Awards - Faith Regional Health Services

Faith Regional Awards

2012 "Top Performer on Key Quality Measures" Recognition from The Joint Commission
Faith Regional is one of only four hospitals in Nebraska recognized for its achievement in the measures sets: heart attack, pneumonia and surgical care.

Faith Regional Health Services was named one of the nation’s Top Performers on Key Quality Measures by The Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of health care organizations in America. Faith Regional was recognized by The Joint Commission for exemplary performance in using evidence-based clinical processes that are shown to improve care for certain conditions, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia, surgical care, children’s asthma, stroke and venous thrombo embolism, as well as inpatient psychiatric services.

Faith Regional is one of 620 hospitals in the U.S., and one of seven hospitals in Nebraska, earning the distinction of Top Performer on Key Quality Measures for attaining and sustaining excellence in accountability measure performance. Faith Regional was one of four hospitals in Nebraska recognized for its achievement on the following measure sets: heart attack, pneumonia and surgical care. The ratings are based on an aggregation of accountability measure data reported to The Joint Commission during the 2011 calendar year. The list of Top Performers increased by 50% from its debut last year and represents 18% of more than 3,400 eligible accredited hospitals reporting data.

Quality and Patient Satisfaction Data

Faith Regional Awards

National Patient Safety Goals

Speak Up Program: Help Prevent Errors in Your Care

Patient Safety Guide

Quality and Patient Safety Resources

Each of the hospitals that were named as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures met two 95% performance thresholds on 2011 accountability measure data. First, each hospital achieved performance of 95% or above on a single, composite score that includes all the accountability measures for which it reports data to The Joint Commission, including measures that had fewer than 30 eligible cases or patients. Second, each hospital met or exceeded 95% performance on every accountability measure for which it reports data to the Joint Commission, excluding any measures with fewer than 30 eligible cases or patients. A 95% score means a hospital provided an evidence-based practice 95 times out of 100 opportunities to provide the practice. Each accountability measure represents an evidence-based practice – for example, giving aspirin at arrival for heart attack patients, giving antibiotics one hour before surgery and providing a home management plan for children with asthma.

“When we raise the bar and provide the proper guidance and tools, hospitals have responded with excellent results, “ says Mark R. Chassin, MD, FACP, MPP, MPH, president of The Joint Commission. “This capacity for continual improvement points toward a future in which quality and safety defects are dramatically reduced and high reliability is sought and achieved with regularity. Such day-to-day progress will slowly but surely transform today’s health care system into one that achieves unprecedented performance outcomes for the benefit of the patients.”

“We understand that what matters most to patients at Faith Regional is safe, excellent, quality and effective care,” said JimSinek, President and CEO of Faith Regional Health Services. “That’s why Faith Regional has made a commitment to Joint Commission accreditation and to positive patient outcomes through evidence-based care processes. The results of that commitment are playing off and are reflected in not the award so much as what the award represents. Faith Regional is proud to be named to the list of The Joint Commission’s Top Performers on Key Quality Measures and to be one of only five hospitals in Nebraska to be recognized for excellence in three or more core clinical areas.”

In addition to being included in today’s release of The Joint Commission’s “Improving America’s Hospitals” annual report, Faith Regional will be recognized on The Joint Commission’s Quality Check web site, www.qualitycheck.org. The Top Performer program will be featured in the October issues of The Joint Commission Perspectives and The Joint Commission: The Source.

2011 - American Stroke Association Get With The Guidelines Gold Quality Achievement Award
Award demonstrates Faith Regional Health Services’ commitment to quality care for stroke patients

Faith Regional Health Services recently received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®–Stroke Gold Quality Achievement Award. The award, which was presented at the 2011 Go Red for Women: Ladies Night Out event held on September 28, recognizes Faith Regional’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of stroke care by ensuring that stroke patients receive treatment for at least 24 months according to nationally accepted standards and recommendations.

