Special to Iredell Free News
Iredell Memorial Hospital’s Skilled Nursing Facility has once again been named one of the Best Nursing Homes for 2023-2024 by the U.S. News & World Report — a status earned by only 19 percent of skilled nursing facilities worldwide.
Approximately 1.2 million Americans will reside in a nursing home this year. The quality of care provided in these nursing homes (also called skilled nursing facilities, SNFs, post-acute care, or sub-acute care facilities) varies widely. That’s why the U.S. News Best Nursing Homes offers these ratings — to help individuals and their families research and find a nursing home that excels in the type of care they need.
For the 2024 edition, U.S. News rated more than 15,000 nursing homes on residents’ outcomes, such as infection rates, staffing levels, potentially inappropriate reliance on antipsychotic drugs, health inspection results, and other indicators of quality.
Iredell Skilled Nursing achieved an overall rating of 5 out of 5 and has a short-term rehabilitation rating of High Performing, the highest possible score. Iredell Skilled Nursing outperformed state and national averages on all of the U.S. News quality measures. These measures included categories such as residents able to return home, prevention of falls, low infections resulting in hospitalization, low rehospitalizations, and low emergency room visits.
“It is important for our community to know about this award so they can be knowledgeable of the resources available to them. Being able to offer quality skilled rehabilitation services locally is something we are proud to be able to offer our community,” said Christy Sturgill, director of Skilled Nursing.
In July 1989, Iredell Memorial Hospital became one of the first hospitals to offer hospital-based skilled nursing beds, fulfilling a need to provide a place for patients who were not ill enough to be admitted to an acute care hospital but were too ill to go home or to be cared for in a freestanding traditional skilled nursing facility.
Even though Iredell Skilled Nursing is located within Iredell Memorial Hospital, it is a separate service, and the patient’s physician must order the admission. However, all of the hospital’s services are available if and when needed.
Patients are also invited to take part in activities such as crafts, games, gospel music, fun classes, Bible study, a breakfast club, weekly church services, and family time.
To be cared for in this facility, a patient’s health needs must meet the federal definition of skilled care. If a patient is accepted for admission and is currently a patient in the hospital, he or she will be discharged from the hospital and admitted to Iredell Skilled Nursing.
LEARN MORE
Patients and their families can contact Iredell Skilled Nursing at 704-873-5661.
About Iredell Health System
Iredell Health System includes Iredell Memorial Hospital; Iredell Mooresville; two urgent care centers; Iredell Home Health; Iredell Wound Care & Hyperbaric Center; Community and Corporate Wellness; Occupational Medicine; the Iredell Physician Network and more. Iredell Memorial Hospital is the largest and only nonprofit hospital in Iredell County. The comprehensive healthcare facility has 247 beds; more than 1,800 employees; and has 260 physicians representing various specialties. Centers of excellence include Women’s and Children’s; Cardiovascular; Cancer; Surgical Services and Wellness & Prevention. The Health System’s second campus, Iredell Mooresville, is home to the area’s only 24-hour urgent care facility, as well as an ambulatory surgery center, imaging center, rehabilitation services, and physician practices. The mission of Iredell Health System is to inspire wellbeing. For a comprehensive list of services and programs, visit www.iredellhealth.org.