PA Hospitals: PHC4 Report Shows Quality is High
October 27 2003 - 2:33PM
PR Newswire (US)
PA Hospitals: PHC4 Report Shows Quality is High /CAUTION -- ADVANCE
FOR RELEASE AT 2:00 A.M. EST WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29/ /ADVANCE/
HARRISBURG, Pa., Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hospital &
Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) today released the
following statement by President and CEO Carolyn F. Scanlan in
response to the 2002 Hospital Performance Report issued by the
Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4): "The data
in the PHC4 report show that mortality rates in Pennsylvania's
hospitals are below national averages - a solid indicator of
hospitals' commitment to patient safety and continuous quality
improvement that benefits the more than 1.8 million people who
depend on us each year for inpatient care. "Pennsylvania's
hospitals continue to provide their patients with high- quality
medical care, despite crushing financial burdens that have put more
hospitals in jeopardy. HAP's most recent figures show that more
than 7 of 10 hospitals in Pennsylvania are losing money on patient
care. "Skyrocketing medical liability insurance costs, persistent
shortages of key medical professionals, escalating
disaster/bioterrorism preparedness costs, and ongoing reimbursement
shortfalls from Medicare and Medicaid leave hospitals with little
or no financial wiggle room and threaten patient access to care.
"The bottom line for consumers is that they should take an active
role in their health care by educating themselves about health care
quality, asking questions, and taking advantage of all the
information available from hospitals, physicians, and health care
educators. "Hospitals remain committed to increasing the quality of
care. The complexity and multiple medical needs of patients
challenge hospitals in the delivery of care. They constantly strive
to care for patients safely and effectively." Information for
health care consumers is available on HAP's website at
http://www.haponline.org/audiences/consumers. HAP is a statewide
membership services organization that advocates for nearly 250
Pennsylvania acute and specialty care, primary care, subacute care,
long-term care, home health, and hospice providers, as well as the
patients and communities they serve. DATASOURCE: The Hospital &
Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania CONTACT: Roger H.
Baumgarten, Director, Media Relations, HAP, +1-717-561-5342, Cell:
+1-717-329-9537, Web site: http://www.haponline.org/
http://www.haponline.org/audiences/consumers
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