Telling the Hospital Story 2026 Flip Book
Download and share examples reflecting hospitals' deep commitment to meeting community needs today while preparing for the challenges of tomorrow.
Member Resource: Building and Maintaining Public Trust and Confidence
Share these new resources with your communications and leadership teams.
Hospitals Leading the Way to a Healthier America
Hospitals have always been at the heart of community health empowering healthier, happier lives for all.
AHA Launches New Multimedia Advertising Campaign to Promote Hospitals
The campaign includes a commercial that will run on national, cable, and digital TV and digital advertising.
Resources Spotlight Crucial Role of Rural Hospitals and Health Systems
The AHA released new resources to help rural hospitals and health systems share their stories and highlight the vital role they play in their communities.
Creative repurposing saves heart during double-lung transplant
Old technology — applied in new and novel ways — can still be a lifesaver.
All Stories
Building Healthy Communities
University of Nebraska Medical Center
Omaha, Neb.
In this conversation, Angela Hewlett, M.D., professor of infectious diseases at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and medical director of the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit, explains how her team helped monitor and care for Americans exposed to the Andes hantavirus strain, the only known hantavirus capable of person-to-person transmission.
Building Healthy Communities
Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center
Boise, Idaho
Saint Alphonsus, in partnership with Canyon County Paramedics and the American Red Cross, has launched Idaho’s first ground‑based EMS whole‑blood transfusion program.
Building Healthy Communities
University of Illinois Chicago
University of Illinois Chicago's Pauline Maki, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry, psychology, and obstetrics and gynecology, and Makeba Williams, M.D., professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, unpack why menopause care is finally having a breakthrough moment.
Ensuring Access to Care
Cottage Hospital, New Hampshire
Sharon Hospital, Connecticut
In this conversation, leaders from Cottage Hospital and Sharon Hospital (part of Northwell Health) share how specialized geriatric behavioral health programs are helping older adults receive compassionate, comprehensive mental health care close to home.
Ensuring Access to Care
Springfield Hospital
Springfield, Vt.
A new service at a critical access hospital in rural Vermont is strengthening neurological care in the community.
Ensuring Access to Care
Hackensack Meridian Health
Hackensack, N.J.
The Metropark Health & Wellness Center is the first comprehensive health and wellness facility in the nation to be located within a major transit hub, offering convenient access to care for commuters and nearby residents.
Benefiting Communities
Corewell Health
Michigan
Corewell Health and the Champions of the Heart Foundation are joining forces to expand emergency preparedness and lifesaving training across Michigan, aiming to equip more residents with the skills needed to respond to cardiac emergencies.
Benefiting Communities
Cheyenne Regional Medical Center
Wyoming
Cheyenne Regional Medical Center (CRMC) has partnered with GamFin, a national nonprofit focused on financial recovery from problem gambling, to offer free, confidential financial counseling to Laramie County residents harmed by problem gambling.
Benefiting Communities
Southwest Health
Platteville, Wis.
Southwest Health's Kevin Carr, M.D., family medicine physician, and Melissa Carr, M.D., OB/GYN, reflect on the joy of practicing medicine together, delivering babies side by side, and caring for generations of families in rural Wisconsin as a father-daughter duo.
Innovation, Research, and Quality Improvement
Community Memorial Hospital
Hamilton, N.Y.
Community Memorial Hospital in Hamilton, New York, is transforming spine surgery by introducing robotic technology, led by neurosurgeon Dr. Nicholas Qandah.
Innovation, Research, and Quality Improvement
Mercy Hospital St. Louis
St. Louis, Mo.
Mercy Hospital St. Louis is now using a cancer treatment that sounds more like science fiction than modern medicine: “Bubble clouds” and sound waves are being deployed to destroy liver tumors — painlessly.
Innovation, Research, and Quality Improvement
Golden Valley Memorial Healthcare
Clinton, Mo.
A surgeon at Golden Valley Memorial Healthcare in Clinton, Mo., has completed the world’s first knee replacement surgery using a new miniature robotic system.
Prevention and Wellness
Dartmouth Health Children’s
Lebanon, N.H.
Dartmouth Health Children’s has launched a new season of its “Heads Up” mental health awareness series focused on children, titled “Heads Up: Foundations for Youth Mental Health.”
Prevention and Wellness
University of Pennsylvania Health System
Philadelphia
In this conversation, Elinore Kaufman, M.D., medical director of the Penn Trauma Violence Recovery Program, and Michele Volpe, chief operating officer of the University of Pennsylvania Health System, share how hospital-based violence intervention programs are helping patients heal physically, emotionally and socially after traumatic injury.
