Adirondack Health takes pride in providing patients and residents with exceptional, high-quality care. We are neighbors taking care of neighbors and work hard to make each visit and interaction as positive an experience as possible.
In fact, patient experience ratings at Adirondack Health meet or exceed state and national benchmarks in several categories, and several other service areas have received recognition for providing consistent, high-quality patient and resident care.
Adirondack Health participates in the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey, a national standard for measuring patients' perspectives on hospital care. Patients' hospital experience information is updated on a quarterly basis and available to the public on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services website, Hospital Compare. A similar tool, Nursing Home Compare, provides information about the quality of nursing homes around the country.
Information for the HCAHPS report is gathered from patient satisfaction surveys that ask patients to report how frequently something occurred using "always," "usually," "sometimes," or "never." These same surveys are used by hospitals throughout the United States and help facilitate honest comparisons.
Working together as a team, our nursing staff and physicians strive to provide exceptional, high-quality care. Communication with patients and family members is a cornerstone of this care.
Adirondack Health is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care, Inc. (ACHC), demonstrating the health system's commitment to patient safety and quality patient care.
Every three years a survey is conducted to ensure AMC is maintaining a high level of quality and safety standards. Most recently, securing re-accreditation in 2023 is evidence of Adirondack Health's continuing commitment to maintaining the highest standards of patient care. Because it is founded in the Medicare Conditions of Participation for Hospitals, ACHC accreditation also helps assure compliance with governmental regulations.
In addition to receiving accreditation for Adirondack Health’s Acute Care Hospital, the Total Joint Replacement Program has also received special certification by ACHC. According to ACHC:
“By achieving joint replacement certification, you promote a multidisciplinary approach to care and demonstrate your commitment to high standards. We are here to help build that culture of quality for the specialty care you offer to your patients. Our Surveyors will observe your practice and guide you to a higher bar for your patients and your organization.”
Source: ACHC
The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) established the Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) Recognition program to “improve quality and the patient experience.” In collaboration with New York State Department of Health, the patient-centered medical home model puts patients in the center of the clinic’s operations to help coordinate patient care across the health system. Achieving PCMH recognition means Adirondack Health holds itself accountable for meeting each patient’s physical and mental health care needs. We are proud to share that four of our primary care health centers annually achieve NYS PCMH recognition.
The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Pathway to Excellence Program® is the premier designation for healthy work environments and recognizes health care organizations for positive practice environments where nurses excel.
Achieving this designation requires years of hard work to prove an organization meets the high standards of the ANCC. By successfully adopting the six Pathway Standards into daily practice and culture, Adirondack Health earned their second four-year Pathway designation and has shown what it means to Live Pathway. AH was first designated a Pathway to Excellence® organization in 2018, becoming the second organization in New York state with this designation.
As a Pathway-designated organization, our nurses embody the Pathway Standards through the work they do each day:
Adirondack Health will continue to deliver on the Pathway Promise to create a healthy work environment where nurses excel and feel empowered as an integral part of the team. Our organization’s investment in our nursing leadership, policies, and safety means better quality care from our nurses and better outcomes for our patients.
Source: ANCC Pathway to Excellence
The Anticoagulation Forum, a multidisciplinary non-profit organization with a mission to improve the quality of care for patients taking antithrombotic medications, has designated Adirondack Health as an Anticoagulation Center of Excellence.
The rigorous assessment measures our practice against five key areas of patient care. It also gives us ongoing access to a rich library of resources providing guidelines and tools to keep up with the changing field of anticoagulation.
Participation in this program demonstrates Adirondack Health's ongoing goal of achieving the highest level of care and the best possible outcomes for our patients on antithrombotic medications.
Source: Anticoagulation Forum
