The Chartis Center for Rural Health today joined the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services in honoring outstanding performance in quality among the state’s Critical Access Hospitals. Unveiled during this month’s Nebraska Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Health Clinics Conference on Quality, the Rural Provider Excellence in Quality Award recognizes performance excellence in quality utilizing the Hospital Strength INDEX® framework.

At the state level, Nebraska is among the top performers for Critical Access Hospital quality. In July, the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) released its annual Top 10 State Quality Ranking at the 2021 Flex Program Reverse Site Visit conference, and Nebraska achieved a second-place national ranking.

“Our Critical Access Hospitals place a tremendous amount of emphasis on delivering a high level of quality, and we are proud to recognize their efforts,” said Nancy Jo Hansen, Flex and SHIP Program Manager, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. “The FORHP ranking and the individual Rural Provider Excellence in Quality Award winners are a testament to the commitment to quality we see across Nebraska, the power of innovation and the belief that improving the care experience is always possible.”

The Rural Provider Excellence in Quality Award utilizes the Chartis Center for Rural Health’s Hospital Strength INDEX framework to analyze Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP) measures for all Critical Access Hospitals in Nebraska. The analysis percentile-ranks performance for each facility across 22 equally weighted, core MBQIP metrics. Hospitals with the 10 highest scores are recognized with the Rural Provider Excellence in Quality Award.

The 2021 Rural Provider Excellence in Quality Award recipients (in alphabetical order) are:

  • Callaway District Hospital (Callaway, NE)
  • Community Medical Center (Falls City, NE)
  • Crete Area Medical Center (Crete, NE)
  • Henderson Health Care Services (Henderson, NE)
  • Jefferson Community Health & Life (Fairbury, NE)
  • Lexington Regional Health Center (Lexington, NE)
  • Memorial Community Health (Aurora, NE)
  • Memorial Health Care Systems (Seward, NE)
  • Rock County Hospital (Bassett, NE)
  • Saunders Medical Center (Wahoo, NE)

“Each year, Critical Access Hospitals in Nebraska are among the nation’s top performers across multiple facets of the INDEX,” said Michael Topchik, National Leader, The Chartis Center for Rural Health. “We are delighted to partner with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services on the Rural Provider Excellence in Quality Award program and recognize outstanding performance in quality among the state’s Critical Access Hospitals.”


About Chartis 

Chartis is a comprehensive healthcare advisory firm dedicated to helping clients build a healthier world. We work across the healthcare continuum with more than 900 clients annually, including providers, payers, health services organizations, technology and retail companies, and investors. Through times of change, challenge, and opportunity, we advise the industry on how to navigate disruption, pursue growth, achieve financial sustainability, unleash technology, improve care models and operations, enhance clinical quality and safety, and advance health equity. The teams we convene bring deep industry expertise and industry-leading innovation, enabling clients to achieve transformational results and create positive societal impact. Learn more.

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