Horizon Health Honored for Quality Performance

The Illinois Critical Access Hospital Network (ICAHN) recently recognized Horizon Health for its ongoing commitment to exceptional quality of care. The announcement was made in November during ICAHN’s Annual Conference in Champaign.

Horizon Health and other critical access hospitals were asked to voluntarily participate in four quality outcomes as part of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Program (MBQIP). These included patient safety/inpatient, patient engagement, care transitions, and outpatient measures.

“It takes a village,” said Rachel Kelley, Horizon Health vice president of nursing & chief nursing officer. “This recognition is linked to our extraordinary, dedicated staff who are focused on cultivating excellence in patient experience and quality outcomes every patient, every time.”

Horizon Health was recognized for being among the top 10 percent of critical access hospitals nationwide (1,360 total), gaining the title of a high-achieving HCAHPS hospital. HCAHPS is a ratings program that stands for Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems. Results can be evaluated comparatively to other area hospitals, state averages, or national averages at Medicare.gov.

Additionally, Horizon Health was recognized for exceptional outpatient care in its emergency department.

“Our staff strive to meet our mission of providing high quality care, while constantly working to improve our quality of services,” said Amy Arnett, Horizon Health director of quality. “It is with great enthusiasm that we celebrate meeting and exceeding our quality measures. It truly is a team effort that has helped us achieve a high level of care.”

ICAHN is a network of 58 small rural Illinois hospitals dedicated to strengthening the operations of its member hospitals through collaboration. The organization is composed of Illinois hospitals that have earned critical access hospital designation by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.