NHS also better than provincial average in administrative expenses.
Today, the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) publicly released a new website about health system performance called Your Health System. The Niagara Health System (NHS) is very pleased to report that we are performing better than the Canadian average in four hospital-specific indicators and better than the Ontario average in Administrative Efficiency:
- Better than the Canadian average for Hospital Standardized Mortality Ratio (HSMR);
- Better than the Canadian average for obstetrical trauma -- also highlighted as a top performer in obstetrical trauma (with instrument) since our results have been in the best 10 per cent of performances over the last three years;
- Better than the Canadian average for low-risk C-sections;
- Better than the Canadian average for cost of a hospital stay;
- Better than the Ontario average in administrative efficiency.
“The Niagara Health System is committed to the highest quality and safest care for all of our patients and families,” says NHS President Dr. Suzanne Johnston. “Our renewed focus on quality care is guiding our efforts to build a world-class hospital system in Niagara. We have a number of quality initiatives underway that support this commitment. Quality improvement is an ongoing journey, and we are very pleased with the progress we continue to make.”
The hospital deaths indicator (HSMR) tracks hospital mortality rates to reduce preventable deaths in hospitals and improve quality of care. Our HSMR for 2012-13 is 88, compared to the average rate of 89 for Canadian hospitals. In the obstetrical trauma category, NHS is 6.7 per cent, well below the Canadian average of 18.9 per cent. For low-risk C-sections, the NHS rate is 11.5 per cent, compared to a 14.1 per cent average for Canada. In the administrative efficiency category, NHS scored 5.3 per cent for administrative costs, compared to the provincial average of 5.8 per cent. The national average in this category is 4.5 per cent, however CIHI notes different health structures in the country could impact this comparison.
“Healthcare is important to everyone, and CIHI is to be commended for creating this user-friendly website to help patients and the public better understand the health sector,” says Dr. Tom Stewart, NHS Chief of Staff and Executive Vice President Medical. “It is also important for the NHS to understand how we are performing. We are grateful to have this data to reinforce what we are doing well and help identify areas where our services can improve based on comparisons with leading practices across the country.”
For details about NHS quality initiatives, please check the Quality section of our website.
Media contact:
Caroline Bourque Wiley, 905-378-4647, ext. 43113; cwiley@niagarahealth.on.ca