“With a stroke, time lost is brain lost, and the Get With The Guidelines–Stroke Gold Quality Achievement Award addresses the important element of time,” said Betty Froehlich, director of Quality and Case Management at Faith Regional Health Services. “Faith Regional has developed a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department. This includes always being equipped to provide brain imaging scans, having neurologistsavailable to conduct patient evaluations and using clot-busting medications when appropriate.”

To receive the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Gold Quality Achievement Award, Faith Regional demonstrated 85% adherence in the Get With The Guidelines–Stroke key measures for 24 or more consecutive months. These include aggressive use of medications like tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol-reducing drugs, and smoking cessation.

“The American Stroke Association commends Faith Regional for its success in implementing standards of care and protocols,” said Lee H. Schwamm, M.D., chair of the Get With The Guidelines National Steering Committee and director of the TeleStroke and Acute Stroke Services at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. “The full implementation of acute care and secondary prevention recommendations and guidelines is a critical step in saving the lives and improving outcomes of stroke patients.”

Get With The Guidelines–Stroke uses the “teachable moment,” the time soon after a patient has had a stroke, when they are most likely to listen to and follow their healthcare professionals’ guidance. Studies demonstrate that patients who are taught how to manage their risk factors while still in the hospital reduce their risk of a second heart attack or stroke. Through Get With The Guidelines–Stroke, customized patient education materials are made available at the point of discharge, based on patients’ individual risk profiles. The take-away materials are written in an easy-to-understand format and are available in English and Spanish. In addition, the Get With The Guidelines Patient Management Tool provides access to up-to-date cardiovascular and stroke science at the point of care.

“The time is right for Faith Regional to be focused on improving the quality of stroke care by implementing Get With The Guidelines–Stroke. The number of acute ischemic stroke patients eligible for treatment is expected to grow over the next decade due to increasing stroke incidence and a large aging population,” said Jeff Yosten, MD, Medical Director of Faith Regional’s Emergency Department.

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is one of the leading causes of death and serious, long-term disability in the United States. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 40 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every four minutes; and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

Faith Regional Health Services has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines® Stroke Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award. The award recognizes Faith Regional’s commitment and success in implementing excellent care for stroke patients, according to evidence-based guidelines.

To receive the award, Faith Regional achieved 85 percent or higher adherence to all Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Performance Achievement indicators for two or more consecutive 12-month intervals and achieved 75 percent or higher compliance with six of ten Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Quality Measures, which are reporting initiatives to measure quality of care.

2010 - American Stroke Association Get With The Guidelines Gold Performance Achievement Award
Award demonstrates Faith Regional Health Services’ commitment to quality care for stroke patients

These measures include aggressive use of medications, such as tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol reducing drugs and smoking cessation, all aimed at reducing death and disability and improving the lives of stroke patients.

“With a stroke, time lost is brain lost, and the Get With The Guidelines–Stroke Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award demonstrates Faith Regional’s commitment to being one of the top hospitals in the country for providing aggressive, proven stroke care,” said Dr. Jeff Yosten, medical director of the Emergency Department at Faith Regional Health Services. “We will continue with our focus on providing care that has been shown in the scientific literature to quickly and efficiently treat stroke patients with evidence-based protocols.”

“Faith Regional is to be commended for its commitment to implementing standards of care and protocols for treating stroke patients,” said Lee H. Schwamm, M.D., chair of the Get With The Guidelines National Steering Committee and director of the TeleStroke and Acute Stroke Services at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. “The full implementation of acute care and secondary prevention recommendations and guidelines is a critical step in saving the lives and improving outcomes of stroke patients.”

Get With The Guidelines–Stroke uses the “teachable moment,” the time soon after a patient has had a stroke, when they are most likely to listen to and follow their healthcare professionals’ guidance. Studies demonstrate that patients who are taught how to manage their risk factors while still in the hospital reduce their risk of a second heart attack or stroke.

Through Get With The Guidelines–Stroke, customized patient education materials are made available at the point of discharge, based on patients’ individual risk profiles. The take-away materials are written in an easy-to-understand format and are available in English and Spanish. In addition, the Get With The Guidelines Patient Management Tool gives healthcare providers access to up-to-date cardiovascular and stroke science at the point of care.

