Hospitals are leading the way in healthcare in being transparent about the quality of care they provide. They are now sharing with the public information about patients’ experience of care – from communication with the doctors and nursing staff to the cleanliness and quietness of the hospital environment.
It’s called Hospital Consumer Assessment of Health Care Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) – and its information about hospitals, provided by hospitals, for the consumer.
Apples-to-apples comparison of patients’ experiences at hospitals in our community and across the nation is now available at the Hospital Quality Alliance’s website.
Another resource for quality comparisons of hospitals can be found in the Maryland Health Care Commission's Maryland Hospital Performance Evaluation Guide.
Atlantic General Hospital is proud to provide high-quality, award-winning care to residents and visitors of Worcester County and the surrounding communities.
Wound Care Center
Robert Warriner III, MD Center of Excellence Award 2010, 2011
Center of Distinction Award 2009, 2010, 2011
Currently, the Wound Care Center at Atlantic General is able to heal more than 96 percent of the wounds treated here, an achievement that has exceeded national benchmarks and been applauded by Diversified Clinical Services, who manages the center.
For the third consecutive year, Diversified has bestowed its Center of Distinction Award to Atlantic General for its healing rate and high level of patient satisfaction among other measures. For the second time, AGH has also received the Diversified Robert A. Warriner III Center of Excellence Award for maintaining their quality and patient satisfaction levels for multiple consecutive years.
Get with the Guidelines®–Stroke Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award
As a result of its efforts to provide the best possible care to the rural area it serves, Atlantic General’s stroke center was recently awarded the American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®–Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award, the organization’s highest recognition for stroke care.
To receive the award, Atlantic General needed to achieve 85 percent or higher adherence to all Get With The Guidelines–Stroke achievement indicators for at least two consecutive 12-month periods. This is the second year that the hospital has reached these benchmarks. In fact, the hospital achieved between 91 and 100 percent on all indicators.
Achievement indicators are evidence-based treatments known to result in improved patient outcomes. They include appropriate use of guideline-based care for stroke patients, including clot-busting and anti-clotting medications, blood thinners and cholesterol-reducing drugs, preventive action for deep vein thrombosis and smoking cessation counseling.
Get With The Guidelines®–Stroke Silver Performance Achievement Award
The American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®–Stroke Silver Performance Achievement Award was awarded to Atlantic General Hospital at the association’s International Stroke Conference 2010. The award recognizes Atlantic General’s commitment and success in implementing a high standard of stroke care by ensuring that stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to evidence-based guidelines. To receive the award, Atlantic General needed to achieve 85 percent or higher adherence to all Get With The Guidelines–Stroke achievement indicators for at least 12 months consecutive months. In fact, the hospital achieved between 91 and 100 percent on all indicators. Achievement indicators are evidence-based treatments known to result in improved patient outcomes. They include appropriate use of guideline-based care for stroke patients, including clot-busting and anti-clotting medications, blood thinners and cholesterol-reducing drugs, preventive action for deep vein thrombosis and smoking cessation counseling.
2010 Delmarva Foundation Excellence Award
All hospitals in Maryland and Washington DC are eligible for the Delmarva Foundation’s Excellence Award for Quality Improvement. Atlantic General was the third hospital to receive the 2010 award. The Delmarva Foundation Excellence Award for Quality Improvement recognizes individual hospital performance improvement in four national inpatient clinical areas: acute myocardial infarction (heart attack), heart failure, surgical care, and pneumonia. For several years, the clinical team at Atlantic General has been working toward sustained compliance of 90 percent or greater with the Delmarva Foundation’s 15 key measures. In September 2009, the hospital’s Performance Improvement Team was formally established to undertake these goals and subsequently push them another step: to maintain at least 90 percent compliance with a total of 24 quality measures. Atlantic General Hospital met these goals in the top 10 percent of the nation.