GOODING — The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services surveyed more than 3,400 hospitals across the country, with 266 receiving a five-star rating. Six Idaho hospitals received a five-star rating, and they were...
- St. Luke's McCall
- Treasure Valley Hospital (Boise)
- Steele Memorial Medical Center (Salmon)
- Syringa General Hospital (Grangeville)
- Northwest Specialty Hospital (Post Falls)
- North Canyon Medical Center (Gooding)
North Canyon Medical center was the only recipient of five stars in South Central Idaho. The ratings were released nearly two weeks ago, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services monitored two items. One being patient experience, and the other being the overall quality of services for which North Canyon has received a five-star rating the past three years.
Overall quality monitors how hospitals treat their patients in dealing with diseases, sickness, injury, and life-threatening emergencies. They monitor the treatment and are then compared with the treatment received at another hospital.
It is the first year that CMS has decided to do the Patient Experience survey separately, and it required many patient's feedback. The survey is mailed to patients after being discharged to fill it out. They then send it back to the company Press Ganey where all the statistics are gathered.
For the patient experience, there are ten categories taken into consideration, such as a patient's overall rating, likeliness to recommend others, what the hospital environment is like, communication about pain levels, and more. CEO for North Canyon Medical Center, J'Dee Adams, said, "How nurses treat them and doctors treat them when they're here in the facility. They also ask them questions about their medications and transitioning to home to ensure that they have good discharge instructions and the right resources they need at home."
Since North Canyon continues to expand to its neighboring communities, they expect an uptick in patients as time progresses to take advantage of their resources. "It helps propel us as we grow to new services because they know that when we add that new service... It's going to come with the same expectation that we provide that personalized care," said Adams.
The hospital even experiences interest from other nurses and doctors from around the area as they would like to learn and practice at such a facility.
