SALISBURY — For the third year in a row, the North Carolina State Veterans Home in Salisbury has been acknowledged as a Best Nursing Home for 2022-23 by U.S. News & World Report. The recognition comes from having top marks for long-term care.

“I think we received the award because we operate at such a high level with clear guiding principles to deliver the same level of integrity and commitment that our veterans show us and demonstrated while in service,” administrator Jonathan Mangum said.

After looking at more than 15,000 nursing homes, the North Carolina State Veterans Home was one of 1,103 selected with this honor. Mangum said one of the nice things is that the veteran’s home didn’t need to apply.

“They have access to those quality ratings that they base it off of. So, we had to submit nothing, we weren’t interviewed or anything. They have all the information at their finger tips,” Mangum said referring to U.S. News. “They manage the process, but they base their rating system off of nine quality measures and that focuses on staffing, medical outcomes, resident opinions, process such as vaccinations and medical distribution.”

Mangum also mentions the recent remodeling that has taken place at the veterans home that has made it stand out. There is a brand new activity center, courtyard, with all of the residential rooms and dining rooms having been redone.

To keep up with the same level that has gotten the home recognition in recent years, veterans home officials routinely get together to go over these procedures to make sure everything aligns to their goals.

“They base this ranking or recognition off of quality measures. Reviews from residents, families. So, a big thing that helps drive that is having a robust quality performance program we have here at the facility. We meet monthly, go over quality measures, and base what we need to work on off those meetings,” Mangum said.