COVINGTON – St. Tammany Health System has once again received Healthgrades’ Outstanding Patient Experience Award, placing it in the top 5% of U.S. hospitals for patient experience and underscoring the health system’s focus on providing quality, patient-centric care.
This 2025 award marks the 17th consecutive year the health system has earned the honor, dating to 2009. It is the only Northshore hospital to have maintained the distinction over that period.
“Hospital quality, including patient experience, should always be considered when choosing where to receive care,” said Debra Gradick, MD FACEP, senior physician consultant at Healthgrades. “Healthgrades' Outstanding Patient Experience Award highlights hospitals that prioritize patient experience and consistently achieve exceptional results. Our goal is to help patients feel heard, confident and assured of receiving the best possible care.”
For this annual analysis, Healthgrades evaluated Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) patient survey data, with a focus on key patient experience measures involving patients’ perceptions of their hospital care, from cleanliness and noise levels to medication explanations and staff responsiveness.
Patient survey data used for Healthgrades’ 2025 ranking were released in November 2024 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), covering patients discharged between Jan. 1, 2023, and Dec. 31, 2023.
Recipients of the 2025 Outstanding Patient Experience Award earned the highest overall experience scores, reflecting an unwavering commitment to prioritizing positive person-centered care. As part of the 2025 analysis, Healthgrades identified three patient experience areas that best predict a patient’s likelihood to recommend a hospital to friends and family:
- Doctor communication.
- Nurse communication.
- Clear communication about care when discharged.
Healthgrades evaluated 3,059 hospitals that submitted at least 100 patient experience surveys to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Hospitals in the bottom 20% for overall clinical quality were excluded from consideration. See the complete Healthgrades Outstanding Patient Experience Award methodology for additional details.
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About St. Tammany Health System
The heartbeat of its community, St. Tammany Health System cares for patients and families with excellence, compassion and teamwork. It is nationally recognized for quality, safety and service excellence by CareChex, Leapfrog, Healthgrades, Hospital Compare, Women’s Choice and US News & World Report. The health system is home to 281-bed St. Tammany Parish Hospital Service District No. 1, three diagnostic centers and more than 20 medical clinics throughout western St. Tammany Parish. Self-supporting, not-for-profit STHS is AA- rated by Fitch and receives no tax funding. Learn more at StTammany.health.
About Healthgrades
Healthgrades is dedicated to empowering meaningful connections between patients, doctors, and hospitals. As the #1 platform for finding a doctor and a leader in healthcare transparency, we help millions of consumers each month find and schedule appointments with their healthcare professional of choice and prepare for their appointments with best-in-class, treatment-focused content. For over 20 years, our health system, group practice, and life sciences marketing solutions have helped our partners reach and engage consumers on their way to the doctor. Healthgrades is part of RVO Health, a partnership between Red Ventures and Optum, part of UnitedHealth Group. RVO Health has the largest consumer health and wellness audience online across its brand portfolio, including Healthgrades, Healthline, Medical News Today, Greatist, Psych Central and Bezzy, which touch every part of the health and wellness journey. RVO Health helps more than 100 million unique visitors live their strongest and healthiest lives each month.