Prevention and Wellness
CommonSpirit Health
Chicago, Ill.
For millions facing substance use disorders, stigma isn’t just harmful — it’s a barrier to survival. In this conversation, three leaders from CommonSpirit Health explore how the organization is confronting stigma head-on through education, storytelling and culture change. They also reveal how shifting language, training and grassroots efforts are helping patients feel seen and heard on their road to recovery.
Workforce
Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women & Newborns
San Diego, Calif.
At Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women & Newborns in San Diego, Nick Saade, M.D., saw the patient experience from a different perspective — as a husband and expectant father.
Workforce
In recognition of #HAVHope Day on June 5th, Sarah Hunter, president of Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, explores the innovative approaches her team is using to reduce workplace violence. From a simple but effective buddy system to stronger partnerships with public safety agencies and community leaders, hear real-world solutions that help healthcare workers focus on what they do best — caring for patients.
Workforce
Hartford HealthCare
Hartford, Conn.
In this Leadership Dialogue conversation, Marc Boom, M.D., president and CEO of Houston Methodist and the 2026 AHA board chair, speaks with John Santopietro, M.D., senior vice president at Hartford HealthCare and physician-in-chief of its Behavioral Health Network.
Building Healthy Communities
Mat-Su Regional General Hospital
Palmer, Alaska
Peanut butter has long been a sought-after item for food pantries, thanks to its long shelf life and nutritional value. Mat-Su Regional Medical Center sees it as a critical tool in the fight against hunger within the community, in which an estimated 20% of residents experience food insecurity.
Building Healthy Communities
Sage Memorial Hospital
Ganado, Ariz.
Three new and upgraded health facilities opening in Arizona will provide Native Americans with better access to health care, and more are in the works.
Building Healthy Communities
Penrose Hospital
Colorado Springs, Colo.
Penrose Hospital in Colorado Springs was among three area caregivers to participate in a February, 2023 staged exercise that simulated the effects of a bioterrorism attack, in this case botulinum toxin — one of the most poisonous known naturally-occurring substances — placed in the local milk supply.
Building Healthy Communities
Providence Holy Cross Medical Center
Mission Hills, Calif.
At Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in California, getting the right tools in the hands of gun owners is helping prevent tragic ends from occurring.
Building Healthy Communities
Aiden Fouhy is high school senior, a resident of rural Montana, and an aspiring airplane pilot. In his spare time, Aiden is also a traveling bookmobile.
Building Healthy Communities
Sutter Health
Sacramento, Calif.
Food insecurity and food surplus exist at opposite ends of the spectrum, but they go hand in hand when it comes to their impact on public health. Sutter Health observed these barriers to public health within their communities, so they partnered with innovative surplus redistribution tool Copia and collaborated with local organizations to solve them.
Building Healthy Communities
Hackensack Meridian Hackensack University Medical Center
Hackensack, N.J.
For some people a lucky number might be a winning lotto ticket. Thirty-seven-year old Jose Vasquez of Teaneck, NJ, did win the lotto in a manner of speaking. His fortunate number: 300.
Building Healthy Communities
OSF Healthcare
Peoria, Ill.
Women's access to specialized health care is expanding in Illinois because of a collaboration between Bloomington's Advanced Women's Healthcare and OSF Healthcare to integrate certified midwives into OSF Healthcare's system.
Building Healthy Communities
Jefferson Health
Philadelphia, Pa.
Jefferson Health has launched "Pride at the Jefferson Center for Healthy Aging," a program dedicated to caring for Philadelphia's aging LGBTQIA+ community, combining clinical care and research efforts to create a primary care home for LGBTQIA+ older adults.
Ensuring Access to Care
In this conversation, Julie Dye, clinical nurse specialist in geriatrics at Sharp Grossmont Hospital, discusses the benefits of participating in the Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation program and the Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative.
Ensuring Access to Care
The birthing centers at Maine’s Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center, Inland Hospital and Mercy Hospital in 2023 received recognition at the state’s Perinatal Quality Collaborative conference for their work addressing maternal hypertension.
Ensuring Access to Care
Jefferson Health
Philadelphia, Pa.
Jefferson Health has launched "Pride at the Jefferson Center for Healthy Aging," a program dedicated to caring for Philadelphia's aging LGBTQIA+ community, combining clinical care and research efforts to create a primary care home for LGBTQIA+ older adults.
Ensuring Access to Care
The Kent Hospital at Home care team, based in Warwick, R.I., visits the homes of qualifying patients, whether they live in a house, apartment, skilled nursing facility — or even a boat.
Ensuring Access to Care
WVU Medicine United Hospital Health Center
Morgantown, W.Va.
