One year into a nursing home quality improvement initiative, stakeholders are gathering to reflect on the campaign and where it is heading.

More than 200 quality improvement organizations, nursing home associations, consumers, ombudsmen, government officials, and others are gathering in Forth Worth, TX, today and tomorrow. The purpose of their meeting is the two-year Advancing Excellence in America’s Nursing Homes, a voluntary campaign that monitors key indicators of nursing home care quality. More than 6,200 nursing homes have signed up for the campaign and have committed to working on at least three of eight quality improvement goals.

The meeting comes on the heels of federal government hearings scrutinizing quality of care in nursing homes. This week’s gathering convenes leaders with varying perspectives on nursing home quality. They range from Larry Minnix, of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, to Alice Hedt, of the National Citizens’ Coalition for Nursing Home Reform, a frequent critic of nursing homes.