A nationwide study ranking hospital quality and patient care named in September Tufts Medical Center among the top 10 academic medical institutions in the country.
The University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC), an alliance of 110 academic medical institutions, ranked Tufts Medical sixth overall among the 98 member institutions it evaluated in its Quality and Accountability Study.
The placement marks the institution's highest-ever ranking in the survey, according to Tufts Medical Media Relations Manager Julie Jette.
The medical center was the only UHC member in New England to rank in the top 10 on the list.
Tufts Medical, along with several other member institutions, achieved the highest possible ranking in the study's "equity" category, according to Jette. UHC determined equity by measuring the hospital's performance in providing care to patients across different genders, races and socioeconomic statuses.
"We have a very long history of treating the neediest patients," Jette said.
Michael Rosenblatt, former dean of the School of Medicine, said the medical center's high rankings were not surprising given the center's reputation.
"I think that Tufts Medical Center has always had a very high quality that is now being recognized," he said.
The UHC established its Quality and Accountability Study in 2005 as a way to identify the methods that bring about the highest levels of quality and safety in academic medical institutions, according to UHC Vice President for Performance Improvement Julie Cerese.
The survey aims to influence the performance of its participating institutions, Cerese told the Daily.
"The annual ranking has grown in importance and is seen as a strong driver for improvement and change among our members," Cerese said in an e-mail.
Jette echoed this, affirming that Tufts Medical sees its high ranking as motivation to further improve its standards of treatment.
"It really says to people that we can do this," she said. "It's a nice confirmation of what we've been doing, and an incentive to keep improving. Our goal is to be best in class."
The high ranking may also have an additional positive effect on the School of Medicine, Rosenblatt said, given the close ties between the school and the medical center.
"The working relationship between the medical center and the medical school is excellent and essential for success," Rosenblatt said. "Whatever is good for the medical center is good for the medical school."
The center has taken steps recently to improve the quality of its care, Jette said, citing a campaign to boost hygiene by improving the hand-washing rate among staff members. The hospital has also standardized the methods by which it inserts and maintains central lines, medical tubes that are inserted into major veins.
Such improvements have contributed to the center's cleanliness and quality of service, Jette said.
"We've dramatically improved our infection rate there," Jette said.
The UHC rankings, according to Tufts Medical Chief Nursing Officer Therese Hudson-Jinks, have proven the center's ability to evolve in line with changing standards of care.
"We understand that the science and evidence regarding patient care and quality is ever-changing and we are committed to adapt and respond for the sake of our patients and their families," Hudson-Jinks, who also serves as the center's vice president of patient services, said in an e-mail to the Daily.
Jette agreed that the placement highlighted the quality of the center's staff.
"This award has demonstrated to us that our team of clinicians is very talented and committed to excellence in patient care delivery."
The University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics in Salt Lake City earned the top spot in the UHC's ranking. Other institutions that received top evaluations in the study included University Medical Center in Tuscon, Ariz.; Methodist Hospital of Indianapolis, Ind.; Lehigh Valley Health Network in Pennsylvania and the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
The 110 UHC members, consisting of 254 affiliated hospitals, represent roughly 90 percent of the country's nonprofit academic medical institutions.
