Hallmark Care Center, a long-term care leader in Iowa is pleased to announce it has been named to the U.S. News and World Report’s Best Nursing Homes in Iowa list for 2024-2025 with a ‘High Performing’ rating in Long-term Care. Hallmark Care Center is one of 23 nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities in Iowa to receive an overall rating of 5 out of 5.
“Since 2009, U.S. News’ annual Best Nursing Homes has supported American consumers and their families in making more informed choices about quality of care for their loved ones,” said Ben Harder, chief of analysis and managing editor at U.S. News. Harder went on to say, “These facilities set the standard of quality care and should be commended for their commitment to improving the lives of their residents.” The 2025 edition of Best Nursing Homes feature ratings of more than 15,000 nursing homes across the country, determined by nurse staffing, patient outcomes, and whether steps known to be effective in avoiding harm and improving health were built into the nursing home routines. To be recognized as one of the 2025 U.S. News Best Nursing Homes, a home must have been “High Performing” in short-term rehabilitation, long-term care, or both.
The Best Nursing Home finder features ratings on both long-term and short-term care. To calculate the Best Nursing Homes ratings, U.S. News evaluated each nursing home’s performance using a variety of quality measures obtained from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The U.S. News Best Nursing Home propriety ratings methodology factors in resident care, safety, outcomes, and other aspects of quality- including data on nursing staffing levels, consistency, and retention, as well as the use of antipsychotic drugs and success in preventing ER visits.
Of note in the 2025 Best Nursing Home ratings, those noted as a Best Nursing Home for long-term care, preserve resident’s self-reliance longer, with residents on average 50% less likely to lose the ability to perform self-care activities, such as feeding and washing themselves, compared to residents at facilities rated as below average. Those also ranked as a Best Nursing Home give residents antipsychotic medication 46% less of the time compared to facilities rated as below average. Lastly, residents at Best Nursing Homes for long-term care, are more than 60% less likely to require emergency department care compared to residents at facilities rated as below average.
“I am honored to be a part of the amazing team at Hallmark,” said Abbey Whalen, director of nursing at Hallmark Care Center. “Our team is dedicated to delivering outstanding care to our residents while offering support to their families, the residents themselves and the community.”
“I am incredibly proud of our Hallmark team,” said Jessica Vanderploeg, administrator at Hallmark Care Center. “We have an awesome team of dedicated, caring staff who provide great care to our residents, which makes achievements like this possible.”
Additional information and access to the full article can be found at: https://www.usnews.com/info/blogs/press-room/articles/2024-11-12/u-s-news-world-report-publishes-2025-best-nursing-homes-ratings