OSF HealthCare Saint Luke Medical Center has received a prestigious four-star rating by the National Rural Rating System (NRRS), a program recognizing excellence in rural health care.
This designation is a testament to the dedication of OSF Saint Luke to delivering high-quality care and exceptional patient experiences. The NRRS evaluates hospitals based on rigorous standards, including patient satisfaction, quality of care, and overall hospital performance.
Jackie Kernan, president of OSF Saint Luke, is proud of the work done to achieve this impressive rating. “Our Mission Partners strive each day to provide compassionate high-quality care,” Kernan said. “This award recognizes their commitment to serving with the greatest care and love.”
The four-star rating highlights the hospital’s success in providing outstanding medical services, despite the challenges often faced by rural health care facilities.
Brian Lee, chairman of National Rural Rating System reflects, “This award is a testament to their unwavering commitment, dedication, expertise and compassionate care provided to the community every day. In a rural setting, where health care challenges are unique and often complex, achieving this level of excellence signifies not just clinical capabilities, but also a deep connection to the community. This recognition reaffirms rural health care to be a beacon of health, hope, and healing.”
OSF Saint Luke officials thanked the hospital’s “dedicated team of health care professionals, whose tireless efforts and unwavering commitment to patient care have made this achievement possible.”
The five-star rating system ranks rural and critical access hospitals – with five stars being the top ranking and one star being the lowest. The star ratings are like the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) star systems, which allow hospitals/clinics to promote their success and are used as high-quality recognitions. Most small and rural hospitals (60 percent) do not qualify because of a low number of qualifying inpatients for the CMS rankings, but are held to the same high patient satisfaction criteria.
This new program recognizes the hard work and dedication rural and critical access hospitals provide across the country. The rankings will include overnight hospital stays (HCAHPS) and are based on data collected by certified CMS patient satisfaction vendors. For more information visit FiveStarRatings.org.
OSF Saint Luke also received a 2023 Performance Leadership Award for excellence in Outcomes and Patient Perspective. Compiled by the Chartis Center for Rural Health, the Performance Leadership Awards honor top quartile performance (i.e., 75th percentile or above) among rural hospitals in quality, outcomes and/or patient perspective.
“This award recognizes our Mission Partners’ commitment to serving with the greatest care and love,” Kernan said. “Our Mission Partners strive each day to provide compassionate high-quality care and we are proud of the work we do in the communities we serve.”
The Performance Leadership Awards are based on the results of the Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX, the industry’s most comprehensive and objective assessment of rural hospital performance. INDEX data is relied upon by rural hospitals, health systems with rural footprints, hospital associations and state offices of rural health around the country to measure and monitor performance across several areas impacting hospital operations and finance.
“Wherever we go in rural America, we witness first-hand the commitment, determination, and compassion with which rural hospitals serve their communities. Rural healthcare truly is mission-driven,” said Michael Topchik, National Leader, the Chartis Center for Rural Health. “Let us recognize the efforts of this year’s Performance Leadership Award winners and all those driven to deliver high quality care throughout rural communities.”
