KAREN OTT MAYER

Dr. Michael Lachina, Saint Francis CMO

Saint Francis Hospital has received high ratings from Healthgrades®, the nation's leading healthcare rating company, for both its gastrointestinal (GI) surgical program and its cardiac program.

The ratings, announced in April, were based on findings released last October. According to Brenda Ray, director of clinical quality improvement, hospital leaders are not surprised by the results.

"Healthgrades first presented us data back in 2001 that indicated areas of improvement and we have been working extensively to improve our outcomes," said Ray.

The 2007 ratings are based on data collected from 2003 to 2005. Because of the lag time, Ray said the hospital has relied on more current data provided by the American College of Cardiology to monitor its own process and outcome improvements.

Dr. Michael Lachina, chief medical officer for Saint Francis, believes that several factors exist that set both programs apart. "Our Chest Pain Emergency Center is a dedicated area where patients are seen quickly by a cardiologist who is available seven days a week at all hours," he said. Located within the emergency room, the center was the second one established in the late 1980s. "Because we have a system that sorts out patients who present with different symptoms and a process that is very efficient, we have patients with better outcomes."

The data is reflective of specific procedures.

"The results are reflective for coronary interventions such as stints and angioplasty," noted Dr. Kin Dempsey, a cardiologist with Saint Francis.

Because of the ability to collect and analyze its own data, Saint Francis has been careful to validate what Healthgrades has reported. Additionally, Lachina said the hospital dispatches information to doctors. "We send physicians their own data, peer data and national data. It's kind of a report card for them to measure how well they're doing," said Lachina.

Ray said the hospital embarked on a very detailed study to identify areas for improvement. "We conducted a very detailed analysis, looking at processes from the time a cardiac patient comes into the hospital until they receive treatment," said Ray.

Lachina believes that one primary reason exists for the high ratings in the GI program: "We have very, very good surgeons performing these procedures and a strong team in the OR supporting them."

Darcy Liebhauser, a consultant with Provider Services at Healthgrades, located in Golden, Colo., said the ratings goal is to give consumers information about providers. "We have three million consumers each month read our information. The Internet is the primary source of information for consumers," said Liebhauser.

Liebhauser, who worked with Saint Francis, explained that hospitals don't choose to participate and that the data is extracted from more than 2000 common Medicare programs. Data is risk-adjusted to take into consideration the complexity and severity of patients seen. More than anything, hospitals want to understand the reason they receive the rating and the methodology behind the ratings. "We look at this as an opportunity to improve. We also believe that an organization dedicated to quality from the top down produces high ratings," said Liebhauser.

Lachina believes it's important to realize that improving outcomes is a long process, considering data is reflective of prior years and the time it takes to review and implement changes. Having the ability to validate outside data has also been key for Saint Francis.

"We know where we are and how we're doing," said Ray.


May 2007