Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center, Saginaw, Michigan

The Aleda E. Lutz Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center was named one of the nation’s top performers on key quality measures by The Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of health care organizations in America.  The VA in Saginaw was recognized by The Joint Commission for exemplary performance in using evidence-based clinical processes that are shown to improve care for certain conditions including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia, and surgical care.  The VA was recognized for quality care measures related to pneumonia.

 

The Aleda E. Lutz VA was one of 620 hospitals  in the U.S. earning the distinction of Top Performer on Key Quality Measures for attaining and sustaining excellence in accountability measure performance.  Inclusion on the list is based on an aggregation of accountability measure data reported to The Joint Commission during the previous calendar year, 2011.   The list of Top Performers increased by 50 percent from its debut last year and represents 18 percent of more than 3,400 eligible accredited hospitals reporting data.

 

This is the second year in a row that the Aleda E. Lutz VA in Saginaw is being recognized as a Top Performer. They are one of only 244 hospitals that achieved the distinction two years in a row.  Last year, the VA in Saginaw was recognized by The Joint Commission for its achievement in the Pneumonia indicators as well.

 

Each of the hospitals that were named as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures met 95 percent (95/95) performance thresholds on 2011 accountability measure data.  First, each hospital achieved performance of 95 percent or above on a single, composite score that includes all the accountability measures for which it reports data to The Joint Commission, including measures that had fewer than 30 eligible cases or patients.  Second, each hospital met or exceeded 95 percent performance on every accountability measure for which it reports data to The Joint Commission, excluding any measures with fewer than 30 eligible cases or patients.  A 95 percent score means a hospital provided an evidence-based practice 95 times out of 100 opportunities to provide the practice.  Each accountability measure represents an evidence-based practice – for example, giving aspirin at arrival for heart attack patients, giving antibiotics one hour before surgery, and providing a home management plan for children with asthma. 

 

“When we raise the bar and provide the proper guidance and tools, hospitals have responded with excellent results,” says Mark R. Chassin, M.D., FACP, M.P.P., M.P.H., president, The Joint Commission.  “This capacity for continual improvement points toward a future in which safety and quality defects are dramatically reduced and high reliability is sought and achieved with regularity.  Such day-to-day progress will slowly but surely transform today’s health care system into one that achieves unprecedented performance outcomes for the benefit of the patients.”

 

“We understand that what matters most to Veterans at the Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center in Saginaw is safe, effective care.  That is why the VA has made a commitment to accreditation and to positive Veteran outcomes through evidence-based care processes.  The VA Medical Center in Saginaw is proud to be named to the list of The Joint Commission’s Top Performers on Key Quality Measures,” says Stephanie Young, Acting Medical Center Director.

 

In addition to being included in the release of The Joint Commission’s “Improving America’s Hospitals” annual report, the Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center will be recognized on The Joint Commission’s Quality Check website (www.qualitycheck.org).  The Top Performer program will be featured in the October issues of The Joint Commission Perspectives and The Joint Commission:  The Source.