ACEP Emergency Medicine Wellness Center of Excellence Award

About the Award

The ACEP Emergency Medicine Wellness Center of Excellence Award is a national, annual honor within the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) Leadership & Excellence Awards, recognizing emergency medicine departments, groups, and clinical sites that demonstrate leadership in creating a healthy, safe, and sustainable work environment for clinicians.

This award recognizes institutions that move beyond individual resilience strategies and invest in systems-level structures, policies, and cultures that support professional well-being.

Award Governance & Review Process

The Emergency Medicine Wellness Center of Excellence Award is an official ACEP Leadership & Excellence Award.

• Applications are reviewed by the ACEP Professional Well-Being Committee
• The Committee submits a formal recommendation to the ACEP Board of Directors
• Upon Board approval, the ACEP Wellness Section formally recognizes the award recipient at its annual Section Meeting during the ACEP Scientific Assembly

This process ensures the award reflects ACEP’s national standards and commitment to workplace well-being.

Award Criteria

The EM Wellness Center of Excellence Award is grounded in ACEP’s Well Workplace Policy framework and evaluated across eight core components. While no institution is expected to be perfect, awardees demonstrate intentional effort, infrastructure, and measurable progress across the following criteria:

1. Facility Amenities
   Availability and maintenance of essential spaces such as lactation rooms, break rooms, and functional charting areas.
2. Workplace Safety & Violence Prevention
   Clear policies and practices focused on clinician and patient safety, including violence mitigation strategies.
3. Transparent Leave Policies
   Comprehensive, clearly communicated leave policies that meet or exceed state requirements.
4. Mental Health & Early Recognition
   Programs that support early identification of distress, physician impairment, and mental health needs, including access to peer support and EAP resources.
5. Burden Reduction (Administrative Tasks)
   Efforts to reduce unnecessary administrative workload, improve EMR usability, and support paid off-shift charting.
6. Wellness Evaluation & Accountability
   Regular, anonymous data collection with actionable feedback loops and leadership accountability.
7. Wellness Committees & Programs
   Active committees responsible for designing, implementing, and evaluating wellness initiatives.
8. Schedule Optimization
   Staffing and scheduling practices that promote work-life balance and reduce burnout.

Celebrating Past Recipients

Each year’s honorees serve as national examples of what is possible when wellness is treated as a strategic priority.

Recent Award Recipients

2025 – Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Recognized for leadership in safety, transparency, and data-driven wellness initiatives.

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2024 – EM Wellness Center of Excellence Award - Department of Emergency Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine/New York Presbyterian Hospital
Honored for innovative, system-wide wellness initiatives integrated across the department.

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Past Honorees

• 2021 – Indiana University
• 2022 – Riverside Community Hospital at UC Riverside
• 2023 – University of Cincinnati
• 2024 – Weill Cornell Medicine, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital
• 2025 – Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania 

Apply for the Award

Applications for the Emergency Medicine Wellness Center of Excellence Award opens annually in January. Deadline to submit an application for the 2026 award cycle is March 16, 2026.

Eligible applicants include emergency medicine departments, physician groups, and clinical sites that demonstrate meaningful investment in workplace well-being. Nominate for this Award