Fortune Magazine includes St. Luke’s on list of top hospitals for cardiovascular care

St. Luke’s University Hospital, Bethlehem, was named one of the nation’s top performing cardiovascular hospitals by Fortune magazine and IBM Watson Health.

The annual Fortune/IBM 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals study spotlights leading short-term, acute care, non-federal US hospitals that treat a broad spectrum of cardiology patients. The study is designed to identify impartial, actionable and attainable benchmarks for hospital and clinical leaders as they work to raise their own organizations’ standards of performance in cardiac care, according to a Fortune/IBM Watson Health statement.

“Despite the challenges of COVID-19, the hospitals recognized on the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals list are providing quality care in one of the most critical areas,” said Ekta Punwani, 100 Top Hospitals Program leader, IBM Watson Health. “Hospitals are constantly working to improve clinical and operational performance, and the exceptional organizations on this list demonstrate the standard for top performing cardiac care. Their benchmarks serve as a real-world checkpoint for cardiovascular care across the U.S.”

The study included 951 hospitals with cardiovascular service lines. Compared to similar cardiovascular hospitals, this year’s hospitals had better results on indicators intended to measure clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, financial performance, and patient experience, according to the statement.

“On behalf of St. Luke’s Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, I am proud to say this is affirmation of our commitment to excellence,” said Raymond Durkin, chairman of Cardiovascular Medicine, St. Luke’s University Health Network. “Our attention to details such as clinical outcomes, patient experience and cost efficiencies have made us the market share leader in the region.”

Based on the methodology used by Watson Health, the study concludes that if all U.S. hospitals’ cardiovascular service lines performed at the level of those cited in the study, some 6,400 lives and roughly $1.4 billion could be saved, and 5,000 additional bypass and angioplasty patients could be complication-free.

The annual 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals report highlights the top-performing cardiovascular hospitals in the U.S. based on a balanced scorecard of publicly available clinical, operational, and patient satisfaction metrics and data.