When it comes to hospitals, all are not created equal. A new study released by HealthGrades, an independent health care ratings organization, has found that the top-rated U.S. hospitals have a 27 percent lower death rate than more poorly-graded medical facilities.
The researchers analyzed the records of about 41 million Medicare patients treated at the nation's nearly 5,000 non-federal hospitals, focusing on 26 common diagnoses and procedures.
They found that patients treated at hospitals ranked in the top 5 percent nationally had a 27 percent lower risk of in-hospital death. The study also found that patients at the highest-performing hospitals had an 8 percent lower risk of complications for diagnoses and procedures. In fact, if the quality of care at all hospitals matched that of the top-rated hospitals, 152,666 lives may have been saved, and 11,772 major complications may have been avoided, during a three-year period.
To see how your local hospital ranks, go to http://healthgrades.com.