Mountain Vista Senior Living Community has been recognized as a 2024 recipient of the Bronze – Commitment to Quality Award by the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) for its commitment to improving the lives of residents through quality care. This distinction is the first of three progressive award levels through the AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Program. The Program honors providers across the nation that have demonstrated their dedication to enhancing the quality of care for our nation’s elders and individuals with disabilities.

Mountain Vista Administrator Anthony Geiser states “This award recognizes the continued dedication of our staff and the relationships they build with the residents and one another. Mountain Vista has provided healthcare services to the seniors of this community for more than 60 years, and we look forward continuing that tradition.”   

The AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Program is a rigorous three-level process reviewed and evaluated by trained experts against a set of nationally recognized standards for organizational excellence. The standards of the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program help organizations achieve superior performance over time to improve the quality of life and care of long-term care residents.

Providers begin the quality improvement journey at the Bronze level, where they develop an organizational profile detailing among other elements their vision, mission, key customers, and key strengths and challenges. Bronze applicants must demonstrate the use of a performance improvement system. Trained examiners review each application to determine if a center has met the demands of the criteria. As a recipient of the Bronze – Commitment to Quality award, Mountain Vista may now move forward to the Silver – Achievement in Quality award criteria.

“Receiving this award marks the beginning of an exciting journey towards excellence,” said Cathy Bergland, AHCA/NCAL National Quality Award Board Chair. “Congratulations Mountain Vista Senior Living Community for this significant achievement. I encourage you to take some time to celebrate and continue striving for higher levels of quality and performance.”

The National Quality Awards will be presented during Delivering Solutions 24, the AHCA/NCAL Convention & Expo, October 6-9, 2024, in Orlando, Florida.

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ABOUT MOUNTAIN VISTA

Mountain Vista Senior Living Community is a member of the American Baptist Homes of the Midwest (ABHM) family of communities, a not-for-profit faith-based organization that has been providing quality senior care since 1930. Mountain Vista provides seniors with housing and healthcare choices that range from Independent and assisted living to skilled care. memory care and rehabilitation therapy.

ABOUT AHCA/NCAL
The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) represent more than 14,000 non-profit and proprietary skilled nursing centers, assisted living communities, sub-acute centers, and homes for individuals with intellectual and development disabilities. By delivering solutions for quality care, AHCA/NCAL aims to improve the lives of the millions of frail, elderly and individuals with disabilities who receive long term or post-acute care in our member facilities each day. For more information, please visit www.ahcancal.org.

This month let’s discuss a subject that touches us all in some way – loneliness. For many of our beloved residents at Mountain Vista, we take great pains to address and heal this with our residents. Moving to a new home here can be a big adjustment that may bring a new sense of isolation. Friends and family might not visit as often as before, and the familiarity of home is replaced by new routines and faces.

For long-term residents, loneliness may still creep in.  While living at Mountain Vista is no longer new and disorienting, the passage of time itself can affect our residents. Folks may experience the pain of losing friends they’ve made along the way or losing touch with family and neighbors outside the walls.

Knowing this, our Mountain vista staff always go the extra mile to make this a warm home full of friends and support for our residents. For example, even if family can’t visit in person, we help folks connect through regular phone calls, video chats, and letters and postcards that make all the difference. Volunteers bring fresh energy and new relationships into our facilities. Whether it’s a local youth group, a pet therapy session, or simply a kind soul who enjoys reading aloud, these interactions are an important part of our services to our beloved residents.

Our staff also take a few extra moments to chat during mealtimes, regularly invite residents to group activities, or simply hold hands during tough moments to bridge the gap of loneliness.  Organized games, regular musical events, and group outings provide residents with chances to connect, creating friendships and a sense of belonging.

For our long-term residents, we fight loneliness by celebrating milestones together and regularly renewing our commitment to their well-being through family care conferences even if nothing is ‘wrong.’  It’s important for everyone, but especially those residents, to know they are not just a part of our community but are the very heart.

Loneliness is a challenge we here at Mountain Vista face together, with empathy, creativity, and dedication. By combining our efforts, we can ensure that every resident feels cherished and seen. Remember, it’s the warmth of human connection that truly makes a house a home.

Rev. Cindy Pincus
Director of Spiritual Care,
Mountain Vista Senior Living Community