WVU Medicine United Hospital Health Center is addressing this issue by partnering with the United Way of Harrison and Doddridge Counties to establish the first medical respite care center in the state of West Virginia.
Ensuring Access to Care
Loma Linda University Medical Center (LLUMC) will now house within their emergency department a comprehensive behavioral health program, as well as an HIV prevention and care program.
Ensuring Access to Care
Indiana University Health recently began a new community health initiative to provide prevention, education and early detection of cardiovascular disease — which includes free blood pressure screenings — in area barbershops.
Ensuring Access to Care
Thanks to a federal grant, Vanderbilt University Medical Center is aiming to provide care for women at one of the darkest times in their lives.
Ensuring Access to Care
Half of all Medicare beneficiaries get their benefits through Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, which are offered by private companies and in theory should provide the same level of coverage of traditional Medicare.
Benefiting Communities
Shodair Children’s Hospital in Helena, Mont., has launched the Hope Campaign to reduce stigma and encourage conversations about youth mental health.
Benefiting Communities
In this "Caring for Our Kids" episode, Traci Carter, program manager of Raising St. Louis, and Nicole Kozma, director of school and community outreach programs at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and BJC Community Health Improvement, discuss the scope of the Raising St. Louis program.
Benefiting Communities
Monadnock Community Hospital’s Mobile Integrated Healthcare (MIH) program is closing care gaps in the rural community of Peterborough, N.H., and the eastern Monadnock region.
Benefiting Communities
CommonSpirit Health and University of Utah Health have announced a strategic clinical alliance to enhance patient access to high-quality medical care across several CommonSpirit hospitals in Utah.
Benefiting Communities
Fairview Park Hospital
Dublin, Ga.
Fairview Park Hospital in Dublin, Ga., has been working to reduce hospital anxiety for children, particularly those between six months and four years old, who often experience peak doctor anxiety.
Benefiting Communities
Providence
Renton, Wash.
Providence Health System has partnered with home-based care provider Compassus to offer home health, hospice, community-based palliative care, and private-duty caregiving services to patients across the country.
Benefiting Communities
Southern Hills Hospital & Medical Center hosted a free Teddy Bear Clinic at its ER in November to help children feel more comfortable in medical settings through fun, interactive activities.
Benefiting Communities
Fox Chase Cancer Center
Philadelphia, Pa.
On October 28, 2024, Fox Chase Cancer Center unveiled its latest Mobile Screening Unit (MSU), a state-of-the-art cancer research center on wheels.
Benefiting Communities
ChristianaCare
Middletown, Delaware
ChristianaCare is set to expand its health care services in Middletown, Delaware, by constructing a new multidisciplinary health center on its Middletown campus.
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
UW Medicine
Seattle
Researchers at UW Medicine and the University of Washington in Seattle have developed a new 3D-printed device called STOMP (Suspended Tissue Open Microfluidic Patterning) that significantly advances human tissue engineering.
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
HCA Healthcare
Nashville, Tenn.
In part two of this conversation on patient safety and AI, Randy Fagin, M.D., chief quality officer at HCA Healthcare, shares how one of the nation’s largest health systems is putting AI into practice
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
HCA Healthcare
Nashville, Tenn.
Randy Fagin, M.D., chief quality officer at HCA Healthcare, shares insights into the organization's bold approach to improving safety outcomes with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Seattle
For kids with cancer, challenges often don’t end when cancer ends. Returning to school can be uniquely difficult.
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
St. Joseph’s Hospital
Syracuse, N.Y.
A groundbreaking surgical robot known as the ESP robotic platform is now being used at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse to treat early-stage rectal cancer and large polyps with a minimally invasive approach.
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
CommonSpirit Mercy Hospital
Durango, Colo.
In this conversation, Josh Neff, CEO of CommonSpirit Mercy Hospital, discusses a new cutting-edge communication platform that sends patient EKGs directly from the ambulance to the cardiologist in real time.
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
Medical University of South Carolina
Charleston, SC
The Pediatric Emergency Medicine and Pediatric Hematology/Oncology divisions at the Medical University of South Carolina teamed up to create and test an algorithm for treating children with sickle cell disease who arrived at the ED with a fever.
The algorithm helps providers better determine which kids should be admitted and who should go home for treatment with close follow-up from the hospital.
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
Medical University of South Carolina
Charleston, S.C.
When a patient has depression, often the first medical professional to spot it is their primary care provider, thanks to routine screenings many offices offer. However, getting under the care of a behavioral health professional may involve a long wait — and the patient needs help now.
Innovation, Research and Quality Improvement
West Virginia University Children's Hospital
Morgantown, W.V.
