Bellin Named One of Nation’s 50 Top Cardio Hospitals

Earns IBM Watson Health designation for 10th time

Bellin Hospital recently was named one of the Nation’s 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals by IBM Watson Health™. The Watson Health 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals™ study is now in its 20th year. This is the 10th time Bellin has been recognized with this honor.

The Watson Health 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals study uses 2016 and 2017 Medicare Provider Analysis and Review (MedPAR) data, 2017 Medicare cost reports (2016 if 2017 reports were not available) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare information published in the second quarter of 2018. Hospitals were scored in key value-based performance areas: risk-adjusted mortality, risk-adjusted complications, percentage of coronary bypass patients with internal mammary artery use, 30-day mortality rates, 30-day readmission rates, severity-adjusted average length of stay, wage- and severity-adjusted average cost per case and, new this year, CMS 30-day episode payment measures.

“Awards are a result of what our dedicated cardiac team does every day, by strategically testing new ways of doing things, analyzing results, making necessary adjustments and trying again,” said Andrea Werner, Bellin Health Senior Vice President, Heart, Lung & Vascular Services. “This continuous improvement process is part of our DNA and if we can save one more life or make a patient’s stay that much shorter or save our patients money as a result, we’ve succeeded.”

Bellin Health’s Heart and Vascular Team has more than 40 years of experience in all facets of cardiac care, making it the most experienced program in the region. The team includes Bellin Health Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, Cardiology, Vascular Services, Cardiovascular Imaging, Cardiac Rehabilitation, The Valve Center at Bellin Health and The AAA (Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms) Center. 

If all cardiovascular providers in the U.S. performed at the level of this year's 50 Top Hospitals winners (based on Medicare patients only), results industry-wide could amount to: more than 10,000 additional lives saved, $1.8 billion saved, and 2,800 additional bypass and angioplasty patients could be complication-free.
“Cardiovascular disease is among the most widespread and costliest diseases in the U.S. with an annual price tag of roughly $317 billion. It is estimated that cardiovascular disease accounts for approximately $1 out of every $6 spent on healthcare in the country.i That’s why it is so critical that hospitals find new and innovative ways to deliver better care at a lower cost,” said Ekta Punwani, 100 Top Hospitals® program leader at IBM Watson Health. “The winning hospitals in our study have established the new benchmark for cardiac care performance by driving consistently better outcomes at a lower cost per case than non-winning hospitals.”

The winning hospitals were announced in the Nov. 5 edition of Modern Healthcare magazine.

For more information, visit www.100tophospitals.com.

i. https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/aag/pdf/2016/aag-heart-disease.pdf