Nov. 18, 2008

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Central Minnesota Heart Center at St. Cloud Hospital ranks in nation’s top 100 for cardiovascular care

ST. CLOUD, Minn. –The Central Minnesota Heart Center at St. Cloud Hospital was named one of the 100 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals in the United States -- an award they have won seven times before.

“Our organization is proud to receive this national recognition and endorsement of the program excellence at the Central Minnesota Heart Center,” said Craig Broman, president of St. Cloud Hospital. “Dedicated physicians and staff are committed to the delivery of top quality cardiovascular services close to home, 365 days a year.”

“Central Minnesota Heart Center’s work goes well beyond our immediate program and touches all St. Cloud Hospital units and employees in some way. All hospital employees and physicians are responsible for the success of the Heart Center,” said Bob Johnson, executive director of the Central Minnesota Heart Center at St. Cloud Hospital.

The study -- 2008 Thomson Reuters 100 Top Hospitals®: Cardiovascular Benchmarks for Success -- examined the performance of 970 hospitals by analyzing clinical outcomes for patients diagnosed with heart failure and heart attacks and for those who received coronary bypass surgery and angioplasties. These identified the 100 United States hospitals that are setting the nation’s benchmarks for cardiovascular care.

“These hospitals provide enormous value to their communities because heart disease is still the nation’s number one killer. They have set the new national standard for cardiovascular disease outcomes, process of care, efficiency and lower costs,” said Jean Chenoweth, senior vice president for performance improvement and 100 Top Hospitals programs in the health care business of Thomson Reuters.

Based on comparisons between the Thomson Reuters 100 Top Hospitals: Cardiovascular Benchmarks Hospitals and a peer group limited to similar high-volume hospitals, it is estimated that:

If peer hospitals (non-winners) provided the same quality of care as the 100 Top Hospitals, survival rates would increase by nearly 6,000 patients each year.Complications of care could also decrease in peer hospitals; 720 additional patients could be complication-free.

The average 100 Top Hospitals Cardiovascular winner meets the recommended core measures standards for 93 percent of their heart failure patients, compared with 89 percent at the average peer, or non-winning, hospital. Similar differences were seen for heart attack patients.

The winning hospitals performed more than 50 percent more angioplasties than their peers in 2006 and 2007. A variety of previously published findings show that volume is an important correlate with outcomes for cardiovascular patients.

“The benchmark hospitals demonstrate that the quality of cardiovascular care is still improving across the country,” said Janet Young, MD, senior scientist at the Thomson Reuters Center for Healthcare Improvement. “These hospitals pushed the bar to new levels, particularly in improved survival rates and reduced cost.”

The Central Minnesota Heart Center at St. Cloud Hospital
Celebrating a Quarter Century of Cardiac Care
- 22 cardiologists (combination of adult, pediatric and electrophysiologists)
- 2 cardiac surgeons
- 27 outreach sites
- Total heart catheterization procedures FY 2008: 2,875
- Total angioplasty/stent procedures FY 2008: 1,533
- Top 10 percent of Hospitals Nationwide for Cardiac Surgery
- Recognized repeatedly as a Thomson Top 100 Cardiovascular Hospital

What does a 100 Top Hospitals National award mean to the community?
A Thomson Reuters 100 Top Hospitals® National award winner is an organization that ranks above the top 90 percent on hospital-wide performance when compared with its national peers. The hospital is scored on performance measures including procedure volume, complications, length of stay, cost and mortality.

Being named a 100 Top Hospitals National winner means:

The hospital’s board of trustees, management, medical staff and care employees are working together to provide high quality care and greater value to the community.
As a major employer, the hospital is financially strong and can pay good salaries, support the local economy and invest in new technologies to improve care.
As a high-performing business, the hospital executes and measures performance to improve clinical quality and efficiency of services.
As a provider of care that is attempting to improve the health status of citizens, the community has a hospital to be proud of -- no matter what its size or category.

To learn more about this study and other 100 Top Hospitals, visit www.100tophospitals.com.

Learn more about the Central Minnesota Heart Center

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