In the United States there are 4,599 hospitals, and of those hospitals, the Verde Valley Medical Center in Cottonwood is part of an exclusive list.
VVMC is one of 102 hospitals that received a five-star rating from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The federal agency has been collecting data from patient forms and claims data on more than 50 separate criteria and has ranked every hospital in the country.
With just 2.2 percent of those hospitals nationwide receiving the top score, VVMC is in the same tier as renowned medical centers like the Mayo Clinic.
“We’re certainly very honored to be a five-star hospital,” said Carole Peet, chief administrative officer at VVMC.
Peet noted that only seven hospitals in Arizona have achieved that score. “Our goal is to always be providing high-quality care. Not with a particular rating or star, but always looking at how we can continue to improve care,” Peet said. “Obviously when doing that, one of the outcomes is that when data gets looked at nationwide we perform very well.”
Dr. Sam Butman, a cardiologist who has worked at VVMC for 11 years, expressed a similar sentiment. He is not surprised that the hospital has received the recognition. “We’ve worked on that for a long, long time,” Butman said. “There’s a quality group that works on gathering the data, jumping on anything that’s outside what we consider safe practice. The staff is very committed to the care of these patients because they’re our neighbors. People want to do it right.
“It’s not like it’s a big city where you don’t know these people. These are people you bump into in the store or the restaurants. Some of them are neighbors. I think that probably plays a role in making our members as good as they’ve become.”
The CMS survey of hospitals throughout the country is part of the Affordable Care Act. This survey segments hospital data into seven broad categories. Of those categories, VVMC scored above average marks in safety of care, readmission and efficient use of medical imaging. VVMC also matches the national average in mortality, patient experience and timeliness and effectiveness of care.
One of the challenges VVMC faces is an aging population, as older patients can face more frequent and complex health issues. Peet noted that VVMC has sought to deal with this challenge by focusing on primary care and implementing regular follow-ups with patients to check on their health outcomes after they leave the hospital.
“You want to make sure that people have preventative care so that you’re improving their health,” Peet said. “If someone that has diabetes isn’t getting managed by primary care, they’re going to show up in your emergency department and be really sick.”
Butman expressed a similar sentiment, noting that the hospital strives to minimize readmissions.
“You don’t want to see your neighbor back in the hospital if you took care of him or her,” he said.
Similar to hospitals nationwide, VVMC faces the issue of a doctor shortage, making it hard to recruit certain specialists.
In an attempt to deal with shortages, the hospital is also seeking to shift some responsibilities away from physician to staff like nurse practitioners and physician assistants.
VVMC is part of Northern Arizona Healthcare, In addition to its main branch in Cottonwood, VVMC also has outpatient clinics for numerous specialties, and branches in Camp Verde, Sedona, and the Village of Oak Creek.
Jon Hecht can be reached at 634-8551 or email jhecht@larsonnewspapers.com
