Welcome to the 2026 GHPCO Quality Awards Program!
(Important Information Before Submitting Your Quality Award Nomination)
To ensure your nominee is eligible and prepared for the awards process, please review the following critical requirements:
Overview
The Georgia Hospice & Palliative Care Organization (GHPCO) is committed to a selection process defined by integrity and impartiality. To ensure the "Hospice of the Year" award is granted based on merit alone, we utilize a multi-tier, "blinded" vetting system.
GA Hospice of the Year Selection Workflow
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Committee Vetting: The Quality Committee reviews all nominations. For the Georgia Hospice of the Year award specifically, the committee will conduct on-site visits to gather deep-dive insights and observational data.
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Scoring & Finalists: The Committee will score candidates based on established metrics and site visit findings. The Committee has the discretion to determine the number of finalists forwarded to the GHPCO Board based on the strength of the scores.
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Blinded Board Review: To eliminate bias, the GHPCO Board of Directors reviews finalist data blindly. All organization names and identifying markers are removed, ensuring the final decision is based strictly on performance data and nomination details.
Instructions for ALL Finalists
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The Quality Committee is responsible for reviewing and judging all Quality Awards, with the exception of the Georgia Hospice of the Year award, which follows a separate selection process.
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Notification: Finalists for Quality Awards will be notified of their status between November 15th-30th, 2026. The finalists are requested to attend the GHPCO February Conference.
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Conference Attendance: To maintain the element of surprise and honor the hard work of all individual nominees, the winners will not be announced in advance.
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The Reveal: Winners will be announced live during the conference awards ceremony. This format encourages attendance and ensures that the moment of recognition is shared with peers and colleagues across the state.
- To significantly strengthen the nomination package, we highly recommend including supporting Letters of Recommendation.
- Letters are valuable additions and can be sourced from supervisors, managers, staff, or patient families who can attest to the nominee's quality of service.
- Please email your letters of recommendations to admin@ghpco.org & hannah@ghpco.org.
Compassion:
- Providing care with kindness, empathy, and respect for each individual’s journey.
Dignity:
- Honoring the worth of every person, especially at the end of life.
Integrity:
- Acting with honesty, transparency, and ethical responsibility.
Advocacy:
- Championing the needs and rights of patients and families.
Equality:
- Ensuring all patients have equal access to care at the end of life.
Excellence
- Striving for the highest standard in clinical care, communication and service.
Presence:
- Being fully available and attentive to patients, families, and one another.
Collaboration:
- Working together as a team across disciplines and with families to deliver holistic care.
Stewardship:
- Responsibility managing resources to ensure sustainable, high-quality care.
Organizational Awards:
- The Georgia Hospice of the Year Award recognizes an organization that goes above and beyond in serving patients, families, and communities while embodying the highest standards of hospice care. This honor is designed to highlight the exceptional work of a hospice that not only delivers outstanding care but also demonstrates a commitment to organizational values, meaningful impact, and excellence in the field.
- All organizational nominees will be considered for the GA Hospice of the Year Award.
- The GHPCO Quality Award recognizes a hospice organization that demonstrates an outstanding commitment to excellence in patient care, compliance, and continuous improvement. This award honors an organization that consistently upholds the highest standards of quality, ensuring safe, effective, and compassionate care for patients and their families.
- The GHPCO Staff Development & Culture Award recognizes a team who not only embodies our organizational values but also drives positive change within our workplace culture. This award honors those who go above and beyond their daily responsibilities to create a more supportive, collaborative, and impactful environment for everyone.
- The GHPCO Community Impact Award recognizes a dedicated team that makes a significant positive difference in their community. The winning team is honored for their exceptional professionalism and the respectful, quality care they provide to patients in need.
- The GHPCO Specialized Care Award for Excellence in Pediatric Care honors an outstanding organization or team in Georgia dedicated to providing exceptional pediatric hospice and palliative care. This award highlights groups that deliver compassionate, family-centered care and actively advocate for enhanced support and services for children with life-limiting conditions across the state.
Individual Awards:
- The Physician Excellence Award recognizes a dedicated physician who demonstrates outstanding commitment and exemplary service in the delivery of hospice and palliative medicine.
This prestigious award celebrates a physician who goes above and beyond their clinical duties to ensure the highest quality of care, exhibiting profound compassion, exceptional clinical expertise, and unwavering dedication to the mission of the organization.
- The Clinical Excellence Award recognizes an outstanding hospice or palliative care professional who exemplifies exceptional skill, compassion, and dedication in their field. This award honors individuals across all clinical disciplines—including nursing, social work, chaplain/spiritual care, bereavement, CNA, and physician—for their unwavering commitment to delivering holistic, patient- and family-centered care.
Recipients of this award demonstrate the highest standards of professional excellence, serving as role models within their organizations and communities. Through their empathy, leadership, and collaboration, they enhance quality of life, bring comfort and dignity to patients and families, and embody the heart and mission of hospice and palliative care.
- The Servant Leadership Award recognizes an individual whose non-clinical role in supportive therapies, program coordination, or administration demonstrates excellence in providing essential support that elevates the administration, quality, and overall impact of their hospice or palliative organization.
This award specifically celebrates vital professionals who lead through service and are critical to maintaining high standards of care and operational success. The award goes to essential staff members such as Volunteer Coordinators, Music Therapists, Massage Therapists, Administrative Staff, and other crucial supportive therapy or program coordination personnel. The recipient exemplifies the spirit of servant leadership by focusing on the needs of their team, patients, and organization, ensuring seamless operation and enriching the patient experience beyond direct clinical care.
The Nursing Excellence Award recognizes a nurse who provides exceptional, evidence-based care focused on symptom management, champions patient rights and dignity, and works seamlessly within the interdisciplinary team to deliver holistic care. This individual serves as a role model and mentor while demonstrating measurable improvements in patient satisfaction and clinical performance.
The CNA Excellence Award recognizes a Certified Nursing Assistant who provides compassionate, dignified bedside care, demonstrates reliability and professionalism, advocates for patient comfort and safety, works collaboratively with the interdisciplinary team, and receives consistent positive feedback from patients and and families.
The Social Work Excellence Award recognizes a professional who advocates for patient rights and access to psychosocial resources, provides holistic emotional and practical support with dignity and cultural sensitivity, upholds ethical standards, collaborates effectively with the interdisciplinary team, and implements innovative solutions for complex family or social challenges.
The Spiritual Care Excellence Award recognizes a professional who offers outstanding spiritual care tailored to diverse beliefs and values, demonstrates cultural and religious sensitivity, maintains integrity and confidentiality in counseling, collaborates with clinical teams for holistic care, and advocates for spiritual well-being while educating staff on best practices.