The Cordova Community Medical Center received the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) 2023 Bronze – Commitment to Quality Award, according to a June 1 announcement.
The Bronze Award is the first of three progressive levels of recognition from the AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Program. The program highlights organizations that meet rigorous standards of performance as it relates to improving the lives of both staff and residents in long term care.
“I think there is a lot to be proud of,” said Daniella Rossi, the director of nursing at CCMC. “It was a great exercise in appreciating the work we are doing and have been doing for a while now. The application process allowed us to examine our unique organization and the efforts we take to provide quality care for our patients and residents in rural Alaska.”
Rossi headed the extensive application process for CCMC, which included months of compiling descriptions of the organizational environment and relationships, competitive environment, strategic context, and performance improvement system.
“It is rewarding to have our quality improvement efforts recognized on a national level,” said Rossi. “We are a small, rural hospital with limited access to resources so it is encouraging to be acknowledged with other facilities nationally.”
This year Bronze Award recipients represented 277 skilled nursing care centers, 57 assisted living communities, and 60 combined skilled nursing and assisted living providers in 47 states.
The first step in the National Quality Award Program is the Bronze Award, which indicates the tools and resources needed for continuous improvement in quality care. Providers begin their quality improvement process with the Bronze level, which includes assessing their organization’s missions, vision, and the factors that lead to success. Then, trained examiners review the applications to determine if the provider meets criteria outlined by AHCA/NCAL.
Dr. Hannah Sanders, the executive director of CCMC, said that this award is part of their larger, ongoing quality improvement plan and they are honored to have been selected.
“CCMC has been working on continuous process improvement,” said Sanders. “While it is easy to fall into old habits, our staff are working to refine and improve our processes. Through multidisciplinary teamwork we strive to identify areas for improvement. Our goal is to provide top quality, evidence-based practices to optimize patient outcomes. This recognition reenforces the value in the effort CCMC puts toward quality and process improvement.”
Once recipients receive this recognition, they can move on to the Silver – Achievement in Quality then Gold – Excellence in Quality awards.
“Earning this award is a milestone to be proud of,” said Cathy Bergland, AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Board chair in the press release about the award. “It’s at this point that providers see what is possible by committing to the process of improvement. Congratulations to all this year’s recipients.”
There will be a recognition ceremony and celebration of award recipients at the national conference for AHCA/NCAL in Denver from Oct. 1 through Oct. 4.
AHCA/NCAL represents over 14,000 nonprofit and proprietary skilled nursing centers, sub-acute centers, assisted living communities, and homes for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The National Quality Award Program is sponsored by PharMerica, Pinnacle Quality Insight, Prevail by First Quality, HealthCap, and MatrixCare.
