Oklahoma Heart Hospital Recognized Among Top Hospitals for Low Readmission Rates

OKLAHOMA CITY (Feb. 14, 2017) – According to the most recent information from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Hospital Compare website, the Oklahoma Heart Hospital (OHH) in Oklahoma City is one of the top 40 hospitals in the United States with the lowest readmission rates, which signifies a high-quality hospital.

 

A hospital readmission is defined as an unplanned patient admission to the hospital within 30 days of discharge from a previous hospital stay. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement estimates that almost one-third of the $2 trillion spent on health care in the United States is due to hospitalizations. 

 

Nationally, an average of 15.6 percent of patients are readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of their previous hospitalization. OHH has made significant strides to reduce readmission rates over the last few years and it shows. The hospital’s readmission rate is significantly lower than the national average.  

 

These efforts include follow-up phone calls to patients after hospital discharge and medication education provided by a pharmacist to certain high-risk patients before discharge. Case managers also follow readmission cases and identify trends and opportunities for improvements. 

 

"Although some readmissions are unavoidable, many are preventable," said Dr. John R. Harvey, president and chief executive officer of OHH. "Every day, we are committed to providing the very best patient care possible while patients are in the hospital and after discharge to help prevent those avoidable hospital readmissions. I am proud of our efforts over the last few years, but we can always be better." 

 

Since opening its first hospital in 2002, OHH has consistently been a leader in patient satisfaction, quality, safety and technology in Oklahoma and across the nation. For the last three years, OHH has been ranked one of the top three hospitals in the nation based on patient satisfaction scores from Press Ganey Associates, Inc. 

 

In November, OHH was named one of the nation’s 50 top cardiovascular hospitals for the fourth time by Truven Health Analytics for achieving superior clinical outcomes. In August, the hospital was also among 102 U.S. hospitals (2.2 percent of hospitals) that received a five-star overall rating from CMS for quality patient care, which included readmission rates.