The "process measures" used on Hospital Compare, a compendium of Medicare data on hospital quality intended to help patients choose the best hospitals, may not correlate with mortality rates or surgical site infections at hospitals, according to a study published in the Archives of Surgery.
The study analyzed Medicare claims for more than 325,000 patients undergoing one of six high-risk surgeries at nearly 2,200 hospitals in 2005 and 2006, then compared the outcomes of the surgeries to hospital ratings on Hospital Compare. The study found hospitals with high compliance rates did not have lower rates of complications or mortality.
The study prompts questions on how government agencies and hospital rating companies should best measure hospital quality.
Read the PBS report on the Hospital Compare study published in the Archives of Surgery.
Read more on pay-for-performance:
-5 Ways to Make the Pay-for-Performance Transition Smoother
-Pilot Project on Physician Compensation to Receive Federal Funding
The study analyzed Medicare claims for more than 325,000 patients undergoing one of six high-risk surgeries at nearly 2,200 hospitals in 2005 and 2006, then compared the outcomes of the surgeries to hospital ratings on Hospital Compare. The study found hospitals with high compliance rates did not have lower rates of complications or mortality.
The study prompts questions on how government agencies and hospital rating companies should best measure hospital quality.
Read the PBS report on the Hospital Compare study published in the Archives of Surgery.
Read more on pay-for-performance:
-5 Ways to Make the Pay-for-Performance Transition Smoother
-Pilot Project on Physician Compensation to Receive Federal Funding