CHI Memorial Receives Multiple Awards Recognizing Quality of Care

06/08/21

CHI Memorial is pleased to announce it has received multiple awards recognizing its commitment to safe and high quality patient care.

CMS star rating

CHI Memorial is the only health system in the Chattanooga region to receive a five star rating (5 out of 5 stars) from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).  The most common overall hospital quality star rating is three stars.  Only 13 percent of the 4,586 hospitals included in the survey received a five star rating.  This is the fifth time CHI Memorial has received a rating of four stars or higher. 

The overall star rating shows how well an individual hospital is performing compared to other hospitals in the U.S., on average. The rating summarizes a variety of measures across five areas of quality: mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience, and time and effective care. This rating is designed to help individuals, family members, and caregivers compare hospitals and easily understand complex quality information.  

CMS updated its hospital compare star rating data in April 2021.  For more information, visit medicare.gov/hospitalcompare.

“Our employees never cease to amaze me,” says Matthew Kodsi, MD, PhD, vice president, medical affairs, CHI Memorial.  “They are making a difference every day with the high quality, compassionate care they provide our patients.”

Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade

CHI Memorial Hospital Chattanooga and Hospital Hixson received “A” ratings in the spring 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades, a national distinction recognizing CHI Memorial’s achievements protecting patients from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections. 

“The energy and passion our employees demonstrate to ensure our patients have the highest quality and safest care available is so inspiring,” shares Karen Frank, market director of quality, CHI Memorial. “The physicians and staff work together and challenge each other to improve patient care and provide our patients with the best possible outcomes.”

The Leapfrog Group is an independent national organization committed to health care quality and safety. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade assigns an “A,” “B,” “C,” “D,” or “F” grade to all general hospitals across the country and is updated every six months. It is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospitals’ prevention of medical errors and other harms to patients in their care. Only 33 percent of hospitals in the country received an "A”.

Developed under the guidance of a national expert panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses up to 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,700 U.S. acute-care hospitals. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.

US News and World Report

In fall of 2020, CHI Memorial was named Best Regional Hospital by U.S. News and World Report.  On the list of Best Hospitals in Tennessee, CHI Memorial is ranked second behind Vanderbilt University Medical Center.  Only 12 of Tennessee’s 133 hospitals meet U.S. News’ standards and are ranked.  

CHI Memorial also received a ‘high performing’ rating in eight surgical procedures and chronic conditions evaluated by U.S. News: abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, COPD, colon cancer surgery, heart bypass surgery, heart failure, hip replacement, knee replacement, and lung cancer surgery. A complete list of Best Hospitals in Tennessee is available here.

“This is a huge testament to the quality of care that our physicians, clinicians, and employees provide here,” said Janelle Reilly, market CEO, CHI Memorial.  “I am incredibly proud of all our employees and the great work they do.  They should be proud, because these recognitions prove they are doing amazing work, and our patients are the ones who benefit from their dedication.”