South Texas Veterans Health Care System Named Top Performer on Key Quality Measures
San Antonio, TX (PRWEB) October 30, 2013 -- Today, South Texas Veterans Health Care System was named Top Performer on Key Quality Measures® by The Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of health care organizations in America. Only four acute care hospitals in San Antonio made the list: South Texas Veterans Health Care System, Methodist Hospital, Methodist Stone Oak Hospital and Nix Health Care System. Of these, South Texas is the only one recognized for performance in Heart Attack, Heart Failure, Pneumonia, and Surgical Care. Of the seven VA health care systems in the state, South Texas is the only one who made the list.
The Joint Commission recognized the health care system for exemplary performance in using evidence-based clinical processes that are shown to improve care for certain conditions. The clinical processes focus on care for heart attack, pneumonia, surgery, children’s asthma, stroke and venous thromboembolism, as well as inpatient psychiatric services. New this year is a category for immunization for pneumonia and influenza.
South Texas Veterans Health Care System is among 1,099 hospitals in the U.S. earning the distinction of Top Performer on Key Quality Measures for attaining and sustaining excellence in accountability measure performance. The following measure sets contributed to this achievement: heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia, and surgical care. The ratings are based on an aggregation of accountability measure data reported to The Joint Commission during the 2012 calendar year. The list of Top Performer organizations increased by 77 percent from last year and it represents 33 percent of all Joint Commission-accredited hospitals reporting accountability measure performance data for 2012.
South Texas Veterans Health Care System and each of the hospitals that were named as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures must: 1) achieve cumulative performance of 95 percent or above across all reported accountability measures; 2) achieve performance of 95 percent or above on each and every reported accountability measure where there are at least 30 denominator cases; and 3) have at least one core measure set that has a composite rate of 95 percent or above, and within that measure set all applicable individual accountability measures have a performance rate of 95 percent or above. A 95 percent score means a hospital provided an evidence-based practice 95 times out of 100 opportunities. Each accountability measure represents an evidence-based practice – examples include giving aspirin at arrival for heart attack patients, giving antibiotics one hour before surgery, or providing a home management plan of care for children with asthma.
“I am proud to lead the team of professionals demonstrating an exceptional commitment to quality improvement for our Veterans,” remarked Marie L. Weldon, FACHE, Director, South Texas Veterans Health Care System. “Our patients deserve the very best. This recognition by The Joint Commission proves that we go to work every day focusing on ways we can serve them better.”
In addition to being included in today’s release of The Joint Commission’s “Improving America’s Hospitals” annual report, South Texas Veterans Health Care System will be recognized on The Joint Commission’s Quality Check website (http://www.qualitycheck.org). The Top Performer program will be featured in the December issues of The Joint Commission Perspectives and The Source.
Kathryn Gifford, Veterans Health Administration, http://www.southtexas.va.gov, +1 (210) 978-2002, [email protected]
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