Saint Joseph Berea Announced as Healthgrades Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Sepsis and Respiratory Failure Heading

BEREA, Ky. (October 28, 2020) – Saint Joseph Berea is 5-star rated for both sepsis and respiratory failure outcomes according to new research released by Healthgrades, the leading resource that connects consumers, physicians and health systems. Saint Joseph Berea has been named a Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Sepsis for two years in a row (2020-2021) and has been named a Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Respiratory Failure for three years in a row (2019-2021).

Every year, Healthgrades evaluates hospital performance at nearly 4,500 hospitals nationwide for 32 of the most common inpatient procedures and conditions using Medicare data, and additional analyzes outcomes in appendectomy and bariatric surgery using all-payer data provided by 16 states.

This analysis shows that patients treated at hospitals receiving a 5-star rating have a lower risk of dying 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 2017 through 2019, if all hospitals as a group performed similarly to hospitals receiving 5-stars as a group, on average, 218,785 lives could potentially have been saved and complications in 148,681 patients could potentially have been avoided.*

For the 2021 Report to the Nation, Healthgrades compared hospitals with statistically better than expected performance (5-stars), as a group, to those with statistically worse than expected performance (1-star), as a group, and found:

For treatment of sepsis:

From 2017-2019, patients treated for sepsis in hospitals with 5-stars for in-hospital mortality have, on average a 38.9% lower risk of dying than if they were treated in hospitals with 1-star for in-house mortality.*

From 2017-2019, patients treated for sepsis in hospitals with 1-star for in-hospital mortality are, on average 1.6 times more likely to die than if they were treated in hospitals with 5-stars for in-hospital mortality.*

For respiratory failure:

From 2017-2019, patients treated for respiratory failure in hospitals with 5-stars for in-hospital mortality have, on average: • 49.8% lower risk of dying than if they were treated in hospitals with 1-star for in-house mortality.*

From 2017-2019, patients treated for respiratory failure in hospitals with 1-star for in-hospital mortality are, on average: • 2.0 times more likely to die than if they were treated in hospitals with 5-stars for in-hospital mortality.*

“We are committed to providing quality care to each and every patient that walks through our doors, and this national recognition is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our employees,” said John Yanes, president, Saint Joseph Berea. “We are pleased and honored to receive this rating from Healthgrades and hope our patients see how dedicated we are to ensure they receive the best care possible.”

“Hospital quality has never been more important, and consumers are becoming more aware of the importance of researching where they receive care before they visit a hospital for a specific procedure or condition,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Healthgrades. “Hospitals that receive a Healthgrades 5-star rating for pneumonia demonstrate exceptional outcomes and their ability to provide quality care for patients.”

For its analysis, Healthgrades evaluated approximately 45 million Medicare inpatient records for nearly 4,500 short-term acute care hospitals nationwide to assess hospital performance in 32 common conditions and procedures, and evaluated outcomes in appendectomy and bariatric surgery using all-payer data provided by 16 states. 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-star (statistically significantly better than expected), 3-star (not statistically different from expected) and 1-star (statistically significantly worse than expected). The complete Healthgrades 2021 Report to the Nation and detailed study methodology, can be found at partners.healthgrades.com/quality/.

*Statistics are based on Healthgrades analysis of MedPAR data for years 2017 through 2019 and represent 3-year estimates for Medicare patients only.

About CHI Saint Joseph Health
CHI Saint Joseph Health, part of Catholic Health Initiatives, is one of the largest and most comprehensive health systems in the Commonwealth of Kentucky with 135 locations in 20 counties, including hospitals, physician groups, clinics, primary care centers, specialty institutes and home health agencies. In total, the health system serves patients in 35 counties statewide. CHI Saint Joseph Health is dedicated to building healthier communities by elevating patient care through an integrated physical and behavioral health delivery system. CHI Saint Joseph Health embodies a strong mission and faith-based heritage and works through local partnerships to expand access to care in the communities it serves.

About Saint Joseph Berea
Saint Joseph Berea is a 25-bed critical access hospital located in Berea, KY. Established in 1898 on the grounds of Berea College, the facility serves residents of Madison, Estill, Garrard, Jackson and Rockcastle counties. Saint Joseph Berea recognizes the importance of family, friends and familiar surroundings in the healing process and provides a breadth of services so that getting first-rate care doesn’t have to mean being far from home.

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