HCA Richmond’s CJW Medical Center and Henrico Doctors’ Hospital Recognized in National Quality Study

The Levinson Heart Hospital at CJW and Henrico’s Orthopaedic programs named as the top in Virginia and Richmond

Richmond, VA, October 31, 2008 – HCA Richmond Health System announced that CJW Medical Center is the best cardiac program in the state for the third consecutive year and Henrico Doctors’ Hospital is the best orthopaedic program in Richmond for the fourth consecutive year according to a study released by HealthGrades, the nation’s leading independent healthcare ratings company.

The hospitals additionally were ranked among the best in the nation for the following specialties:

• CJW Medical Center – cardiac surgery top five percent nationally; overall cardiac services top ten percent nationally; and GI medical treatment top ten percent nationally
• Henrico Doctors’ Hospital – stroke care top ten percent nationally; pulmonary and critical care services top ten percent nationally

Both hospitals achieved HealthGrades highest rating – five-stars – in several clinical areas:

• CJW  – coronary bypass surgery, valve replacement surgery, heart attack, GI bleed, pancreatitis, pneumonia, and stroke care
• Henrico – total hip replacement surgery, valve replacement surgery, GI surgeries and procedures, heart failure, stroke, COPD, pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, and respiratory failure care

“We are extremely proud of the physicians and staff of the Levinson Heart Hospital who are wholly committed to providing outstanding quality patient care,” said Lee Higginbotham, Administrator of the Levinson Heart Hospital at CJW Medical Center. “Independent ratings such as HealthGrades help to provide consumers important data so they can make informed health care decisions for their families.”
“We have an outstanding team at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital, stated Patrick Farrell, CEO. “The dedication of our physicians and nursing staff to providing excellent quality healthcare is represented by these findings.”

These findings were included in the eleventh annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality in America Study, which analyzed more than 41 million Medicare hospitalization records from 2005 to 2007 at the nation’s approximately 5,000 non-federal hospitals.  Also according to the study, patients treated at the nation’s top-rated hospitals have a 70 percent lower chance of dying compared with the lowest-rated hospitals across 17 common procedures and conditions, ranging from heart attack and pneumonia care to respiratory failure.

While overall death rates declined from 2005 to 2007, the nation’s best-performing hospitals were able to reduce preventable deaths at a much faster rate than poor-performing hospitals, resulting in large state, regional and hospital-to-hospital variations in the quality of patient care, the study found.

According to the HealthGrades study, the state of Virginia overall has improved at a rate of 13% during the three years studied – that is in-line with the rate of improvement at a national level.  The HCA Richmond System is proud to be recognized for their clinical excellence with their quality patient outcomes which have contributed to this improvement.

Based on the study, HealthGrades today made available its 2009 quality ratings for virtually every hospital in the country at www.healthgrades.com, a Web site designed to help individuals research and compare local healthcare providers.

On its Web site, HealthGrades offers, free to consumers, quality ratings of 27 procedures and treatments for virtually every hospital in the country. The Web site is designed so that consumers can easily compare patient outcomes at their local hospitals for procedures ranging from aortic aneurysm repair to bypass surgery. Each hospital receives a star rating based on its patient outcomes in terms of mortality or complication rates for each procedure or treatment. Hospitals with outcomes that are above average to a statistically significant degree receive a five-star rating. Hospitals with average outcomes receive a three-star rating, and hospitals with outcomes that are below average receive a one-star rating. Because no two hospitals or their patients’ risk profiles are alike, HealthGrades employs extensive risk-adjustment algorithms to ensure that it is making analogous comparisons.

About HCA Richmond Health System
With 1,800 beds, 7,700 employees and 2,300 affiliated physicians, HCA Richmond Health System is the largest and most comprehensive healthcare provider and largest private employer in Central Virginia.  HCA Richmond Health System operates six hospital campuses along with freestanding surgery, and imaging and centers.  Our hospitals include CJW Medical Center, Henrico Doctors’ Hospital, John Randolph Medical Center and Retreat Hospital.  Both CJW Medical Center and Henrico Doctors’ Hospital have been named HealthGrades ‘America’s 50 Best Hospitals’ in 2007 and 2008. They are the only Virginia hospitals to earn this distinction two years in a row.  For more information or to select a physician, please contact MedLine at 800-242-5662.