Good Samaritan Named to Honor Roll

St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital in Greensboro has been named to the Georgia Hospital Association’s (GHA) Partnership for Health and Accountability (PHA) Core Measures Honor Roll.

Good Samaritan Hospital is one of 23 hospitals in Georgia to be placed in the Presidential category, one of the highest on the list. The honor roll is based on clinical data provided by the federal Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS), which administers the nation’s Medicare and Medicaid programs. The data was collected from October 2012 to September 2013.

Hospitals are required to submit care data to CMS, which details how well a hospital’s caregivers adhere to a list of Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) core measures. These measures are the clinical processes of care that are known to be the most effective methods of treatment for surgical patients and patients who have suffered heart attacks, pneumonia and heart failure.

For instance, a recommended treatment to help prevent a heart attack is to take aspirin either before or upon arrival at the hospital, as well as at discharge. It is recommended that surgery patients are given an antibiotic one hour prior to surgery to prevent infection. The VBP core measure is a composite measure that determines whether or not a patient received the right care at the right time. A hospital’s adherence to these recommended clinical practices usually leads to better outcomes.

“We are pleased to recognize Good Samaritan Hospital’s commitment to patient safety,” said Earl V. Rogers, president of GHA. “Compliance with these important core measures ensures that every patient receives the best, most effective health care possible.”

“Since we became part of St. Mary’s in January 2012, the focus has truly been on quality at all levels of the organization,” said Celia Covington, RN, Good Samaritan’s director of nursing. “I am very proud of our team for putting quality patient care first.”

“We constantly strive to maintain the highest standard of patient care,” said Montez Carter, President of St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital. “This honor validates that and is a tribute to the dedication of the staff members who ensure that great patient care is made even better.”

About St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital
St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital is a 25-bed critical access hospital serving the greater Greene County area. Located in a new facility on Lake Oconee Parkway, Good Samaritan Hospital is a Joint Commission accredited, not-for-profit Catholic hospital guided by St. Mary’s mission to be a transformational healing presence in the communities we serve. The hospital provides emergency care, inpatient care, surgical services, swing beds, and numerous outpatient services. St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital has been named one of the top 20 critical access hospitals in America by the National Rural Health Association. www.stmarysgoodsam.org.

About PHA
The Partnership for Health and Accountability, formed in January 2000 and sponsored by the Georgia Hospital Association, is a unique statewide collaborative that brings together health care providers with community agencies and individuals to achieve healthy communities. PHA includes representation from groups like hospitals, physicians, state health officials, legislators and businesses.