Case Study: University of Rochester Medical Center achieves improved patient experience and employee recognition with Reward Gateway

Top medical center uses strategic recognition to impact the patient experience and improve culture and employee well-being

The University of Rochester Medical Center (UR Medicine), a leading academic medical center, needed to modernize its grassroots Strong Stars recognition program—originally paper cards used by patients and staff—to an automated, electronic system that could scale across its 26,000 employees and support a patient‑centric culture. In 2010 UR Medicine partnered with Reward Gateway to move Strong Stars online and to leverage Reward Gateway’s employee recognition and engagement expertise to better align recognition with the ICARE values.

Reward Gateway implemented an online Employee Engagement platform (still called Strong Stars), helped define visible behaviors tied to UR Medicine’s ICARE Experience, and provided strategic guidance to increase meaningful peer and patient recognition. The program strengthened culture and morale, contributed to improved patient satisfaction scores from 2008–2017, and delivered measurable engagement: 85% of employees have received recognition since launch and roughly 20,000 stories have been captured and shared.

University of Rochester Medical Center