Hypospadias, a birth defect that results in a baby boy’s urethra forming at the underside of the penis rather than the tip, is commonly corrected through a surgery performed six months to a year after birth.
Prevention and Wellness
Kate Leissler's journey to a healthier life has been filled with determination and resilience.
Prevention and Wellness
Novant Health
Winston Salem, N.C.
In this conversation, Sara Robinson, senior associate healthcare architect at McMillan Pazdan Smith Architecture, and Jamie Feinour, vice president of operations at Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center and president of Novant Health Charlotte Orthopedic Hospital, discuss how patient-centered design and innovative architecture come together to create spaces of healing for patients and providers, and how Sara's personal cancer journey impacted the design for Novant Health's Breast Center.
Prevention and Wellness
UCF Lake Nona Medical Center
Orlando, Fla.
Now, thanks to the Libraries with Heart program, libraries in Central Florida are places where community members can keep an eye on one aspect of their health.
Prevention and Wellness
University of Rochester Medical Center
Rochester, N.Y.
Researchers at the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience at the University of Rochester in New York are investigating a potential biomarker in the brain that could diagnose psychosis before symptoms appear.
Prevention and Wellness
In this conversation, Mindy Estes, M.D., former CEO of Saint Luke's Health System and former AHA board chair, and Roxanna Gapstur, Ph.D., R.N., CEO of WellSpan Health, discuss the strategies that enabled WellSpan to maintain high-quality care during and after the pandemic.
Prevention and Wellness
Vermont Medical Center
Burlington, Vt.
To provide a safe alternative to the ED and help people before they experience a mental health crisis, University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington, Vt., and several other organizations worked together to open the Mental Health Urgent Care in October 2024.
the Mental Health Urgent Care offers mental health services, peer support and help accessing follow-up services to guests
Prevention and Wellness
Oklahoma Children’s Hospital
Oklahoma City, Okla.
The Oklahoma Children’s Hospital Paws for Purpose program has been helping patients with cognitive, physical and emotional healing since 2017.
Prevention and Wellness
HCA HealthONE Rose Medical Center
Denver, Colo.
At HCA HealthONE Rose Medical Center in Denver, two wagging tails, belonging to therapy dogs, bring smiles and a sense of peace to the hardworking staff.
Prevention and Wellness
Children's Hospital of Georgia
Augusta, Ga.
Some things run in families; for Matthew Smith and his son Turner, that’s care at Children’s Hospital of Georgia.
Workforce
University of Rochester Medical Center
Rochester, N.Y.
In this new "Safety Speaks" conversation, Michael Privitera, M.D., professor emeritus of psychiatry at the University of Rochester Medical Center, discusses ways to ease the cognitive load that many physicians and caregivers face, and how simple steps can be implemented to make it easier to focus on what's most important.
Workforce
Danbury Hospital
Danbury, Conn.
A virtual reality program for new inpatient nurses — whether they’re returning to bedside care or changing specialties — is enhancing patient safety and quality of care at Danbury Hospital in Connecticut, part of Nuvance Health.
Workforce
Jefferson Healthcare
Port Townsend, Wash.
In this conversation, Brandie Manuel, R.N., chief patient safety and quality officer at Jefferson Healthcare, discusses how the use of TeamSTEPPS and other tools are making a big difference in creating a thriving employee pipeline.
Workforce
Trinity Health
Livonia, Mich.
In this conversation, Tom Peterson, M.D., vice president and chief safety officer at Trinity Health, shares how Trinity's focus on both patient and workforce safety is paying off.
Workforce
Saint Peter’s Healthcare
New Jersey
Saint Peter’s Healthcare’s dual investments in infrastructure and education are improving the lives of both patients and employees.
Workforce
WellSpan Health
York, Pa.
As we observe AHA’s 8th annual #HAVHope Day, it's an important reminder that many hospital and health system leaders are looking for solutions to address the root causes of violence in their organizations and communities.
Workforce
Rush University Medical Center
Chicago, Ill.
In this conversation, Diane Mariani, program manager at Rush University Medical Center, discusses their Caring for Caregivers program, which shares resources and guidance to family and friends who care for older adults, while helping them better manage their own health and wellness.
Workforce
In this conversation, Renee Whiskey-LaLanne, director of community partnerships at Montefiore's Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and Kevin Fiori, M.D., vice chair of community health and engagement at Montefiore Health System, discuss how the lofty dream of an institute turned into reality, as well as the strategies for addressing social determinants of health.
Workforce
Hannibal Regional Hospital
Hannibal, Mo.
In this conversation, Susan Wathen, vice president of human resources at Hannibal Regional Healthcare System, discusses their unique approaches to finding and retaining future health care employees.