230 hospital benchmarks | 2017

Hospitals across the nation compete in a number of ways, including on quality of care and price, and many use benchmarking to determine the top priorities for improvement. The continuous benchmarking process allows hospital executives to see how their organizations stack up against regional competitors as well as national leaders.

For the sixth year, Becker's Hospital Review has collected benchmarks related to some of the most important day-to-day areas hospital executives oversee: quality, patient satisfaction, staffing, utilization, finance, affiliations, compensation and health IT.

Quality and process of care

Source: Hospital Compare, HHS, Complications-National Averages December 2016 and Timely and Effective Care Measures-National Averages December 2016, the latest available data for these measures.

Hospital-acquired conditions

The following represent the average percentage of patients in the U.S. who experienced the conditions.

1. Collapsed lung due to medical treatment: 0.41 percent

2. A wound that splits open on the abdomen or pelvis after surgery: 2.32 percent

3. Accidental cuts and tears from medical treatment: 1.43 percent

4. Serious blood clots after surgery: 5.31 percent

5. Serious complications: 0.9 percent

6. Bloodstream infection after surgery: 10.21 percent

7. Infections from a large venous catheter: 0.17 percent

8. Developed a blood clot while in the hospital and did not get treatment that could have prevented it: 2 percent

Heart attack patients

9. Median time to fibrinolysis: 28 minutes

10. Median time to transfer to another facility for acute coronary intervention: 58 minutes

Outpatients with chest pain or possible heart attack

11. Who received aspirin within 24 hours of arrival or before transferring from the emergency department: 96 percent

12. Who received drugs to break up blood clots within 30 minutes of arrival: 59 percent

13. Median time before patient received an ECG: 7 minutes

Lower extremity joint replacement patients

14. Rate of complications for hip/knee replacement patients: 3 percent

Stroke patients

15. Who received fibrinolysis within three hours after symptoms started: 87 percent

Blood clot patients

16. Who were discharged on a blood thinner medicine and received written instructions about that medicine: 93 percent

Colonoscopy patients

17. Who received appropriate recommendation for follow-up colonoscopy: 80 percent

18. Percentage of patients with history of polyps who received follow-up colonoscopy in the appropriate timeframe: 87 percent

Flu vaccination

19. Preventive care patients assessed and given flu vaccination: 94 percent

20. Healthcare workers who received flu vaccination: 86 percent

Pregnancy and delivery care

21. Mothers whose deliveries were scheduled one to two weeks early, when a scheduled delivery was not medically necessary: 2 percent

Emergency department care

22. Average time spent in the ED before patient is admitted to the hospital as an inpatient: 279 minutes

23. Average time patient spent in ED after the physician decided to admit as an inpatient but before leaving the ED for the inpatient room: 99 minutes

24. Average time patient spent in the ED before sent home: 140 minutes

25. Average time patient spent in the ED before seen by a healthcare professional: 22 minutes

26. Average time patient who came to the ED with broken bones had to wait before receiving pain medication: 52 minutes

27. Percentage of patients who came to the ED with stroke symptoms who received brain scan results within 45 minutes of arrival: 69 percent

28. Percentage of patients who left the ED before being seen: 2 percent

Patient satisfaction

Source: Hospital Compare, HHS, HCAHPS National Survey Results December 2016, the latest available data for these measures.

Overall hospital rating

29. Patients who gave the hospital a rating of nine or 10: 72 percent

30. Patients who gave the hospital a rating of seven or eight: 21 percent

31. Patients who gave the hospital a rating of six or lower: 7 percent

Patient recommendation

32.Patients who said, yes, they would definitely recommend the hospital to friends and family: 72 percent

