Does Your Hospital Make the Grade?
Meridian Health Rated Top in Monmouth and Ocean Counties for Quality Care

Parents are used to checking their child’s school report card. Consumers often see commercials to check their credit rating. And sports fans can instantly recite their favorite team’s standings. Ratings, rankings, and other forms of measurement are used in virtually every part of American life — but do you know how your local hospital ranks?

"Today, the public can find out information about clinical performance measurements for every hospital in the nation," says John K. Lloyd, FACHE, president of Meridian Health. "This is a tremendous step forward in ensuring consistent quality at the nation’s hospitals."

In New Jersey, the Department of Health and Senior Services’ annual Hospital Report Card measures all the state’s hospitals treatment of heart attack, congestive heart failure, pneumonia, and surgical infection prevention: four critical areas that reflect a hospital’s overall clinical quality.

Our Consistent Recognition for Great Care
In the report for 2006 performance, released in September:

• Meridian Health was ranked among the top three health systems in the state.



• Each Meridian hospital ranked in the top 15 hospitals in the state, as well as in the top three for Monmouth and Ocean counties.



• Jersey Shore University Medical Center and Riverview Medical Center were the top hospitals overall in Monmouth County. Both also ranking among the top 10 percent in the state for the treatment of heart attack.



• Ocean Medical Center was rated the top hospital overall in Ocean County, and ranked among the top 10 percent for preventing surgical infections.

"We are extremely proud of these results, which validate the collaborative efforts of our physicians, nurses, and staff to deliver consistent, quality care for our patients," says John. "We are very grateful to have excellent physicians serving on our medical staffs — physicians who embrace evidence-based medicine and who are equally dedicated to quality improvement initiatives."

In addition to these high rankings, Meridian Health has been regularly recognized for quality on the state and national level. In 2005, Meridian was one of only three health care providers in the nation to receive the prestigious John M. Eisenberg Award for Patient Safety and Quality. Also, in recent years, Riverview Medical Center and Jersey Shore were the first hospitals in Monmouth and Ocean counties named Distinguished Hospitals for Inpatient Service Excellence by J.D. Power and Associates. Jersey Shore was also the first hospital in the region to receive the New Jersey Governor’s Award for Performance Excellence.

A Journey, Not a Destination
"While we are very encouraged by these results and the usefulness of such data, it is important to highlight that no single study or source should be used to judge a hospital’s overall quality," says David Siegel, M.D., senior vice president for Clinical Effectiveness. "We encourage health care consumers to learn all they can about quality and patient safety. Government reports, hospital Web sites, recommendations from family and friends, and the opinion of a trusted physician or clinical expert are also important sources of information."

"At Meridian, we believe that quality patient care is a journey, not a destination," says John. "We remain committed to this journey in delivering the very best care for the residents of Monmouth and Ocean counties, and are confident that Meridian will continue to lead in the region and the state."

– Michael Valentino