(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with Cass Health, in Atlantic, have announced (that as part of National Rural Health Day), the facility has earned a 2024 Performance Leadership Award for Excellence in both Patient Outcomes and Quality. Compiled by The Chartis Center for Rural Health, the Performance Leadership Awards recognize top quartile performance (i.e., 75th percentile or above) among rural hospitals in Quality, Outcomes, and/or Patient Perspective.

Cass Health CEO Brett Altman says “Our vision is to be the best rural hospital in America because we care deeply about the health of our patients and community, which means we are committed to always providing excellent quality of care and striving for the best possible outcomes. Even though the award identifies top quartile performance, we know that we are actually in the top 4 percent for both quality and outcomes. Being recognized for eight years in a row is certainly testament to the level of care provided at Cass Health, and not only are we extremely proud to achieve this award, we hope that our community is also pleased to know that the care they receive here is among the very best in the country.”

The Performance Leadership Awards are based on the results of The Chartis Rural Hospital Performance Index®, a comprehensive and objective framework for assessing how rural hospitals are performing. Index benchmarks are relied upon by rural hospitals, health systems with rural footprints, hospital associations, and state offices of rural health to measure performance across multiple areas impacting hospital operations and finance.

Troy Brown, Network Consultant, The Chartis Center for Rural Health, says “The Performance Leadership Awards capture the commitment, diligence, and innovation with which America’s rural hospitals approach the delivery of care within their communities. It’s a tremendous honor to be able to recognize the efforts of this year’s award winners and celebrate their achievement as part of National Rural Health Day.”