“The time is right for Faith Regional to be focused on improving the quality of stroke care by implementing Get With The Guidelines–Stroke. The number of acute ischemic stroke patients eligible for treatment is expected to grow over the next decade due to increasing stroke incidence and a large aging population,” said Lisa Parks, Director of Inpatient Rehabilitation, Home Health, Hospice and Dialysis and coordinator of the Get With The Guidelines program at Faith Regional.

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States and a leading cause of serious, long-term disability. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 45 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every three minutes; and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

About Get With The Guidelines
Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that empowers healthcare teams to save lives and reduce healthcare costs by helping hospitals follow evidence-based guidelines and recommendations. For more information, visit heart.org/quality.

2010 - Faith Regional Awarded Gold Level Recognition for Wellness Program

Faith Regional Health Services has joined an elite group of companies across the nation. The Wellness Council of America (WELCOA) has awarded Faith Regional with the Gold Level “Well Workplace” Award for its employee wellness program after only one year of implementation.

The award recognizes the quality and excellence in worksite health promotions. Companies who receive the award are considered to be some of America’s Healthiest Companies.

To be considered for the award, companies must submit information that is scored against a defined set of worksite wellness criteria. This criterion includes:

Capturing CEO Support
Creating Cohesive Wellness Teams
Collecting Data to Drive Health Efforts
Crafting an Operating Plan
Choosing Appropriate Interventions
Creating a Supportive Environment
Consistently Evaluating Outcomes

Faith Regional scored 175.05 points out of 179 points possible.

“This is such a remarkable accomplishment to have achieved after only one year of implementation,” commented Traci Fox, MS, Wellness Coordinator at Faith Regional. “The Gold Level Award speaks very highly of our CEO and Upper Management’s dedication to supporting a culture of wellness for our employees. I hope the success of our program will continue to grow and act as a model to encourage our employees, family members and the community to lead healthy lifestyles.”

This year 291 organizations nationwide received either a bronze, silver, gold or platinum award. Fifty-one of those were awarded to companies located in Nebraska.

2009 - American Stroke Association Get With The Guidelines Silver Performance Achievement Award

Faith Regional Health Services has received the American Stroke Association’s Get With The GuidelinesSM–Stroke (GWTG–Stroke) Silver Performance Achievement Award. The award recognizes Faith Regional’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of stroke care by ensuring that stroke patients receive treatment according to nationally accepted standards and recommendations.

“With a stroke, time lost is brain lost, and the GWTG–Stroke Silver Performance Achievement Award addresses the important element of time,” said Dr. Dean French, Vice President of Medical Affairs. Faith Regional has developed a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department. This includes always being equipped to provide brain imaging scans, having neurologists available to conduct patient evaluations and using clot-busting medications when appropriate.

To receive the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Silver Performance Achievement Award, Faith Regional consistently complied for at least one year with the requirements in the Get With The Guidelines–Stroke program. These include aggressive use of medications like tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol reducing drugs, and smoking cessation. This twelve-month evaluation period is the second in an ongoing self-evaluation by the hospital to continually reach the 85 percent compliance level needed to sustain this award.

“The American Stroke Association commends Faith Regional for its success in implementing standards of care and protocols,” said Lee H. Schwamm, M.D., Vice-Chair of the national Get With the Guidelines Steering Committee and Vice-Chair of the Neurology department and director of acute stroke services at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. “The full implementation of acute care and secondary prevention recommendations and guidelines is a critical step in saving the lives and improving outcomes of stroke patients.”

Get With The Guidelines–Stroke uses the “teachable moment,” the time soon after a patient has had a stroke, when they are most likely to listen to and follow their healthcare professionals’ guidance. Studies demonstrate that patients who are taught how to manage their risk factors while still in the hospital reduce their risk of a second heart attack or stroke. Through Get With The Guidelines–Stroke, customized patient education materials are made available at the point of discharge, based on patients’ individual risk profiles. The take-away materials are written in an easy-to-understand format and are available in English and Spanish. In addition, the GWTG Patient Management Tool provides access to up-to-date cardiovascular and stroke science at the point of care.

