News and Announcements

The Illinois Critical Access Hospital Network (ICAHN) and Telligen QI Connect™, a Hospital Quality Improvement Contractor (HQIC), have joined together to address high priority health issues during COVID-19 and beyond. Because of this high level of commitment towards the overall health of the rural communities the network and its hospital membership serve, Telligen has named ICAHN as a “Community Quality Champion” for the state of Illinois.

The local communities in each of Telligen’s four-state service area (Illinois, Iowa, Colorado, and Oklahoma) with the most organizations that have joined Telligen QI Connect™ were named “Community Quality Champions.” ICAHN was recognized for outstanding activation by organizations located within its membership service area, said Kristen Marino, Telligen’s Senior Quality Improvement Facilitator.

“We’re honoring ICAHN and its hospital membership’s hard work, passion, and dedication to providing patients, families, neighbors, and staff with the highest quality of care,” said Marino. “Having the time to bring everyone together, define, and organize collective action is extremely complex and challenging not only now amidst COVID, but always. We congratulate ICAHN for its extraordinary efforts.”

Telligen, the Quality Innovation Network-Quality Improvement Organization (QIN-QIO) for Illinois, Iowa, Colorado, and Oklahoma, partners with U.S. government agencies, state Medicaid agencies, and health plans to improve health outcomes. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) selected Telligen as an HQIC, effective September 18, 2020.

The HQIC focus is to support rural, critical access hospitals and those hospitals that serve vulnerable populations by focusing on three goals: improve behavioral health outcomes and decrease opioid substance use disorder, increase patient safety, and improve quality of care transitions.

In keeping with Telligen’s quality initiatives, ICAHN has organized several rural health summits focused on combatting opioid substance use disorder, in addition to multiple educational webinars and in-person events focused on increasing behavioral health services, ensuring smooth patient transitions with changes in levels of care, patient safety, chronic disease prevention and self-care, and nursing home quality, including ICAHN’s Nurse Navigator program.

Telligen invites Medicare beneficiaries, family caregivers, and advocates who live in Telligen’s service area to volunteer as Community Ambassadors. Community Ambassadors will participate alongside healthcare professionals, community organizations, community leaders, and other Ambassadors in Telligen QI Connect^TM events to directly influence how care is delivered in local communities. Those interested are asked to contact Risa Hayes at [email protected] for more information.