Three San Fernando Valley-area hospitals have received five-star quality rating from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services agency.
The hospitals – Glendale Adventist Medical Center, Northridge Hospital Medical Center and Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills – placed in the top ranks of the agency’s annual quality-ratings survey released last month. The number of five-star hospitals serving the San Fernando Valley area is down one from last year.
The agency inspects and rates the thousands of hospitals across the nation that serve Medicare and Medicaid patients; the ratings are designed to be a guide for consumers in choosing hospitals. The ratings, from one to five stars, summarize quality measures across five areas: mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience and timely and effective care.
Nationwide, according to the agency, 483 hospitals, or just over 10% of those rated, received five stars, while 803 hospitals, or 17%, received four stars.
In Los Angeles County as a whole, 13 hospitals received five-star ratings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, up from 11 last year. Another 20 hospitals in the county received four stars from the agency, up from 13 last year.
In the San Fernando Valley area, in addition to the three five-star hospitals, five hospitals received four stars, up from just two last year:
- Glendale Memorial Hospital and Health Center;
- Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank;
- Sherman Oaks Hospital;
- Encino Hospital Medical Center; and
- Mission Community Hospital in Panorama City.
Providence Holy Cross Medical Center, which is part of the Renton, Washington-based Providence Health and Services hospital network, was in the four-star ranks last year, but moved up to five stars this year.
“From our housekeeping and food services staff to our doctors and nurses, the constant focus is on the quality care and safety we provide to each and every patient, every day,” said Bernie Klein, chief executive of Providence Holy Cross. “I’m both honored and extremely grateful to work among people who truly care about the people whom we serve.”
Another Providence hospital, St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, also moved up in the rankings, to four stars from three stars. Encino Hospital Medical Center also moved up to four stars.
Glendale Memorial Hospital and Health Center, Mission Community Hospital in Panorama City and Sherman Oaks Hospital all went the other direction, dropping to four stars from five stars.