According to the American Stroke Association, each year approximately 795,000 people suffer a stroke — 610,000 are first attacks and 185,000 are recurrent. Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States is suffering from a stroke. This deadly condition accounts for 1 out of every 18 deaths in the United States.

Faith Regional received the award for its active participation in the 5 Million Lives Campaign – Fully Committed 2008, a national campaign aimed at reducing medically induced injuries and deaths.

2009 - Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Nebraska Recognition for Quality

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska awarded Faith Regional with its Recognition for Quality Award for the hospital’s commitment to delivering the best health care possible to people living in Nebraska. The award recognizes and rewards network providers for their participation and achievement in an established range of health care quality improvement initiatives.

“Faith Regional is committed to providing safe, high quality care to all of our patients,” said Dr. Dean French, Vice President of Medical Affairs at Faith Regional. “We believe we are making our patients safer by implementing these nationally recognized guidelines set forth by this important initiative.”

Faith Regional received the award for its active participation in the 5 Million Lives Campaign – Fully Committed 2008, a national campaign aimed at reducing medically induced injuries and deaths.

2008 - VHA Award Recognizes Excellence in Treating Patients with Pneumonia

VHA Inc., a national health care alliance, has recognized Faith Regional Health Services for excellence in treating hospitalized patients with pneumonia.

"Proper prevention and treatment of pneumonia saves lives and health care dollars," said Trent Haywood, M.D., J.D., chief medical officer at VHA. “Faith Regional Health Services is a shining example of what can be achieved when a hospital's actions are guided by the pursuit of clinical excellence."

Faith Regional Health Services is one of only 20 VHA members to receive the award for pneumonia care.

“This award validates the dedicated focus of our clinical staff and physicians to pursue excellence in the care provided to our patients,” said Rachel Knapp, CPCS, Director of Medical Staff Services and Quality.

The indicators for optimum care of pneumonia patients include:

Patient receives influenza vaccination
Staff conducts initial antibiotic selection for community-acquired pneumonia in immunocompetent patients, ICU patients and non ICU patients
Patient receives oxygenation assessment
Patient (adults) receives smoking cessation advice/counseling
Patient receives pneumococcal vaccination
Patients are administered initial antibiotic within four hours of hospital arrival
Patients have a blood culture conducted within 24-hours prior to or after hospital arrival and before administration of first antibiotic

Faith Regional Health Services is ranked in the top 10% of the nation for the Clinical Excellence Award or for the Clinical Improvement award the organization sustained the highest level of improvement for third quarter 2006 through fourth quarter 2007 – awards were based on data submitted to Joint Commission.
“Our participation in VHA helps us achieve a higher level of performance both operationally and clinically, so we were pleased to receive this recognition,” said Rachel Knapp, CPCS, Director of Medical Staff Services and Quality.”

2007 - VHA Award Recognizes Excellence for AMI and Surgical Care

VHA Inc., a national health care alliance, has recognized Faith Regional Health Services for providing excellent care to surgical patients. The 2007 VHA Leadership Award for Clinical Excellence honors organizations that have distinguished themselves by meeting or exceeding national performance standards in specific clinical activities, including surgical care.

VHA serves more than 2,400 health care organizations nationwide, including 1,400 hospitals. Faith Regional Health Services received the award for preventing surgical complications and infections. Nearly 300 hospitals nationwide received Leadership Awards this year from VHA for achievements in operational and clinical excellence, as well as supply chain management improvement and community benefit efforts.

"We are one of only 87 hospitals to receive a VHA Leadership Award for surgical care, and the award validates the dedicated focus of our clinical staff and physicians to pursuing excellence in the care provided to our surgical patients," said Lisa Walters, Chief Nursing Officer at Faith Regional. "Preventing complications following surgery is a key objective of our surgical team. To ensure the proper outcome, our staff focuses on national indicators of quality." Faith Regional's work team is represented by anesthesia, surgeons, operating room staff, nursing, diabetic educator, pharmacy and quality improvement.

