Baptist Hospital among Solucient 100 top cardiovascular hospitals

Top Cardiovascular Hospitals Have Lower Mortality and Complication Rates
KNOXVILLE – A just released study names Baptist Hospital of East Tennessee as one of the Solucient 100 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals. The strictly empirical analysis identifies those hospitals that have achieved excellence in care, efficiency of operations and sustainability of cardiovascular performance. This is the fourth consecutive year that Baptist has been recognized as a Solucient 100 Top Cardiovascular Hospital.
The fourth annual study, Solucient 100 Top Hospitals‚ Cardiovascular Benchmarks for Success – 2002, used publicly available data, statistically adjusted for variations in care, illness levels and costs, to track performance in key cardiology areas.
“We are very pleased to be chosen again for this distinguished award,” said Dale Collins, President and CEO. “The collective efforts of our employees and medical staff provide our patients and organization immeasurable benefits.”
The Solucient 100 Top Hospitals‚ Cardiovascular Benchmarks for Success found that if all hospitals achieved the success levels of the top performers, U.S. hospitals would save at least $880 million annually, and 4,400 fewer patients would die from the cardiac procedures studied.
The study also found that top-performing facilities consistently outperform their peers, especially in terms of mortality and complication rates:
Risk-adjusted mortality rates were an average of 26 percent lower for certain surgical procedures in top hospitals compared to non-winners.
Post-operative infection rates were an average 18 percent lower in winning versus non-winning hospitals, while post-procedural hemorrhage rates were 26 percent lower.
In terms of efficiency, the average length of stay for cardiac patients would decrease by more than half a day — eliminating 402,000 patient days each year — if all hospitals achieved the best-performance level.
“Achieving this benchmark in the treatment of heart disease is a tremendous accomplishment for a hospital,” explains Jean Chenoweth, executive director of the Solucient 100 Top Hospitals research program. “These winning teams shine a light on practice and performance that will help guide all hospitals to deliver better care.”
The Solucient 100 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals are stratified in categories or peer groups that represent hospitals throughout the country, and include 30 teaching hospitals with cardiovascular residency programs, 40 teaching hospitals without cardiovascular residency programs, and 30 community hospitals. Baptist was named in the community hospitals group.

Baptist Again
Named as a Top 100 Cardiovascular Hospital

The study uses detailed clinical and patient management information, including Solucient’s DRG (Diagnostic Related Group) and hospital database, as well as publicly available MedPAR data (Medicare Provider Analysis and Review). Focusing on hospitals that treat a broad spectrum of cardiology patients, the study included all hospitals that had at least 30 unique cases in each of the following groups for 1999 and 2000:
Acute myocardial infarction (AMI)
Congestive heart failure (CHF)
Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty
(PTCA)
Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG)

For a list of the “Solucient 100 Top Hospitals: Cardiovascular Benchmarks for Success – 2002” winners and a report summary, visit http://www.100TopHospitals.com. Other Tennessee hospitals named include Saint Thomas Health Services in Nashville and St. Mary’s Medical Center in Knoxville.
Located in downtown Knoxville, Baptist Hospital of East Tennessee is an acute care hospital serving as the central resource of the Baptist Health System. Baptist has been honored as one of the nation’s top 100 hospitals for four years in a row, as well as one of the nation’s top 100 ICUs. Baptist is also the only health system in the state to ever receive the Tennessee Quality Governor’s Award.
Solucient is the leading source of health care business intelligence. Its mission is to provide comprehensive, results-oriented information to drive business growth, manage costs, and deliver quality care. Solucient’s expertise and proven solutions enable providers, payers, employers, and pharmaceutical companies to achieve results and realize value. By bridging the gap between data and information, knowledge and value, Solucient drives intelligent business decisions.