HOLSTON VALLEY NAMED ONE OF NATION'S
50 BEST CARDIOVASCULAR HOSPITALS
KINGSPORT – Holston Valley Medical Center is one of America's 50 best hospitals for heart care, and patients who choose Holston Valley have better survival rates, fewer complications, shorter hospital stays and lower costs.
That's the conclusion of Thomson Reuters' 12th annual study identifying the 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals in the nation.
Holston Valley, already ranked Tennessee's No. 1 hospital for cardiology two years in a row, is the only Tennessee hospital to earn the prestigious Top 50 designation. Other hospitals ranked in the Top 50 include Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic.
In previous years, Thomson Reuters has named the nation's 100 top heart hospitals, an honor Holston Valley achieved in both 2005 and 2007.
This year, however, just 50 hospitals earned the hallmark recognition.
"We've chosen a more elite group of winners this year. These hospitals have raised the bar significantly," said Jean Chenoweth, senior vice president for performance improvement and the 100 Top Hospitals program at Thomson Reuters. "They deliver higher survival rates, shorter hospital stays, fewer readmissions, and lower costs — which adds up to enormous value for the communities they serve. As a result, everyone benefits: patients, families, employers, insurers and the hospital itself."
The Thomson Reuters study examined the performance of 1,022 hospitals by analyzing outcomes for patients with heart failure and heart attacks and for those who received coronary bypass surgery and percutaneous coronary interventions such as angioplasties.
The results show that 96 percent of all cardiovascular inpatients survive and approximately 93 percent remain complication-free, indicative of improved cardiovascular care across the board over the past decade. The 50 top hospitals' performance surpasses these high-water marks as indicated by:
- Better risk-adjusted survival rates (33 percent fewer deaths than non-winning hospitals for bypass surgery)
- Lower complications indices (21 percent lower for heart failure complications)
- Fewer patients readmitted to the hospital in the 30 days following discharge
- Shorter hospital visits and lower costs. Top hospitals discharge heart patients a half-day sooner and spend $1,300 less per case than non-winners.
"The mission of our hospital and health system is the delivery of superior, compassionate health care," said Virginia Frank, Holston Valley's president. "This independent evaluation of our efforts confirms what our thousands of patients already know: When you need expert heart care, this is where your heart belongs."
For the comprehensive study, Thomson Reuters researchers analyzed 2008 and 2009 Medicare Provider Analysis and Review data, Medicare cost reports and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Hospital Compare data.
They scored hospitals in key performance areas: risk-adjusted mortality, risk-adjusted complications, core measures (a group of measures that assess process of care), percentage of coronary bypass patients with internal mammary artery use, 30-day mortality rates, 30-day readmission rates, severity-adjusted average length of stay and wage- and severity-adjusted average cost.
"This is now irrefutable proof, based on independently collected and analyzed scientific data, that Holston Valley Medical Center is the best heart hospital in our region," said Dr. Jerry Blackwell, president of the Wellmont CVA Heart Institute. "Further, we are the only hospital in the state of Tennessee to earn a Top 50 designation.
"The processes that led to this distinctive honor are in use every day for the patients we serve within the newly organized Wellmont CVA Heart Institute. Working in partnership for the good of our patients, our board-certified physicians and exemplary staff have built an outstanding cardiac program that is literally saving lives every day."
The Thomson Reuters study is an independent ranking. Hospitals do not apply or pay for recognition. A list of the winning hospitals can be viewed online at http://www.100tophospitals.com.
Holston Valley's Top 50 recognition is the latest in a series of national honors for the Wellmont CVA Heart Institute. In September, Consumer Reports magazine ranked both Holston Valley and Bristol Regional Medical Center among 50 top-rated heart bypass surgery programs nationwide. Both Holston Valley and Bristol Regional have been named Blue Distinction Centers for Cardiac Care by BlueCross BlueShield Association, and CareChex has ranked both hospitals among the Top 10 percent in the nation for cardiac care.
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Jeff Fleming
Kingsport Blog
