Piedmont Fayette named one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals for seventh straight year

Piedmont Fayette announced Feb. 9 that it has achieved the Healthgrades 2021 America’s 50 Best Hospitals Award.

Piedmont Fayette is among the top one percent of nearly 4,500 hospitals assessed nationwide for superior clinical performance year-over-year according to Healthgrades, the leading resource that connects consumers, physicians and health systems.

Piedmont Fayette Hospital is the only hospital in Georgia to receive the America’s 50 Best Hospitals for seven years in a row (2015-2021).

“Achieving this award demonstrates our commitment to consistently providing safe, patient-centered care,” said Steve Porter, CEO of Piedmont Fayette. “It means a great deal for our hospital, and our amazing physicians, nurses, and staff members, to be recognized during such a challenging time. They have earned every accolade coming their way, and then some.”

Piedmont Fayette was also recognized as:

• One of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Coronary Intervention for a second year in a row (2020-2021)

• One of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Stroke Care for two years in a row (2020-2021)

• One of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Critical Care for three years in a row (2019-2021)

• Pulmonary Care Excellence Award for three years in a row (2019-2021)

• Stroke Care Excellence Award for eight years in a row (2014-2021)

• Five-Star Distinctions for Coronary Intervention, Treatment of Heart Attack, Treatment of Heart Failure, Treatment of Stroke, Treatment of COPD and Pneumonia, Treatment of Sepsis, Respiratory Failure and Pulmonary Embolism.

“COVID-19 has profoundly changed the delivery of healthcare but what is unchanged is the importance of high-quality care. Those hospitals that achieved the America’s 50 Best Hospitals Award have exhibited a long-standing commitment to quality and superior clinical outcomes, which differentiates them from other healthcare organizations. We applaud their ongoing efforts,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Healthgrades.

From 2017 through 2019, if all hospitals performed similarly to those achieving Healthgrades America’s 50 Best Hospitals Award, 177,026 lives could potentially have been saved. For example, patients treated for community acquired pneumonia at a hospital that achieved the award had, on average, a 35.9 percent lower risk of dying during their hospital stay than if treated at a hospital that did not receive the award.*

During that same time frame, patients treated in hospitals achieving the award had, on average, a 25.7 percent lower risk of dying than if they were treated in hospitals that did not receive the award, as measured across 19 rated conditions and procedures for which mortality is the outcome.*

Piedmont Fayette has put a particular focus on critical care, as well as cardiovascular and pulmonary services. The hospital recently converted one floor to a cardiovascular stroke unit, performed the first CardioMEMS procedure, which implants a heart failure monitoring device, and moved the heart failure clinic to a larger space. Piedmont Fayette also expanded its intensive care unit during the first part of the pandemic and earned accreditation for its pulmonary rehabilitation program.

“We believe that this recognition from Healthgrades sends an important message to the community and lets them know they can count on us to deliver high quality care,” said Porter. “We’re very proud to be one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals once again.”

Healthgrades America’s 50 Best Hospitals Award recipients are recognized for overall clinical excellence and providing top-quality care across multiple specialty lines and areas. During the 2021 study period (Medicare Fiscal Years 2017-2019), these hospitals showed superior performance in clinical outcomes for patients in the Medicare population across at least 21 of 32 most common inpatient conditions and procedures — as measured by objective performance data (risk-adjusted mortality and in-hospital complications).

To learn more about how Healthgrades determines award recipients, and for more information on Healthgrades Quality Solutions, visit www.healthgrades.com/quality.

Statistics are based on Healthgrades analysis of MedPAR data for years 2017 through 2019 and represent 3-year estimates for Medicare patients only.