Barnesville Home Health Ranked Among Top 25 Percent of Home Health Providers in Country for 2007

The Barnesville Hospital Home Health Agency today announced that it has been named to the 2007 HomeCare Elite, a compilation of the most successful Medicare-certified home health care providers in the United States. This annual review identifies the top 25% of agencies, ranked by an analysis of performance measures in quality outcomes, quality improvement and financial performance.

The 2007 HomeCare Elite also indicates those providers who are included in the Top 100 and Top 500 of providers nationwide. The data used for this analysis was compiled from publicly available information.

"We applaud the success of all the providers named to the 2007 HomeCare Elite," said Bill Bassett, Senior Director of Market Strategy at OCS, Inc. "Being noted as one of the top performers in the nation in this very competitive environment shows that the Barnesville Hospital Home Health Agency is dedicated to quality and performance."

Debra Fisher, RN, BSN, Director of Home Care, credits dedicated and experienced staff with the agency's ability to rank as one of the HomeCare Elite. She said, "Being named to the 2007 HomeCare Elite , is a noteworthy accomplishment for our agency. Our agency has provided quality home care to the local communities for over 38 years. Although years of experience in the home care field can be listed as a factor in this success, I feel it is the true devotion that our staff show towards their patients that make the difference in providing the best outcomes."

"Making the 2007 HomeCare Elite is commendable in today's highly competitive home health care industry," said Jonathan Stern, Group Publisher of DecisionHealth's Home Health Group. "We congratulate Barnesville Hospital Home Health Agency on being one of the top 25% best performing home care agencies in the country."

The 2007 HomeCare Elite is the only performance recognition of its kind in the home health industry. The 2007 HomeCare Elite is brought to the industry by OCS, Inc., the leading provider of healthcare informatics and DecisionHealth, publisher of home care's most respected independent newsletter Home Health Line. The entire list of the 2007 HomeCare Elite agencies can be viewed by visiting the OCS web site at www.ocsys.com.

The Barnesville Hospital Home Health Agency is a Medicare-certified agency offering skilled nursing, home health aide services, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and language pathology, and medical social services, as well as the Lifeline Personal Response System. The agency serves all age groups from infants through the elderly, and serves patients in Belmont and Monroe counties, and in portions of Guernsey, Harrison, and Noble counties. The top five diagnoses of the agency are: CHF, Diabetes, COPD, Hypertension, and Anemia. The agency makes approximately 1,190 home health program visits per month and averages 41 Lifeline subscribers per month. The Lifeline Personal Response System is a notification system for individuals, living alone, to summon assistance in an emergency.

The Barnesville Hospital Home Health Agency operates its office at 639 W. Main St., Barnesville. Office hours are 8:30 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., Monday through Friday. A registered nurse is available 24 hours a day/7 days a week by calling 1-800-874-2400 and asking for the Home Health nurse on call.