Nebraska Rural Hospitals Among Best in U.S. for Quality Reporting and Performance

ORD, Neb. – Nebraska’s Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) – including Valley County Health System (VCHS) – were recognized among the best in the country for outstanding quality reporting and performance by the federal Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA). VCHS is one of 64 CAHs in Nebraska, which are rural community hospitals that have 25 or fewer beds and provide essential medical services, as defined by the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services.

The ranking is based on participating and achieving the highest reporting rates and improvement over the past year in the Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP).

“Our patients are our number one priority. This national ranking shows VCHS’s dedication to providing top-quality healthcare services to patients locally, as well as for looking for ways to constantly improve on the way we provide care,” VCHS Chief Quality Officer Christina Pollard said.

Wisconsin, Maine, Utah, Minnesota, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Indiana and Massachusetts joined Nebraska in the top 10 performing states. The improvement measures focused on patient safety, patient engagement, care transitions and outpatient services. Specific measures range from responsiveness of nursing staff to cleanliness of hospital environment to pain management.

“Successfully measuring, reporting and evaluating quality improvement plans are a team effort,” Pollard said. “The results of these measures reflect the overall positive patient experience individuals have at VCHS.”

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Pictured: Valley County Health System, Ord, Neb.