Search

Only hospital in northern Nevada to receive national recognition for patient safety and quality Renown South Meadows Medical Center in south Reno has earned an “A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, a nonprofit watchdog organization that serves as a voice for health care consumers and purchasers, using their collective influence to foster positive change in U.S. health care. Leapfrog is the nation’s premier advocate of transparency in health care—collecting, analyzing, and disseminating data to inform value-based purchasing and improved decision-making. This national distinction recognizes Renown Health’s national accomplishments in ensuring safe, high-quality hospital care for patients. The Leapfrog Group is an independent, nonprofit organization that upholds the standard of patient safety in hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers. Developed under the guidance of a national expert panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,700 U.S. acute-care hospitals twice per year. Leapfrog assigns an “A,” “B,” “C,” “D” or “F” grade to general hospitals across the country based on over 30 measures of errors, accidents, injuries, and infections as well as the systems hospitals have in place to prevent them.  Leapfrog sets their standards using peer reviewed literature and expert opinion, peer comparisons, and alignment with existing national standards or performance targets. “We are very proud to recognize physicians, nurses, clinicians and the entire team at Renown South Meadows Medical Center for achieving exceptional Leapfrog performance in Patient-Centered Care, Critical Care, Nursing and Bedside Care for Patients, Patient Safety, Medication Safety, and Care for Total Joint Replacement and Elective Outpatient Surgery Patients,” said Brian Erling, MD, MBA, President and CEO, Renown Health. “As the only locally governed not-for-profit academic healthcare network in the region, Renown’s success is shared with our patients and community. We celebrate and thank our physicians, nurses, and caregivers for their continued dedication to making a genuine difference in the health and well-being of the people and communities we serve.” “Everyone who works at Renown South Meadows Medical Center should be proud of this ‘A’ Hospital Safety Grade,” said Leah Binder, president, and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “It takes complete dedication at every level, and an ironclad commitment to putting patients first. I thank Renown South Meadows Medical Center’s leadership, clinicians, staff, and volunteers for caring so deeply for patients and their safety.” “We are proud of our affiliated physicians and teams who give their best every day, to ensure that every patient’s care and safety is their top priority,” said Sam Weller, MHPA, CEO, Renown South Meadows Medical Center. “We recognize that when you choose a hospital, you could be making a life-or-death decision. Not every hospital is the same. Performance on things like infection rates, surgical errors, or patient injuries varies considerably—and matters greatly. It’s important for consumers to know and consider these things when choosing what physicians, hospital, or Emergency Room to select for their care. We are very excited to be recognized as the only hospital to achieve this designation in northern Nevada, and only one of two in the state (the other being in Las Vegas).”   To see Renown South Meadows Medical Center’s full grade details and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) and via The Leapfrog Group newsletter.   The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public. Renown Regional Medical Center received a B score for Fall & Spring 2023. For more information on the Leapfrog Group and the Spring 2023 scores, please visit: hospitalsafetyscore.org. About Renown Health Renown Health is the region’s largest, locally governed, not-for-profit integrated health care network serving Nevada, Lake Tahoe, and northeast California. With a diverse workforce of more than 7,400 employees, Renown has fostered a longstanding culture of excellence, determination, and innovation. The organization comprises a trauma center, two acute care hospitals, a children’s hospital, a rehabilitation hospital, a medical group and urgent care network, and the locally owned not-for-profit insurance company, Hometown Health. For more information, visit renown.org.  About The Leapfrog Group Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps for patient safety. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog's other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents and infections. For more, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram and sign up for our newsletter.

Read More About Renown South Meadows Medical Center Earns Highest "A" Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group

