AVA, Mo. (October 30, 2024) – Missouri Ozarks Community Health is proud to announce that our community health center won the 2024 Clinical Quality Award-Platinum Level at this year’s Missouri Primary Care Association conference. The award was presented on Friday, October 25, in Saint Charles, Missouri, to those MPCA members who met all eight quality health measures. Missouri Ozarks is among only 10 community health centers that met that goal this year. “Missouri Ozarks Community Health is very proud of our staff for working hard daily to ensure our patients receive the highest quality of care,” said Randall Gann, CEO of Missouri Ozarks. “We have very dedicated employees that continue to find ways to go above and beyond to meet the needs of our patients.”
Clinical quality measures are tools that help measure outcomes and identify opportunities for improvement. Over the last year, Missouri Ozarks has had great success with improving outcomes for patients with diabetes by adding staff to help with specific care management and purchasing diabetic eye cameras for all clinic locations. “Diabetes is a struggle for many people in our communities,” said Debby Jeckstadt, program coordinator for Missouri Ozarks Community Health. “That is why we chose to highlight the diabetic measure and the great work our providers are doing to help our patients see better health outcomes.” Missouri Ozarks experienced a 7.2% increase in its diabetic care measure from 2019-2024.
The other quality measures evaluated for this award include breast cancer screening for ages 50-74, cervical cancer screening, colorectal cancer screening, hypertension controlling high blood pressure, statin therapy, childhood immunization status and lead screening. “Our staff worked incredibly hard to make this happen by continuing to provide incredible care across these focus areas and beyond,” said Jennifer Heinlein, chief operations officer at Missouri Ozarks. “We have amazing people on our team who pour their hearts into providing high-quality care, and they are so deserving of this award.”
The Missouri Primary Care Association is a non-profit member association that is the recognized voice for community health centers in Missouri. It partners closely with community health centers like Missouri Ozarks, as well as federal, state and local governments. The goal of MPCA is to support resources, programs, and policies that assure access to health care.
Missouri Ozarks Community Health was established in 1996 as a federally qualified health center. It operates six clinics in Ava, Gainesville, Mansfield, Mountain Grove, Cabool, and Houston. Missouri Ozarks offers primary medical care, dental care, behavioral health care, prenatal care, and pediatric care.