These steps toward quality include:
- Administering antibiotic within one hour prior to surgical incision.
- Selecting appropriate antibiotic for surgery patients.
- Discontinuing antibiotic administration within 24 hours after surgery (within 48 hours for cardiovascular procedures).
- Glucose control before, during and after surgery
- Preventing respiratory complications and deep vein thrombosis (blood clots).

Scoring is based on a hospital's commitment to improvement, internal and/or external collaboration, documented results and innovative approaches.

"At the heart of the covenant between patients and hospitals lies the belief that clinical excellence is paramount," said Trent Haywood, M.D., J.D., chief medical offer at VHA. "Faith Regional is a shining example of what can be achieved when a hospital's actions are guided by the pursuit of clinical excellence."

Faith Regional also received the Strive for Excellence Award in Acute Myocardial Infarction. These steps toward quality include giving the recommended medications at arrival and discharge, time it takes until heart intervention upon arrival to the hospital and providing smoking cessation advice.

"Our participation in VHA helps us achieve a higher level of performance, so we were pleased to receive this recognition," said Walters.

To receive the Leadership Award, the hospital had to achieve at least 90 percent compliance with all rate-based indicators for the following procedure groups: coronary artery bypass grafting, cardiac surgery, hip arthroplasty, knee arthroplasty, colon surgery, hysterectomy and vascular surgery.

2007 - Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Nebraska Recognition for Quality

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska is pleased to recognize Faith Regional Health Services for its commitment to delivering the best health care possible to people living in northeast Nebraska. Because of this achievement, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska honors Faith Regional Health Services with the first Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska 2007 Recognition for Quality award.

The Recognition for Quality awards stem from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska’s desire to recognize and reward network providers for their participation and achievement in an established range of health care quality improvement initiatives. These standards have been set by the federal government, health insurers, national health care and medical professional organizations. They are used to measure, report, improve and monitor the care given to their patients, our members.

Faith Regional has earned this award by active participation in this health care quality initiative:

100,000 Lives Campaign -- Fully-committed hospital

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, insures or provides benefit administration to more than 717,000 people. All of the non-governmental, acute care hospitals in Nebraska are part of the BCBSNE network, as are 93% of providers. The company is dedicated to delivering the health and wellness solutions people value most.

VHA Award

2006 - VHA Award Recognizes Outstanding Care of Surgical Patients

VHA Inc., a national health care alliance, has recognized Faith Regional for providing excellent care to surgical patients.

“We are one of only 22 hospitals to receive this award for surgical care, and the award validates the dedicated focus of our clinical staff and physicians to improve the care provided to our surgical patients,” said Mary Meyer, director of Organizational Improvement. “Preventing infections following surgery is a key objective of our surgical team. To ensure the proper outcome, our staff focuses on national indicators of quality.”

“Our participation in VHA’s Surgical Infection Prevention program helped us achieve a higher level of performance in this aspect of patient care,” said Meyer. This is the second VHA Leadership Award for Clinical Excellence awarded to Faith Regional. In 2005, the hospital was recognized for their excellence in heart attack care.

The hospital achieved at least a 90 percent compliance with all rate-based indicators to qualify for the award. Indicators are measured based on the following procedure groups: coronary artery bypass grafting, cardiac surgery, hip arthroplasty, knee arthroplasty, colon surgery, hysterectomy and vascular surgery.

The next surgical quality initiative at Faith Regional will be the prevention of surgical complication. “While this quality collaborative will continue to focus on infection prevention, it will also include care to prevent cardiac events, respiratory complication and thromboembolic events,” Meyer added.

VHA Award

2006 - Barta is "Hospice Volunteer of the Year" by NHPCP

Rita Barta of Norfolk was nominated by Faith Regional Hospice and recognized by the Nebraska Hospice and Palliative Care Partnership (NHPCP) as “Volunteer of the Year.”

The NHPCP selects a Hospice Volunteer from each of their member Hospice organizations. Rita Barta was one of 23 other volunteers chosen across the state of Nebraska. The award is given to individuals who have shown true commitment and outstanding dedication to the Hospice philosophy of care.

