King’s Daughters Medical Center was recently named a recipient of the Women’s Choice Award as one of America’s Best Hospitals in Emergency Care.

The Women’s Choice Awards help women make smarter choices by collectively identifying the brands, products and services most recommended and trusted by women and those that deliver a customer experience worthy of women’s recommendations, according to WomenCertified, which presents the awards.

The Women’s Choice Awards are based on surveys of thousands of women, as well as research conducted in partnership with the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania on what drives the consumer experience for women vs. men.

“The award is based on robust criteria that consider patient satisfaction, clinical excellence and what women really want when it comes to treatment and a quality hospital experience,” said Delia Passi, CEO and founder of WomenCertified, home of the Women’s Choice Award.

“King’s Daughters Medical Center not only performed well clinically with regard to emergency care measures, but they also have a high recommendation rating, which is very important to women when it comes to health related decisions,” Passi said.

“King’s Daughters Medical Center is pleased to be recognized by Women’s Choice as one of America’s Best Hospitals in Emergency Care,” said KDMC CEO Alvin Hoover. “This distinction serves as a testament to KDMC’s reputation of excellence and its commitment to providing quality health and wellness in a Christian environment.”

The Women’s Choice Award is the lone recognition program that measures medical services against the needs and preferences of women. Of the seven core measures reported by emergency departments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, women rate “door to diagnostic time” or in other words, “door to doctor,” as the most important criteria when selecting an emergency room. The least important reported measure is the total time before leaving the emergency room.

“Our mission is to reduce the risk for women and their families so they can make smarter healthcare choices,” added Passi. “We have found that recommendations are the single most important consideration used by women in selecting a hospital for themselves and their family.

“By helping women know which hospitals in their area provide the best critical care, we are able to help them make better decisions, especially when it comes to emergency situations.”

Each year, there are more than 125 million emergency room visits in the U.S., with about a fifth of them being children under the age of 15. Emergency departments continue to be an essential part of the healthcare system as they provide fast, life-or-limb saving care to millions each year.

Hospitals earning the Emergency Care Award consistently rank in the top 25 percent of the 3,600 hospitals reporting on their emergency department’s performance to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The seven measures CMS publicly reports relate primarily to the amount of time taken in the ER such as time for diagnosis, medication, and admission to the hospital, and are weighed according to the priorities of women surveyed.

A hospital can be eliminated from the award if they fall outside the 25th percentile for two or more of the seven measures, depending on their importance. The award is also limited to those hospitals with a solid recommendation on Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems.

As a leading advocate for female consumers, WomenCertified(R) – the home of the Women’s Choice Award, created the first national award based on the ratings and preferences of women to provide them with a collective voice. Women can make their preferences heard and be part of the mission toward a million voices strong by visiting the Women’s Choice Award official website at www.womenschoiceaward.com and joining the network.

To view King’s Daughters Medical Center Women’s Choice Award profile, those interested can go to http://www.womenschoiceaward.com/awarded/best-hosp/featured/kings-daughters/ or visit www.kdmc.org.