Two Scripps Hospitals Earn National Honors for Quality

Scripps Encinitas and Scripps Green are among 620 hospitals in the United States earning the distinction of Top Performer on Key Quality Measures for attaining and sustaining excellence in accountability measure performance. This year’s list of Top Performers represents 18 percent of the nation’s accredited hospitals reporting data.

Both Scripps Encinitas and Scripps Green were recognized for their achievements on the following measure sets: heart attack, heart failure, surgical care and pneumonia.

The ratings are based on an aggregation of accountability measure data reported to The Joint Commission during the 2011 calendar year.

“Scripps is committed to providing the highest-quality care to our patients, and this recognition by The Joint Commission is another step forward in our journey,” said Scripps President and CEO Chris Van Gorder.

Each of the hospitals that were named as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures met two 95 percent 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, or giving antibiotics one hour before surgery.

“We understand that what matters most to patients is safe, effective care,” said Mark R. Chassin, M.D., FACP, M.P.P., M.P.H. and president of The Joint Commission. “That’s why Scripps has made a commitment to accreditation and to positive patient outcomes through evidence-based care processes.”

In addition to being included in today’s release of The Joint Commission’s “Improving America’s Hospitals” annual report, Scripps Green and Scripps Encinitas will be recognized on The Joint Commission’s Quality Check website (www.qualitycheck.org). The Top Performer program will be featured in the November issue of The Joint Commission Perspectives and the October issue of The Joint Commission: The Source.

Learn more about Scripps Health , a nonprofit integrated health system in San Diego, Calif.