Tallahatchie General Hospital in Charleston is among the nation's best small rural hospitals in patient satisfaction, according to the National Rural Health Association.
During an awards ceremony at the association's recent annual conference in Kansas City, Missouri, NRHA recognized TGH as a "Top 20 Critical Access Hospital."
Administrator Jim Blackwood and TGH staffers Lisa Smiley-Veazey, Melissa Thompson and Cathy Williams attended the event.
"They invited us to the conference to accept the award," said Blackwood. "It really was a nice honor and great to be recognized."
This is not the first time TGH has drawn accolades for quality customer service. In 2018, it achieved the maximum five-star rating on the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems patient satisfaction survey, regulated and monitored by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
"We've been very deliberate about patient satisfaction, and it's something we measure and we share with our staff every month," said Blackwood. "Every month, we're above the state and national averages on those scores."
Tallahatchie General Hospital Administrator Jim Blackwood makes remarks after TGH received an award for patient satisfaction during a recent National Rural Health Association conference. Behind him, TGH staffers Melissa Thompson, center, and Cathy Williams look on. (Photo special to The Sun-Sentinel)
TGH was the only hospital in Mississippi to be identified in a Top 20 category by NRHA, whose mission, according to its website, is to provide leadership on rural health issues through advocacy, communications, education and research.
Blackwood explained that NRHA is a trade group "that also measures quality and patient satisfaction."
"A big part of what they do is watch federal legislation that affects rural hospitals," he said. "But they offer a lot [more], too, just in terms of trying to make sure there is quality care and quality outcomes in rural areas."
Many NRHA members are critical access hospitals, rural health clinics or community health centers. NRHA has headquarters in Kansas City and in Washington, D.C.
The critical access hospital program is a federal initiative designed to aid small rural hospitals in serving residents who otherwise would be a long distance from emergency care. TGH earned that designation in February 2002.
As of July 7, 2022, there were 1,360 critical access hospitals located throughout the United States, including about three-dozen in Mississippi.
On the TGH website home page is a statement by Blackwood. Part of that statement is, "At TGH, we pride ourselves on providing two very basic things — quality in healthcare and excellence in customer service. Quality outcomes and customer service are our primary concerns."
