Key Findings
Tuesday's report looked only at patients who received cardiac bypass surgery alone, not with any other procedures. Among the findings:
The number of bypass surgeries statewide declined 23% between 2000 and 2003 as the number of other cardiac procedures, including angioplasty and stent insertion, increased 15%.
There was no clear association between the number of bypass surgeries a hospital performed and its death rate, a finding that rebuts earlier research suggesting a link between volumes and outcomes.
Overall, 2.91% of the 21,272 patients who received stand-alone heart bypass surgery in 2003 died within 30 days of the procedure. That's higher than the 2.4% reported nationally, although the significance of the difference was not made clear.
Eight hospitals reported no deaths: French Hospital Medical Center in San Luis Obispo, Fresno Heart Hospital, Granada Hills Community Hospital, Irvine Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Little Company of Mary Hospital in Torrance, St. John's Hospital and Health Center in Santa Monica, Sutter Medical Center of Santa Rosa and UC Davis. These hospitals performed between 25 and 136 procedures that year.
About a quarter of the state's more than 430 hospitals perform cardiac bypass surgeries. Such operations long have been considered useful measures of quality because they are expensive and frequently performed.
Access the Report(pdf) Here |
