By: Jeffrey Maser  Feb. 14, 2018
In 2016, Baptist Memorial Hospital - Memphis accounted for the lowest skilled nursing facility (SNF) discharge rate for kidney and urinary tract infections out of all major Tennessee hospitals at 14.74%, according to a recent Dexur study. Bristol Regional Medical Center ranked 2nd with a 19.19% SNF discharge rate, nearly 4.5% higher than the rate at Baptist Memorial in Memphis. These were the only two facilities in Tennessee to report a rate under 20% for the condition. Erlanger Baroness Hospital in Chattanooga ranked 3rd at 20.29%, Methodist University Hospital in Memphis ranked 4th at 20.71% and Holston Valley Medical Center in Kingsport ranked 5th at 21.21%. These five hospitals, along with sixth ranking CHI Memorial Hospital Chattanooga, which reported a 22.83% rate, were the only major hospitals in Tennessee with a SNF discharge rate under 25% during the time frame.
Tennessee hospitals were included in the rankings if they accounted for at least 3,500 total Medicare inpatient discharges and a minimum of 11 DRG-690 (Kidney And Urinary Tract Infections Without Major Complication or Comorbidity) discharges to skilled nursing facilities between January - December 2016. Two diagnosis related groups fall under kidney and urinary tract infections; DRG-690 was selected for this analysis as its national discharge volume was nearly double that of DRG-689 (Kidney And Urinary Tract Infections With Major Complication or Comorbidity) during 2016; U.S. Medicare enrollees reported 165,593 discharges and Tennessee Medicare enrollees reported 4,089 discharges for DRG-690 compared to only 88,336 national discharges and 2,466 Tennessee discharges for DRG-689.
While Baptist Memorial Hospital - Memphis’ SNF discharge rate for kidney and urinary tract infections has decreased over the past few years, this hospital has had a consistently low SNF discharge rate compared to other Tennessee hospitals since 2013. Between January 2013 - December 2016, Baptist Memorial Hospital Memphis reported an 18.52% rate, which was 2nd only to the 17.96% rate at Methodist University Hospital during this four year time period.
Tennessee Hospitals with the Lowest SNF Discharge Rates for DRG-690 (January - December 2016) | |||
---|---|---|---|
SNF Discharge Rate Rank (Lowest to Highest) | Hospital | Hospital City | SNF Discharge Rate (%) |
U.S. Medicare Enrollees | 26.19 | ||
Tennessee Medicare Enrollees | 29.74 | ||
1 | Baptist Memorial Hospital - Memphis | Memphis | 14.74 |
2 | Bristol Regional Medical Center | Bristol | 19.19 |
3 | Erlanger Baroness Hospital | Chattanooga | 20.29 |
4 | Methodist University Hospital | Memphis | 20.71 |
5 | Holston Valley Medical Center | Kingsport | 21.21 |
6 | CHI Memorial Hospital Chattanooga | Chattanooga | 22.83 |
7 | Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital | Murfreesboro | 25.29 |
8 | Vanderbilt University Medical Center | Nashville | 25.64 |
9 | Saint Thomas West Hospital | Nashville | 25.95 |
10 | Blount Memorial Hospital | Maryville | 26.19 |