Vermont Business Magazine The Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC) Renal Dialysis unit has joined the hospital as a recipient of the federal government’s highest rating for patient care. “I have an amazing team that works hard every day to ensure patients receive the highest quality care,” said Ruth Rudnick, the director of renal dialysis at SVMC. “To have that care recognized in this way is so gratifying.”
TheCMSrating system is designed to assist the public in choosing care for themselves and their family members. The agency rates hospitals, nursing homes, home health services, dialysis facilities, and health plans, among other health services. The news of the five-star rating for SVMC’s dialysis unit was made available in a preview to a report that is expected to be released in October.
CMS uses patient experience surveys and countless measures of quality patient care to assign ratings for each service or facility type. For dialysis units, for example, the measures include the infection rate, hospital admissions, hospital readmissions, and mortality rate, to name a few. Three stars represents the national average. Four stars, the rating the Dialysis Department at SVMC has received in years past, represents “above average” performance. A five-star rating means a center has quality of care that is considered “much above average” compared to other dialysis facilities.
To review ratings from area health services, consumers can visit www.medicare.gov
About SVHC:
Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) is a comprehensive, preeminent, health care system providing exceptional, convenient, and affordable care to the communities of Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York, and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. SVHC includes Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, and the SVHC Foundation. SVMC includes 25 primary and specialty care practices. For more information, visit svhealthcare.org.
Source: BENNINGTON, VT—October 23, 2018—The Southwestern Vermont Medical Center