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 Q: What are the initial hospital measures to be reported to CMS?
A: The "starter set" of a total of ten measures are for 1.) acute myocardial infarction (AMI or heart attack), heart failure, and pneumonia.
Q: Why were these measures selected?
A: Scientific evidence indicates that these measures represent the best standard of care for treatment of common conditions that result in hospitalization.
Q: Are there plans to expand the reporting initiative?
A: Yes. It is expected that public reporting will be expanded in 2005 to add new measures for the three initial conditions. First-time measures on prevention of surgical infections may be posted publicly as early as Summer 2005 and information on patient perspective of care at a particular facility added in late 2005.
Q: How should patients and families use the quality measures?
A: The data on www.Medicare.gov are for just six months worth of patients on a relatively small set of measures. The measures should be used in conjunction with other evaluative methods when choosing a hospital. Keep in mind that there are many other reporting agencies and Web sites. Also, the scores do not reflect the performance of any one provider at our facility.
One of the most important things in choosing a hospital is matching the services and specializations with your needs. You can get this information by talking to physicians, nurses, and other health care providers. The CMS' website is one of many important sources of information about our facility and should be looked at in combination with other sources.
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