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Nevada has enrolled 100% of its 48 nursing homes in the national Advancing Excellence in America's Nursing Homes campaign. To join the campaign, participants have made a commitment to setting measurable goals with numerical targets for performance in at least three out of eight quality areas and agreeing to achieve absolute benchmarks. This is the first initiative of its kind to ask nursing homes to make a bold pledge about measurable improvement in the quality of life and care for individuals receiving and giving care.
“I believe this is another great step towards improving the health care in our state. This milestone speaks volumes about Nevada nursing homes and their commitment to provide quality care to their residents,” says Jackie Buttaccio, BS, CPHQ, Project Coordinator at HealthInsight in Las Vegas, the Local Area Network for Excellence (LANE) convener for the campaign. “Nevada’s nursing homes already have experienced a great decline in the daily use of physical restraints and are working diligently on reducing the prevalence of pressure ulcers by reaching out to Nevada’s acute care facilities,” she adds.
“This campaign is a win-win for everyone—residents, staff, and families. And Nevada facilities simply wanted to be a part of this national network for quality,” says Ms. Butaccio. “Our nursing homes quickly realized the value of this campaign and the opportunity it presented for them to impact the quality of care their residents receive,” she notes.
Advancing Excellence represents a voluntary effort by a coalition of stakeholders concerned about nursing home quality that is led by a national steering committee of organizations representing nursing home associations, consumer advocacy groups, professional organizations, government agencies and others involved in nursing home quality. The campaign provides free, practical, and evidence-based resources to support those on the frontlines of nursing home care and encourage quality improvement efforts in facilities throughout the country. In addition to supporting and enabling staff, Advancing Excellence promotes open communication and transparency among families, residents, and staff alike.
However, a national group cannot by itself instigate change and it is through the work of LANES that the real work is being done. Nevada’s achievement in getting every nursing home in the state to enroll in the campaign is due to the vision, determination and sustained effort of this state’s long-term care leaders.
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