MetroHealth Ranks No. 1 in Ohio for its Contributions to Community Health

The Glick Center

The MetroHealth System has been recognized by the nonpartisan Lown Institute for its generous contributions to community health and well-being, receiving an “A” grade in community benefit and ranking first out of 140 hospitals in Ohio and among the top 2% of nearly 3,800 hospitals nationally. MetroHealth also earned an “A” grade on Lown’s overarching social responsibility metric, reflecting the health system’s strong performance in the areas of health equity, patient outcomes and value of care.

Community benefit performance on the 2023-24 Lown Institute Hospitals Index is based on hospitals’ spending on financial assistance, Medicaid share of net patient revenue and spending on other investments that have direct benefit to the community, including health clinics, preventive health services and food security.

“At MetroHealth, we are steadfast in our commitment to improving the health and wealth of the communities we serve,” said MetroHealth President & CEO Airica Steed, Ed.D, RN, MBA, FACHE. “Every day, we are laser-focused on zeroing out the death gap, eradicating health care disparities and giving the individuals we serve the best chance at a happy, healthy life. This recognition from the Lown Institute is a testament to that work.”

“When hospitals invest heavily in community health, our nation grows stronger,” said Vikas Saini, MD, President of the Lown Institute. “That’s why it’s so important to lift up these high-performing hospitals as examples for others to follow.”

MetroHealth’s caregivers understand that community health depends on so much more than traditional medical care. Some of those efforts include:

• Through its Institute for H.O.P.E.™, screening patients for their health-related social needs – things like access to food, safe housing, transportation, job opportunities and the like – and then connecting them with local community agencies that can provide necessary support. The Institute for H.O.P.E.™ also manages MetroHealth’s Food as Medicine program, which assists patients in improving nutrition as a component of medical treatment, and works with other community organizations across the region to offer housing assistance, financial counseling, digital literacy trainings, social services navigation assistance and more.
• Partnering with the Cleveland Metropolitan School District to open the Lincoln-West School of Science and Health, the country's only high school inside a hospital. Since then, MetroHealth’s employees have supported and encouraged dozens of scholars by hosting interns, serving as guest speakers for classroom presentations, being mentors and more. The School of Science and Health's graduation rate has been over 90% for all five graduating classes. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra recently visited the school and held it up as a model that should be replicated nationwide.
• Partnering with NRP Group to open Vía Sana, a mixed-use development off West 25th Street designed to improve both the physical and economic health of people who live in the community adjacent to MetroHealth’s Main Campus. In addition to apartments, Vía Sana – which means “healthy way” in Spanish – will house the MetroHealth Opportunity Center, which will offer job training, financial and digital literacy training and access to Cuyahoga Community College classes. 
• Hosting Multicultural Health Fairs and Expos throughout Greater Cleveland for women, men and children. These events are designed to expand access to care and address the health inequities experienced by minority communities. The next event – the Multicultural Women’s Health Fair & Expo – will take place Saturday, September 30, at the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland. This effort is a direct response to Cleveland being named the least livable city for Black women.

In the Lown Institute Hospitals Index, MetroHealth also earned A grades in the following areas: inclusivity, cost efficiency, clinical outcomes and avoiding overuse. In the avoiding overuse category, MetroHealth ranked second in the state and 39^th nationally. This category measures a hospital’s success in avoiding inappropriate tests and procedures that offer little or no clinical benefit.