Kootenai Health was named one of the nation’s 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics,TM an IBM company. Of the 50 hospitals named, only two are located in the Pacific Northwest, Kootenai Health and St. Luke’s Medical Center in Boise.
Each year, the study singles out 50 hospitals that achieve superior clinical outcomes in cardiovascular care. The rigorous processes used to calculate and measure hospital service lines leverage industry-leading, risk-adjusted methodologies developed and maintained by Truven Health scientists over many years. The 100 Top Hospitals study is widely regarded as the leading program for evaluating leadership impact in a hospital, as well as for evaluating quality indicators and efficiencies.
Selection for the 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals award reflects excellence in cardiovascular services that benefit patients, their families, employers, and the community.
“This prestigious award is a tremendous honor for the entire cardiovascular team and Kootenai Health,” said Robert Burnett, M.D, medical director of cardiovascular surgery at Kootenai Health. “It is particularly rewarding because the award looks at multiple facets of cardiac care not just a single area or procedure. This high level of performance across cardiovascular services reflects the commitment of all of the team members as well as the support of the administration. A single person or entity did not win this award; it is great to be recognized as a team for all of our efforts. We have looked for every possible way to continue to improve upon our system and it has paid off for everyone, especially the patients.”
Truven Health measures hospital performance in several key areas, including: risk-adjusted mortality, risk-adjusted complications, core measures (a group of measures that assess process of care), percentage of coronary bypass patients with internal mammary artery use, 30-day mortality rates, 30-day readmission rates, severity-adjusted average length of stay, and wage- and severity-adjusted average cost.
The study indicates an opportunity for a broader national impact for cardiovascular patients, should these results be replicated. In fact, if all cardiovascular providers in the U.S. performed at the level of this year’s winners:
- Nearly 9,000 additional lives could be saved
- Nearly 6,000 more heart patients could be complication-free
- More than $1.4 billion could be saved
More information on this study and other 100 Top Hospitals research is available at 100tophospitals.com.