Health and Fitness : Area long-term care facility receives National Silver Achievement Quality Award

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) recently announced the recipients of the 2023 Silver Achievement in Quality Award. La Porte City Specialty Care (La Porte City, IA) and West Ridge Care Center (Cedar Rapids, IA) were recognized by AHCA/NCAL with this award.

The AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Program honors long-term and post-acute care providers that have demonstrated their commitment to improving the quality of care for seniors and individuals with disabilities.

"Reaching the Silver Award level while also compassionately protecting and caring for Iowa's elderly and most vulnerable is remarkable," said Brenda Irlbeck, vice president of quality improvement and regulatory affairs for the Iowa Health Care Association. "La Porte City Specialty Care and West Ridge Care Center have met progressively rigorous standards of performance to further improve the lives in long-term care. This recognition is a testament to the unwavering efforts these organizations have made in enhancing the lives of those they care for."

Out of the 72 total award recipients in 27 states, 63 were skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), eight were assisted living (AL) facilities and one had combined AL/SNF programs.

The National Quality Award Program is a rigorous process, made up of three levels - Bronze, Silver and Gold - that are reviewed and judged by trained experts against a set of nationally recognized standards for organizational excellence. The Silver Award is the second of three distinctions possible through the AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Program. At the Silver level, members develop and demonstrate effective approaches that help improve organizational performance and health care outcomes. Silver recipients may move forward in developing approaches and achieving performance levels that meet the criteria required for the AHCA/NCAL Gold Excellence in Quality Award.

The awards program is based on the core values and criteria of the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program, which also serves as the foundation for the metric-based AHCA/NCAL Quality Initiative. The Baldrige framework helps organizations among different business sectors improve organizational effectiveness and achieve strategy-driven performance.

Winners of the 2023 Gold Excellence in Quality Award will be announced in August.