Excela Health Continues to Earn National Recognition for Maternity Care

Repeat Designation Comes From U.S. News & World Report

GREENSBURG, PA December 8, 2022 … Excela Health is once again recognized for its exemplary maternity services, with continuing recognition by U.S. News & World Report as a 2022-2023 High Performing in Maternity Care (Uncomplicated Pregnancy). This is the highest award a hospital can earn for U.S. News’ Best Hospitals for Maternity Care.
The annual evaluation is designed to assist expectant parents and their doctors in making informed decisions about where to receive maternity care.

Excela Westmoreland Hospital and its Family Additions Maternity Center earned a High Performing designation in recognition of maternity care as measured by factors such as newborn complication rates.

U.S. News evaluated nearly 650 hospitals that provide high-quality labor and delivery services for uncomplicated pregnancies for its 2022-2023 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care. Fewer than half of all hospitals that offer maternity care and participated in the survey received a High Performing designation.

“When expectant parents are considering their options for welcoming a baby into the world, the Best Hospitals for Maternity Care is designed to help them identify hospitals that excel in delivering babies for uncomplicated pregnancies,” said Min Hee Seo, senior health data scientist at U.S. News.

This year’s methodology includes four measures not previously factored into Best Hospitals for Maternity Care, including episiotomy rates, vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) rates, and whether each hospital met new federal criteria for “birthing-friendly” practices. Also new this year, the U.S. News methodology rewards hospitals that tracked and reported their outcomes for patients of different races and ethnicities.

“Identifying racial disparities in maternity care is a vital step toward achieving health equity,” said Seo. “The new measures provide expectant parents with many important data points, such as whether hospitals implemented patient safety practices, to assist them in making a decision about where to receive maternity care.”

The U.S. News Best Hospitals for Maternity Care methodology is based entirely on objective measures of quality, such as C-section rates in lower-risk pregnancies, newborn complication rates, exclusive breast milk feeding rates and early elective delivery rates, among others.

“It is such an honor to be considered one of the best hospitals for Maternity by U.S. News,” said Excela Health obstetrician Randi Turkewitz, MD, FACOG, who chairs the Department of Obstetrics for the health system.  “We strive each and every day to provide the best care possible to all of our patients.  Instituting multiple safety measures and following best practice guidelines have allowed us to provide this expert care to our patients in the maternity center.  It is so important that these metrics are available for the public to review so that they feel reassured that the best providers, nurses and staff are taking care of them or their loved ones.  I couldn't be more proud of the dedication and commitment of the team to achieve this recognition.”

John Sphon, Excela Health Chief Executive Officer, echoed those sentiments. “Excela Health has a long history of providing exceptional maternal child services to our community. Beyond labor and delivery, that commitment to quality spans the continuum of care and is also reflected elsewhere in the accolades we continue to receive for a myriad of clinical services. Data-driven evidence-based care is a hallmark for Excela Health and we are proud to have those efforts lauded once again.”

Excela’s Family Additions Maternity Center also ranks among the nation’s leaders as determined by Newsweek, and is named among the Best Maternity Hospitals with this publication for three consecutive years. Earlier this year, Excela Westmoreland also was recognized for maternity care by Money magazine.

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