IBM Watson Health Recognizes Top-Performing U.S. Hospitals and Health Systems

Rhea-AI Summary

IBM Watson Health has released its 2020 Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list, recognizing outstanding hospitals and health systems in the U.S. The study indicates that if all Medicare patients received the same care as those in these award-winning facilities, over 106,000 lives and billions in costs could be saved. The evaluations considered clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, and patient satisfaction. Key metrics revealed significant potential improvements in patient care, including reduced complications and costs.

Positive

• Over 106,000 additional lives could be saved if Medicare patients received similar care as top hospitals.
• Potential savings of over $8.3 billion in inpatient costs identified.
• Recognition of hospitals as leaders in high-value, patient-centered care amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Negative

• None.

ARMONK, N.Y., June 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) Watson Health^® today announced its 2020 Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list and 15 Top Health Systems award winners, naming the top-performing hospitals and health systems in the U.S. Extrapolating the results of this year's studies, if all Medicare hospitalized patients received the same level of care as those treated in the award-winning facilities, more than 100,000 additional lives and billions of dollars in inpatient costs could be saved. The lists of the top hospitals and health systems were published by Fortune.

"Hospitals, health systems and the dedicated clinicians and staff who work at these organizations have emerged as true heroes of the COVID-19 pandemic and we are grateful to be able to recognize these extraordinary leaders at this time," said Kyu Rhee, M.D., M.P.P., Vice President and Chief Health Officer, IBM Watson Health. "From small community hospitals to major teaching hospitals, the organizations on this list demonstrate a relentless commitment to high-value, patient-centered care and innovation. It is clear that the COVID-19 crisis will be a catalyst for reinvention, and we believe these top performing hospitals are positioned to emerge stronger and smarter out of this crisis."

The goal of the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals and IBM Watson Health 15 Top Health Systems lists is to identify top performing hospitals and health systems and deliver insights that may help healthcare organizations focus their improvement initiatives on achieving consistent, balanced and sustainable high performance. The studies used to determine the lists are based on a balanced scorecard of publicly available clinical, operational, and patient satisfaction metrics and data.

Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals List
Compared to similar hospitals, the hospitals included on the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list had better results on performance indicators intended to measure clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, patient experience and financial health. These include survival rates, patient complications, healthcare-associated infections, 30-day mortality and 30-day hospital-wide readmission rates, length of stay, throughput in emergency rooms, inpatient expenses, profitability, and ratings from patients. Additionally, performance by these hospitals, when extrapolated to all Medicare inpatients, could result in:

• More than 106,000 additional lives saved;
• More than 49,000 additional patients being complication-free;
• More than $8.3 billion in inpatient costs saved; and
• Approximately 23,000 fewer discharged patients readmitted within 30 days.

To determine the hospitals included on the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list, IBM Watson Health researchers evaluated 3,134 short-term, acute care, non-federal U.S. hospitals. All research was based on the following public data sets: Medicare cost reports, Medicare Provider Analysis and Review (MEDPAR) data, and core measures and patient satisfaction data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare website. Hospitals do not apply for awards, and winners do not pay to market this honor.

In addition to the hospitals included on the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list, select hospitals were also recognized as Everest Award winners. These are hospitals that earned the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list designation and had the highest rates of improvement during a five-year period.

IBM Watson Health 15 Top Health Systems List
As compared to their peer health systems, the hospitals included on the IBM Watson Health 15 Top Health Systems list had better results on performance indicators intended to measure clinical outcomes, operational efficiency and patient experience. These include lower inpatient mortality rates and fewer patient complications, considering patient severity; care that resulted in fewer hospital-acquired infections; higher influenza immunization rates; lower 30-day readmission rates; shorter lengths of stay; faster emergency care; higher scores on patient ratings of their overall hospital experience: and lower episode-of-care expenses for the in-hospital through aftercare process. Additionally, performance by these health systems, when extrapolated to all Medicare inpatients, could result in:

• Approximately 43,000 additional lives saved;
• More than 29,000 additional patients being complication-free;
• Healthcare-associated infections being reduced by 12 percent; and
• Patients spending 38 fewer minutes in hospital emergency rooms, per visit.