Rita promoted quality Hospice care over the past year. She displayed openness to the needs of patients while reverencing the dignity of all areas of diversity. She has been a volunteer for eight years.

“Hospice volunteers are an essential part of the hospice philosophy of care which recognizes that dying is not just a medical event, but a personal one as well,” said Jean Suehl, director of Home Health and Hospice.

VHA Award

2005 - Faith Regional Receives VHA Leadership Award for Clinical Excellence

Faith Regional Health Services has received the 2005 Leadership Award for clinical excellence from VHA, Inc., a national health care provider alliance, for treatment of patients suffering from acute myocardial infarction (AMI), commonly known as heart attack. Faith Regional is one of only 92 VHA member hospitals to receive the award. There are more than 1,200 hospitals in the VHA network.

Karen Tesina, director of cardiovascular services, says the award is an honor and an affirmation of the passion and dedication with which the entire cardiac team has approached improving care. “The award is based on the hospital’s performance measured against a set of nationally accepted standards of care for cardiac patients,” Tesina said.

“These measures are evidence-based and are being used by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) for public reporting,” Tesina explains. By including them as a part of the plan of care for our cardiac patients, we can monitor and measure the overall rate of improvement in outcomes.”

According to Doug Welsh, M.D., a cardiologist at Faith Regional CardioVascular Institute, the focus on clinical improvement has been a team effort. “What is most gratifying is that by focusing on implementing these standardized treatment protocols, we have found a common rallying point for the entire cardiac clinical staff,” Dr. Welsh said. “The staff is more engaged and the patients are benefiting from improved care.”

The AMI measures used as criteria for the 2005 Leadership Award for clinical excellence include:
• Aspirin prescribed at patient’s arrival.
• Aspirin prescribed at time of patient’s discharge.
• ACE inhibitor.
• Smoking cessation advice/counseling provided to patient prior to discharge.
• Beta blocker prescribed at time of patient’s arrival.
• Beta blocker prescribed at time of patient’s discharge.
• Amount of time until coronary angioplasty (PTCA) initiated.

Faith Regional achieved at least a 90 percent compliance with all rate-based indicators to qualify for the award. The median time for delivery of thrombolysis was equal to or less than 30 minutes. And, the median time until PTCA was initiated was equal to or less than 120 minutes. According to the National Registry of Myocardial Infarction (NRMI) data, Faith Regional’s average door-to-dilation time is 81 minutes.

“This award represents a milestone in our clinical improvement efforts and we will use it to reaffirm our commitment to our patients and to our community,” Tesina said.

2005 - Faith Regional Home Health Awarded Certificate of Achievement

In January of 2005, CIMRO of Nebraska recognized Faith Regional Home Health with a Certificate of Achievement. The award states CIMRO applauds Faith Regional Home Health, "for your dedication and commitment to provide quality healthcare in your community. Through your efforts, you were able to make improvements that were statistically significant in the Management of Oral Medications outcome by January 2005."

Every patient admitted at Faith Regional an assessment. It reviews how the patient is managing their own medications. Again on discharge, we assess this same aspect. Our patients have shown significant improvement in this activity.

2005 - Faith Regional Health Services Receives Isolation Capacity Grant From Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services

Faith Regional Health Services has been awarded a grant for the purchase of isolation and personal protective equipment under the Isolation Capacity Grant from the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services System. The grant will assist in providing protection for the public from bioterorrism, public health threats, emergencies, and other outbreaks of infectious disease.

According to an assessment done by the Nebraska Health and Human Services System, in order for hospitals to be prepared to respond appropriately to a highly infectious disease event and to ensure the safety of facilities and staff, resources need to be devoted to enhancing the equipment that may be used in responding to the release and presence of a threatening biological agent, or to care for patients with confirmed or suspected highly infectious diseases.

Faith Regional is one of seven hospitals included in the four Nebraska Bioterrorism Hospital Preparedness Regions. These regions ensure that Nebraska hospitals have the capacity to maintain, in negative pressure isolation, at least ten suspected cases of highly infectious diseases. Examples of such cases are small pox, pneumonic plague, SARS, influenza hemorrhagic fevers, or any other febrile patient with a suspicious rash or other symptom of concern that might possibly develop into a potentially highly contagious disease.

