Circ Cardiovasc Qual
-
Circ Cardiovasc Qual · Sep 2010
National patterns of risk-standardized mortality and readmission for acute myocardial infarction and heart failure. Update on publicly reported outcomes measures based on the 2010 release.
Patient outcomes provide a critical perspective on quality of care. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is publicly reporting hospital 30-day risk-standardized mortality rates (RSMRs) and risk-standardized readmission rates (RSRRs) for patients hospitalized with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and heart failure (HF). We provide a national perspective on hospital performance for the 2010 release of these measures. ⋯ High RSRRs persist for AMI and HF and clinically meaningful variation exists for RSMRs and RSRRs for both conditions. Our results suggest continued opportunities for improvement in patient outcomes for HF and AMI.
-
The quality and effectiveness of resuscitation processes may be influenced by the patient's body mass index (BMI); however, the relationship between BMI and survival after in-hospital cardiac arrest has not been previously studied. ⋯ For cardiac arrest caused by shockable rhythms, underweight, normal weight, and very obese patients had lower rates of survival to discharge. In contrast, for cardiac arrest caused by nonshockable rhythms, survival to discharge was similar across BMI groups except for underweight patients. Future studies are needed to clarify the extent to which BMI affects the quality and effectiveness of resuscitation measures.
-
Circ Cardiovasc Qual · Sep 2010
Impact of a statewide ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction regionalization program on treatment times for women, minorities, and the elderly.
Prior studies have demonstrated differences in time to reperfusion for ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) in women, minorities, and the elderly, relative to their counterparts. Regionalization has been shown to improve overall STEMI treatment times, but its impact on care differences among these important patient subgroups is unknown. The objective of this analysis was to assess the impact of a statewide system of STEMI care (The Reperfusion of Acute Myocardial Infarction in North Carolina Emergency Departments) on treatment times according to patient sex, race, and age. ⋯ A statewide STEMI regionalization program was associated with comparable improvement in treatment times for female, black, and elderly patients compared with middle-aged, white male patients. Nevertheless, there remain opportunities to further narrow treatment differences, particularly among the elderly.