HAP Achievement Awards: WellSpan Health

June 13, 2025

HAP's annual Achievement Awards honor hospitals and health systems for their innovation, creativity, and commitment to patient care. The Achievement Awards showcase and share member hospitals’ and health systems’ successful programs and best practices.

This year, WellSpan Health received the Workforce Innovators Award for its project that leveraged artificial intelligence to transform health care delivery.

Here’s what you need to know:

• The challenge:  Rising patient volumes and inefficient workflows strained the clinical workforce, leading to burnout, delayed care, reduced patient engagement, and challenges with staff retention and care coordination.
• Addressing the Issue:  A system-wide needs assessment combined data analysis, staff input, and industry benchmarking to identify fragmented workflows, administrative burdens, and gaps in outreach and coordination as key drivers of these issues.
• Taking Action:  The team integrated artificial intelligence into nursing care, imaging, documentation, and patient outreach. Tools such as virtual nursing support, real-time scan review, and voice-generated clinical notes were embedded into daily workflows, with dedicated oversight to ensure safe, effective adoption.
• Results:  Artificial intelligence solutions significantly reduced staff workload, streamlined documentation, and enhanced nurse and provider satisfaction—resulting in a 52 percent reduction in patient falls and fostering a more resilient, engaged workforce.
• Advancing Care:  “The successful implementation and evaluation of AI pilots have paved the way for expansion across additional facilities,” the team noted, highlighting their commitment to sustained improvements and scalability.

Congratulations to WellSpan Health for its outstanding efforts to strengthen the health care workforce and transform care delivery. Learn more about the project online.

Questions about the HAP Achievement Awards may be directed to HAP Member Services at (717) 561-5359.