U.S. Government Report: St. Luke’s Hospitals Best in Lehigh Valley

In its annual comprehensive quality and safety review, the U.S. government ranks St. Luke’s University Health Network hospitals higher than all competitors in their markets.

St. Luke’s campuses were the only hospitals in the greater Lehigh Valley to earn the highest five- and four-star ratings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS).

“We are extremely proud to be a top performer nationally and THE top performer in our region, as recognized by this definitive U.S. government analysis of hospital data,” St. Luke’s Senior Vice President and Chief Quality Officer Donna Sabol said. “These results are testament to the superior care provided to our patients each and every day within our Network.”

The results were based on more than 100 quality measures collected from 4,500 Medicare-certified hospitals. The quality measures spanned multiple categories including mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience, effectiveness and timeliness of care and efficient use of medical imaging.

Assigned ratings of one to five stars, 407 of the 4,500 hospitals, or less than 9%, received a five-star rating, including St. Luke’s Bethlehem, Allentown, Anderson and Quakertown campuses.

Notably, St. Luke’s hospitals also outperformed their competitors to earn the highest patient experience scores in their respective markets.

“The results are in: Patients who partner with St. Luke’s enjoy higher satisfaction,” Sabol said of the patient experience scores.

CMS’s hospital ratings, which are available to the public at the CMS Hospital Compare website, reaffirm similar findings from The Leapfrog Group. In November, the national nonprofit health care ratings organization released its Hospital Safety Grades, awarding top marks to St. Luke’s hospitals.

Seven St. Luke’s University Health Network hospitals – Bethlehem, Allentown, Anderson, Miners, Monroe, Quakertown and Warren (N.J.)  – were among the 877 hospitals awarded an “A” for their commitment to keeping patients safe and meeting the highest safety standards in the U.S.

Additionally, the Bethlehem campus, also known as St. Luke’s University Hospital, is the only hospital in the region to have been named a Top Hospital by Leapfrog two years in a row. This national recognition for safety is one of the health industry’s most prestigious honors.