Less than 15 percent of home-healthcare agencies in Kansas have earned the Gold Seal of Approval. And Golden Belt Home Health & Hospice is one of them.
Jennifer Honomichl, R.N., a seven-year employee of Central Kansas Medical Center, provides home healthcare to Clifford Piper, Great Bend, as Donita Wolf, director of Golden Belt Home Health & Hospice, looks on. GBHH&H, part of the CKMC family, recently earned the Gold Seal of approval from the Joint Commission.
The Joint Commission awarded the Gold Seal after an intensive four-day survey of GBHH&H, said Donita Wolf, agency director. GBHH&H is a member of the Central Kansas Medical Center family.
“The surveyors looked at everything from infection control to emergency preparedness to all policies and procedures,” Wolf said. “They privately interviewed our staff and clients to ensure we are providing quality, compassionate care.”
In addition, Wolf noted, surveyors went on eight home visits.
“These visits demonstrate the type of care we offer in the homes of families who count on us every day,” Wolf said. “This is how the inspectors can get an up-close look at our commitment to patients and their families.”
GBHH&H is the only home-health agency in the area that is Joint-Commission accredited.
The Joint Commission has accredited GBHH&H since 1993, and surveyors will be back in about three years. They will return sooner if a complaint is filed.
Wolf pointed out that the recent survey also included Medicare re-certification, which also occurs every three years.
“Our nurses, therapists, aides, social worker, chaplain and other staff deserve the credit for these excellent reports,” Wolf said. “They are providing quality, professional, compassionate healthcare to our home-health and hospice patients.
“The community can be assured that the Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval is a clear sign that we are complying with the most exhaustive standards of performance,” the director added.
The Commission is an independent, non-profit organization established more than 50 years ago. It is recognized as the world leader in evaluating the quality and safety of care, Wolf commented.
Its surveyors include nurses, technologists, therapists and durable medical equipment specialists.
In addition to the Gold Seal of Approval, GBHH&H recently achieved an 88 percent national rating for decreasing acute-care hospitalization from the Home Health Compare Index. This means that GBHH&H patients are far less likely to require hospital care than patients of most other home-health agencies. |