33. Patients who said, yes, they would probably recommend the hospital to friends and family: 23 percent

34. Patients who said, no, they probably or definitely would not recommend the hospital to friends and family: 5 percent

Cleanliness

35. Patients who said their room and bathroom was "always" clean: 74 percent

36. Patients who said their room and bathroom was "usually" clean: 18 percent

37. Patients who said their room and bathroom was "sometimes" or "never" clean: 8 percent

Noise

38. Patients who said the area around their room was "always" quiet at night: 62 percent

39. Patients who said the area around their room was "usually" quiet at night: 29 percent

40. Patients who said the area around their room was "sometimes" or "never" quiet at night: 9 percent

Physician communication

41. Patients who said their physicians "always" communicated well: 82 percent

42. Patients who said their physicians "usually" communicated well: 14 percent

43. Patients who said their physicians "sometimes" or "never" communicated well: 4 percent

Nurse communication

44. Patients who said their nurses "always" communicated well: 80 percent

45. Patients who said their nurses "usually" communicated well: 16 percent

46. Patients who said their nurses "sometimes" or "never" communicated well: 4 percent

Pain control

47. Patients who said their pain was "always" well controlled: 71 percent

48. Patients who said their pain was "usually" well controlled: 22 percent

49. Patients who said their pain was "sometimes" or "never" well controlled: 7 percent

Explanation of medicines

50. Patients who said staff "always" explained medicines before administering: 65 percent

51. Patients who said staff "usually" explained medicines before administering: 18 percent

52. Patients who said staff "sometimes" or "never" explained medicines before administering: 17 percent

Assistance from hospital staff

53. Patients who said they "always" received help as soon as they wanted: 69 percent

54. Patients who said they "usually" received help as soon as they wanted: 23 percent

55. Patients who said they "sometimes" or "never" received help as soon as they wanted: 8 percent

Recovery plan

56. Patients who said staff provided information about what to do during their recovery at home: 87 percent

57. Patients who said staff did not provide information about what to do during their recovery at home: 13 percent

Care plan at discharge

58. Patients who strongly agreed they understood their care when they left the hospital: 52 percent

59. Patients who agreed they understood their care when they left the hospital: 43 percent

60. Patients who disagreed or strongly disagreed they understood their care when they left the hospital: 5 percent

Staffing

Source: American Hospital Association "Hospital Statistics" report, 2017 Edition.

Full- and part-time staff averages are for the hospital unit only and do not include separate nursing home units.

Average full-time staff

61. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 99

62. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 176

63. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 286

64. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 646

65. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 1,192

66. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 1,727

67. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 2,562

68. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 5,005

Average part-time staff

69. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 50

70. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 81

71. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 132

72. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 263

73. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 453

74. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 567

75. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 835

76. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 1,341

Utilization

Source: American Hospital Association "Hospital Statistics" report, 2017 Edition.

Average admissions per year

77. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 394

78. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 922

79. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 2,098

80. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 5,779

81. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 11,011

82. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 16,133

83. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 20,410

84. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 33,623

Average length of stay

85. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 4.5 days  

86. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 5.1 days

87. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 5.5 days

88. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 4.6 days

89. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 4.7 days

90. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 4.9 days

91. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 5.1 days

92. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 5.5 days

Average inpatient surgeries per year

Averages include both hospital and nursing home units.

93. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 90

94. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 200

95. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 480

96. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 1,419

97. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 2,893

98. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 4,182

99. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 5,710

100. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 10,236

Average outpatient visits per year

Averages include both hospital and nursing home units.

101. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 23,780

102. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 45,249

103. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 66,154

104. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 135,975

105. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 212,085

106. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 271,538

107. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 415,662

108. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 667,839

Average outpatient surgeries per year

Averages include both hospital and nursing home units.

109. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 663

110. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 1,040

111. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 1,708

112. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 3,417

113. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 5,528

114. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 6,934

115. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 9,364

116. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 15,124

Finance

Average adjusted expenses per inpatient day

Source: Kaiser State Health Facts, accessed in 2017 and based on 2015 data. 

Adjusted expenses per inpatient day include all operating and nonoperating expenses for registered U.S. community hospitals, defined as public, nonfederal, short-term general and other hospitals. The figures are an estimate of the expenses incurred in a day of inpatient care and have been adjusted higher to reflect an estimate of the volume of outpatient services.

117. Nonprofit hospitals: $2,413

118. For-profit hospitals: $1,831

119. State/local government hospitals: $2,013

Key ratios

Source: Moody's Investors Service, "U.S. Not-for-Profit Hospital 2015 Medians" report, September 2016.

The medians are based on an analysis of audited 2015 financial statements for 340 freestanding hospitals, single-state health systems and multi-state health systems, representing 81 percent of all Moody's rated healthcare entities. Children's hospitals, hospitals for which five years of data are not available and certain specialty hospitals were not eligible for inclusion in the medians.

120. Maintained bed occupancy: 64.3 percent

121. Operating margin: 3.4 percent

122. Excess margin: 6.1 percent

123. Operating cash flow margin: 10.3 percent

124. Return on assets: 4.8 percent

125. Three-year operating revenue CAGR: 5.8 percent

126. Three-year operating expense CAGR: 5.5 percent

127. Days cash on hand: 211.8 days

128. Annual operating revenue growth rate: 7.5 percent

129. Annual operating expense growth rate: 6.6 percent

130. Total debt-to-capitalization: 33.7 percent

131. Total debt-to-total operating revenue: 34.5 percent

 

132. Current ratio: 2.0x

133. Cushion ratio: 20.6x

134. Annual debt service coverage: 5.2x

135. Maximum annual debt service coverage: 4.8x

136. Debt-to-cash flow: 2.7x

137. Capital spending ratio: 1.1x

 

138. Accounts receivable: 48.4 days

139. Average payment period: 64.3 days

140. Average age of plant: 11 years

Hospital margins by credit rating group

Source: S&P Global Ratings "U.S. Not-For-Profit Health Care System Median Financial Ratios — 2015 vs. 2014" report, September 2016.

