For the fourth consecutive year, Miles and St. Andrews hospitals had the highest scores of all hospitals in their category in an Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield program that measures quality and safety.

Miles and St. Andrews each received 109 points, the maximum possible, in the Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield Quality-in-Sights Hospital Incentive Program (Q-HIP), which uses data reported from several sources, including the U.S. Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The 38 hospitals included in the program are relatively small hospitals from Connecticut, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri and New Hampshire. The average score of all participating hospitals was 88.18 points.

Lincoln County Healthcare Senior Vice President of Hospital Operations Cindy Wade, RN, said the report illustrates the commitment of staff to continuously improving care throughout the system, including hospitals, physician practices, nursing homes, assisted living and home health.

As a relatively small system, Lincoln County Healthcare does not have the resources of larger urban systems but what it does have is good communication between providers and staff at every part of the continuum. And she said those providers are personally motivated to provide great care.

“Our staff lives in this community and the people who come through our doors are our neighbors, our friends and our family,” Wade said.

The results of the Q-HIP and other safety and quality programs are carefully analyzed for areas that can be made better, said Cindy Coyne, RN, Lincoln County Healthcare Director of Quality Management and Safety. Improvements at the hospital flow to other levels of care to ensure the patient stays safe and well after they leave the hospital.

For example, when a patient is in the hospital, pharmacists, providers and nurses work as a team to compile a list of all the medications the patient is taking and make sure that list is up to date with any changes that occur while a patient is in the hospital. Problems with medications are the single biggest cause of patients returning to the hospital soon after discharge.

That list goes with the patient when they leave the hospital, whether they go directly home or to a skilled nursing facility for rehabilitation.

When a patient comes home from either the hospital or a rehabilitation facility, they may receive help from a care transitions nurse, home health nurse or their primary care provider.

At the Family Care Center in Boothbay Harbor, a new pharmacist and transitions nurse work with patients to make sure they understand how and when to take their medications.

And while the Q-HIP program is primarily focused on the hospital, it also measures initiatives to improve health in the broader community.

Lincoln County Healthcare is currently working with schools and other partners to improve immunization rates in the community and also lower smoking rates among teens.

Through Let’s Go! 5-2-1-0, a nationally recognized child obesity prevention program, Lincoln County Healthcare and other community partners reach more than 4,000 children and teens throughout the county with a healthy message of five or more servings of fruits or vegetables a day, two hours or less of recreational screen time, one hour or more of physical activity and zero sugary drinks.

While those initiatives are not taking place on either hospital campus, they are a big part of how the health system is taking care of the community. And in the final analysis, the health of the community is the most important indicator, said Coyne.

“The truth is in what we do. The care we provide and the health of our community is the evidence that we are improving systems and improving care in our community,” Coyne said.