Bellin Named a Top Cardiovascular Hospital

Annual Truven Health Analytics study analyzes patient outcomes

Bellin Hospital is one of the nation’s 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals, according to a recently released study from Truven Health Analytics™. It’s the eighth time Bellin has made the list.

Truven’s study uses a balanced national scorecard of hospital performance metrics to identify the 50 top U.S. hospitals for inpatient cardiovascular services. Bellin was recognized in the “Top Community Hospitals” category. The health system was one of just three hospitals in Wisconsin, and the only one in Northeast Wisconsin, to earn the designation for 2017.

“Our inclusion on this list is illustrative of Bellin Health’s deep and unwavering commitment to providing high-quality cardiovascular care for individuals in Northeast Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan,” said Andrea Werner, vice president, Bellin Health Heart, Lung and Vascular Services. “We work hard to ensure we consistently set, meet or surpass national benchmarks for clinical processes, outcomes, efficiency and cost-effectiveness.”

Top 50 hospitals significantly outperformed those not on the list in a variety of areas, Truven reported. They included:

• Lower readmission rates: Readmission rates for heart attacks and heart failure were .05 to 1.2 percentage points lower than at non-winning hospitals
• Higher inpatient survival rates: Winning hospitals had inpatient survival rates that were 25 to 55 percent higher than non-winning hospitals
• Fewer complications: Hospitals on the list had 20 to 22 percent fewer patients who experienced complications
• Shorter length of stay: Patients at winning hospitals spent an average of one-third to one-half a day less in the hospital than those at non-winning hospitals.

In addition, hospitals on the list spent an average of $6,100 less per bypass surgery than non-winning hospitals and more than $1,200 less per heart failure patient admitted. Truven reported that, industry-wide, 9,000 additional lives and $1.4 billion could be saved, and 6,000 additional complication-free bypasses and angioplasties performed, if all U.S. cardiovascular providers performed at the level of this year’s winners.

To determine the 50 top U.S. hospitals for heart care, Truven Health researchers analyzed 2014 and 2015 Medicare Provider Analysis and Review (MedPAR) data, 2015 Medicare cost reports and second-quarter 2016 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) 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.