What does a 100 Top Hospitals National award mean to a healthcare consumer?

Having a Thomson Reuters 100 Top Hospitals® National winner in the community is very important to consumers. Just as local sports teams are measured by performance, this award means that a local hospital has been measured against all of the hospitals just like it in the nation. Each hospital is being recognized as a top performer in one of five separate hospital categories: major teaching, teaching, large community, medium community and small community. Check the latest list of winners to see which area hospital(s) are included.

A 100 Top Hospitals National winner ranks above the top 90 percent on hospital-wide performance when compared with its national peers. To win, the hospital was scored on eight performance measures. Considered together, these measures represent how well the hospital performed overall, not merely for one specific disease or surgical procedure.

A winning hospital has adopted a team approach — including its board, management, doctors, nurses and hospital employees — to constantly measure performance in many areas of the hospital to make it a better place for patients to be treated. Although there is no perfect hospital, research has shown that hospital-wide teamwork produces a greater likelihood of a better outcome, higher satisfaction and more reasonable cost, as well as a lower likelihood of a medical error.

It's important to understand that the 100 Top Hospitals® studies were developed for use as management tools to provide hospital executives and board members with a model of financial and operational efficiency. They are not designed to provide consumers with all the information needed to select a healthcare provider. Selection of a hospital is a complex decision that should be made in consultation with one's physician and family.

To understand what a 100 Top Hospitals: National Benchmarks for Success award means, download the brochure A Guide to the 100 Top Hospitals.