Pender Community Hospital Honored as Top 100 Critical Access Hospital for Third Consecutive Year
Pender Community Hospital received the 2021 Top 100 Critical Access Hospital honor, making this the third year in a row that the healthcare system has been recognized with the distinction. Compiled by The Chartis Center for Rural Health, this 11thannual recognition program honors outstanding performance among the nation’s rural hospitals based on the results of the Hospital Strength INDEX®.
Dr. Cole Reha, medical director for Pender Community Hospital, shared his thoughts on the recognition. “I’m so proud of our team’s hard work and dedication,” he said. “This distinction is something we never take lightly; it’s a true reflection of the strong commitment of everyone who works at Pender Community Hospital and Clinics, and also a reflection of our supportive community,” he continued. “We pride ourselves on providing the highest quality care and serving as a resource our community knows they can trust. We’re very honored to be among this elite group of healthcare providers.”
“The Top 100 program continues to illuminate strategies and innovation for delivering higher quality care and better outcomes within rural communities,” said Michael Topchik, national leader of The Chartis Center for Rural Health. “We are delighted to be able to spotlight the efforts of these facilities through the INDEX framework.”
Over the course of the last 11 years, the INDEX has grown to become the industry’s most comprehensive and objective assessment of rural hospital performance. Based entirely on public data and utilizing 36 independent indicators, the INDEX assesses rural hospitals across eight pillars of performance, including market share, quality, outcomes, patient perspective, cost, charge, and financial efficiency. The INDEX framework is widely used across the nation by independent rural hospitals, health systems with rural footprints and state offices of rural health, which provide access to INDEX analytics through grant-funded initiatives.