Quality Measures

Timely & Effective Care: Heart Failure Care

Effective Heart Attack Care

 

Heart Failure Patients Given Discharge Instructions

(Data collected from 1/1/2011 to 12/31/2011)
National Average
 92%
Pennsylvania Average
 93%
Abington Memorial Hospital
 89%

Top hospitals achieved a 100% rate.

What It Is and Why It Is Important 

  • Heart failure is a chronic condition. It results in symptoms such as shortness of breath, dizziness, and fatigue.
  • Before you leave the hospital, the staff at the hospital should provide you with information to help you manage the symptoms after you get home. The information should include your:
  • Activity level (what you can and can't do);
  • Diet (what you should, and shouldn't eat or drink);
  • Medications;
  • Follow-up appointment;
  • Watching your daily weight; and
  • What to do if your symptoms get worse.

Higher percentages are better.

Heart Failure Patients Given an Evaluation of Left Ventricular Systolic (LVS) Function

(Data collected from 1/1/2011 to 12/31/2011)
National Average
 99%
Pennsylvania Average
 99%
Abington Memorial Hospital
 99%

Top hospitals achieved a 100% rate.

What It Is and Why It Is Important 

  • The proper treatment for heart failure depends on what area of your heart is affected.
  • An important test is to check how your heart is pumping, called an "evaluation of the left ventricular systolic function." It can tell your health care provider whether the left side of your heart is pumping properly. Other ways to check on how your heart is pumping include:
  • Your medical history
  • A physical examination
  • Listening to your heart sounds; and
  • other tests as ordered by a physician (like an ECG (electrocardiogram), chest x-ray, blood work, and an echocardiogram)

Higher percentages are better.

Heart Failure Patients Given ACE Inhibitor or ARB for Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction (LVSD)

(Data collected from 1/1/2011 to 12/31/2011)
National Average
 96%
Pennsylvania Average
 97%
Abington Memorial Hospital
 93%

Top hospitals achieved a 100% rate.

What It Is and Why It Is Important

  • ACE (angiotensin converting enzyme) inhibitors and ARBs (angiotensin receptor blockers) are medicines used to treat patients with heart failure and are particularly beneficial in those patients with decreased function of the left side of the heart.
  • Early treatment with ACE inhibitors and ARBs in patients who have heart failure symptoms or decreased heart function after a heart attack can also reduce their risk of death from future heart attacks. ACE inhibitors and ARBs work by limiting the effects of a hormone that narrows blood vessels, and may thus lower blood pressure and reduce the work the heart has to perform.
  • Since the ways in which these two kinds of drugs work are different, your doctor will decide which drug is most appropriate for you. If you have a heart attack and/or heart failure, you should get a prescription for ACE inhibitors or ARBs if you have decreased heart function before you leave the hospital.

Higher percentages are better.

Heart Failure Patients Given Smoking Cessation Advice/Counseling

(Data collected from 1/1/2011 to 12/31/2011)
National Average
 99%
Pennsylvania Average
 99%
Abington Memorial Hospital
 100%

Top hospitals achieved a 100% rate.

What It Is and Why It Is Important

  • Smoking increases your risk for developing blood clots and heart disease, which can result in a heart attack, heart failure or stroke. Smoking causes your blood vessels to thicken. Fat and plaque then stick to the wall of your blood vessels, which makes it harder for blood to flow. Reduced blood flow to your heart may result in chest pain, high blood pressure, and an increased heart rate. Smoking is linked to lung disease and cancer, and can cause premature death.
  • It is important for your health that you get information to help you quit smoking before you leave the hospital.

Higher percentages are better.

Source:

The information was provided from http://www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov/, a quality tool developed by the United States Department of Health and Human Services.  You may use the information in Hospital Compare together with the other information you gather about hospitals as you decide where to get hospital services. You may want to contact your health care provider, your State Survey Agency or your state Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for more information. If you have a complaint about the quality of the medical care you or a loved one received at a hospital, first contact the hospital's patient advocate. Or, contact your state QIO. If you have other complaints about a health care facility, contact your State Survey Agency. Their phone numbers can be found at medicare.gov/Helpful Contacts. Additional information about hospitals may be found on the state websites.

