St. Bernards Home Health has been named one of the top 500 home health agencies in the country according to the 2010 HomeCare Elite listing.
Now in its fifth year, the HomeCare Elite identifies the top 25 percent of home health agencies in the United States and gives special recognition to the top 500 and top 100 agencies. Recognition is based on a ranking by analysis of performance measures in quality outcomes, quality improvement and financial performance.
Home health agencies and programs included on the list demonstrate a commitment to providing patients with the best possible care while performing at exceptional levels.
“We congratulate St. Bernards Home Health on being one of the top home care agencies in the country. In addition, we salute all forward-thinking providers who measure and improve their performance using OASIS-C (Outcome and Assessment Information Set) outcomes and process measures and HHCAHPS (Home Healthcare Consumer Assessments of Healthcare Providers & Systems) results,” says Amanda Twiss, chief executive officer of OCS HomeCare.
The 2010 HomeCare Elite is the only performance recognition of its kind in the home health industry. It is brought to the industry by OCS HomeCare, the leading provider of home care information, and Decision Health, publisher of home care’s respected independent newsletter, Home Health Line. Data used for the analysis were compiled from publicly available information taken from CMS’s (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) Home Health Compare and CMS cost reports.
The quality of care measure indexes agency performance in each of the 12 publicly reported Home Health Compare measures released in April of 2010. The quality improvement index is based on changes in the 12 outcomes between data released in September of 2009 and April of 2010. The financial performance measure represents agency indexed profit margin from the 2009 CMB Cost Reports.
Agency performance in each of the three domains was compared against the performance of other organizations in their state and in the country. The three domains were combined into one overall score, using a weighting methodology that gives the greatest importance to quality of care. The top 25 percent of agencies in each region, both facility-based and freestanding, were identified and added to the national list.
"We are very proud of this recognition,” says Kevin Hodges, vice president for senior services for St. Bernards Healthcare. “It demonstrates the commitment of all members of our home health services team and their desire to provide the highest level of quality care and customer service to patients we serve."
St. Bernards Home Health is a program designed to maintain or restore health to the highest degree possible, increasing each patient’s level of independence, while reducing the effects of disability or illness. Home healthcare can help shorten the length of a hospital stay, reduce hospitalization, provide an affordable alternative to nursing home or other institutional care and give a more personal quality of patient care through individual attention in the comfort of the home setting.
Anyone under the care of a physician who needs care in his or her residence or other appropriate setting is eligible for home health. Services provided include skilled nursing, personal care tech, medical social services, telemonitoring and physical, occupational and speech therapies.
All age groups – from newborn to senior patients – living within a 50-mile radius of St. Bernards in Craighead, Lawrence and Poinsett counties and in portions of Randolph, Clay, Mississippi, Jackson and Green counties – can be served by St. Bernards Home Health.
Additional information on St. Bernards Home Health can be obtained by calling 870-972-8816.