Skaggs Regional Medical Center announced today that its clinical quality is among the top five percent in the nation for the fifth year in a row. The study by HealthGrades®, the leading independent healthcare ratings organization, analyzed patient outcomes at each of the nation’s 5,000 nonfederal hospitals over the years 2006, 2007 and 2008 and named hospitals in the top five percent as HealthGrades Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence™.
“What a wonderful way to celebrate sixty years of serving the community, by being recognized as a leader in clinical excellence.” Skaggs President and Chief Executive Officer William K. Mahoney says, “Patients can expect to receive exceptional care from our team of skilled and committed clinicians and employees. Skaggs Regional Medical Center’s high-standard of compassion and dedication to the region provides our residents a sense of comfort and security; knowing they’re getting quality care close to home.”
According to the eighth annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality and Clinical Excellence study, Skaggs Regional Medical Center and the other hospitals in the top five percent demonstrated patient outcomes that far exceeded those of other hospitals. Patients admitted to these hospitals had risk-adjusted mortality rates that were, on average, 29 percent lower than all other hospitals. Risk-adjusted complication rates were, on average, 9 percent lower than all other hospitals.
Skaggs Regional Medical Center is one of only 269 hospitals that received this distinction from HealthGrades, and the only hospital in Southwest Missouri. In 2010, Skaggs Regional Medical Center is ranked number one in Missouri for cardiac surgery and the recipient of the Pulmonary Care Excellence Award™, according to HealthGrades.
“Our data show that only a select few hospitals achieve high-quality patient outcomes not just in a few categories of care, but across the board and over time,” said Rick May, MD, a vice president with HealthGrades and an author of the study. “Patients in communities with a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence should feel proud of the hospital’s accomplishments, and confident that the level of care there is among the very best in the nation.”
The study states: “Patients who choose to receive their care at a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence certainly will have a lower risk for an adverse clinical outcome relative to all other hospitals.”
Skaggs Regional Medical Center Ranked Top Five Percent in Nation According to Quality Study, pg.2
As a group, Skaggs Regional Medical Center, and those identified as being in the top five percent in the nation, improved their mortality rates at a faster pace than all other hospitals. Over the years 2006, 2007 and 2008, the HealthGrades study found that Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence lowered their risk-adjusted mortality rates over the three years by an average of 14%, compared with a 10% average improvement of all other hospitals.
Methodology
This is the eighth year that HealthGrades has independently analyzed the clinical quality performance of all non-federal hospitals across the country in 26 procedures and diagnoses. In the study, the company reviewed approximately 40 million hospitalization records from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, over the years 2006, 2007 and 2008. All hospitals that participate in the Medicare program were part of the independent study. Hospitals that receive the HealthGrades Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence are those hospitals that rank in the top five percent when all 26 individual scores are aggregated into an overall score.
About Skaggs Regional Medical Center
Skaggs Regional Medical Center celebrates its 60th anniversary this year. Opening its doors in 1950 as a small facility with four physicians, Skaggs has definitely grown over the years. Now, located on a 13-acre campus, Skaggs offers a 165-bed, acute care hospital, a 24-hour emergency department, general and same-day surgery, an extensive range of outpatient services, and more than 20 satellite clinics.
