Mercy wins awards for clinical excellence
Hospital among nation's top 5 percent in three categories
By Dolly A. Butzdbutz@siouxcityjournal.com | Posted: Thursday, October 16, 2008
SIOUX CITY -- Mercy Medical Center -- Sioux City has been recognized for clinical excellence with four national awards from HealthGrades, the nation's leading health-care ratings company.
Mercy received accolades for orthopedic services, joint replacement surgery, vascular surgery and coronary interventional procedures -- more 2009 HealthGrades awards than any other hospital in the state, according to a release from Mercy.
"It a great tribute to (our staff), and it's great for the whole Siouxland community to know that we have really high quality medicine provided right here in Siouxland," Paul Dougherty, the hospital's president and CEO, said Wednesday.
The annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality in America Study analyzes more than 41 million Medicare hospitalization records from 2005 to 2007 at the nation's approximately 5,000 nonfederal hospitals.
According to the study, which was released this week, for the fourth year in a row Mercy ranked in the top 5 percent of hospitals nationwide for coronary interventional procedures.
Mercy, the top-ranked hospital in Iowa for orthopedic service and joint replacement surgery, also ranks in the top 5 percent in the nation for joint replacement and is the only hospital in western Iowa in that elite tier.
In the area of vascular surgery, Mercy ranks in the top 5 percent of the nation's hospitals and is rated highest in northern and western Iowa.
The hospital did not pick up awards for cardiac care and general surgery, two categories for which it was recognized last year.
Todd Van Fossen, a spokesman for HealthGrades, said awards are given to hospitals ranked in the top 10 percent. Generally, he said, a decline in a hospital's ratings or rapid improvement in the ratings of other hospitals can cause a hospital to fall out of the top 10 percent in a particular category.
Van Fossen said Mercy's rating in coronary bypass surgery at six months post-discharge fell from five to three stars. Although Mercy improved in coronary interventional procedures, he said it saw slight post-discharge declines in heart failure and atrial fibrillation, which was not rated in the 2009 study. In general surgery, Mercy dropped from five stars to three stars for complication rates for gall bladder removal.
"The combination of the slight decline and other hospitals moving up more rapidly could've contributed to them statistically falling off the list," Van Fossen said.
Mercy Medical Center spokesman Mike Krysl said, "Our ratings in all areas of cardiac care and general surgery are still very good. In many cases we see three-star ratings, which HealthGrades indicates are patient outcomes that are expected."
Dougherty said he looks at the survey results as a challenge to help the hospital improve its performance in the coming year.
"It's a journey instead of a destination each year, so we have to stay vigilant and stay on top of those," he said. "It's a very competitive environment out there."
Mercy Medical Center leaders and associates will accept four national awards for clinical excellence from HealthGrades at 2 p.m. today in the hospital's south lobby.
The hospital achieved HealthGrades' highest rating -- five stars -- for its patient outcomes in several clinical areas, including coronary intervention, total knee replacement, total hip replacement, hip fracture repair surgery, carotid surgery, peripheral vascular bypass, stroke treatment for pulmonary embolism and appendectomy procedures.
Mercy received accolades for orthopedic services, joint replacement surgery, vascular surgery and coronary interventional procedures -- more 2009 HealthGrades awards than any other hospital in the state, according to a release from Mercy.
"It a great tribute to (our staff), and it's great for the whole Siouxland community to know that we have really high quality medicine provided right here in Siouxland," Paul Dougherty, the hospital's president and CEO, said Wednesday.
The annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality in America Study analyzes more than 41 million Medicare hospitalization records from 2005 to 2007 at the nation's approximately 5,000 nonfederal hospitals.
According to the study, which was released this week, for the fourth year in a row Mercy ranked in the top 5 percent of hospitals nationwide for coronary interventional procedures.
Mercy, the top-ranked hospital in Iowa for orthopedic service and joint replacement surgery, also ranks in the top 5 percent in the nation for joint replacement and is the only hospital in western Iowa in that elite tier.
In the area of vascular surgery, Mercy ranks in the top 5 percent of the nation's hospitals and is rated highest in northern and western Iowa.
The hospital did not pick up awards for cardiac care and general surgery, two categories for which it was recognized last year.
Todd Van Fossen, a spokesman for HealthGrades, said awards are given to hospitals ranked in the top 10 percent. Generally, he said, a decline in a hospital's ratings or rapid improvement in the ratings of other hospitals can cause a hospital to fall out of the top 10 percent in a particular category.
Van Fossen said Mercy's rating in coronary bypass surgery at six months post-discharge fell from five to three stars. Although Mercy improved in coronary interventional procedures, he said it saw slight post-discharge declines in heart failure and atrial fibrillation, which was not rated in the 2009 study. In general surgery, Mercy dropped from five stars to three stars for complication rates for gall bladder removal.
"The combination of the slight decline and other hospitals moving up more rapidly could've contributed to them statistically falling off the list," Van Fossen said.
Mercy Medical Center spokesman Mike Krysl said, "Our ratings in all areas of cardiac care and general surgery are still very good. In many cases we see three-star ratings, which HealthGrades indicates are patient outcomes that are expected."
Dougherty said he looks at the survey results as a challenge to help the hospital improve its performance in the coming year.
"It's a journey instead of a destination each year, so we have to stay vigilant and stay on top of those," he said. "It's a very competitive environment out there."
Mercy Medical Center leaders and associates will accept four national awards for clinical excellence from HealthGrades at 2 p.m. today in the hospital's south lobby.
The hospital achieved HealthGrades' highest rating -- five stars -- for its patient outcomes in several clinical areas, including coronary intervention, total knee replacement, total hip replacement, hip fracture repair surgery, carotid surgery, peripheral vascular bypass, stroke treatment for pulmonary embolism and appendectomy procedures.
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