Inova Health President & CEO J. Stephen Jones, MD, FACS, honored with Award of Excellence by Joint Commission
Fairfax, VA – Inova Health is pleased to announce that J. Stephen Jones, MD, FACS, President and CEO of Inova, has been recognized with the 2025 Award of Excellence by Joint Commission, an independent, evidence-based standards setting organization that sets the benchmark for safe, high-quality patient care through healthcare accreditation and certification.
The Award of Excellence annually honors one individual for outstanding leadership and remarkable contributions to the field of healthcare. This award recognizes an individual’s commitment to significantly advancing Joint Commission’s vision — and healthcare’s shared vision — that all people always experience the safest, highest quality, best value healthcare across all settings.
As the inaugural recipient of the Award of Excellence, Joint Commission presented the award to Dr. Jones for his visionary leadership during a pivotal time in healthcare, championing expanded access regardless of ability to pay, and ensuring patients receive world-class care.
“Our 2025 award recipients shine a spotlight on how bold innovation and unwavering commitment to patient-centered care are transforming the landscape of healthcare quality and safety,” said Jonathan B. Perlin, MD, PhD, president and chief executive officer, Joint Commission. “Congratulations to Dr. Jones, whose work inspires us all to challenge convention, embrace collaboration, and harness data-driven insights to improve care for every patient.”
“I am honored to be the inaugural recipient of the Joint Commission’s Award of Excellence,” said Dr. Jones. “This recognition is a reflection of the exceptional dedication of Inova’s 26,000 team members who share a commitment to advancing safe, high-quality healthcare for each patient, in every community we have the privilege to serve.”
Dr. Jones was recognized during a special session at UNIFY™ 2025: Convening for Quality, Joint Commission’s inaugural healthcare leadership conference that brought together more than 850 healthcare leaders, clinicians, changemakers, and quality and safety experts to discuss the industry’s most pressing challenges.
Learn more about the Award of Excellence.
About Inova
We are Inova, Northern Virginia and the Washington, DC, metropolitan area’s leading nonprofit healthcare provider. With expertise and compassion, we partner with our patients to help them stay healthy. We treat illness, heal injury and look at a patient’s whole health to help them flourish. Through our expansive network of hospitals, primary and specialty care practices, emergency and urgent care centers, and outpatient services, Inova provides care for more than 1 million unique patients every year. Total patient visits exceed 4 million annually, demonstrating our ability to deliver the best clinical care and ensuring a seamless experience for all who rely on us for their healthcare needs.
Consistently ranked and recognized as a national healthcare leader in safety, quality and patient experience, Inova’s world-class care is made possible by the strength and breadth of our network, our 26,000 team members, our technology, and our innovation. In 2025, Inova was named the Health System of the Year by Press Ganey, a national leader in healthcare experience, recognizing our excellence in patient care, team member engagement and commitment to continuous improvement. Inova is home to Northern Virginia’s only Level 1 Trauma Center and Level 4 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and provides high-quality healthcare to each person in every community we are privileged to serve – regardless of ability to pay – every day of their life. More information about Inova can be found at Inova.org.