AGH 1 of 6 hospitals in state to get low rating from agency

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) has given Allegheny General Hospital one star out of five in its annual comparison of the nation’s hospitals, saying the North Side facility scored below the national average for safety of care, patient readmissions and patient experience.

AGH, which was rated at the national average for mortality, effectiveness and timeliness of care, and efficient medical imaging, was one of six Pennsylvania hospitals given a one-star ranking, the lowest mark statewide.

UPMC’s 11 hospitals had scores ranging from two stars for UPMC Presbyterian-Shadyside, UPMC Mercy and UPMC Altoona to four stars for UPMC Passavant in McCandless, UPMC East in Monroeville, UPMC St. Margaret in Aspinwall and UPMC Northwest in Seneca, Venango County.

Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC was not rated.

In a release, CMS said a star rating “reflects comprehensive quality information about the care provided at our nation’s hospitals” based on 64 quality measures.

But, given that some of the lowest ratings fell to prominent hospitals such as AGH and UPMC Presbyterian-Shadyside, the head of the Hospital and Healthsystem Association (HAP) questioned the ratings’ value, saying they “create more confusion for consumers, rather than clarity.”

“Unfortunately, the overall hospital quality star ratings do not take important issues into account, such as social determinants of health and varying complexities of patient conditions,” said Andy Carter, HAP president and CEO, in a statement.

“As a result, the rating system unfairly penalizes Pennsylvania teaching hospitals and those serving more vulnerable populations.”

Mr. Carter urged CMS to “go back to the drawing board and

address these concerns within its methodology to paint a more accurate picture of health care quality in Pennsylvania.”

Physician Sam Reynolds, chief quality officer for the Allegheny Health Network, noted that AGH “cares for some of the sickest, most vulnerable patients in the region” and that its staff “often work to perform life-saving procedures for patients that other hospitals in the region and nation are unable to care for.”

In addition to not factoring in where hospitals are located and what kind of patients they see, Dr. Reynolds noted that some data used for the star ratings dates from 2013 into 2015. “With several new initiatives in place, AGH has seen improvement in many of its most important safety and quality metrics this year.”

AGH’s fellow Allegheny Health Network facilities rated from a low of two stars at Canonsburg General Hospital in Washington County to a four-star rating for Jefferson Hospital in Jefferson Hills.

Butler Memorial Hospital, Butler County, ACMH in Kittanning, Armstrong County, The Washington Hospital in Washington County, Excela Health Westmoreland in Greensburg and Grove City Medical Center in Mercer County each received four stars.

Four hospitals in the eastern part of the state, two of them orthopedic hospitals, received the highest five-star rating.

Information about the ratings can be found on the CMS website, https:// www.cms.gov/.