCMH, with the goal being planned prevention and treatment strategies for individuals with chronic illnesses.
  • Transitional Care – The focus is to reduce avoidable admissions/readmissions to intensive care settings such as hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, skilled nursing facilities and prisons or jails. The goal of transitional care is getting the right care, at the right time, and the right place.