Provena United Samaritans has been rated "5 Star" for the quality of its heart attack care from HealthGrades®, a leading independent healthcare ratings organization. The recognition is based on HealthGrades' twelfth annual Hospital Quality in America study, released at the end of 2009, which analyzes patient outcomes at virtually all of the nation's hospitals.
This rating places Provena United Samaritans Medical Center as one of only 31 hospitals rated five-star for heart attack treatment in Illinois and one of only three hospitals in Central Illinois.
The HealthGrades study analyzed patient outcomes in nearly 40 million Medicare hospitalization records from 5,000 hospitals over the years 2006, 2007 and 2008. HealthGrades' hospital ratings and awards reflect the track record of patient outcomes at hospitals in the form of mortality and complication rates. Because the risk profiles of patient populations at hospitals are not alike, HealthGrades risk-adjusts the data to allow for apples-to-apples comparisons.
For heart attack care, HealthGrades examines three different time periods: while in the hospital, 30 days after admission, and 180 day after admission, in order to determine not only whether they survive, but how they fare over an extended period of time. Provena United Samaritans had mortality rates that were better than expected in all three categories, and better than the national average, with a statistically significant better mortality rate than expected for +180 days, earning them the distinction of "5-star rated for heart attack" from HealthGrades.
