Lori Weston, administrator at Park City Hospital, has received multiple honors this year, including the 2020 Community Benefit Engagement Award from the Utah Department of Health. Lori was also named among the top five hospital administrators across the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic from a nomination submitted to EM Docs, a Facebook group of 22,000 emergency management physicians.
Lori Weston with her award from the Utah Department of Health
Greg Rosenvall, who nominated Lori for the 2020 Community Benefit Engagement Award, says when Lori began her role, she immediately reached out to partners in Summit County to strengthen relationships and improve the hospital’s services. Lori joined the Summit County behavioral health executive committee, Aging Alliance, and Early Childhood Alliance. Her previous experience and leadership as the CFO/finance director in Park City helped her immediately gain trust with the community, caregivers, and physicians.
Wing Province, MD, medical director at Park City Hospital, says, “I’ve worked with Lori since she arrived as the administrator. She always puts the patients first. She’s always reaching out to others to ensure their needs are met. She’s calm, capable, and caring. She understands the big picture and then builds a clear path to the end goal.”
“Lori epitomizes, our mission, vision and values.” says Joanna Charnes, Foundation director at Park City Hospital. “She’s a community leader, an advocate for the patient as well as the caregiver. Often, I see her tackle difficult situations with finesse as she puts the needs of those around her first.”
“During the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lori’s forward thinking and ability to see the big picture shaped how our community handled this crisis,” says Rich Bullough, PhD, director and health officer for Summit County Health Department. “Lori is a partner at every level. She has supported maintaining the drive-through testing, even as testing numbers have declined. Even before COVID-19 was in our community, she’s been an integral part of shaping the health of our community.”
“Lori has been able to see the big picture of the impact on our community,” says Debra Martin, MD, an emergency physician. “Every action she put in place not only protected our community and surrounding counties but also protected the hospital staff. No one was left behind, from cafeteria workers, to housekeeping, to frontline registration and ED staff.”
“The role of a hospital administrator is extremely complex, and Lori does all of it exceptionally well,” says Joe Mott, vice president and COO for Specialty-Based Care. “You’re accountable for patient safety and quality, which involves hundreds of processes, and you’re also responsible for managing complex financial needs, managing a large workforce, working with community stakeholders, and holding accountability to the hospital governing board. Lori has extraordinary enthusiasm and energy and has remarkable outreach and connection to the community and those around her.”
Under Lori’s leadership, Park City Hospital has received the Press Ganey Guardian of Excellence for Patient Experience in the Emergency Room. The hospital has also been named a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services five-star hospital, among 100 Great Community Hospitals from Becker's Hospital Review.