WhyNotTheBest.org has been updated with the latest performance data on the process-of-care and hospital patient experience measures that are publicly reported by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Users of the site can conduct side-by-side comparisons of 4,500 hospitals nationwide, track performance over time against numerous benchmarks, and download tools to improve health care quality.
The latest update shows evidence of improvement on one important indicator of patients’ experiences, from the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey. In March 2008, the initial reporting period, about 2,500 hospitals reported that patients gave them a nine or 10 (on a scale of one to 10, with 10 being the highest) in response to the question: “How do patients rate the hospital overall?” In the most recent update, more than 3,700 hospitals earned a patient rating of nine or 10 overall.
Later this year, new data sets—on hospital mortality, 30-day readmissions, and costs- will be added to the site.