AA+ rating

141. Operating margin: 6.2 percent

142. Operating EBIDA margin: 13.1 percent

143. Excess margin: 8.4 percent

144. EBIDA margin: 14.8 percent

AA rating

145. Operating margin: 4.9 percent

146. Operating EBIDA margin: 10.6 percent

147. Excess margin: 7.2 percent

148. EBIDA margin: 13.3 percent

AA- rating

149. Operating margin: 3.5 percent

150. Operating EBIDA margin: 10.4 percent

151. Excess margin: 6.4 percent

152. EBIDA margin: 12.7 percent

A+ rating

153. Operating margin: 4.1 percent

154. Operating EBIDA margin: 10.3 percent

155. Excess margin: 5.6 percent

156. EBIDA margin: 12.3 percent

A rating

157. Operating margin: 3.6 percent

158. Operating EBIDA margin: 10.6 percent

159. Excess margin: 5.2 percent

160. EBIDA margin: 11.1 percent

A- rating

161. Operating margin: 2.9 percent

162. Operating EBIDA margin: 9.5 percent

163. Excess margin: 3.9 percent

164. EBIDA margin: 10.8 percent

BBB+ rating

165. Operating margin: 0.8 percent

166. Operating EBIDA margin: 6.8 percent

167. Excess margin: 3.4 percent

168. EBIDA margin: 8.7 percent

Days cash on hand and days in accounts receivable by credit rating group

Source: S&P Global Ratings "U.S. Not-For-Profit Health Care System Median Financial Ratios — 2015 vs. 2014" report, September 2016.

AA+ rating

169. Days cash on hand: 426.2

170. Days in accounts receivable: 45.8

AA rating

171. Days cash on hand: 292.9

172. Days in accounts receivable: 49.9

AA- rating

173. Days cash on hand: 258.2

174. Days in accounts receivable: 48.8

A+ rating

175. Days cash on hand: 200.3

176. Days in accounts receivable: 46.2

A rating

177. Days cash on hand: 182.5

178. Days in accounts receivable: 49.1

A- rating

179. Days cash on hand: 156.6

180. Days in accounts receivable: 46.2

BBB+ rating

181. Days cash on hand: 148.7

182. Days in accounts receivable: 47.6

Health IT

HIMSS Analytics EMR Adoption Model, which runs from Stage 0 to Stage 7

Source: HIMSS Analytics, EMR Adoption Model, fourth quarter of 2016, the latest available data for these measures.

183. Stage 7 providers: 4.8 percent

184. Stage 6 providers: 30.5 percent

185. Stage 5 providers: 34.9 percent

186. Stage 4 providers: 10.2 percent

187. Stage 3 providers: 13.9 percent

188. Stage 2 providers: 2.3 percent

189. Stage 1 providers: 1.4 percent

190. Stage 0 providers: 1.9 percent

Affiliations

Source: American Hospital Association "Hospital Statistics" report, 2017 Edition. 

Part of a group purchasing organization

191. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 67 percent

192. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 69 percent 

193. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 66 percent  

194. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 72 percent

195. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 77 percent 

196. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 82 percent 

197. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 86 percent 

198. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 93 percent

Part of a health system

199. Hospitals with six to 24 beds: 46 percent

200. Hospitals with 25 to 49 beds: 55 percent  

201. Hospitals with 50 to 99 beds: 67 percent   

202. Hospitals with 100 to 199 beds: 75 percent 

203. Hospitals with 200 to 299 beds: 74 percent  

204. Hospitals with 300 to 399 beds: 77 percent  

205. Hospitals with 400 to 499 beds: 75 percent

206. Hospitals with 500 or more beds: 75 percent 

Compensation

Source: Integrated Healthcare Strategies 2016 National Healthcare Leadership Compensation Survey.

Average base salary for independent hospital executives

207. CEO: $487,000

208. CFO: $227,900

209. COO: $323,000

Average total cash compensation for independent hospital executives

210. CEO: $553,400

211. CFO: $305,000

212. COO: $357,800

Average base salary for subsidiary hospital executives

213. CEO: $387,500

214. CFO: $276,000

215. COO: $304,700

Average total cash compensation for subsidiary hospital executives

216. CEO: $462,000

217. CFO: $309,300

218. COO: $349,200

Average base salary for independent health system executives

219. CEO: $826,500

220. CFO: $453,300

221. COO: $503,100

Average total cash compensation for independent health system executives

222. CEO: $1.04 million

223. CFO: $538,400

224. COO: $606,300

Average base salary for subsidiary health system executives

225. CEO: $699,500

226. CFO: $406,800

227. COO: $376,800

Average total cash compensation for subsidiary health system executives

228. CEO: $866,300

229. CFO: $478,400

230. COO: $430,300

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