Mary Lanning Healthcare’s Family Care Center is one of the first to receive the new Blue Distinction Center+ for Maternity Care designation from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska created the designation to help prospective parents find hospitals that deliver quality, affordable maternity care. The program evaluates hospitals on several quality measures, including the percentage of newborns who fall into the category of early elective delivery. Compared to babies born at 39 weeks or later, early term infants face higher risks of infant death and respiratory ailments. They have a higher rate of admission to Neonatal Intensive Care Units.
Hospitals receiving the Blue Distinction Center+ for Maternity Care designation also must agree to meet requirements supporting evidence-based practices of care, plus have a successful breastfeeding support program. The designation also evaluates hospitals based on overall patient satisfaction.
Shana Schultz, Director of the Family Care Center/Pediatric Unit, credits her wonderful staff with helping to receive the designation.
“We have some of the best nurses anywhere,” Schultz said. “Our patients find that their experience here is second-to-none. For several years, we have been proud to have certified lactation consultants to help with breastfeeding, a family-friendly patient floor and home health services after patients return home.”
Blue Distinction Centers+ for Maternity Care, an expansion of the national Blue Distinction Specialty Care program, are hospitals recognized for delivering quality, affordable specialty care safely and effectively, based on objective measures developed with input from the medical community. To receive a Blue Distinction Centers+ for Maternity Care designation, a hospital must also meet requirements for cost efficiency. For more information about the program, visit www.bcbs.com/bluedistinction.
