How Data Drives Quality Improvement at Piedmont Fayette

Merry Heath, RN, MSN, chief nursing officer at Piedmont Fayette Hospital

Quality and star ratings matter, according to Healthgrades: Patients treated at hospitals receiving a 5-star rating have a 49 percent lower risk of dying, and a 59 percent lower risk of experiencing one or more complications during a hospital stay than if they were treated at hospitals receiving a 1-star rating in that procedure or condition.

Quality means different things to different people, even within a hospital environment. To Merry Heath, RN, MSN, chief nursing officer at Piedmont Fayette Hospital, it isn’t just about clinical services and outcomes. It’s about the constant pursuit of excellence each and every day at every level at every location.

“We live in a very engaged community where people are savvy. We believe that well-informed patients take a more active role in improving their own personal health,” says Heath, “and while a reputation may draw people to one of our health care facilities initially, it’s the team in each building that keeps them coming back.”

Recognition as an industry leader drives home the message, fostering community relations as well as employee morale. “We were the first in Georgia to receive the Pathway to Excellence for nursing accreditation,” Heath reports. “Whether it’s high scoring in a patient perception HCAHPS survey or being named one of America’s Top Hospitals by Healthgrades for the last six consecutive years, the message to our community is clear that we deliver quality.”

For six years in a row, Piedmont Fayette, just south of Metro Atlanta, has been ranked by Healthgrades as one of “America’s 50 Best Hospitals” for overall clinical excellence. Recently, it was also named one of “America’s Best” in the Coronary Intervention category that recognizes the top-10 percent of hospitals nationwide.

Learn how they do it: Does “Award-Winning Quality” Matter?

Best regards,
Matt Humphrey, President