Up to $55,500 will be made available through this grant. Faith Regional will be eligible to receive reimbursement for the purchase of isolation capacity equipment such as Personal Protective Equipment (3M Aire-Mate), Portable Isolation Equipment, and Differential Pressure Monitors (Manometer).

2004 - Faith Regional
Receives Edgerton Quality Award Again

October 2004 Faith Regional Health Services was awarded the 2004 Edgerton Quality Award for Progress by Nebraska Governor Mike Johanns. The award was for the hospital's commitment to quality patient care. The Edgerton Quality Awards Program is patterned after the prestigious Malcom Baldrige National Quality Award Program recognized around the world.

The Edgerton Quality Awards are given to Nebraska organizations. Named after Harold E. "Doc" Edgerton, a Nebraska native who perfected the stroboscopic flash during his years at MIT, the award has come to embody the essence of the true quality process, be it end products and services, or the path taken to get there. The most important thing about the Edgerton Award is the wau an organization continues to improve over time. Edgerton award particpants engage in a program that asks for nothing less than excellence.

"The Edgerton Quality Award Program validates our improvement efforts and helps us think of healthcare as an important sector in the service world," stated Mary Meyer, director of Quality and Accreditation at Faith Regional. "Providing the highest quality care to our patients is a goal that our employees work everyday to achieve."

2004 - Faith Regional Health Services Sports Medicine Program Receives Award

Faith Regional Health Services Sports Medicine was named "Northeast Community College Hawks Business Booster of the Year" for 2003-2004. Marvin Hall, Director of Rehabilitation Services at Faith Regional Health Services, received a plaque from Angie McKleen, Northeast Community College Director of Development, on behalf of the coaches of Northeast Community College (NECC) at a dinner during a recent golf tournament hosted by Faith Regional Sports Medicine.

"On behalf of the Athletic Department, Hawks Booster Club, and coaches at Northeast Community College, I want to thank Faith Regional Health Services Sports Medicine for their financial support and their athletic training services provided for the basketball teams, summer Northeast Nebraska All-Star Basketball and Volleyball games, the summer basketball camps, and being available on-call after hours," said Jerry Holmberg, NECC Athletic Director. "All of this support is greatly appreciated."

Recipients of the award are selected for their support of the athletic programs at Northeast by contributing financially, by contributing in kind product, or providing services or a combination of the three. The process involves being nominated and voted on by the Northeast Booster Club Board of Directors. Faith Regional Health Services Sports Medicine is the fourth organization to receive this award.

2004 - Faith Regional Health Services honored with Advocacy Team of the Year Award

Lincoln, NE - At the Nebraska Hospital Association's 2004 Advocacy Day event on March 4, the NHA recognized Faith Regional Health Services with the 2003 Advocacy Team of the Year Award. The award is presented annually to one hospital advocacy team for outstanding grassroots efforts, impacting health care legislation at the state and federal levels.

Faith Regional worked at the federal level to fight Medicaid reimbursement cuts, promote AHEC (Area Health Education Center) funding, receive a professional shortage area designation and restrain the rocketing costs of medical liability insurance.

At the state level, Faith Regional employees met with their senator to discuss Medicaid reimbursement, AHEC funding, tax exempt status, charity care, the closing of Richard Young hospital in Omaha, mental health reform, professional shortage area designation, provider payment cuts to hospitals, and maintaining Nebraska's medical liability cap.

By building strong relationships with their state and federal delegates, Faith Regional has become a valued resource for health care issue information among delegates.

Sally McKenzie, director of outreach, and Patrick Roche, vice president of mission services, accepted the award on behalf of Faith Regional Health Services.

The Nebraska Hospital Association serves as the unified voice for Nebraska's hospitals and health systems, helping hospitals provide comprehensive care to their communities. The NHA provides advocacy, communication, educational programs and data information to its member hospitals.

