Fletcher Allen Health Care Releases 2005 Act 53 Hospital Report Card;

Joins all Vermont Hospitals in Publishing Report on Quality of Care

BURLINGTON, VT. - Fletcher Allen Health Care today released its second annual Act 53 Hospital Report Card. The report ranks Fletcher Allen's performance on 20 quality of care measures for the treatment of heart attack, heart failure and pneumonia, and for the reduction of surgical infections.

"For the second year in a row, we are pleased to participate in this statewide initiative that gives the public a great deal of information about the quality of health care," said Fletcher Allen President and Chief Executive Officer Melinda L. Estes, M.D.  "In addition to this initiative, Fletcher Allen recently launched its own Quality of Care Web site providing additional quality information about our organization. I encourage members of the public to take advantage of both of these resources and become informed about these important measures of health care quality and safety."

The Act 53 Report is published in electronic format on Fletcher Allen's Web site at: http://www.fletcherallen.org/AboutFAHC/Act_53/index.html.  Fletcher Allen's Quality of Care Web site can be accessed at: http://www.fletcherallen.org/Quality/index.html. Links to both reports also can be found on Fletcher Allen's Home page, at www.fletcherallen.org. Consumers reading the Act 53 report will notice a difference in format from last year. This year's report contains actual percentages to show hospitals' performance, compared to the system of diamonds used last year to indicate whether a hospital was above, below or not significantly different from the national average.

Also, for the first time this year, Vermont hospitals are reporting on their progress implementing practices known to reduce surgical site infections, as mentioned above. Also new this year are Vermont hospitals' responses to two components of The Leapfrog Group's Quality and Safety Survey on hand-washing and surgical site infection prevention. This year's report also contains additional hospital pricing information on selected procedures.

In addition to these features, the report contains information on volume and mortality rates for selected procedures, patient satisfaction, safety, hospital finances, governance, public activities, Fletcher Allen's complaint process and its community needs assessment. It includes summaries of eight quality improvement and safety projects at the organization.

Fletcher Allen's performance on the 20 quality of care measures, and on the patient satisfaction and safety measures, are compared to Vermont hospitals, to hospitals nationwide, and in some cases, to academic health centers.

Background

This year's report - required by Act 53, a law passed by the Vermont Legislature in 2003 - was developed by a broad-based committee consisting of representatives from the Vermont Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities and Healthcare Administration (BISHCA), the Vermont Department of Health and the Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems (VAHHS), along with consumers, performance improvement and measurement experts, and staff from Vermont hospitals. For more information about Act 53, visit: http://www.bishca.state.vt.us/HcaDiv/HRAP_Act53/hosp_reports_FAQS.htm.

Fletcher Allen Health Care

Fletcher Allen Health Care, in alliance with the University of Vermont College of Medicine and College of Nursing and Health Sciences, is Vermont's only academic health center and one of 125 in the country.  Founded in 1995, through the merger of Fanny Allen Hospital, Medical Center Hospital of Vermont, and University Health Center, Fletcher Allen Health Care serves one million people in Vermont and northern New York.  The organization provides care at more than 40 sites and 100 outreach clinics in the region.