Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield has designated Covenant Medical Center as a Blue Distinction Center for Spine Surgery and a Blue Distinction Center for Knee and Hip Replacement. Blue Distinction Centers for Spine Surgery and Blue Distinction Centers for Knee and Hip Replacement are part of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association’s expansion of its Blue Distinction® designation.
“We are very proud of our neurosurgery and orthopedic programs at Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare,” said Jack Dusenbery, CEO of Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare-Iowa. “Both provide outstanding care, and have exceptional reputations throughout Northeast Iowa. We are honored to receive the Blue Distinction Center designation.”
Covenant Medical Center offers comprehensive spine surgery and knee and hip replacement services, including treatment and surgeries for disorders and injuries of the brain, spinal cord, spinal column and peripheral nerves; as well as treatment and surgeries of the joint, knee and hip, and treatment of shoulder pain and sports injuries; and much more. Visit www.WheatonIowa.org for more information.
“Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield is committed to working with hospitals and physicians to ensure the highest quality care for our members,” says Paul Karazija, M.D., Wellmark’s chief medical officer. “The Blue Distinction designation is designed to help our members choose hospitals with a proven track record for meeting aggressive quality standards.”
The selection criteria used to evaluate facilities were developed with input from a panel of expert physicians. To be designated as a Blue Distinction Center for Spine Surgery and a Blue Distinction Center for Knee and Hip Replacement, the following types of criteria were evaluated. More information on selection criteria is available on www.bcbs.com:
• Established acute care inpatient facility, including intensive care, emergency care, and a full range of patient support services with full accreditation by a CMS-deemed national accreditation organization
• Experience and training of program surgeons, including case volume
• Quality management programs, including surgical checklists as well as tracking and evaluation of clinical outcomes and process of care
• Multi-disciplinary clinical pathways and teams to coordinate and streamline care, including transitions of care
• Shared decision making and preoperative patient education
The Blue Distinction designation is awarded by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies to medical facilities that have demonstrated expertise in delivering quality healthcare in the areas of bariatric surgery, cardiac care, complex and rare cancers, knee and hip replacement, spine surgery and transplants. The program is part of The Blues® efforts to collaborate with physicians and medical facilities to improve the overall quality and safety of specialty care.
The additional Blue Distinction Centers for Spine Surgery and Blue Distinction Centers for Knee and Hip Replacement designations will bring the nation’s number of Blue Distinction designations to more than 1,600—and this number is expected to increase in the coming years.
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare-Iowa (WFH-Iowa) is a faith-based 511-bed; not-for-profit, comprehensive medical/surgical health care provider offering acute levels of medical care at Covenant Medical Center, Waterloo; Sartori Memorial Hospital, Cedar Falls and Mercy Hospital, Oelwein. In addition, WFH-Iowa includes Covenant Clinic (more than 130 primary care and specialty providers); Covenant Foundation, Sartori Health Care Foundation and Mercy Hospital Foundation. Areas of excellence include: cardiology, orthopedics, neurosurgery, maternity and NICU, cancer treatment, minimally invasive and Bariatric surgery. WFH-Iowa invests in the communities we serve and is committed to living out the healing ministry by providing exceptional and compassionate health care service that promotes the dignity and well being of the people we serve.
Wellmark, Inc. (www.wellmark.com ) does business as Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa. Wellmark and its subsidiaries and affiliated companies, including Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Dakota and Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa, Inc., insure or pay health benefit claims for more than 2 million members in Iowa and South Dakota. Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa, Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Dakota, and Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa, Inc. are independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.
Note: Designation as Blue Distinction Centers means these facilities’ overall experience and aggregate data met objective criteria established in collaboration with expert clinicians’ and leading professional organizations’ recommendations. Individual outcomes may vary. To find out which services are covered under your policy at any facilities, please call your local Blue Cross and/or Blue Shield Plan.