Labor and delivery services recognized for patient quality at Oak Hill Hospital
Brooksville, FL — HCA Florida Oak Hill Hospital announced today its Labor and Delivery Services earned the 2024 HCA Healthcare Unit of Distinction Award, an annual program that recognizes and rewards exemplary nursing units at HCA Healthcare sites across the nation. The Unit of Distinction designation is achieved through measurable, model 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.
Chief Nursing Officer Sheila C. Sanders and Raquel Ferreira, Director of Women’s and Children’s Services accepted the award in Nashville, Tennessee.
“We are so pleased to earn this prestigious recognition for our clinical excellence in nursing,” said Sheila C. Sanders, Oak Hill Hospital’s Chief Nursing Officer. “Our team of nurses, nurse midwives and physicians provide exceptional, safe care to expectant moms and families. And, with our Level 3 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit on site, we provide advanced care for multiples and vulnerable infants.”
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.
Oak Hill Hospital’s Labor and Delivery services have been recognized by the state of Florida for its low Cesarean section birth rates among low-risk, first time mothers by the Agency for Health Care Administration (ACHA) and the Florida Department of Health.
In addition to the Labor and Delivery Unit of Distinction honors, Oak Hill Hospital’s Level 3 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and adult Intensive Care Unit (ICU) were also recognized for high performance among their HCA Healthcare peers.
Ken Wicker, chief executive officer, said, “Oak Hill Hospital provides high quality critical care for its most vulnerable adults and our tiniest patients in our two intensive care units – the NICU and ICU. This accolade by HCA Healthcare adds to our recognition by Healthgrades as the recipient of the Critical Care Excellence Award, while also being named to Healthgrades list of hospitals in the Top 5% in the Nation for Critical Care for two years in a row (2024-2025).”
Oak Hill Hospital is part of HCA Florida Healthcare, a statewide network HCA which includes approximately 11,100 experienced doctors and 84,000 colleagues working together at 49 hospitals to deliver advanced, collaborative care to more than 12 million patients each year.