Renown Health is pleased to announce that Samuel K. Weller, MHPA, will serve as Chief Executive Officer for Renown South Meadows Medical Center, a 118-bed acute care community hospital and Renown Rehabilitation Hospital, a 62-bed physical rehabilitation hospital in Reno, Nev. The position was formerly held by Chris Nicholas, FACHE, who was promoted in March 2022 to serve as CEO of 808-bed Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno. Renown Health is the largest and only locally owned not-for-profit, charitable healthcare network in Reno, serving over 1 million people and 100,000 square miles between Salt Lake City and Sacramento. As CEO, Mr. Weller will work with the South Meadows and Rehabilitation leadership, medical staff, and team to achieve patient care, efficiency, and operational goals.  “We are excited to have Sam join the Renown Health senior leadership team at this pivotal moment in our history,” said Dr. Brian Erling, Renown’s president and CEO. “Sam is a dyamic health care executive with a solid record of advancing acute and ambulatory operations while collaborating with physicians and clinicians to expand services, enhance clinical quality, and exceed customer service expectations. Sam leads with integrity and a people-first approach which are essential to deliver on our mission to improve the health and well-being of the people and communities we serve.” Mr. Weller comes to Renown from Centura Health where he served as Group Vice President of Physician Enterprise for Greater Colorado and Kansas, overseeing physician services across a Level 1 Trauma hospital, eight Level III Trauma hospitals, two Critical Access/Trauma IV hospitals and numerous primary care and specialty practices. He previously served as Director of Strategy and Ambulatory Practices for St. Anthony Summit Medical Center in Summit County, CO overseeing hospital and ambulatory operations for the Rocky Mountain region; and Group Manager Business Development in Denver. Mr. Weller is a graduate of Washington State University with a master’s degree in health policy and administration (MHPA) and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Finance from Brigham Young University-Idaho. “I love health care because it is about people helping people,” says Sam Weller. “Renown is the most valued and trusted system of health for northern Nevadans, and working together, I am excited to help transform care for our community and improve the quality of life for generations to come.”  South Reno continues to grow, and consumer demand continues to increase for Renown medical providers and facilities. The South Meadows campus, which opened more than 15 years ago in February 2004, is currently improving existing facilities, and expanding service offerings to meet expressed needs of the community. Renown South Meadows Medical Center features private patient rooms for hospital stays, and will add additional private rooms, bringing the total to 73 private rooms when work is done this September.  Weller will assume his new duties on June 26.  Renown South Meadows Medical Center has been nationally recognized for providing the highest quality care and service.  In U.S. News and World Report Best Hospital rankings, Renown South Meadows was listed #1 in the State of Nevada (tied with Carson Tahoe Medical Center) for 2020. Renown South Meadows was rated High Performing for Hip Replacement and Knee Replacement and COPD. A hospital's score is based on multiple data categories, including patient outcomes, safety, and volumes. Hospitals earning a High Performing rating were significantly better than the national average. Renown Regional Medical Center was listed #1 for the State of Nevada in U.S. News and World Report Best Hospital listing for 2021 and 2022.  Sam and the team at Renown South Meadows Medical Center and Renown Rehabilitation Hospital are hiring great physicians, nurses and associates for careers in service; apply online at renown.org/careers, and volunteers to assist patients and their families at renown.org/About/Volunteers. About Renown Health Renown Health is the region’s largest, locally governed, not-for-profit integrated healthcare network serving Nevada, Lake Tahoe and northeast California. With a diverse workforce of more than 7,000 associates, Renown has fostered a longstanding culture of excellence, determination, and innovation. The organization comprises a trauma center, two acute care hospitals, a children’s hospital, a rehabilitation hospital, a medical group and urgent care network, and the region’s largest, locally owned not-for-profit insurance company, Hometown Health. Renown is currently hiring great physicians, nurses and associates for careers in service; apply online at renown.org/careers and volunteers to assist patients and their families at renown.org/About/Volunteers.

Read More About Samuel K. Weller Appointed CEO for Renown South Meadows Medical Center and Renown Rehabilitation Hospital

Renown Health, Nevada’s largest, not-for-profit integrated academic healthcare network, is delighted to announce Nariman Rahimzadeh, MD, FASA as the new Vice President, Medical Affairs for Renown South Meadows Medical Center, effective immediately. Dr. Rahimzadeh is a highly respected physician leader with an extensive background in medical leadership and a proven track record of enhancing patient care, driving clinical excellence and fostering a People First culture of collaboration. As part of a larger reorganization of the physician executive oversight of Renown Health’s hospitals, he will dedicate 30% of his time to this position while continuing to actively practice as an anesthesiologist. As VP of Medical Affairs, Renown South Meadows Medical Center, Dr. Rahimzadeh will collaborate with Dr. Bill Plauth, Chief Medical Officer for Renown Health, and Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine; and the yet to be filled, Vice President of Medical Affairs, Renown Regional Medical Center to support Medical and Advanced Practice Provider Staff. Together with Renown clinical and operational leaders, he will help ensure the highest standards of patient care, patient experience, and highly reliable quality and safety. Over the course of 11 years, Dr. Rahimzadeh has served as Medical Director for Surgical Services and Chief of Staff for Renown South Meadows Medical Center. Dr. Rahimzadeh will maintain his administrative and clinical responsibilities as an anesthesiologist with anesthesiology|NV. Dr. Rahimzadeh currently serves on the Board of Directors of the American Society of Anesthesiologists and is past President of the Nevada State Society of Anesthesiologists. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (FASA). A first-generation American who began his career at Renown (then Washoe Medical Center) as a shuttle bus driver, Dr. Rahimzadeh completed his bachelor’s degree in Pre-Medicine at the University of Nevada-Reno and is a graduate of Ross University School of Medicine in Florida. He completed two residency programs at the University of Connecticut in both Anesthesiology and Internal Medicine. He returned home to Reno as a private practice anesthesiologist in 2007. Renown Health and northern Nevada are undergoing a period of tremendous growth. Renown plays an essential role as the only locally governed, not-for-profit charitable healthcare network for the region. Dr. Rahimzadeh’s promotion to VP of Medical Affairs for South Meadows Medical Center underscores an ongoing commitment to advancing high-quality care and service to patients and to strategic growth and partnerships. About Renown Health Renown Health is the region’s largest, locally governed, not-for-profit integrated health care network serving Nevada, Lake Tahoe, and northeast California. With a diverse workforce of more than 7,500 employees, Renown has fostered a longstanding culture of excellence, determination, and innovation. The organization comprises a trauma center, two acute care hospitals, a children’s hospital, a rehabilitation hospital, a medical group and urgent care network, and the locally owned not-for-profit insurance company, Hometown Health. For more information, visit renown.org.

Read More About Renown Health Announces Nariman Rahimzadeh, MD, FASA as Vice President, Medical Affairs for South Meadows