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By Terri Hendry  
 
(Boulder City, NV) – The Nevada Department of Veterans Services is pleased to announce the Southern Nevada State Veterans Home met the quality criteria for the 2017 American College of Health Care Administrators Eli Pick Facility Leadership Award. Fewer than 9% of facilities nationwide meet the quality criteria for this award for such a great achievement.  
 
Linda Gelinger, Administrator and her team, received this award for being one of the top performing skilled nursing facilities in the nation for 2016. This year 1,288 facilities met the selection criteria and only 206 facilities in 33 states were awarded the facility leadership award nationally.  
 
The Eli Pick Leadership Award is based on three years of skilled nursing facility survey data, including the Health, Fire (Life Safety), Complaint Surveys, as well as top quartile performance on designated Quality Measures and 80% or greater occupancy.  
 
The award was established in 2008 to recognize Skilled Nursing Facilities for achieving excellence, well beyond the Five Star rating system. Criteria are carefully reviewed and updated each year, to assure that the top-performing facilities are duly recognized and that the award continues to raise the bar for organizational performance.  
 
Gelinger said, “We are all very proud of our staff for their hard work, dedication and what they have accomplished all in honor of our veterans and their families.”  
 
NDVS’ Deputy Director of Health and Wellness, Wendy Simons said, “Linda Gelinger has more than 25 years of successful experience as a licensed Administrator in southern Nevada in the private sector and has now served our veterans for two years.” Simons added, “Additionally, she currently serves as a member of the Board of Examiners for Long Term Care Administrators. We could not be more proud that a prominent national organization has recognized her exceptional leadership at the NSVH.”  
 
The Southern Nevada State Veterans Home in Boulder City, Nevada is a 180 bed skilled nursing facility serving veterans, spouses and Gold Star parents. The facility recently continues to receive high marks and ratings from national organizations that measure quality care such as Pinnacle Quality Insight and Medicare.gov/nursinghomecompare.