To determine the hospitals included on the IBM Watson Health 15 Top Health Systems list, IBM Watson Health researchers evaluated 332 health systems and 2,492 hospitals that are members of health systems. All research was based on the following public data sets: Medicare cost reports, MEDPAR data, and core measures and patient satisfaction data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare website.

For more information, visit http://www.100tophospitals.com/.

Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals List (by category)
* Denotes Everest Award winner

Major Teaching Hospitals
Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center - Chicago, IL*
Baylor Scott & White Medical Center - Temple - Temple, TX
Baylor University Medical Center - Dallas, TX
Evanston Hospital - Evanston, IL
Froedtert Hospital - Milwaukee, WI
Inova Fairfax Hospital - Falls Church, VA
Maricopa Medical Center - Phoenix, AZ*
Stanford Hospital - Stanford, CA
St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor Hospital - Ann Arbor, MI
St. Luke's University Hospital - Bethlehem - Bethlehem, PA
UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital - Aurora, CO
UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica - Santa Monica, CA
UF Health Shands Hospital - Gainesville, FL*
University of Utah Hospital - Salt Lake City, UT* 
UT Medical Branch at Galveston - Galveston, TX

Teaching Hospitals
Abbott Northwestern Hospital - Minneapolis, MN
Aspirus Wausau Hospital - Wausau, WI
Brandon Regional Hospital - Brandon, FL
Grandview Medical Center - Dayton, OH
Kettering Medical Center - Kettering, OH
McKay-Dee Hospital - Ogden, UT
Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas - Rogers, AR
Mercy Hospital St. Louis - Saint Louis, MO
Mount Carmel St. Ann's - Westerville, OH
MountainView Hospital - Las Vegas, NV*
Palmetto General Hospital - Hialeah, FL*
PIH Health Hospital - Whittier - Whittier, CA
Redmond Regional Medical Center - Rome, GA
Rose Medical Center - Denver, CO*
Sky Ridge Medical Center - Lone Tree, CO
St. Mark's Hospital - Salt Lake City, UT*
St. Vincent Healthcare - Billings, MT
Swedish Medical Center - Englewood, CO*
The Medical Center of Aurora - Aurora, CO
UCHealth Poudre Valley Hospital - Fort Collins, CO
UH Geauga Medical Center - Chardon, OH*
United Hospital Center - Bridgeport, WV
Utah Valley Hospital - Provo, UT*
Wesley Medical Center - Wichita, KS
West Penn Hospital - Pittsburgh, PA

Large Community Hospitals
Abrazo Arrowhead Campus - Glendale, AZ
Advocate Sherman Hospital - Elgin, IL
Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center - Medford, OR
Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – Grapevine - Grapevine, TX
Edward Hospital - Naperville, IL*
Elmhurst Hospital - Elmhurst, IL*
Hoag Hospital Newport Beach - Newport Beach, CA
Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital - Houston, TX
Mercy Health - Anderson Hospital - Cincinnati, OH
Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City - Oklahoma City, OK
Mission Regional Medical Center - Mission, TX*
Saint Francis Medical Center - Cape Girardeau, MO
Saint Mary's Hospital - Reno, NV*
Sarasota Memorial Hospital - Sarasota, FL
Silver Cross Hospital - New Lenox, IL
St. Clair Hospital - Pittsburgh, PA
St. David's Medical Center - Austin, TX*
St. David's North Austin Medical Center - Austin, TX
St. Joseph's Hospital - Tampa, FL
Stormont Vail Hospital - Topeka, KS

Medium Community Hospitals
AdventHealth Wesley Chapel - Wesley Chapel, FL
Doctors Hospital of Sarasota - Sarasota, FL
Dublin Methodist Hospital - Dublin, OH
East Liverpool City Hospital - East Liverpool, OH*
IU Health North Hospital - Carmel, IN*
Logan Regional Hospital - Logan, UT
McLaren Northern Michigan - Petoskey, MI
Mercy Iowa City - Iowa City, IA
Mercy Medical Center - Cedar Rapids, IA
MercyOne Dubuque Medical Center - Dubuque, IA
Providence Medical Center - Kansas City, KS*
Sherman Oaks Hospital - Sherman Oaks, CA
South Baldwin Regional Medical Center - Foley, AL
St. Luke's Anderson Campus - Easton, PA
St. Vincent's Medical Center Clay County - Middleburg, FL
Sycamore Medical Center - Miamisburg, OH
Timpanogos Regional Hospital - Orem, UT
UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies - Loveland, CO
West Valley Medical Center - Caldwell, ID
Wooster Community Hospital - Wooster, OH

