Continuous Improvement Provides Shared Rewards for Frontier's Skilled Nursing Caregivers and Residents

The skilled nursing staff at 100% employee-owned Frontier Rehabilitation and Extended Care Center knows the meaning of “diligence” firsthand.

They are proudly celebrating their most recent annual survey results from the Washington State Department of Social and Health, which earned their facility a near-perfect score in a stringently regulated industry.

The Frontier employees’ success has been in the making for quite some time.

With only one deficiency at a minor level, the staff has set a new standard for themselves with regard to setting up careful processes, attesting to their unified dedication to superior quality of care for their residents and their families.

Does this matter to the residents at Frontier, as well as to the employees? You might think so if you spoke with some of them. For instance, one resident’s daughter, who was tremendously involved with her mother’s care, had this to say:

"Everyone from the occupational therapist, the speech therapist and physical therapist to all of the nursing assistants -- the kindness and care have been over the top."
Becky Morkert,
Daughter of Resident

Frontier Rehabilitation and Extended Care Center became 100% employee owned just a little over a year ago. This fit perfectly with the employees’ all-out focus on improvement. It gave them an added catalyst toward their earnest and systematic journey toward superior care of their residents.

Employee ownership is like a marathon race. Training and continuous improvement are standard operational goals that, when reached over time, can provide noticeable, win-win results for everyone involved.

And so…leaving no stone unturned…the employees embraced the understanding that in the long run, delivering higher quality care shows greater value for their residents, in turn creating value for their company and thereby for themselves.

Annually, state and federal regulators make an unannounced visit to observe skilled care facility caregivers, check documentation, and see the results of these efforts to provide the best possible nursing and therapy services. This exceptional rating was the result of state surveys completed in December 2009.

The official results determine the ability of a skilled care facility to certify for government Medicare and/or Medicaid funding.

Understandably, the employees at Frontier are proud of this achievement – there is a real sense of accomplishment in setting their highest goals – and reaching them.

But the real benefit is seen in the day-to-day lives of their respected residents and the great results they and their family are experiencing in this skilled nursing care facility.
 

Click here for more information.