Villadom Times Weekly Newpaper Online-November 25, 2009 Issue

Page 6 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • November 25, 2009 Business Van Dyk Manor receives prestigious national award Van Dyk Manor of Ridgewood has been recognized as one of the 2009 recipients of the Step II National Quality Award presented by the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living. This year, 215 nursing and assisted living facilities from across the nation applied for the quality award at this level. Van Dyk Manor of Ridgewood was one of just 26 to receive the honor, which was formally presented the award during AHCA/NCAL’s 60th Annual Convention and Exposition in Chicago. “We applaud the staff at Van Dyk Manor of Ridgewood for being at the forefront of the quality movement,” said Bruce Yarwood, president and CEO of AHCA/NCAL. “Being judged to be worthy of this quality award demonstrates a commitment to a rigorous journey of continuous improvement and a high level of sustainable performance.” Applicants for the Step II level award have previously received the Step I level award. At the Step II level, the applicants provide a comprehensive description of the systematic approaches they use to continuously improve their customer-focused quality management system. Van Dyk Manor of Ridgewood may now move forward to apply for the Step III award which requires them to address the Baldrige Program’s Health Care Criteria for Performance Excellence. “We are pleased that the staff at Van Dyk Manor of Ridgewood has achieved this very significant milestone in their journey to achieve performance excellence,” said Bernie Dana, chair of the AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Board of Overseers. “They have demonstrated the value of this award program as a pathway to improving performance in long term care.” AHCA/NCAL is a trade organization with approximately 11,000 members. AHCA/NCAL used the concepts of the Baldrige National Quality Award to create the threestep national quality award program for the long term care profession in 1996. In 2009, there were 664 Step I applica- Bob, Roy and Bernie with the Step II Award. tions, 215 Step II applications, and 19 Step III applications. Applications are reviewed by teams of master and senior examiners who have received special training to qualify as judges for the award program. A nine member board provides oversight of the award program. The awards are sponsored by AHCA/NCAL Associate Business Member McKesson Medical-Surgical, a leading distributor of medical supplies and equipment to physician practices, surgery centers, hospitals, home care, and extended care facilities, and My InnerView, a Web-based applied research and quality-management company that supports leaders across the entire assisted living, senior housing, and skilled nursing professions with tools to measure, benchmark, and improve performance. �� The Air Brook Holiday Tradition ��