 

Adjusted Adult Heart Failure Death (Mortality) Rates

The rates displayed in this table were calculated from Medicare and VA data on patients discharged between July 1, 2008 and June 30, 2011. They do not include people in Medicare Advantage (like an HMO or PPO) plans or people who do not have Medicare.

Death Rate for Heart Failure Patients tells you how the 30-day readmission rates from Heart Failure at the hospitals you selected compare to the U.S. National Death Rate for Heart Failure Patients. These comparisons take into account how sick patients were before they were admitted to the hospital and differences in readmission rates that might be due to chance.

Death Rate for Heart Failure Patients Compared to the U.S. National Rate.

The U.S. National 30-day Death Rate from Heart Failure = 11.6%
HOSPITAL NAME Better Than U.S. National Rate
(Adjusted mortality is lower than U.S. rate)		 No Different Than U.S. National Rate
(Adjusted mortality is about the same as U.S. rate or difference is uncertain)		 Worse Than U.S. National Rate
(Adjusted mortality is higher than U.S. Rate)
ABINGTON MEMORIAL HOSPITAL      

The "total number" of hospitals in the table below is the total number of hospitals that had eligible admissions for this measure. 
Out of 4821 in the United States... 196 hospitals in the United States Better than U.S. National Rate 3801 hospitals in the United States No different than U.S. National Rate 119 hospitals in the United States Worse than U.S. National Rate
 705 hospitals in the United States did not have enough cases to reliably tell how well they are performing
Out of 169 in Pennsylvania... 16 hospitals Better than U.S. National Rate 139 hospitals No different than U.S. National Rate 6 hospitals Worse than U.S. National Rate
 8 hospitals in Pennsylvania did not have enough cases to reliably tell how well they are performing

Note: Medicare derived the 30-Day Risk-Adjusted Death (Mortality) measures from its own data about patients on Original Medicare and the hospitals that treat them. The information in this table reflects care given only to patients who are on Original Medicare. All data are risk-adjusted.

Rate of Readmission for Heart Failure Patients

The rates displayed in this table were calculated from Medicare and VA data on patients discharged between July 1, 2008 and June 30, 2011. They do not include people in Medicare Advantage (like an HMO or PPO) plans or people who do not have Medicare.

Rate of Readmission for Heart Failure Patients tells you how the 30-day readmission rates from Heart Failure at the hospitals you selected compare to the U.S. National Rate of Readmission for Heart Failure Patients . These comparisons take into account how sick patients were before they were admitted to the hospital and differences in readmission rates that might be due to chance.

Rate of Readmission for Heart Failure Patients Compared to the U.S. National Rate.

The U.S. National 30-day Rate for Readmissions for Heart Failure Patients = 24.7%
HOSPITAL NAME Better Than U.S. National Rate
(Adjusted readmissions are lower than U.S. rate)		 No Different Than U.S. National Rate
(Adjusted readmissions are about the same as U.S. rate or difference is uncertain)		 Worse Than U.S. National Rate
(Adjusted readmissions are higher than U.S. Rate)
ABINGTON MEMORIAL HOSPITAL        

The "total number" of hospitals in the table below is the total number of hospitals that had eligible admissions for this measure.
Out of 4829 in the United States... 95 hospitals in the United States Better than U.S. National Rate 3959 hospitals in the United States No different than U.S. National Rate 162 hospitals in the United States Worse than U.S. National Rate
613 hospitals in the United States did not have enough cases to reliably tell how well they are performing
Out of 169 in Pennsylvania... 6 hospital Better than U.S. National Rate 147 hospitals No different than U.S. National Rate 8 hospitals Worse than U.S. National Rate
8 hospitals in Pennsylvania did not have enough cases to reliably tell how well they are performing

Note: Medicare derived the 30-Day Risk-Adjusted Readmission measures from its own data about patients on Original Medicare and the hospitals that treat them. The information in this table reflects care given only to patients who are on Original Medicare.