Small Community Hospitals
Alta View Hospital - Sandy, UT
American Fork Hospital - American Fork, UT
Aurora Medical Center in Kenosha - Kenosha, WI
Baptist Health - Hot Spring County - Malvern, AR
Brigham City Community Hospital - Brigham City, UT
Buffalo Hospital - Buffalo, MN
Cedar City Hospital - Cedar City, UT
Clark Regional Medical Center - Winchester, KY
Lakeview Hospital - Bountiful, UT
Lone Peak Hospital - Draper, UT
Parkview Huntington Hospital - Huntington, IN
Parkview Noble Hospital - Kendallville, IN
Saint Francis Hospital South - Tulsa, OK
Spectrum Health Zeeland Community Hospital - Zeeland, MI
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - Centralia - Centralia, IL
SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital - Janesville - Janesville, WI
St. John Owasso Hospital - Owasso, OK
St. Mary's Medical Center - Blue Springs, MO*
Stillwater Medical Center - Stillwater, OK
Sutter Tracy Community Hospital - Tracy, CA

IBM Watson Health 15 Top Health Systems List (by category)

Large Health Systems
Baylor Scott & White Health – Dallas, TX
CHI Health – Omaha, NE
HCA Continental Division – Denver, CO
Kettering Health Network – Dayton, OH
UCHealth – Aurora, CO

Medium Health Systems
Edward-Elmhurst Health – Naperville, IL
HealthPartners – Bloomington, MN
Parkview Health – Fort Wayne, IN
Saint Luke's Health System – Kansas City, MO
St. Luke's Health System – Boise, ID

Small Health Systems
Asante – Medford, OR
Aspirus – Wausau, WI
Genesis Health System – Davenport, IA
Maury Regional Health – Columbia, TN
Saint Alphonsus Health System – Boise, ID

About the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals List

The Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list is determined using independent and objective research to analyze hospital and health system performance. Organizations do not apply or pay for this honor or pay to promote their award. Award-winning hospitals and health systems serve as a model of excellence for the industry.

About the IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals Program

The IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals Program's annual studies result in the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list, IBM Watson Health 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals list and IBM Watson Health 15 Top Health Systems list. Organizations do not apply or pay for this honor or pay to promote their award. Award-winning hospitals and health systems serve as a model of excellence for the industry. Visit http://www.100tophospitals.com/ for more information.

About IBM Watson Health

IBM Watson Health is a data, analytics, and technology partner for the health industry. Supported by the innovation of IBM and intelligence of Watson, we are committed to helping build smarter health ecosystems. Through the combination of our deep industry expertise in health, data and analytics, actionable insights, and reputation for security and trust, Watson Health is working together with its clients and partners to help them achieve simpler processes, better care insights, faster breakthroughs, and improved experiences for people around the world. Learn more at https://www.ibm.com/watson-health.

CONTACTS
Matthew Henson
917-930-7147
matthew.henson@ibm.com

Carolyn Castel
857-337-0601
carolyn.castel@ibm.com

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SOURCE IBM Watson Health

FAQ

What is the purpose of the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list?

The list aims to identify top-performing hospitals and deliver insights for healthcare improvement initiatives.

How many lives could be saved according to IBM's report?

The report suggests over 106,000 additional lives could be saved if all Medicare patients received the same level of care as those in the top hospitals.

When was the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 100 Top Hospitals list released?

The list was published on June 30, 2020.

How does IBM Watson Health evaluate hospitals for its award?

Hospitals are evaluated based on a balanced scorecard of publicly available clinical, operational, and patient satisfaction metrics.

What are some key performance indicators used in the evaluation?

Key indicators include survival rates, patient complications, healthcare-associated infections, and 30-day readmission rates.

What financial benefits are highlighted in the IBM press release?

The press release highlights potential savings of over $8.3 billion in inpatient costs.