Some valuable new data was released recently showing progressive improvement in the quality of care given in New Jersey hospitals. So while my previous blog may have convinced you that I’m only focused on the Sports page (it’s looking good for that N.J. Turnpike series!), I also read with great interest the Hospital Performance Report issued by the N.J. Department of Health and Senior Services. This report showed that N.J. hospitals continue to improve the quality of healthcare in our state. Our hospitals improved their performance in all four overall categories contained in the report – heart attack care, pneumonia care, surgical care and heart failure care. In fact, this year we saw an increasing number of “100s,” which is the top score that reflects full compliance with certain standards of care. This year’s report also included several patient safety indicators for the first time, and New Jersey’s hospitals performed better than or on par with the national average in 10 out of 12 indicators.

Hospitals and their dedicated teams of physicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals work hard at providing quality care and looking out for patient safety. This work is continuous as new improvement strategies are identified and implemented. Earlier this month, another report issued by the ratings service HealthGrades reaffirmed what we saw in the state report – continued improvement in the quality of care provided by New Jersey hospitals. The HealthGrades report showed New Jersey among the top five states in the country in improvement for heart failure and stroke care, along with coronary intervention procedures.

At NJHA, we have focused a lot of time and attention on helping hospitals improve through the NJHA Institute for Quality and Patient Safety. We can’t and won’t rest on our laurels. Quality and patient safety are too important.

Postscript: For those who responded to my last blog post, I must report that my husband and son are telling me I‘ll have to move out if we do indeed have a Yankees versus Phillies World Series. I am almost sure they are joking.