Kaweah Health Medical Center is the most awarded hospital for clinical quality excellence in the Central Valley for 2022 according to a new report released today by Healthgrades. Among its recognitions, Kaweah Health is one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals for Cardiac Surgery for the fifth year in a row and one of America’s top 100 hospitals in the care of pulmonary and critical care patients two years in a row, according to the leading resource that connects consumers, physicians and health systems.
“We are all honored and humbled by this recognition. Our team is focused on excellence and works tirelessly to care for this community,” said Gary Herbst, Chief Executive Officer of Kaweah Health. “To be named among some of the best hospitals in the nation is an honor and a reflection of the dedication and commitment our staff and physicians have for the care and well-being of our community.”
Kaweah Health is one of two hospitals in California to receive all three of America’s Best Awards for cardiac surgery, pulmonary care, and critical care. It was the only hospital in the Central Valley to receive America’s 50 Best for Cardiac Surgery and America’s 100 Best for Critical Care. Additionally, Kaweah Health was a recipient of Healthgrades Stroke Care Excellence Award and named among the top 10 percent in the country. In all, Kaweah Health received ten 5-star awards.
Healthgrades’ analyzed approximately 45 million Medicare inpatient records for nearly 4,500 short-term acute care hospitals nationwide. It found that patients treated at hospitals receiving a 5-star rating have a lower risk of mortality and a lower risk of experiencing one or more complications during a hospital stay than if they were treated at hospitals receiving a 1-star rating in that procedure or condition. From 2018 through 2020, if all hospitals as a group performed similarly to hospitals receiving 5-stars as a group, on average, 218,141 lives could potentially have been saved, and complications in 156,050 patients could potentially have been avoided. Healthgrades found that:
- Cardiac patients have a 8% lower risk of dying if treated at hospitals that received the America’s 50 Best Hospitals for Cardiac Surgery™, like KHMC, versus non-recipient hospitals.*
- Pulmonary patients have a 51.3% lower risk of dying if treated at hospitals that received the America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Pulmonary Care™, like KHMC, versus non-recipient hospitals.*
- Patients on average have a 30.1% lower risk of dying if treated at hospitals that received the America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Critical Care Award, like KHMC, versus non-recipient hospitals.*
“Consumers are increasingly becoming aware of the differences of care provided by different hospitals. Consumers can feel confident that hospitals receiving a Healthgrades 5-star rating have demonstrated exceptional outcomes and their ability to provide quality care,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer and Head of Data Science at Healthgrades.
Kaweah Health was chosen as one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals™ for Cardiac Surgery for its superior clinical outcomes in heart bypass surgery and heart valve surgery. Kaweah Health is the only California affiliate of the Cleveland Clinic, the No. 1 ranked heart program in the U.S. every year since 1995. Through this affiliation, physicians and staff from Kaweah Health and Cleveland Clinic collaborate to improve healthcare services and outcomes by implementing best practices and using data to improve care. Additionally, Kaweah Health offers a full range of cardiovascular services in partnership with local physicians, who can be found at KaweahHealth.org/heart
Kaweah Health was also named among the top 5 percent in the nation for overall pulmonary services (treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and pneumonia), critical care services (treatment of pulmonary embolism, respiratory system failure, sepsis and diabetic emergencies), and among the top 10 percent in the nation for treatment of stroke. Kaweah Health partners with a number of highly-skilled neurosurgeons, the majority of whom are faculty members in the USC Department of Neurological Surgery, to offer neurosurgery and neurospine services in Visalia. The partnership keeps patients with severe head injuries and neurosurgical conditions close to home.
Kaweah Health’s commitment to quality care was recognized with multiple awards in the following clinical areas:
Cardiac
- Cardiac Surgery Excellence Award™ for 6 Years in a Row (2017-2022)
- Nation’s Top 5% for Cardiac Surgery for 5 Years in a Row (2018-2022)
- Nation’s Top 10% for Cardiac Surgery for 6 Years in a Row (2017-2022)
- 5-Stars in Coronary Bypass Surgery for 6 Years in a Row (2017-2022)
- 5-Stars in Valve Surgery for 2 years in a Row (2021-2022)
- 5-Stars for Treatment of Heart Attack in 2022
- 5-Stars for Treatment of Heart Failure for 2 Years in a Row (2021-2022)
Neurosciences
- Stroke Care Excellence Award™ for 4 Years in a Row (2019-2022)
- Nation’s Top 10% for Treatment of Stroke for 4 Years in a Row (2019-2022)
- 5-Stars for Treatment of Stroke for 8 Years in a Row (2015-2022)
Pulmonary
- Pulmonary Care Excellence Award™ for 9 Years in a Row (2014-2022)
- Nation’s Top 5% for Overall Pulmonary Services for 2 Years in a Row (2021-2022)
- Nation’s Top 10% for Overall Pulmonary Services for 9 Years in a Row (2014-2022)
- 5-Stars for Treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease for 2 Years in a Row (2021-2022)
- 5-Stars for Treatment of Pneumonia for 9 Years in a Row (2014-2022)
Gastrointestinal
- 5-Stars for Treatment of GI Bleed in 2022
Critical Care
- Critical Care Excellence Award™ for 3 Years in a Row (2020-2022)
- Nation’s Top 5% for Critical Care for 2 Years in a Row (2021-2022)
- Nation’s Top 10% for Critical Care for 3 Years in a Row (2020-2022)
- 5-Stars for Treatment of Sepsis for 10 Years in a Row (2013-2022)
- 5-Stars for Treatment of Respiratory Failure for 4 Years in a Row (2019-2022)
Healthgrades recognizes a hospital’s quality achievements for cohort-specific performance, specialty area performance, and overall clinical quality. Individual procedure or condition cohorts are designated as 5-stars (statistically significantly better than expected), 3-stars (not statistically different from expected) and 1-star (statistically significantly worse than expected).