Selby General Hospital's Hip Replacement program recently received a 5 Star from Healthgrades, the leading provider of information to help consumers make an informed decision about a physician or hospital. The findings are part of American Hospital Quality Outcomes 2013: Healthgrades Report to the Nation, which evaluates the performance of approximately 4,500 hospitals nationwide across nearly 30 of the most common conditions and procedures. Healthgrades bases its objective measures solely on clinical performance.
Healthgrades also released recently new research conducted by Harris Interactive that underscores the importance of educating consumers on clinical outcomes. According to the research, 88 percent of adults agree they have the necessary information to make an informed decision about either a physician or hospital. But most Americans are not aware that there is data available on the chance of dying at a hospital (55 percent) or complication rates (58 percent).
Orthopedic
Five-Star Recipient for Total Hip Replacement in 2013
"Selby General Hospital has received recognition from HealthGrades for orthopedic services the past three years (2009-2011). These successes in orthopedics illustrate a commitment to excellence and teamwork among our physicians, employees and volunteers," said Steve Smith, Selby General Hospital president & CEO. "Our program, developed jointly with our physicians, includes comprehensive education and preparation prior to surgery. We appreciate their dedication to providing care that is safe and high quality every day."
A wide variation in quality exists among American hospitals, according to the Healthgrades report. Patients were 61 percent less likely to experience a major in-hospital complication when being treated at a hospital receiving 5 stars when compared with hospitals receiving 1 star across a range of common procedures, such as total knee replacement, gall bladder and spine surgeries.
The Healthgrades study also found that from 2009 through 2011:
A total of 183,534 in-hospital complications could have been avoided during hospital stays if all hospitals performed at a 5-star level.
Patients were 42 percent less likely to experience an in-hospital complication in hospitals receiving 5 stars versus all other hospitals.
For its 2013 hospital quality outcomes analysis, Healthgrades evaluated approximately 40 million Medicare hospitalization records for services performed from 2009 through 2011 at approximately 4,500 short-term, acute care hospitals nationwide.
Healthgrades independently measures hospitals based on data that hospitals submit to the federal government. No hospital can opt in or out of the analysis, and no hospital pays to be measured. Mortality and complication rates are risk adjusted, which takes into each hospital's unique population.
The American Hospital Quality Outcomes 2013: Healthgrades Report to the Nation, including the complete methodology, can be found at www.healthgrades.com/quality.
