The emergency departments at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital (SBCH) and Santa Ynez Valley Cottage Hospital (SYVCH) have received the 2026 Emergency Nurses Association (ENA) Lantern Award, recognizing their commitment to innovation, evidence-based practices and improvements that support patient care and staff well-being.
The Lantern Award honors emergency departments that foster collaboration and continuous improvement while maintaining high standards for patient care, safety and staff engagement. SBCH and SYVCH are among 126 emergency departments selected for the recognition this year.
“This recognition reflects the extraordinary skill, compassion and teamwork our emergency department staff bring to every patient, every day,” said Laura Canfield, Chief Nursing Officer at Cottage Health. “Their commitment to patients and to one another is reflected in the high-quality emergency care they provide every day.”
A key part of the emergency departments’ work has been creating a culture where frontline staff are empowered to identify opportunities for improvement, share ideas and help shape changes in how care is delivered. These staff-led efforts have helped improve the patient experience, strengthen staff engagement and make emergency care more efficient.
The award recipients will be featured in upcoming ENA publications, on the ENA website and during Emergency Nursing 2026, the association’s annual conference taking place Sept. 28 through Oct. 1 in Phoenix.
Cottage Health provides 24/7 emergency care at hospitals in Goleta, Santa Barbara and the Santa Ynez Valley. All three emergency departments are staffed by the same group of board-certified emergency physicians and have been reaccredited as Geriatric Emergency Departments by the American College of Emergency Physicians.
Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital is also verified as a Level I Trauma Center for adults and a Level II Trauma Center for pediatric patients by the American College of Surgeons and the Santa Barbara County Emergency Medical Services Agency.
For more information on this year’s Lantern Award recipients, visit the Emergency Nurses Association website.
