HCA HealthONE Aurora named among the nation's top cardiovascular hospitals

HCA HealthONE Aurora today was identified as one of the nation’s 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals® according to an independent quality analysis based on a balanced scorecard provided by Premier, Inc. and published by Modern Healthcare.

To create the list, an objective, quantitative analysis of publicly available data was conducted to identify the top cardiovascular hospitals in the United States. The primary purpose of the 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals program is to provide data-driven benchmarks that hospital leaders can use to better understand performance variation and improve care for heart patients nationwide. Hospitals do not apply to participate in the study, and recognized organizations do not pay to market this distinction.

“This recognition underscores the strength of our cardiovascular program and the impact of the research, technology and clinical expertise driving better patient outcomes,” said Scott Rausch, chief executive officer for HCA HealthONE Aurora. “Our physicians, nurses and care teams are delivering sophisticated, life-saving heart care for patients in Aurora and across the Rocky Mountain Region.”

Performance of Hospitals Recognized on the 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals List

Compared to peer hospitals, those in the 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals delivered better results across all 21 measures, including clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, extended outcomes and patient experience.

Key national performance observations include:

• Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) inpatient mortality showed a 56 percent difference in index value between benchmark and peer hospitals (0.43 vs. 0.99, respectively).
• In complication measure results for the two surgical patient groups (CABG and Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI)), the PCI group outperformed the CABG group by a 10 percent difference (31.4 percent vs. 21.4 percent, respectively).
• The CMS Care Compare 30-day mortality measure for CABG patients had the largest difference between benchmark and peer hospitals (16 percent), with index values of 2.1 vs. 2.5, respectively.
• Average cost per case showed the most notable difference in the heart failure patient group, with a 19.6 percent difference ($9,859 vs. $12,264, respectively).

These outcomes add up to meaningful differences. According to the study’s analysis, if all U.S. hospitals’ cardiovascular service lines performed at the level of this year’s 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals, the impact could include over 14,000 additional lives potentially saved, more than 27,000 additional bypass and angioplasty patients experiencing fewer complications, and over $2.0 billion in potential savings.

“Cardiovascular care is one of the most complex and impactful service lines in healthcare,” said David Zito, President of Performance Services at Premier. “The 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals program highlights organizations delivering strong outcomes while providing hospital leaders with meaningful benchmarks to help improve care.”