FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Truven Health Analytics Announces 2015 Top Health Systems
15 Highest-Performing Hospital Systems Achieved Higher Survival Rates, Made Fewer Errors, All
at a Seven Percent Lower Cost-Per-Episode Than Their Peers
TM
Ann Arbor, MI, April 20, 2015 — Truven Health Analytics , a leading provider of healthcare data and
analytics solutions and services, today released its seventh annual study identifying the top U.S. health
systems based on balanced, system wide clinical and administrative performance. The results reflect the
relentless focus of health system leadership on improving the value and reliability provided to all
communities they serve.
The Truven Health 15 Top Health Systems study analyzed data from more than 340 health systems and
2,841 member hospitals to single out 15 hospital systems that achieved superior clinical outcomes based
on a composite score of nine measures of quality, patient perception of care, cost per episode of illness,
and efficiency. The only study of its kind to aggregate rigorous analysis of individual hospital performance
metrics into system-level data, the Truven Health 15 Top Health Systems study provides hospital
administrators and boards of directors with crucial, evidence-based insights into the effectiveness of
health system leadership, organizational performance and management alignment. The study is part of
®
the Truven Health 100 Top Hospitals program, the national standard for objective hospital quality
evaluation.
"Despite the headwinds of a slowly improving national economy, increased consolidation and a new set of
rules imposed by reform, the 15 Top Health Systems have delivered higher quality and become more
efficient. These leadership teams are transforming their systems more rapidly than their peers and they
are proving that it is possible to do more with lower reimbursements,” said Jean Chenoweth, senior vice
®
president for performance improvement and 100 Top Hospitals programs at Truven Health Analytics.
"The common bond among all top-performers in our study is their ability to inspire collaboration and align
best practices across their organizations. Management excellence has proven to be the key to reliable
cost and quality improvement.”
Evaluating Top Heath System Performance
Among the key findings in this year’s study, winning health systems achieved higher survival rates and
fewer errors at a lower overall treatment cost than non-winning health systems. The research also found
that individual hospitals that are part of larger health systems are roughly 61 percent more likely to be
named 100 Top Hospitals study winners than those who are not part of a multi-hospital system.
Geographically, Minnesota and Indiana had the highest concentration of Top Health Systems, with two
apiece. Specific health system performance metrics broke out as follows:

Lower Cost-Per-Episode: The winning 15 top health systems spent 7 percent less per care
episode than non-winning per systems.

Better Survival Rates: The winning systems also experienced 1.2 percent fewer deaths than
non-winning, peer systems.

Fewer Complications: Patients of the winning health systems had 5 percent fewer
complications than patients in other systems.

Better Patient Safety and Core Measure Adherence: The top health systems had 10.9 percent
better patient safety scorecard, and had better adherence to core measures of care than their
peers.
“Superior health system leadership has become the fundamental impetus for success in the post-reform
healthcare environment,” said Mike Boswood, Truven Health Analytics president and CEO. “By
outperforming their peers across a wide range of key clinical and administrative performance measures,
the leaders of the 15 Top Health Systems have shown that it is possible to consistently deliver higher
quality care at a better value. It is an honor to recognize the efforts of these leadership teams.”
The study divides the top health systems into three comparison groups based on total operating expense
of the member hospitals. The 2015 winners are as follows:
Large Health Systems (more than $1.5 billion in total operating expense)
Allina Health, Minneapolis, MN
Mayo Foundation, Rochester, MN
OhioHealth, Columbus, OH
Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids, MI
St. Vincent Health, Indianapolis, IN
Medium Health Systems ($750 million – $1.5 billion)
1
Alegent Creighton Health , Omaha, NE
2
Exempla Healthcare , Denver CO
Mercy Health Southwest Ohio Region, Cincinnati, OH
Mission Health, Asheville, NC
St. Luke’s Health System, Boise, ID
Small Health Systems (less than $750 million)
Asante, Medford, OR
Maury Regional Healthcare System, Columbia, TN
Roper St. Francis Healthcare, Charleston, SC
Saint Joseph Regional Health System, Mishawaka, IN
Tanner Health System, Carrollton, GA
1
2
Now part of CHI
Now part of SCL Health
To see a list of previous winners, please visit 100tophospitals.com.
15 Top Health Systems Methodology
U.S. health systems with two or more short-term, general, nonfederal hospitals; cardiac, orthopedic and
women’s hospitals; and critical-access hospitals were assessed in the study. Researchers looked at nine
metrics that gauge clinical quality and efficiency: mortality, medical complications, patient safety, average
length of stay, 30-day mortality rate, 30-day readmission rate, adherence to clinical standards of care
(evidence-based core measures published by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, or
CMS), Medicare spend per beneficiary, and HCAHPS patient survey score. HCAHPS stands for the
Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems, a part of a national initiative
sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to measure the quality of care in
hospitals.
The study relied on public data from the 2012 and 2013 Medicare Provider Analysis and Review
(MedPAR) data and the CMS Hospital Compare datasets.
Researchers from the Truven Health 100 Top Hospitals program have analyzed and reported on the
performance of individual hospitals since 1993.
New Health System Performance Measures
Truven Health has introduced a number of new performance measures to this year’s study, which are
currently being evaluated for inclusion in future installments of the Top 15 Health Systems study. These
include Emergency Department (ED) efficiency, 30-day readmission rates for COPD and stroke,
operating margin and long-term debt-to-capitalization ratio.
About the Truven Health 100 Top Hospitals® Program
Since 1993, the Truven Health 100 Top Hospitals program has used independent and objective research
to guide hospital and health system performance. Organizations do not apply or pay for this honor, or pay
to promote their award. Award-winning hospitals and health systems prove that better care is possible
and provide an example for other organizations to follow across the industry. The 100 Top Hospitals
award winners demonstrate top performance on both how patients are cared for through clinical
measures and how the hospital performs as an efficient business.
Recognized by the National Institute of Standards and Technology as a national standard for objective
hospital quality evaluation, the 100 Top Hospitals program has been used to validate the performance of
the organization’s annual Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest honor for
performance excellence through innovation, improvement and visionary leadership.
100 Top Hospitals is a registered trademark of Truven Health Analytics. Visit 100tophospitals.com for
more information.
About Truven Health Analytics
At Truven Health Analytics we are dedicated to delivering the answers our clients need to improve
healthcare quality and reduce costs. Our robust, widely respected data assets and advanced analytic
expertise have served the global healthcare industry for more than 30 years. These combine with our
unique perspective across healthcare to give hospitals, clinicians, employers, health plans, government
agencies, life sciences researchers, and policymakers the confidence they need to make the right
decisions. With our healthcare expertise and tools for managing complex and disparate data, we
understand how to implement and integrate tailored analytics that drive performance improvement.
Truven Health Analytics owns some of the most trusted brands in healthcare, such as Micromedex,
ActionOI, 100 Top Hospitals, MarketScan, and Advantage Suite. Truven Health has its principal offices in
Ann Arbor, Mich.; Chicago; and Denver. For more information, please visit http://truvenhealth.com.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Brian Erni
J. Roderick, Inc.
For Truven Health Analytics
[email protected]
631.584.2200
To Learn More or Request a 15 Top Health System Report:
Christine Tankersley
Truven Health Analytics
[email protected]
919.864.0582