By Stephen T. Watson
NEWS BUSINESS REPORTER
Catholic Health Systems is moving to provide detailed information on its hospitals by launching a website with data on treatment outcomes, patient experiences and other quality measures.
The Know Your Health Care site is aimed at current and prospective patients of the Catholic Health Systems hospitals – Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, Kenmore Mercy Hospital, Sisters of Charity Hospital and Sisters’ St. Joseph Campus. The site was launched earlier this month.
Catholic Health administrators say they are the first hospital system in the area, and one of just a handful of hospitals in the state, to offer this data set to the public.
“This is an example of us being very transparent,” said Joseph D. McDonald, Catholic Health’s president and CEO, during a meeting this week with reporters and editors of The Buffalo News.
The site, www.chsbuffalo.org/knowyourhealthcare, offers details on various awards and accreditations the hospitals and the hospital system have received; how the hospitals compare to peer facilities in different treatment categories; and rates of poor outcomes such as patient falls and bed sores.
The website is an attempt to respond to provisions of the federal Affordable Care Act, and other health care reforms, that seek to allow consumers to make informed decisions about their health care.
Most of the information comes from Catholic Health, but Dr. Brian D’Arcy, the senior vice president of health affairs, said the system reports negative, as well as positive, data.
And the site offers links to third-party organizations that provide independent data on hospital performance, such as Medicare’s Hospital Compare program and the Leapfrog Group.
The site does not include information on the average cost of these services, but McDonald said he expects the site to include pricing information in the future.
“The website is going to constantly be added to,” he said.
email: swatson@buffnews.com
NEWS BUSINESS REPORTER
Catholic Health Systems is moving to provide detailed information on its hospitals by launching a website with data on treatment outcomes, patient experiences and other quality measures.
The Know Your Health Care site is aimed at current and prospective patients of the Catholic Health Systems hospitals – Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, Kenmore Mercy Hospital, Sisters of Charity Hospital and Sisters’ St. Joseph Campus. The site was launched earlier this month.
Catholic Health administrators say they are the first hospital system in the area, and one of just a handful of hospitals in the state, to offer this data set to the public.
“This is an example of us being very transparent,” said Joseph D. McDonald, Catholic Health’s president and CEO, during a meeting this week with reporters and editors of The Buffalo News.
The site, www.chsbuffalo.org/knowyourhealthcare, offers details on various awards and accreditations the hospitals and the hospital system have received; how the hospitals compare to peer facilities in different treatment categories; and rates of poor outcomes such as patient falls and bed sores.
The website is an attempt to respond to provisions of the federal Affordable Care Act, and other health care reforms, that seek to allow consumers to make informed decisions about their health care.
Most of the information comes from Catholic Health, but Dr. Brian D’Arcy, the senior vice president of health affairs, said the system reports negative, as well as positive, data.
And the site offers links to third-party organizations that provide independent data on hospital performance, such as Medicare’s Hospital Compare program and the Leapfrog Group.
The site does not include information on the average cost of these services, but McDonald said he expects the site to include pricing information in the future.
“The website is going to constantly be added to,” he said.
email: swatson@buffnews.com