Houston, Texas — Texas Orthopedic Hospital announced that its Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) and Patient Care Unit (PCU) have earned the 2024 HCA Healthcare Unit of Distinction (UOD) Award, an annual program that recognizes and rewards exemplary nursing units at HCA Healthcare sites of care. The Unit of Distinction designation is achieved through measurable, exemplary performance in the strategic areas of advocacy and leadership, consistency in nursing practice and operations and leveraging scale to improve patient care.
“True innovation happens at the bedside and the Unit of Distinction program celebrates the best of HCA Healthcare. Today we recognize and celebrate exemplary nursing units who raise the standard of nursing excellence,” said Sammie Mosier, DHA, MA, BSN, NE-BC, senior vice president and chief nurse executive of HCA Healthcare. “Thanks to all of the nurses who work each day to lead the way, delivering excellent care to patients and support to our community of nurses.”
Launched in 2015, the Unit of Distinction Awards are an essential component of HCA Healthcare's strategic nursing plan. HCA Healthcare supports and invests in nursing with leading-edge technologies and increased access to clinical education and professional development opportunities to help make HCA Healthcare a premier career destination for nurses.
“I am incredibly proud to recognize our Post Anesthesia Care Unit and Patient Care Unit for being named a Unit of Distinction. This recognition places them in the top 5% of nursing units across the HCA Enterprise,” said Chris Stewart, chief nursing officer at Texas Orthopedic Hospital. “This achievement is a direct reflection of their unwavering commitment to patient satisfaction and their relentless drive to change lives. Their dedication, compassion, and excellence truly set the standard for nursing care.”
In a ceremony broadcast from HCA Healthcare's headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee on Tuesday, April 15, 2025 a total of 197 nursing units were recognized as top-performing nursing units. Units of Distinction are categorized in the top five percent of all HCA Healthcare medical surgical, critical care, emergency services, surgical services, behavioral health, women's and children's nursing units, pediatrics/PICU and inpatient rehabilitation units. The top six to ten percent of all HCA Healthcare units earned honorable mention designations.