Southwest Memorial Hospital was recently named a Top 100 Critical Access Hospital by iVantage Health Analytics, a medical data research firm.
With its Hospital Strength Index, iVantage used 56 different performance metrics to select the 100 finalists for 2013.
Critical access hospitals refer to facilities in rural, geographically isolated locations with 25 or fewer inpatient beds, among other criteria.
CEO Kent Kelwig called being named to the list a "testimony" to the dedication of Southwest Health System employees, patients and the wider community.
"Of the 1,331 critical access hospitals in the United States, (our) facility is one of the nation's best rural safety-net institutions," he said.
Four Colorado hospitals made the cut. Along with Southwest Memorial, Aspen Valley Hospital, Gunnison Valley Health and Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (Salida) also were recognized. Wisconsin had the most hospitals of any state, with 13.
