Susan Taylor serves as Administrator at NHC Maryland Heights, which proudly achieved the 2025 Gold Quality Award.
The Quality Journey from Start to Now
As a recipient of the Gold Quality Award, Susan reflects on her center's journey from Bronze to Gold: “Our Quality Award journey has been one of growth, learning, and perseverance. Prior to COVID-19, we earned the Bronze Award twice and even began working on a Silver application. However, we recognized that our center was not quite ready to take that next step. Following the pandemic, our leadership team made a commitment to rebuild stronger than ever. We focused on strengthening our systems, improving communication, and ensuring that our mission, vision, and values were truly embedded in everything we do."
“That commitment led us to apply for the Bronze Award in 2023, the Silver Award in 2024, and the Gold Award in 2025. We were honored to achieve each award the year we applied. This accomplishment was not the work of one individual. It was a true team effort. Every partner in our center played a role in creating a culture of excellence, accountability, and continuous improvement."
Valuing People
At NHC Maryland Heights, Susan and her team believe their people are their greatest strength: “That commitment begins during the hiring process. We take time to personally tour applicants through our center so they can experience our culture firsthand. New partners then participate in a structured two-day orientation that includes meeting senior leaders, reviewing policies and procedures, and learning the importance of our mission, vision, and values. We continuously seek feedback through Great Place to Work partner surveys and use that feedback to drive meaningful improvements. Communication is also a top priority. We have daily stand-up meetings and monthly all-staff meetings on every shift to ensure that all partners stay informed, engaged, and connected to our goals. As a result, we have built a strong culture of engagement and achieved excellent retention rates."
Customer-Focused Excellence
Residents and families are at the heart of every decision at NHC Maryland Heights: “Senior leaders conduct purposeful rounds during meal service to listen directly to residents and learn about their experiences. We also created an Ambassador Club to enhance dining services and better understand resident preferences. And targeted departmental rounding allows us to address concerns proactively, while Activated Insights surveys provide valuable feedback from residents and families at admission, annually, and upon discharge. We know that listening, responding, and improving based on customer feedback helps us provide exceptional care and service every day."
Innovation
NHC Maryland Heights embraces innovation through its CAPS Program, which focuses on Children, Animals, Plants, and Spirituality: “Through CAPS, we create opportunities that promote connection, purpose, and joy for residents. Whether through interaction with children, caring for plants, engaging with animals, or nurturing spiritual well-being, we strive to enhance each resident's quality of life in a personalized and meaningful way. We have a pony, chickens, goats, and birds that live on our property. We encourage families and visitors to bring in their home cats and dogs for visits. We also have a growing resident and partner garden that offers fresh vegetables and flowers."
Societal Contribution
Giving back to the community is an important part of NHC Maryland Heights' work: “Our center actively supports the Alzheimer's Association, VOYCE, local nursing programs, and numerous workforce development initiatives. We offer CNA classes, support CNA mentors through labor grant programs, and create employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities. We participate in GWEP projects focused on the 4Ms Framework and what matters to our residents. The center supports the Foundation for Geriatric Education. We also host Kids Camp programs throughout the year, creating meaningful intergenerational experiences for both residents and children, helping the next generation grow compassion for seniors. Our residents are community contributors as well, participating in projects that support local food pantries and other charitable causes throughout the area."
The Impact of the Quality Award Journey
The Quality Award journey has helped NHC Maryland Heights sharpen its focus and strengthen its approach to continuous improvement: “The Quality Award journey helped us sharpen our focus on what matters most. We increased emphasis on ensuring every partner understands and lives our mission, vision, and values. The process also strengthened our strategic planning efforts, improved our SWOT analysis process, and challenged us to evaluate our systems more critically. As a result, we have become more intentional, more data-driven, and more focused on continuous improvement. Most importantly, the journey has helped us deliver an even higher level of care and service for our residents and families."
What the Gold Quality Award Means
For Susan, achieving the Gold Quality Award represents both recognition and validation: “Achieving the Gold Quality Award is both an honor and a validation of the work our team does every day. The award recognizes the dedication of our partners and demonstrates what can be accomplished when an organization moves beyond compliance and strives for excellence. It provides an opportunity to showcase our commitment to quality and inspire others to pursue systematic approaches that improve outcomes for residents, families, and staff."
Looking Forward
Looking ahead, Susan hopes to continue mentoring others and celebrating the positive stories that happen every day in long term care: “I hope to continue mentoring others on their quality journeys and helping organizations understand that meaningful change often begins with small, consistent steps. I also want to continue highlighting the positive stories that happen every day in long term care. There are incredible moments shared between residents, families, and caregivers, and those stories deserve to be celebrated. Most importantly, I want to continue demonstrating the excellence, compassion, and impact that long term care professionals bring to our communities and our country."
Final Advice
After achieving Gold in the Quality Award journey, Susan shared advice for organizations beginning their own journey: “Start where you are and don't be afraid to take the first step. Success doesn't happen overnight. Build strong processes, measure your progress, celebrate your wins, and learn from your setbacks. Most importantly, ensure your entire interdisciplinary team understands and supports the journey.
“Use Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement as more than a compliance requirement. Make it a tool for growth, learning, and excellence. And remember to have fun along the way. Long term care is challenging work, but it is also incredibly rewarding. The Quality Award process is a chance to showcase who you are, what you do, and how you make a difference every day while staying true to your mission, vision, and values.
“Don't settle for simply getting by. Get excited about being excellent. That's where transformation happens. Do not forget that your Leadership equals Results, so go out and get the results you want. The way that we lead is everything is patient focused. The patient is put first then the investors and the partners all have the same alignment to be focused on the patient we get the desired outcomes."