The Ethisphere Institute on Tuesday released its 16th annual list of the "World's Most Ethical Companies," which included nine health systems "for their unwavering commitment to business integrity," as well as several other health care companies.

Methodology

To identify the world's most ethical companies for 2022, Ethisphere used its proprietary Ethics Quotient process to capture and codify the practices of participating organizations, using more than 200 data points across five categories:

• Ethics and compliance program, which accounts for 35% of an organization's overall score
• Culture of ethics, which accounts for 20% of the overall score
• Environmental and societal impact, which accounts for 20% of the overall score
• Governance, which accounts for 15% of the overall score
• Leadership and reputation, which accounts for 10% of the overall score

This year, the assessment was updated to include questions regarding programmatic changes that were made in response to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, Ethisphere added an area around risk assessment, to address the U.S. Department of Justice's recent emphasis on success of a company's risk assessment efforts; more detailed questions regarding impact assessment processes; and several other updates that reflect the evolving landscape in relation to those in ethics, compliance, and governance.

In particular, the list recognizes companies "that have demonstrated a commitment to ethical business practices through programs that positively impact employees, communities and broader stakeholders, and contribute to sustainable and profitable long-term business performance."

Overall, participating companies receive an overall EQ score, as well as scores in each of the five categories as compared with other honorees, according to the methodology.

Health care honorees

In total, Ethisphere named 136 honorees from 22 countries and 45 industries for the "World's Most Ethical Companies" in 2022. Of those honorees, nine U.S. health systems were recognized on Ethisphere's 2022 list:

• Baptist Health South Florida* (Miami)
• Cleveland Clinic* (Cleveland)
• Covenant Health (Alberta, Canada)
• HCA Healthcare* (Nashville, Tenn.)
• Kaiser Permanente* (Oakland, Calif.)
• Northwell Health* (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) 
• MetroHealth* (Cleveland)
• University Hospitals* (Cleveland)
• University of Pittsburgh Medical Center* (Pittsburgh)

*Denotes Advisory Board member

In addition, Ethisphere recognized:

• Four health insurers: Blue Shield of California*, Cambia Health Solutions*, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, and Health Care Service Corporation
• Three pharmaceutical companies: Eli Lilly, Lonza, and Pfizer*
• One health care products company: Henry Schein*
• One medical device company: Edwards Lifesciences*

*Denotes Advisory Board member

"The moment is now, and the data is clear—companies must lead on sustainability, social issues, and governance. The World's Most Ethical Companies understand that the capitalism of today and tomorrow is one that demonstrates how we turn our ideals into action," said Ethisphere CEO Timothy Erblich. "Congratulations to the 2022 honorees for their dedication to advancing business integrity, for leadership on tough issues, and demonstrating that doing good is key to successful, long-term performance." ("The 2022 World's Most Ethical Companies Honoree List," accessed 3/16; Ethisphere news release, 3/15; Gooch, Becker's Hospital Review, 3/16)