EvergreenHealth has been recognized by Healthgrades as one of America’s 100 Best™ hospitals in five specialties: stroke care, pulmonary care, gastrointestinal care, general surgery and critical care. The achievement is part of findings released today in the Healthgrades 2016 Report to the Nation, which demonstrates how clinical performance differs dramatically between hospitals, and the impact that this variation may have on health outcomes and organizational costs.

Healthgrades, the nation’s leading consumer resource for information about physicians and hospitals, evaluated approximately 40 million Medicare inpatient records from nearly 4,500 hospitals across the nation for 33 of the most common inpatient procedures and conditions and identified the 100 best-performing hospitals within each service line. Healthgrades releases rankings annually based on the clinical outcomes of the nation’s top hospitals for risk-adjusted mortality and in-hospital complication rates.

This is the third consecutive year EvergreenHealth is ranked among Healthgrades’ 100 Best™ hospitals for pulmonary and gastrointestinal care, and the second straight year for general surgery. EvergreenHealth is the only health system in Washington state to earn the distinction for pulmonary care three years in a row.

In addition, EvergreenHealth was also ranked among the top 5 percent of hospitals in the nation for neurosciences.

“Our commitment to quality, safety and service are the leading attributes that distinguish the compassionate, exemplary care our doctors, nurses and staff provide across our entire system,” said EvergreenHealth CEO Bob Malte. “We are proud to be recognized in these specialty areas as they exemplify our organization-wide focus on superior clinical care that minimizes complications and achieves the best possible outcomes for patients and families.”

EvergreenHealth’s commitment to patient-centered care is made apparent by its track record of earning Healthgrades Five-Star ratings in several areas of treatment, as well. The health system has earned a Five-Star rating in the treatment of pneumonia for 11 years in a row, as well as Five-Stars for the treatment of stroke and sepsis for seven consecutive years, and the treatment of heart failure for six years in a row.

Other 2016 Five-Star ratings include treatment of heart attack, treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, small intestine surgeries, colorectal surgeries, treatment of GI bleed, treatment of bowel obstruction, treatment of pulmonary embolism, treatment of respiratory failure, hysterectomy, and urogynecologic surgeries and procedures.

“The Healthgrades 2016 Report to the Nation reveals striking disparities in quality at the local level, and underscores why it is vital for consumers to understand outcomes performance at alternative hospitals for specific conditions and procedures,” said Evan Marks, Chief Strategy Officer for Healthgrades. “Hospitals with superior outcomes for certain aspects of care may not perform as well in other areas. Moreover, a major metropolitan area may have many hospitals, but only a few may provide better-than-expected outcomes for the specific care a patient needs. Those hospitals that have achieved the Healthgrades distinction have demonstrated a commitment to exceptional quality care.”

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 Five-Star (statistically better than expected), Three-Star (statistically as expected) and One-Star (statistically worse than expected) categories. Detailed performance information, such as cohort-specific outcomes data and quality achievements, as well as more information on the Healthgrades 2016 Report to the Nation, including the complete methodology, can be found at www.healthgrades.com/quality.

For more information about EvergreenHealth, visit www.evergreenhealth.com or call the 24/7 Nurse Navigator & Healthline at 425-899-3000.

A comprehensive list of EvergreenHealth’s 2016 Healthgrades recognitions include:

Gastrointestinal Care

· Recipient of the Healthgrades Gastrointestinal Care Excellence Award™ – three years in a row (2014-2016)

· Recipient of the Healthgrades General Surgery Excellence Award™ – two years in a row (2015-2016)

· Named Among the Top 5 percent in the Nation for Overall GI Services – three years in a row (2014-2016)

· Named Among the Top 5 percent in the Nation for General Surgery – two years in a row (2015-2016)

· Named Among the Top 5 percent in the Nation for GI Medical Treatment – three years in a row (2014-2016)

· Named Among the Top 10 percent in the Nation for Overall GI Services – three years in a row (2014-2016)

· Named Among the Top 10 percent in the Nation for General Surgery – two years in a row (2015-2016)

· Named Among the Top 10 percent in the Nation for GI Medical Treatment – three years in a row (2014-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Small Intestine Surgeries in 2016

· Five-Star Recipient for Colorectal Surgeries – three years in a row (2014-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of GI Bleed – three years in a row (2014-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Bowel Obstruction – two years in a row (2015-2016)

Pulmonary Care

· Recipient of the Healthgrades Pulmonary Care Excellence Award™ – six years in a row (2011-2016)

· Named Among the Top 5 percent in the Nation for Overall Pulmonary Services – five years in a row (2012-2016)

· Named Among the Top 10 percent in the Nation for Overall Pulmonary Services – six years in a row (2011-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease – five years in a row (2012-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Pneumonia – 11 years in a row (2006-2016)

Critical Care

· Recipient of the Healthgrades Critical Care Excellence Award™ – two years in a row (2015-2016)

· Named Among the Top 5 percent in the Nation for Critical Care in 2016

· Named Among the Top 10 percent in the Nation for Critical Care – two years in a row (2015-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Sepsis – seven years in a row (2010-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Pulmonary Embolism – two years in a row (2015-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Respiratory Failure in 2016

Neurosciences

· Recipient of the Healthgrades 2016 Neurosciences Excellence Award™

· Recipient of the Healthgrades Stroke Care Excellence Award™ – seven years in a row (2010-2016)*

· Named Among the Top 5 percent in the Nation for Neurosciences in 2016

· Named Among the Top 5 percent in the Nation for Treatment of Stroke in 2016

· Named Among the Top 10 percent in the Nation for Neurosciences in 2016

· Named Among the Top 10 percent in the Nation for Treatment of Stroke – seven years in a row (2010-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Stroke – seven years in a row (2010-2016)

*Only hospital in the state to receive this award seven years in a row.

Cardiac

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Heart Attack – two years in a row (2015-2016)

· Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Heart Failure – six years in a row (2011-2016)*

*Only hospital in the state to receive this award six years in a row.

Gynecologic Surgery

· Five-Star Recipient for Hysterectomy in 2015

· Five-Star Recipient for Urogynecologic Surgeries and Procedures in 2015