2003 - Transitional Care Unit At Faith Regional Health Services Is Named To The Nation's Top 150 Best Performing Long-term Care Facilities

One hundred and fifty long-term care facilities have received "AAA" status on a list of the nation's top-performing nursing homes, according to the list's creator CareScout. Of these 150 facilities, four were from Nebraska, including Faith Regional's Transitional Care Unit (TCU).

According to the privately-owned nursing home rating company based in Massachusettes, a total of 16,400 government certified nursing home facilities were reviewed. The company's rating designations range from "D" to "AAA."
To achieve a "AAA" current state rating, nursing homes must meet exceptional quality of life and care requirements, maintaining full compliance with all eldercare laws and regulations, and be free of any health deficiencies as noted by state and federal officials, during the nursing home's most recent unannounced inspection survey.

"We don't hear enough about the nursing homes who are doing a great job delivering care," said CareScout President and CEO Robert Bua. "These nursing homes have demonstrably outperformed their peers on almost 200 specific quality of care and quality of life benchmarks." CareScout, formed in 1977, is the first private company to ever rate nursing homes. Although it uses much of the same data as the government, it also uses different criteria, such as a facility's violations, resident profiles and medical modalities.

What has TCU consistently done to be ranked among the top 150 long-term care facilities in the U.S.? It's a number of things but the interdisciplinary team approach to care, involving the patient, physician(s), TCU nurses, rehab therapies, nutrition, case management, social work, spiritual care and activities staff, is what sets TCU's outstanding level of care apart from other facilities, according to Lisa Parks, director of transitional care at Faith Regional.

2001 - Faith Regional Awarded Edgerton Quality Award

Governor Mike Johanns presented Faith Regional Health Services with the Edgerton Commitment Award for Continuous Improvement at the Nebraska Business and Industry Recognition Day held in Beatrice on May 7, 2001. Accepting the award on behalf of Faith Regional's employees were FRHS Board President Marcus Wacker, Bob Driewer, CEO, Patrick Roche, Vice President of Mission Services and Mary Meyer, Director of Performance Improvement.

The Edgerton Award, modeled after the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Program, is presented by the Nebraska Department of Economic Development to organizations that have demonstrated an awareness of quality as a vital element of organizational success and who are working to emphasize continuous improvement in existing quality programs and services on an ongoing basis. Faith Regional Health Services participated in the Edgerton process as a way to demonstrate an ongoing commitment to providing quality services.

"Receiving this award demonstrates Faith Regional's willingness to meet the same standards and processes as those who use our programs and services," said Bob Driewer, Faith Regional's CEO. "Healthcare organizations have a tendency to limit their focus to clinical issues, but the Edgerton process allows us to be judged on overall quality, from a business as well as a clinical point of view."

Hospitals and health systems typically evaluate their processes based on the standards developed by the Joint Commission for Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, "The Joint Commission's primary focus is on clinical issues and does not sufficiently address performance in other areas," noted Mary Meyer, director of quality improvement. "We feel that the Edgerton and Baldridge processes allow an organization to assess itself from an organization-wide perspective."

Driewer also noted that Faith Regional's receiving the award was unexpected, but not necessarily a surprise. "There is a strong commitment to quality at Faith Regional and no one person is responsible for this award. We have over 900 people who demonstrate tremendous efforts on a daily basis to provide a high level of quality care. Everyone is working toward a common goal of caring for others in the best way possible. That's what really allows an organization to receive an award like this." Faith Regional is the only hospital in Nebraska to ever receive an Edgerton Award and the only Norfolk area business to ever receive one.

Since 1993, twenty-five Nebraska businesses have received the Edgerton Award. Award recipients are recognized as Nebraska companies with outstanding quality achievements. The award examination process is based upon the evaluation of several aspects of an organization including leadership, public responsibility and citizenship, customer and market initiatives, business performance and commitment to ongoing process improvement. Each of these categories are scored, based on specific business and industry standards, and a written report is generated as feedback to the organization to further their improvement efforts.

Edgerton Awards were also presented to NEAPCO Inc. of Beatrice and the Metropolitan Community College Workforce Development Institute of Omaha.

Last Updated: 12/18/09