Fletcher Allen Ranks in Top 5% of Hospitals in New National Quality Measure for Key Heart Procedure

Fletcher Allen Health Care outperformed 95% of hospitals from throughout the U.S. participating in a new quality measurement of coronary stent procedures sponsored by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the American College of Cardiology (ACC). Results of the evaluation were recently released on Medicare’s ‘Hospital Compare’ website.
Fletcher Allen is one of 300 hospitals and university medical centers from throughout the country voluntarily reporting how many patients require unplanned readmission within 30 days of a coronary angioplasty to the National Cardiovascular Data Registry/CathPCI Registry (NCDR) rate program. Vermont’s academic medical center is one of only 13 organizations to rank ‘better than the Registry rate’ in the evaluation.
‘We’re very pleased to be recognized by the ACC for volunteering to participate in this program, and to learn that the care we provide is at the highest level available,’ said David J. Schneider, M.D., medical director of Cardiology at Fletcher Allen and a professor at the UVM College of Medicine. ‘This success reflects truly a team effort led by Dr. Prospero Gogo, the director of our Cardiovascular Catheterization Laboratories. In addition to a dedicated team performing the procedures, Fletcher Allen is fortunate to have dedicated nurses and case managers who ensure that patients understand the importance of continuing their medications and keeping their scheduled follow-up appointments.’
Placing stents in narrowed or blocked arteries is one of the most common cardiac procedures in the United States with over 600,000 performed each year. In appropriate patients, it can improve quality of life and survival. Currently, one in seven patients is readmitted to the hospital within 30 days.
‘This measure is extremely valuable for patients in that they are, for the first time, getting easy access to information on how their local hospital is performing in terms of readmissions after these procedures,’ said ACC President John G. Harold, MD, MACC. ‘Fletcher Allen should be commended
for its commitment to submitting and evaluating its own data to make sure all patients receive the best possible care and for agreeing to publicly report this information.’
The measure was developed using Medicare administrative claims and clinical data from the ACC’s NCDR CathPCI Registry. Results were based on unplanned readmissions occurring within 30 days of discharge. The Yale New Haven Health Services Corporation is also a partner in this project.
For more information on the readmission measure and patient heart-wise health care tips to avoid a return to the hospital, visithttp://www.cardiosmart.org/myhospital. To see results for Fletcher Allen along with data for other participating hospitals, visit http://www.medicare.gov/hospitalcompare. To learn more about Fletcher Allen’s cardiac care program, visit www.fletcherallen.org/heart
About the American College of Cardiology
The ACC is a 43,000-member medical society comprised of physicians, surgeons, nurses, physician assistants, pharmacists and practice managers. The College is a leader in the formulation of health policy, standards and guidelines. The ACC provides professional education, operates national registries to measure and improve quality of care, disseminates cardiovascular research, and bestows credentials upon cardiovascular specialists who meet stringent qualifications. For more information, visit cardiosource.org/ACC.
About Fletcher Allen Health Care
Fletcher Allen Health Care, together with our partners at the University of Vermont College of Medicine and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, is Vermont’s academic medical center. Fletcher Allen and Central Vermont Medical Center are members of Fletcher Allen Partners, established to develop a more coordinated system of care throughout the region. Fletcher Allen’s mission is to improve the health of the people in the communities it serves by integrating patient care, education and research in a caring environment. Fletcher Allen also serves as a regional referral center -- providing advanced care to approximately one million people in Vermont and northern New York -- and as a community hospital for approximately 150,000 residents in Chittenden and Grand Isle counties. For more information about Fletcher Allen, find us online at http://www.fletcherallen.org or on our Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and blog sites at www.fletcherallen.org/socialmedia.